Microsoft Office Custom Document Properties Metadata

In Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint you can create custom document properties to help manage and track all kinds of information. If you link a property to a bookmark in the document, the property will be updated as the text is changed. Custom document properties can be details about a file that helps identify it, such as client-matter information, date completed, the author or operator name, the subject, or a keyword that identifies topics or other important information in the file.

Figure 1 displays Word’s Properties dialog box. The Properties list contains the custom properties for this document.

Figure 1

How to View Custom Document Properties

From The Microsoft Office Application

• On the File menu, click Properties, and then click the Custom tab. (see Figure 1)

From Windows Explorer

• Right click on the file, click Properties, and then click the Custom tab

How to create Custom Document Properties

There are two types of custom document properties in Microsoft Office. The First type is the static value custom document property. The second type is the linked value that is linked to text that is bookmarked in the document.

Creating Static Value Custom Document Property

1. On the File menu, click Properties, and then click the Custom tab.
2. In the Name box, type a name for the custom property, or select a name from the list.
3. In the Type box, click the type of property you want.
4. In the Value box, type a value for the property.

Creating Linked Value Custom Document Property

An advantage to a linked value custom property is that it changes dynamically when the text in the document changes.

Part 1 - Before you link a value to a custom document property, you must create a bookmark for the item in your document that you want to link a custom property.

Part 2

1. On the File menu, click Properties, and then click the Custom tab.
2. In the Name box, type a name for the custom property.
3. Select the Link to content check box.
4. In the Source list, click the name of the bookmark.
5. Click Add.

Custom Document Properties Uses

• Used to track information about the document, author, dates, history, etc
• Used as a reference in other parts of the document using the DOCPROPERTY field code. Example: { DOCPROPERTY ClientMatter }
• Using automation to grab custom document properties
  
  The following VBA example (see Figure 2) pulls the custom document property value ClientMatter and displays it in a message box.

Sub DisplayClientMatter()

Dim sThisClientMatter As String

sThisClientMatter = ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties("ClientMatter").Value

MsgBox "The client matter number is: " & sThisClientMatter

End Sub

Figure 2

Managing Custom Document Properties Metadata

As useful as custom document properties are, it is very important to be aware of their existence, because they stay with the document. When the document is “duped and revised” (File…Save As) the custom document properties from the previous document are retained in the new document. It is important to either change the document property’s value or delete them when using the same document to dupe and revise.

Deleting Custom Document Properties

1. On the File menu, click Properties, and then click the Custom tab.
2. In the Properties list box, select the name you want to delete.
3. Click the Delete button.

Using Metadata Management Software to View and Manage Custom Properties

We prefer to use Esquire Innovations iScrub metadata management tool to manage a document’s Custom Properties. With iScrub, you can “view” the custom document properties (see Figure 3) and create a metadata report from this view.

Figure 3

iScrub can also remove the document’s Custom Properties and go one-step beyond that by allowing the firm to specify which custom properties to be retained with the document. This is helpful if there are custom properties that need to stay with the document.