Choosing what to import & the Guidelines / sample CSV

In Step 1 — Import data you decide which record types you are loading and provide your file. This guide also covers the built-in Guidelines, which set out the rules your file must follow, and the sample CSV you can use as a template.

Choosing what to import

At the top of Step 1, under Select the contacts you would like to import, choose one option:

• Both people and organisations — "Import people and related organisation details". Use this to import individual people along with the organisations they belong to.
• Organisations only — "Import organisation details". Use this to import organisation records without people.

Your choice affects which SwiftFox fields are available in the mapping table later, so pick the option that matches your spreadsheet.

If you import people with their organisation, any organisation that does not already exist is created for you. New organisations created this way are not included in the New contacts count on the Import Overview at the end — that count covers people.

The Guidelines

Before you upload, select the guide link in the Upload contacts section. A Guidelines panel opens from the right with the rules your file must follow.

File requirements

• The file should be in .csv format. Excel (.xlsx) files are also accepted by the upload box.
• No more than 1,000,000 rows and 100 columns.
• File size must be under 20 MB.
• A header row is required.
• Header row titles must not contain spaces — for example, use Firstname, not First name.

Mobile and landline country codes

• Numbers must include their country code prefix if they do not originate in Australia. Any national number you import is assumed to be Australian.
• Mobile numbers must include the + symbol for international numbers, with no spaces — for example +61485121366 for an international number, or 0485121366 for a national one.
• Landline numbers must include the area code, plus the + symbol for international numbers, with no spaces — for example +61390878260 or 0390878260.

Date format

• Use DD/MM/YYYY.

Custom fields

The Guidelines confirm which custom field types can be imported:

• Text field — can contain any text.
• Number field — must contain a valid number.
• Select field — must contain an option that already exists on that select field. If the field allows multiple values, separate them with commas, for example Bronze, Silver, Gold.

Following these rules up front prevents most of the errors you would otherwise have to fix in the Review step.

The sample CSV

The Download link in the Upload contacts section (and the same sample at the bottom of the Guidelines) gives you a small example file. Its columns are:

FirstName, LastName, Mobile, Landline, Email, Organisation

Use it as a template:

1. Download the sample CSV.
2. Match your column headings and value formats to the example — particularly for mobiles, landlines and dates.
3. Populate it with your own data, or reshape your existing file to match it.

You are not limited to these six columns. They are an example of the formatting SwiftFox expects, not the full set of fields you can import — see Column-to-field mapping for everything that is available.

Uploading your file

1. Select Click here to upload an Excel file, or just drag and drop into this box., or drag your file onto the upload area.
2. Wait for the file to finish uploading. It then appears as a row showing its name and size.
3. If you picked the wrong file, remove it with the bin icon on that row and upload another.
4. Click Next to go to Step 2 — Match columns.

Tips

• Clean your data before uploading — trim leading and trailing spaces, and make sure phone numbers and dates follow the formats above.
• Check your header row for spaces before you upload; it is the single most common reason a column does not map.
• Keep a copy of the original file so you can correct and re-upload if the Review step flags errors.