Karbon works a lot better when it has your client data in it. In this article we'll answer how you can migrate your contact data in a quick and safe way, from exporting your current data to maintaining your contact records in Karbon.
Index
Video Overview of Importing Contacts
4 options for importing
To get this process started, you have 4 options to choose from:
Karbon Self-Service Import (Free): The easiest and fastest way to import your organizations and people contacts into Karbon. First, export your client list from your current provider in an excel or csv file, prepare the data with the correct formatting, and then import it into Karbon from your contacts page in a matter of minutes.
Self-Service (Free): Download the import file and populate with your basic client data. Once the data is prepped and ready to go, upload your file to this secure Dropbox link to be imported into Karbon. The Karbon team will take it from there and update you once complete. If there are any errors, we’ll provide you a list so that you can update your account directly. See above for instructions on how to export your current data.
Assisted ($299 USD, or free on the Karbon Business Plan or with our Assisted Onboarding Package): Assisted import includes full client accounting details (people and organizations), in-depth data review, upload and import error support.
Download the Assisted Import File and populate with your exported client data from your existing system. Once the data is prepped and ready to go, upload your file to this secure Dropbox link to be imported into Karbon. Use the Live Chat option through Help & Feedback within Karbon if you have any questions. Once your uploaded file has been received, our onboarding team will review your data, request payment, import your data, and resolve any data import issues that arise.Full-service white glove Karbon onboarding ($3,999 USD): Includes live training, data import, process consultation and work imports. Visit our add-on services page for more details on our packaged services.
Fill out Import File
If you choose option 2, Self Service or option 3, Assisted, you will be asked to fill out an import file. There are clear instructions on how to fill out the file on the first tab, as well as some Data Examples on the second tab.
Basic file fields
Organization Name: Clients in Karbon can be either Organizations (businesses) or People (individuals). In addition, People can exist in Organizations. "Organization Name" is the place to list all organizations that you do or may do business with. While only the Organization Name is required, the other fields in the sheet are important to have a complete client record.
Note: we recommend setting up marriages, couples, spouses as organizations with individuals on the People tab relating to these organizations.
Description: This field is a text field and can hold any description of the client that you'd like or any information that doesn't fit in any of the other fields.
Website URL: For the Organization Name listed, enter the org's website URL in this column. Use either the https://www.karbonhq.com convention or just www.karbonhq.com.
Client Identifier: Client ID, Client code or client number. Keep in mind that this has to be a unique value for each entity.
Fiscal Year End Day: The Fiscal Year End Day is the day of the month for the end of the fiscal year. Select the appropriate day from 1 to 31.
Fiscal Year End Month: The Fiscal Year End Month is the month for the end of the fiscal year. Select the appropriate month from 1 to 12.
First, Middle and Last Name: Enter the full name of the desired client using the three columns provided: First Name, Middle Name, and Last Name.
Preferred Name: The Person's Preferred Name is the name used in Karbon's Client Tasks in email communications with a client. This is typically the person's first name only or the name they preferred to be called.
Date of Birth: The Person's Date of Birth.
Person's Email: The Email you'd like to be associated with the person. If a person has multiple emails associated with them (maybe because they are associated with multiple organizations), simply add additional lines and specify a different email address. This will results in multiple contact cards for this contact in your account. Karbon will handle all the proper associations so your timelines and communications work as expected.
Belongs To: "Belongs To" is the column used to associate a person to an Organization. If a person is associated to multiple organizations (such as a marriage, trust, business, non-profit, etc.), you will need to do so on separate rows within the sheet. To associate the contact card to the organization, the name must match the name from the Organization tab exactly.
Role: The role the person has in the selected Organization.
Phone numbers: These fields can contain different phone numbers for the client, such as Office, Fax, Mobile, Home and Other numbers. If you have additional phone numbers, you can put those in the description field.
Social Media Profiles: These fields can contain all of the social media profiles, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter and Skype.
Addresses: For the address, include the full address for the client, whether it is the physical, mailing, legal or home address. For instance, in the US, this would include the address line, city, and state. Use commas to separate each distinct part of the address. Enter the full country name in the country field.
Client Group Name: Clients (Organizations and Persons) in Karbon can be grouped into Client Groups to represent trusts, joint tax returns, multiple entities, etc. As a primary data element throughout Karbon, the column "Client Group Name" is the place to list all client groups that you do or may do business with. While only the Client Group Name is required, the other fields in the sheet are important to have a complete client group record.
Assisted file fields
In addition to the fields mentioned above in the basic file, you can add the following fields in the assisted file.
