Salesforce Magical Import Overview

Your team is spending valuable time in Excel cleaning and standardizing your data before importing it to Salesforce. Even with this effort, details are being missed, formatting is often inconsistent, and some duplicates are being created in the database. Though Salesforce has a built-in import tool, the features are limited.

Insycle's Magical Import module allows you to import data flexibly and powerfully, ensuring that clean, non-duplicate data is entered into Salesforce. You can explore, format, standardize, associate, and cleanse the data before it's imported to the CRM (instead of using Excel or other tools).

Key Use Cases

How It Works

When you click to upload a CSV to Insycle, it doesn't import to the CRM right away. Instead, it loads your CSV into Insycle for preprocessing.

You'll map the CSV columns to CRM fields and choose how that data will be used on a field-by-field basis. Then, you can manage your data in several ways—cleansing, formatting, standardizing, appending data, and creating relationships before importing it into your database.

Insycle also helps you avoid creating duplicates as a side effect of the import using unique identifiers and comparing the CSV rows to existing CRM data.

You can save the import configuration as a template so future imports can be set up with just a couple of clicks.

Supported Salesforce Record Types

Insycle supports the following Salesforce record types:

  • Contacts
  • Accounts
  • Leads
  • Opportunities
  • Custom record types

You can select the record type you would like to import at the top of the module.

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Step-by-Step Instructions

Select the CSV File for Import and a Template

Navigate to Data ManagementMagical Import

Select the database and the record type in the top menu. Then choose the CSV file that you would like to import.

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Select a template if you or someone on your team has already saved one that handles importing from the same source.

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Step 1: Map CSV Columns to CRM Fields and Choose Import Method

After uploading your CSV data into Insycle, Step 1 will populate with a column for each field in the CSV. Insycle automatically looks for the matching CRM fields and maps them for you. You'll need to manually map any fields it can't figure out.

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Next, tell Insycle how to use the data on a field-by-field basis by selecting the Import Mode for each column—update existing records, create new records, or do both depending on what data is in your CSV.

There are four Import Modes:

  • Update: Import CSV values into Salesforce, overwriting existing CRM values (will skip empty CSV values).
  • Fill: Import CSV values only when there is no existing value in Salesforce (will not overwrite existing CRM values).
  • Overwrite: Import CSV values, including empty CSV values, into Salesforce (will overwrite existing CRM values).
  • Append: Add CSV values to existing values in Salesforce. For example, append notes from a CSV to existing notes or add values on multi-select fields (checkboxes or picklists).

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Step 2: Choose the Identity Field and an Action: Import, Compare, Delete, or Export

Insycle uses an Identity Field to compare the CSV to your Salesforce data and identify existing records for the same entity. Identity Fields are data points that would only belong to a single record—such as email address, phone number, street address, or ID number. For accounts, it could also be account name, or domain. No matter what action you want to take, you must choose an Identity Field.

There are four actions in Step 2 to choose from: 

Import CSV Data into Salesforce

Use the Import feature to enrich existing records or create net new records from data you have in a CSV (without adding duplicates). Learn more about importing from a CSV.

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Look for Duplicates and Compare Values

Use the Compare feature when you want a side-by-side comparison of CSV data against matching items in Salesforce. This is a read-only operation.

Compare features: 

  • Create a new CSV report comparing your import CSV values to Salesforce.
  • See how many contacts from a file are net-new versus already existing in Salesforce.
  • Show CSV data side-by-side with Salesforce data so you can preview how your CSV import would change data for existing records.
  • Check unsubscribes against your Salesforce database.

Learn more about using Magical Import to compare CSV data to existing records in Salesforce.

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Delete Listed Items from Salesforce

Use the Delete feature when you have a CSV containing records you know need to be deleted. You can match the CSV rows to CRM records and easily delete the data in bulk.

Learn more about using a CSV to specify records to delete from Salesforce.

