Question: I send out a weekly stock report to the stock controller to update with the new stock items that come into the warehouse. In this Excel report the cell that contains a product code name always needs to begin with a standard prefix of ID- and must be at least 10 characters long. How do I ensure that the stock controller captures the Product ID’s correctly?
Answer: By using a Formula in a Data Validation to calculate what is allowed to be captured.
Applies To: MS Excel 2007, 2010
- Apply Data Validation to column A (ProductID) to ensure that Product ID’s are entered correctly in future
- Select the Data Tab, Go to Data Validation
- Enter the following criteria for the Data Validation Settings Window
- Allow – Custom
- Formula AND(LEFT(A2,3)=”ID-“,LEN(A2)>9)
- Enter the following criteria for the Data Validation Input Message Window
- Enter the following criteria for the Data Validation Error Alert Window
- Insert the following Product ID’s into Column A
- ID-23456789
- ID456878673
You will get an Error alerting you that the Incorrect Product ID has been entered
Note: The input message prompts you to enter the correct Product ID’s
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