Import Leads¶

Use Import Leads to create multiple leads and their contact details from a CSV file.

Before you begin¶

Select the correct school or entity before starting. Saved mappings, available field values, duplicate checks, and imported records are specific to that entity.

Your CSV file must:

Be in .csv format, with column headings in the first row.
Have one lead per data row.
Contain no more than 5,000 data rows.
Be within your organisation's upload-size limit. The standard limit is 50 MB, but it may vary.

Each row can create one lead and, optionally, one linked contact.

Important

Every row must have a lead title. If you import any contact information, that row must also include a contact first name.

1. Prepare your CSV file¶

Include a column for each value you want to import. For example:

Student first name,Student last name,Parent first name,Parent email,Parent phone,Campaign
Alex,Smith,Jane,jane@example.com,+48123123123,Open Day
Sam,Jones,Robert,robert@example.com,+48123123124,Website

Use these formats and rules where applicable:

Data	Format or rule
Lead title	Required; maximum 255 characters
Contact first name	Required if you provide any contact information
Email	Must be a valid email address
Phone number	Must be valid for the selected entity's country; international format is recommended
Date of birth	`YYYY-MM-DD`, for example `2018-09-25`
Gender	`Male` or `Female`
Yes/no fields	`true`/`false`, `yes`/`no`, `y`/`n`, or `1`/`0`
Status, pipeline status, grade, source, and academic year	Must match a value available for the selected entity
Assignee	Must be a user with access to the selected entity
Tags	Must be lead tags belonging to the selected entity

2. Open Import Leads¶

Select the correct school or entity.
Go to Leads → Actions → Import Leads.
Select Select file, then choose your CSV file.
Check that the displayed columns and number of data rows are correct.

3. Map your fields¶

Under Import Instructions, choose how each evvo field gets its value:

Data from file: Select the matching CSV column.
Predefined value: Apply the same value to every row.
Lead title: Combine CSV column values with custom text, in the order you choose.
Lead source and tags: Select values to apply to the import.

Make sure the mapping produces a non-empty Lead title for every row.

Save or reuse a mapping¶

Select Save mapping and enter a name to reuse the setup later. Mapping names must be unique within the selected entity.

To reuse a setup, select Load mapping. A saved mapping belongs to one entity and may not match a different CSV layout. Check that the selected columns still match your current file.

4. Preview and validate¶

Select Proceed to preview. Previewing does not create leads or contacts.

Review the summary and row details:

Result	Meaning
Valid	The row passed validation, and no duplicate contact was found.
Duplicate	The contact's email or phone matches an existing active contact in the selected entity or an earlier row in the file.
Invalid	The row has one or more validation errors. Expand the row to review them.

Select Back to mapping to change the setup. If the source data is incorrect, update the CSV and select it again.

How duplicate detection works¶

evvo checks for duplicate contacts by:

Email address, regardless of uppercase or lowercase letters.
Normalized phone number.

Lead titles and contact names are not used to detect duplicates. If a duplicate is found, the entire row is skipped. The import does not create a lead linked to the existing contact.

Leads sharing the same contact

If multiple rows use the same contact email address or phone number, only the first importable row is created. Later rows are treated as duplicates and skipped. Import those leads separately and link the existing contact manually if needed.

A contact can be imported without an email address or phone number, but the preview warns that duplicate detection may be unreliable.

5. Confirm the import¶

When you are satisfied with the preview, select Confirm import.

The import runs in the background, and its status and totals update automatically. Validation and duplicate checks run again during processing. Final results can differ from the preview if records or entity settings change in the meantime.

If the same file was imported before, evvo may ask whether you want to Import again. This starts a new import run; it does not bypass validation or duplicate checks or force duplicate rows to be created.

6. Review the results¶

When processing is complete, review the totals and individual rows:

Result	Meaning
Created	The lead and any supplied contact were created successfully.
Skipped duplicate	The entire row was skipped because its contact email or phone matched another contact.
Failed validation	The row was not imported because it failed validation.

An import can complete with errors: valid rows are created while invalid and duplicate rows are skipped. If the entire import has a Failed status because of a processing problem, no leads or contacts from that run are created.

You can:

Review row errors or duplicate details.
Select Download source CSV to download the original uploaded file.
Select Import another file to start another import.

Troubleshooting¶

A phone number is invalid¶

Check that the number is valid for the selected entity's country. Where possible, use the complete international number, including the country code.

A choice value is invalid¶

Statuses, sources, grades, academic years, assignees, and tags are checked against the selected entity. Return to the mapping and select a valid predefined value, or correct the value in the CSV.

A row is unexpectedly marked as a duplicate¶

Check whether its email address or phone number is already used by an active contact in the selected entity or by an earlier row in the same file. Lead title and contact name are not used to match duplicates.

A saved mapping uses the wrong columns¶

The CSV layout may have changed since the mapping was saved. Return to the mapping step and select the correct columns before previewing again.