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Export Salesforce Data Side-by-Side with CSV Values

Use the Export feature when you want more information from your CRM about items you have in an external list. Put the items you want to look up in a CSV—you really only need an Identity Field used to look for matches in your database. Then select the Salesforce fields you want to export for the matching records.

Export features:

  • Create a new CSV report comparing your import CSV values to Salesforce.
  • Select the Salesforce field values to include in the export using the Fields to Export.
  • See how many contacts from a file are net-new versus already existing in Salesforce.

This is a read-only operation.

Learn more about exporting CRM data for CSV comparison or enrichment.

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Step 3: Format and Standardize Data Before Importing (Optional)

Under Step 3, you can make bulk changes to the CSV data or filter out rows before it is uploaded to Salesforce. The options selected and applied here will be reflected in the table view of the data in Step 1; they are not done directly in your Salesforce data.

Use Functions to Transform CSV Data

On the Functions tab, you can select fields from your CSV and apply formatting and transformation changes to the field data. You could clean up, format, add or remove text, copy values to other fields, or make other updates before it is uploaded to Salesforce. These are the same functions found in the Transform Data module, which you can learn more about here

When finished, click Apply and view the changes under Step 1

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Find & Replace Values before Importing

Using the Find & Replace tab, you can bulk update values in the Step 1 table so they are ready to go when you import. This eliminates the need to edit the original CSV and set it up in Insycle again.

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Filter Out Rows in Your CSV

The Filter tab allows you to limit which rows from your CSV are imported based on criteria you define. You may want to do this to import in segments that are handled differently or if there are just some junk rows you don't want to import.

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Step 4: Add to Campaigns, Bulk Update, Link, or Format Date (Optional)

Add Contacts to Salesforce Campaigns

When importing Salesforce contacts, the Campaign tab will appear. From here, you can add the imported contacts to an exisitng campaign from Salesforce.

Type to search campaigns, then the Show link will let you open the campaign in Salesforce for a preview.

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Make Bulk Changes to a Field 

On the Bulk Update tab, you can add a value to Salesforce records even if the field is not in the CSV. This will add the same value for all the imported records.

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Link Imported Rows to Records in Salesforce

The Link tab allows you to create relationships between CSV records and existing records in your database when you import. 

Learn more about creating relationships when importing.

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Set Format for Dates Tied to Records

The Date Format tab allows you to reformat dates before the data is imported into Salesforce.

Learn more about reformatting dates before the data is imported into your CRM.

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Step 5: Import the Data into Salesforce

By default, Insycle will attempt to import all of your CSV data into your database. If there are only a few records you want to import, return to the table under Step 1 and check the boxes beside the select records. 

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When you click the Import [X] Contacts button under Step 5, you'll be prompted to confirm.

⚠️ Note that there is no preview step. Once you confirm, the changes will be applied to Salesforce immediately.

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After the import runs, the Import Result breaks down the import information—how many records you tried to import and how many succeeded, failed, were updated, deleted, or unmodified. Click the Run ID to open a CSV record of the import.

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Insycle will generate a CSV report of these changes and email it to you. If you open the CSV file, you can look at the Result column to see how each row of your import was handled.

The Result column may show:

  • Created - A new record was created in Salesforce
  • Updated - An existing record was found and updated with data from the CSV
  • Failed - If there is an issue, the Message field will give you details so you can troubleshoot

You can also see the (Before) and (After Update) values side-by-side for each field in your import.

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Create a Template to Streamline Future Imports

After you've seen the results in the CRM and are satisfied with how the import runs, you can save all of the configurations as a template to use each time you import a CSV with the same source and format. With a template, all of your settings are saved, including field mapping, actions, functions etc., so you will have minimal work for future imports.

Return to the Template menu at the top of the page and click the disk icon to save this as a new template, giving it an informative name.

