Add text watermark to PDF document using Power Automate
This is the second article in our “How to use Watermarks” series. We hope these articles will help you to get the best out of watermarking PDFs using Plumsail Documents in Power Automate (Microsoft Flow).
Before we dive in, here is where we are in our “How to use Watermarks” series:
How to use an image type watermark to automatically add a company logo to PDF files and save them in a new folder.
How to use a text type watermark to prevent documents dissemination.
How to use a PDF type watermark to add a watermark with a specific design to PDF documents generated on submitting a form.
Add watermark to PDF action supports a few types of watermarks — Text, Image, and PDF:
So, let us have a look at how to add a text watermark to a document.
Use custom text watermark
Classify your documents
A watermark that states “Confidential” or “For internal use only” can serve as a reminder of how the document should be handled. For example, people who have access to the document may be more conscious of leaving it open on their computer screen when they step away if it is marked “Confidential.”
Show the status of a document
You may also use the text type watermark to show the status of a document — such as Reviewed, Approved, or Draft — so that other users immediately recognize the status of the document you have shared.
Identify the perpetrator if the document is leaked
When sending confidential documents outside your organization, adding a recipient-specific watermark can deter unauthorized sharing. In addition to an email address, you can include the recipient’s name and the date and time to protect the PDF and help identify the source if the document is leaked.
Let’s have a look at an example.
Let’s say you have a list of recipients on your SharePoint site:
You need to send them a confidential document you would prefer not be spread around. For example, a price list.
You can create a flow that is started on a particular item from the list:
Here is how the entire flow looks like:
Create the flow
Let us have a look at each step of the flow.
Flow trigger
Please navigate to Power Automate, create a flow and find For a selected item action from the SharePoint connector. Using this trigger will allow you to start the flow on a selected item manually. Set your Site Address and the List name:
Get item
Get item data using Get item action from the SharePoint connector. Put here ID from the output of the For a selected item action:
Get file content
Get the file you are going to send with help of Get item action from SharePoint connector:
Add a watermark to PDF
This is an action from the Plumsail Documents connector.
If this is your first time using the Plumsail Documents connector, Power Automate will request you to create a new connection. Provide the following details and then click Create new:
Connection name - you can type any name for the connection, for example Plumsail Documents (production key);
API Key - create an API key in your Plumsail Account, copy it, and paste it into the API Key field;
Data center location - make sure the selected data center location matches one of your account.
Choose Text type of the watermark. Put here File content from the output of the Get file content action and the recipient’s Email from the output of Get item action.
We set custom values for Angle, Font Size, Color, Watermark position, and Opacity.
You may check the detailed information on how to use these and other settings.
Send an email
We used Send an email action from Office 365 Outlook connector, but you can choose another one. Attachment content is the output of Add watermark to PDF action.
That is it. The recipient will receive the price list with their email address as the watermark. It will potentially discourage leaks by identifying the recipient.
Conclusion
We hope this series of articles on using the Add watermark to PDF action helps you protect and manage your PDF documents.
If you haven’t used Plumsail Documents yet, registering an account would be the first step. It is quite easy to get started.