Legal Name
Legal Firm
Incorporated / Registration Date
Industry / Line of Business
Annual Revenue
Valuation
Sells
Revenue Model
Services
Basic Notes
Employee Locations
Office Locations
Tax Notes
Sales Tax Basis
Sales Tax Period
Entity Type
Income Tax Instalments
Business Numbers
Company Number
Tax File Number
Tips and tricks
Be sure to check for invalid email addresses
Don't forget to look for unwanted duplicates
Add another row for the organization or person to add multiple email addresses.
People can be associated with more than one Organization. Use multiple lines if they belong to more than one Organization and/or if they have additional details (i.e. email addresses, street addresses, etc.)
On the people tab, Preferred names are necessary when using Karbon's client tasks. We use the preferred name in the salutation (i.e. Dear John).
Exporting your data from another provider
Whether from email, workflow, CRM and accounting solutions providers, learn how to export your data for migration into Karbon.
Exporting contacts from Outlook
Log in to your Outlook.com account.
Go to your contacts.
From People, select Manage > Export.
Note: If any of these steps are different from what you see on your screen, search Microsoft Outlook.com help for the latest address book export instructions.
Exporting contacts from Gmail
Log in to your Gmail account.
From the list on the left side of the page, click Contacts.
Select More actions > Export.
Choose to export using Outlook CSV format (for importing into Outlook or another application).
Note: If any of these steps are different from what you see on your screen, search Gmail help for the latest address book export instructions.
Exporting contacts from Canopy
Click the Options icon in the top, right corner of your Contacts screen.
Click Export All Contacts.
A CSV file will automatically start to download to your computer
Check your computer’s Downloads folder to locate the file.
Exporting contacts from Xero Practice Manager
Open Xero Practice Manager.
In the Business menu, select Settings.
Under Connections, click Export.
Under Options, for File Type, select Generic - Clients.
Do not change any other settings. Scroll down and click Export.
Scroll down to Export Result and press Click to download export file.
Xero Practice Manager will download all your company's clients in a CSV file to your computer.
Repeat Steps 2 - 6 for Generic - Contacts.
Note: If any of these steps are different from what you see on your screen, search Xero Practice Manager help for the latest client export instructions.
Exporting contacts from QuickBooks Online
Sign in to QuickBooks Online.
Click Reports and search Customer Contact List.
Click on Customize, in the top left corner.
Click Change Columns. This will allow you to choose the columns you need for your spreadsheet, including Website.
Make any additional customizations needed to capture all your data.
Click Run Report.
Click Export and choose excel or .CSV.
Exporting contacts from CCH Axcess
Open Return Manager.
In the Quick Search criteria, set filters to All.
Click Go.
Press Control + A to select all client IDs.
Click the Home tab.
Click Export Grid.
Exporting contacts from CCH Workflow
Click File > CT Import/Export > Export.
In the Select client(s) to export window, search for the client by:
Name: Enter the company name in the Name box or click the Name column header to sort the list alphabetically.
Client Code: Enter the client code in Code or click the Client Code column header to order by number or alphabetically.
Use the vertical scroll bar to scroll up and down the list.
Group: Enter the name of the Group(s) to filter the list of clients to groups only.
Choose the Client(s) by selecting the check box to the left of each individual Client Code, and then click Next at the right of the bottom menu bar.
To choose All Clients, select the check box to the left of the Client Code column header on the top menu bar.
In the Select export file window, select where you want to save the file to by clicking on either (Click here to select an export file) or (Browse). A new Save As window opens.
Exporting contacts from OfficeTools
Go to Contacts > Import/Export Contacts > Excel Importer > Export.
Check the boxes of the fields you want included in the file.
You can filter the contacts info to be exported by Contact Type and Entity Type.
Exporting contacts from Thomson Reuters - Practice CS
Go to File > Export.
Mark the Other checkbox, located at the top of the Export Clients window, for the option "Export Clients To:"
Click the More button to the right of the blank Other field, and browse to the location which you want to save the file.
Name the file, and verify the Save as type field shows, ".csv or .xlsx".
Select the clients that you would like to export.
Exporting your client list from another provider
Refer to your current solution provider for export instructions.
Maintain your contact records
Once your contacts are setup, you can import additional individual contacts as needed.
An integration with Zapier can also help you keep contacts up to date going forward. If you wish to make bulk changes to your contact data to update, add or delete entities, you can do so as well. Depending on your plan, there may be an additional fee for bulk updates. Visit our add-on services page for more details.
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