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Tips for Importing from a CSV

  • If your CSV file contains special characters or symbols, it needs to be saved in CSV UTF-8 format. Otherwise, Insycle may not recognize those characters during importing.
  • You can experiment with how the functions under Step 3 will work before importing records. After you have set up Functions to apply to your CSV data, click the Apply button. The data in the table under Step 1 will be modified per your settings. If you don’t like how a function played out, make adjustments and re-apply them. If you don't want to use a function at all, delete it from Step 3; when you click Apply again, the affected data will revert to what it was before.
  • Importing a large data set can take a while to process, and Insycle handles this in the background. Once you click Import, there is no need to keep the page open; you can move on to other things. To check the status of your import, go to the Activity Tracker.

Advanced How-Tos

Selecting an Identity Field

Insycle uses Identity Fields to compare your CSV to your Salesforce data. Identity fields must be "unique identifiers." These are data points that should only belong to a single record—such as email addresses, web URLs, phone numbers, street addresses, or ID numbers.

Additionally, when using an email field, Insycle will automatically cross-reference any additional email fields in the records for a match. If using a domain field, Insycle will check additional domain fields. 

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When you make your Identity Field selection, the data under Step 1 will refresh, and you'll be able to see which records are already in your Salesforce data. The records that Insycle found will become blue links that will open the record in Salesforce.

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Important Note

You can select more than one identity field; however, ALL of the fields must match, not just one or some of them. If you include five identity fields and four of them match, but one doesn't, Insycle will not consider the record a match.

In this scenario, if you use the Update Existing and Create Net New setting, Insycle will create a new record for any CSV rows that don't match all five criteria.

If you use the Only Update Existing setting, there will most likely be few records that match all your criteria, and much of your CSV data will not be imported because Insycle will not be able to find the correct record to update.

Typically, it is best to use a single identity field to improve the likelihood of finding existing records in Salesforce.

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Standardize URL Formats before Importing Data

If you rely on URLs to match imported data with records in your CRM, the formatting of those values can be key. Perhaps the data in your CRM is inconsistent, with different representatives entering URLs differently, or maybe website addresses are formatted differently in an external data source.

For example:

  • https://www.acme.com
  • http://acme.com
  • acme.com
  • www.acme.com

When importing, a CSV with varied URL formats might look like this:

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Insycle lets you easily clean and format values from a CSV before they are imported. All the cleanup happens on the Insycle side, ensuring the import has standardized data.

By using the Functions under Step 3, you can make bulk changes to the CSV data before it is uploaded. The options selected and applied here will be reflected in the table view of the data in Step 1, not done directly in your CRM.

To eliminate format variants, you can isolate the second-level domain. Under Step 3, select the website or URL column, then select the Extract: Domain from URL function. This will keep just the second-level and top-level domain (acme.com). If you need to take it a step further, and remove the top-level domain (keeping "acme"), add a second function to the column, Remove Top-level domain

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Click Apply, then review the changes to the column data under Step 1 to verify that the column data matches the needed format. In this example, the domain has been extracted from the URL, so only the second-level and top-level domains remain. These are the values that will be imported into your CRM.

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Learn more about cleaning data before vs. after importing it into your CRM.

Date Format Matching

Insycle attempts to match date values using multiple formats in the following order:

  1. Date time with timezone: 2018-07-19T23:25:45.671-0400
  2. Date time in UTC timezone: 2018-07-19T10:15:30Z 
  3. YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
  4. Date (YYYY-MM-DD): 2018-07-19 or 2018/07/09
  5. Date (M-D-YYYY): 07-19-2018 or 7/19/2018

All the above formats work with and without the - or / symbols.

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Learn more about reformatting dates before the data is imported into your CRM.

Using Activity Tracker to View Audit Trail and History

With the Activity Tracker, you have a complete audit trail and history of changes made through Insycle. You can also download a CSV report at any time to see all of the changes made during an import operation.

Navigate to Operations > Activity Tracker, enter "import" to search for the Magic Import module, or look for a template name, then click the Run ID for the operation.

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Troubleshooting

Here are some tips for troubleshooting issues specific to importing:

Seeing red warnings icon in Step 1

If there are issues with a CSV row, the red warning icon will be shown on the left side of the record. Records that have errors in them will not be imported.

