Import contacts from Excel or another CRM

An import is quick to run and hard to undo. That is why ten minutes spent preparing the file beats fixing thousands of contacts one by one afterwards.

Requirements

Step by step

1. Save the file as CSVExport your data from Excel or your old system as a CSV file with UTF-8 encoding. Without UTF-8, special characters turn into unreadable symbols.
2. Clean up the columnsOne header row, clear column names, first and last name in separate columns. Phone numbers in international format with country code, so +1 or +49 rather than a leading zero. Without the country code, SMS and calls will not work later.
3. Remove duplicates firstSort by email address in Excel and delete duplicates. This is far easier before the import than after.
4. Start the import and map fieldsOpen the contacts area, choose import and upload your file. Map each column to the matching field. For data without a standard field, create a custom field beforehand.
5. Add a tagAssign a tag during import, for example the source name and the date. This lets you filter or reverse this specific import at any time.
6. Test with a small fileImport twenty rows first, check the result, then do the rest. This single step prevents most import disasters.

Common issues

Special characters look wrong. The file was not UTF-8 encoded. In Excel, explicitly choose CSV UTF-8 when saving and import again.

Phone numbers do not work. The country code is missing. In Excel you can add it to all rows at once with a formula.

Contacts are duplicated. Matching runs on the email address. Contacts without an email or with a different spelling are created as new records.

What comes next

With contacts in place, give them structure: create your pipeline and define the stages your sales process actually has.