Preparing your Excel file for data import – Springly

Before starting

In order to add multiple contacts at once to your CRM, you can import them directly from an Excel file.

Preparing your file before doing the import will save you time in correcting any import errors, as it will assure that all the necessary information is present. and well organized.

This article will cover the following points:

Before importing your data
Rules and specific formats
Tips and tricks to prepare your file for data import

Before importing your data

Set up the data fields

When you import your data, the software will match the information fields created in the software (from the Community > Settings page) with the column headings in your Excel file and the values they contain.

You need to make sure that the Excel file has a column for each one of the fields (in red: mandatory, optional, and custom) and vice versa. Check out this article for more information on setting up these fields.

Use the template and Dummy Data

The easiest way to avoid import errors is to use the Excel template, which can be downloaded by navigating to Community > Contacts > Import multiple contacts > Read the import guide.

Using this file offers a couple of advantages:

It already contains all your data fields created on the page Community > Settings
Each column uses the correct number format, adapted to its values (text, dates, numbers, etc.)

Passing from a date format to a number format in Excel will replace the date of 08/02/1999 with a random number, creating an error when the data is imported. The template already has all the correct data formats - saving you time when importing your data.

A file with fictional values is equally available from Community > Contacts > Import multiple contacts. This file contains fictional people, which you will need to replace with your contacts.

Rules and specific formats

For the unique user ID

Every CRM needs a unique user ID. Find out more about this topic in this article.
If you've chosen the email as your unique user ID, all your members need to have an email. In the same way, if your unique user ID is a specific field (such as a registration number or license number), all members need to have that particular field filled in.

Go to Community > Contacts > Import multiple contacts and click on Read the import guide to get recommendations specific to your data fields.

For default information fields

Field	Rule
First/Last name	These are obligatory and cannot hold the same values.
Gender	Possible values are "M", "Male", "F", or "Female".
Emails	Avoid any kind of accents, and follow the format "___@___.__".
Date	Use the format MM/DD/YYYY or MM/DD/YY.
City, Zip Code, Country	All must be included, along with the address.
Address	Must be exhaustive in order to be verified and accepted by Google Maps. The city center address will be used if the address cannot be verified by Google Maps.

For custom fields

Field	Rule
Predefined values (drop-down list or multiple choice)	Values filled in the Excel sheet will need to be strictly identical to those defined in Community > Settings. If they are misspelled (which includes capitalization mistakes), the value will not be accepted.
Several value choices	Values must be separated by the character "\|". Example: Monday\|Thursday.
Text type	Limited to 255 characters.
Numerical type	Must be filled in using numbers (e.g. "1", "1.2” or “1,2”).
Website addresses (URLs)	Must be in the format: "mywebsite.ext" or “sub-domaine.website.com".
Documents to download	Not possible to include files in the Excel file when importing multiple contacts at once. These will pop-up as an import error. We recommend deleting them directly in your Excel file before starting to import your data.

Tips and Tricks to prepare your file for Data Import

Deleting duplicates

This check eliminates duplicates based on one or more reference columns.

We recommend you take a look at this article which explains how to delete duplicates in your Excel file directly.

Finding and replacing values

You can find cells that contain a certain text using the shortcut "Ctrl+F" (PC) or "Cmd+F (Mac).

It is then possible to replace values, either one by one, or all at once. This can be useful when replacing simple values, for example, if you want to replace all the "Woman" gender values with "F".

Check out this page for more information on the search and replace feature.

Removing line breaks

To delete line breaks, use the find & replace function described above, then:

Search "Alt + 010": this will detect the line breaks,
Replace by " ": this will replace all the line breaks by a space

Check out this page for more information on how to replace line breaks.