To learn what the problem is and determine steps to resolve it, hover over the red exclamation mark—an explanation of the error will display. 

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If a field in Salesforce includes picklist values and the data included in your CSV does not match, the row will display an "Invalid picklist value" error. This value needs to be changed to match the options used in Salesforce.

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You can make quick fixes to the import data directly in Insycle by hovering over a value and clicking the pencil icon.

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Matches for CSV records not found in CRM

If a record in your CSV is not being matched to a CRM record and you know that it should be, there are several potential causes:

The Identity Field you chose does not match between the CSV and CRM

Have a look at your Salesforce data using the Grid Edit module, adding columns to the layout so you can explore the fields and values. Then, compare this against the columns and values in your CSV to find a reliable but unique field that matches the two sources. 

You are using too many Identity Fields

You can select more than one identity field; however, ALL of the fields must match, not just one or some of them. If you include five identity fields and four of them match, but one doesn't, Insycle will not consider the record a match. 

Typically, it is best to use a single identity field to improve the likelihood of finding existing records in Salesforce.

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Your Identity Field choice is too broad

Insycle uses Identity Fields to compare your CSV to your Salesforce data. If you're using a field that is not truly unique as an Identity Field, it's likely that Insycle won't be able to identify one single record as a match. For instance, there could be many people with the First Name, "John" in your database. This is why uniqueness is key.

When selecting your Identity Field, make sure it is truly a "unique identifier." These are data points that would only belong to a single record—such as email address, phone number, street address, or an ID number. For companies, it could also be company name, or company domain.

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There is a syncing issue

To refresh the data in Insycle, navigate to Settings > Sync Status, select the account, and click the Refresh Accounts List button. Alternatively, you could log out of Insycle and then log back in.

For help re-syncing a specific field, contact support.

Data not being formatted when importing

If you have set up formatting or standardization functions in Step 3, but aren't seeing those changes reflected after importing your data, make sure that you click the Apply button.

You must apply these updates to your CSV data before importing it into Salesforce. You will see these changes reflected in the data under Step 1.

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For general troubleshooting advice, see our article on Troubleshooting Issues.

Frequently Asked Question

Does Insycle automatically map my CSV fields to my CRM fields?

Yes, Insycle will automatically map fields that it is able to identify. However, if there are cases where it can't figure out what a field should map to, a warning icon will appear, and the CRM field dropdown will say "Not Mapped." You should select the corresponding CRM field to ensure the field is included in the import.

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Can Insycle add new data from a CSV to existing records?

Yes, you can easily add to existing data using the Fill or Append Import Modes in Step 1.

  • Fill: Import CSV values only when there is no existing value in CRM (will not overwrite existing CRM values).
  • Append: Add CSV values to existing values in your Salesforce data. For example, append notes from a CSV to existing notes, or add values on multi-select fields (checkboxes or picklists).

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Can I clean CSV data before it is added to my CRM?

Yes, Insycle provides many functions that can clean, format, and standardize data from your CSV before it's imported into your database. The options selected and applied here will be reflected in the table view of the data in Step 1; they are not done directly in Salesforce.

Under Step 3, on the Functions tab, you can select fields and apply formatting and transformation changes to the field data. These are the same functions found in the Transform Data module, which you can learn more about here.

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Can Insycle create relationships between records when importing?

Yes, Insycle allows you to link records while importing data from a CSV in Step 4 using the Link tab. 

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Can Insycle compare CSV data to existing data in my CRM?

Yes, Insycle allows you to compare the CSV to existing data in your Salesforce records. The Compare (Preview) tab under Step 2 will create a simple CSV report showing the values from your original CSV next to the values currently in Salesforce.

To learn more, see the Compare CSV Data to Existing Records In Your CRM article.

Is there a limit to how many records I can import at once?

Yes, the Magical Import module can handle up to 100k rows for each CSV import. Keep in mind that the more rows and fields you have in your CSV, the slower the import process will be. If you run into any issues, try breaking the CSV into segments and removing any extraneous fields.

Additional Resources

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