Matching Fields Imports
Matching fields imports are the most common type of import. While other import types like State Voter ID and UID tend to be more accurate, Matching Fields imports can be effective if done correctly. The only required fields for Matching Fields imports are:
'First Name', 'Last Name', 'State'
One of the following: 'Zip' OR 'Email' OR 'Phone'.
We do not recommend matching other fields unless it is your intention to overwrite data.
First name, last name, and state are the only required columns. You must also include at least one of the following: ZIP, Phone, or Email. We recommend removing all unused columns. Other columns in this file are for tagging purposes.
Before Importing
Files are limited to 15 million bytes.
CSV is recommended format.
Make sure to read through your file and clean any data discrepancies before importing, such as incomplete records or special characters (super important!).
Ensure that state columns have state initials as values. 'Virginia' will not work, but 'VA' will.
If you are importing to volunteers, make sure that no duplicate emails exist in your file. i360 requires a unique email address to create a volunteer.
Review our Best Practices guide for additional recommendations.
Create Import
Access Imports from Contacts > Imports. To start a new import, click 'Create Import' in the action bar on the bottom right.
A window will appear to request the following information:
Upload File (.csv or .xlsx)
Import Name
Make As: Contacts OR Volunteers
Import Options:
Standard Import will insert the data into your MyData database and update the import data with records from i360's database (if you are confident in the accuracy of data in this file, this is the recommended option).
Insert Only will only add the import to your MyData database without updating it.
Update Only will only update the data you import without adding it to your MyData database.
Global Tags
This tag will be applied to all records in this import.
'Auto-Generate Global Tag' is checked by default. We recommend keeping this selected. Retrieve auto generated tags from Search > Basic > Tags > Tag Category: Imports.
Once this information is inserted, select 'Create Import' to move on to Map Fields.
Map Fields
Scroll past the 'IDs' column until you see 'Contact'. Match the First and Last Name options in this section.
Scroll down to the Address or Contacts section of this page. Match any of the red fields that apply to your file. You may choose to match one or more, although only one is required.
The red will disappear once a field is matched.
Once you've matched all required, you can continue to the 'Tag Columns' page. We do not recommend matching any other fields unless you intend to add fields (like email) to contact profiles.
Tag Columns
Tag Columns is an optional step for users to apply tags from their database with values in their file. See our Tag Creation guide for information on how to create tags.
If your file contains columns to tag, you may check those columns on this page. For example, this file contains columns for 'Support' and 'Donated' with 'x's marked in the columns to indicate that someone is a supporter or has donated:
We recommend creating tags prior to the 'Tag Values' step. If tags are not already created, they will not be available to select. You may leave the page to create them and return once they're done.
Select 'Next' to move on to the Tag Values tab.
Tag Values
Tag Values will display the columns you chose in the previous step. Select the arrow to expand your selection to apply a matching category and tag.
Notice in the 'Support' example that two '+' icons appear. One appears in the row with a blank value and the other appears next to the 'x'. Be mindful of the rows that you apply tags to, as it is common that blank values will appear in this step.
Select the '+' in the 'x' row and apply relevant tags. Repeat this process for all tag columns and select 'Next' when finished.
Confirmation
The Confirmation page displays a summary of the Import ID, Import Name, File Name, Make As selection, Import Options, Mapped Fields, and Global Tags. Ensure all fields appear correct before selecting 'Import'.
After Importing
Users may track the progress of their import home page under the 'Status' column. Refer to the Status Legend at the bottom right of the screen (next to Create Import) for clarification on what each symbol means.
Double-clicking on a submitted import's name will display details for that import on the right. If an import has not been submitted yet, double-clicking will bring you back to the import draft.
If an import was unable to upload any records, an Exceptions download link will appear in the import row.
Selecting it will display those records so that the user may re-import them.
Please note that the Exceptions file will not display records that have misspelled states or incorrect State abbreviations, but will display records that failed for any other reason.
Import times can vary depending on the size of the file, number of tags applied, and site-wide import usage. If imports appear to take an unusually long time to load, please contact i360 Support.
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