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How to import Contacts

How to import Contacts

Enjoy the convenience of having all your Contacts in one place; simply upload a CSV, copy and paste, or type directly into the import table.
Mark Rummel avatar
Written by Mark Rummel. Updated over a week ago

Our import tool helps you add contacts to Givebutter. Upload a comma-separated value file (CSV), copy and paste contacts from a spreadsheet like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets, or type info directly into the import table.

Import new Contacts

Step 1: Prepare your contact data for import.

Givebutter needs some basic information about your Contacts to create their profiles. The data needs to be formatted and uploaded to your Givebutter Dashboard. Data formatting of this nature is traditionally a time-consuming step, and to help you prepare that data, we've included a template below.

Click here to download the Import Contacts File

Pro Tip: we recommend copying the template in Google Sheets or downloading it if you prefer working in Excel. Then match your data to the corresponding columns on the template.

The file *must* contain the following columns (in any order):

  • First Name: The donor's first name

  • Last Name: The donor's last name

The file may contain the following columns (in any order):

  • Middle Name: The donors middle name

  • Primary Email: The primary email of the donor

  • Emails: A comma-separated list of additional email addresses associated with the contact. You do not need to include the primary email in this field.

  • Email Subscription Status: Use true/on/yes/1 and to unsubscribe they can use false/off/no/0; if left blank, contacts will import as unsubscribed

  • Phone Number

  • Alternative Phone: other phone numbers, values separated by commas.

  • Phone Subscription Status: Use true/on/yes/1 and to unsubscribe they can use false/off/no/0; if left blank, contacts will import as unsubscribed

  • Address Line 1: If one address field has a value, all address fields must have a value. For example, if Country Code and Zip Code have a value, then Address 1, City, and State must also contain a value. Incomplete addresses will be deleted.

  • Address Line 2: Optional

  • City

  • State

  • ZIP Code

  • Country Code: 3-digit or 2-digit country code allowed.

  • Tags: Apply tags to new contacts, to apply multiple tags, separate by a comma

  • Date of Birth: The contact's Date of Birth is in MM/DD/YY or MM/DD/YYYY format.

  • Company: The Company associated with this contact

  • Title: Title associated with the contact

  • Twitter URL: Two formats are acceptable: the entire URL or /handle

  • Linkedin URL: Two formats are acceptable: the entire URL or /handle

  • Facebook URL: Two formats are acceptable: the entire URL or /handle

  • Notes

Finally, save the Excel file to your computer or download the Google Sheet as a .csv to your desktop.

Step 2: Upload the import file and map to Givebutter.

Navigate to the Track > Contacts tab of your Givebutter Dashboard, click the Import button, then click New Import.

Next, select to import or copy and paste the Contact data.

Click Upload data from file, review the data mapping in your import file to the fields in a preview window or manually enter your data into the window.

Whenyou'ree finished, toggle through some of the records to spot-check for completeness and click Continue.

After clicking Continue, you will receive an email confirmation from Givebutter. If that status is failed, follow the directions provided in our email to reconcile any errors.

To track the status of your Imports at any time, navigate to Accounts Settings > Imports.

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