How to import Constituent data using the Bulk Uploader

This article covers how to upload Constituent data to your Alpine database using the Bulk Uploader.

 

Navigating to the Bulk Uploader interface

The first step to uploading or editing Constituent data is to navigate to the Bulk Uploader interface. To open the Bulk Uploader interface, follow these steps.

1. Log in to your Alpine database.
2. Click on your name in the top right corner of the screen.
   
   
3. From the drop-down menu, click Bulk Upload.

This will open up the Bulk Uploader interface.

To close out of the interface you can click on the “X” in the top right corner of the screen at any time to be taken back to your Alpine Database. 

Selecting the Constituent Upload Type

After navigating to the Bulk Uploader interface, the next thing you will need to do is select your Upload Type. If the spreadsheet you are uploading contains only Constituent data (First Name, Last Name, Address, Phone Number, Email Address, etc.), select Only Constituents as the Upload Type.

Upload a File

Next, select the spreadsheet you want to upload Alpine database.

1. Click Choose File.
   
   
2. From your local computer drive, select the spreadsheet you want to upload
   
   
3. Click Open. The file name will become visible after selecting the file from your computer.
4. Once you have confirmed that you are uploading the correct file, click Upload.
   
   

Matching Types

The Bulk Uploader comes with two different methods to match your data to pre-existing Constituents.

Match Constituents by email

This matching type attempts to match rows to existing Constituents by their Email Fields ([Base] Email as well as any Custom Fields of type Email). If no email fields are found, a new Constituent is created. This option skips any rows that have an invalid or blank email address in the chosen match email address field.

If matching pre-existing Constituents by their emails, select the column on your spreadsheet containing the email addresses of your Constituents.

Match Constituents by Constituent ID:

This matching type attempts to match rows to existing Constituents. If the Constituent is not found by the given Constituent ID, then that row will be skipped.

 

If you are matching pre-existing Constituents by their Constituent ID, select the column on your spreadsheet containing the Constituent ID for each Constituent. The Constituent ID is a system-generated number found in the Base Field of each Constituent profile in your Alpine database.

Sanitize Fields

Next, select whether or not to sanitize your input fields. If you select Sanitize Input Fields, the Bulk Uploader will “title-case” the fields for Name, Email Salutation, and Mailing Name. It will also attempt to format Phone numbers if applicable.

Input Field	Before	After
Name and Mailing Name	ronald swanson	Ronald Swanson
Email Salutation	leslie	Leslie
Phone Numbers	5558675309	(555) 867-5309

Match spreadsheet columns

After uploading your spreadsheet to the Bulk Uploader tool, the next step is to match each of the spreadsheet columns. Matching columns is the process of identifying which columns in the spreadsheet correspond to which fields in the Alpine database.

To match your spreadsheet columns with the desired Destination Alpine Field, follow these steps.

1. Click the Source(s) dropdown
   
   
2. Select the column that you would like to match.
   
   
3. Once selected, the column will appear in the Selected Spreadsheet Column(s) field. If you select more than one column (e.g. First Name and Last Name), the Bulk Uploader tool allows you to combine the cell values together. 
   
   
4. Next, use the Destination Alpine Field dropdown to identify the corresponding fields in your Alpine Database to map the spreadsheet column(s).
   
   
5. Repeat this process for all of the columns in the spreadsheet that you want to import into your Alpine Database.
6. Click Add New Matching Rule if you need to match additional columns to fields in your Alpine Database.
   
   

Broad categories of Destination Alpine Fields include:

• Ignore
• Tags/Tag Groups 
• Base Fields 
• Custom Fields
• Add to Constituent Bulk Upload Action Notes

Continue mapping each column from your spreadsheet to a Destination Alpine Field. Check your mappings to make sure everything is correct before proceeding. This will help you avoid importing data into the wrong fields.

Preview Upload

Once you've completed mapping your spreadsheet columns to their respective Destination Alpine Field, you can proceed to preview your upload.

Click the Preview Upload button in the bottom left-hand corner of the interface. Once clicked, the Bulk Uploader tool will scan your imported data and highlight any potential errors. Hovering over each value in the preview table will pull up a tooltip with a brief description and guidance on how to fix each value.

 

If there are no errors with your spreadsheet, click the Finalize Upload button. Your data will be uploaded into your Alpine database. 

Reviewing your data

After you've finished importing your data, it's important to review your file import. A unique system-generate Campaign is applied to each individual import file. To view all of your imported files:

1. Click Campaigns on the left-hand side navigation bar.
2. Scroll down or use the search bar to navigate to the Category [System] Auto-Generated.
3. Click on the Campaign associated with your Bulk Upload file.

Each imported Constituent file includes the following information:

• File name
• Import date
• A Note Action that explains how each row of data was imported
• Applied tags
• Applied campaigns
• Filled-in custom fields
• Overridden Constituent data, if applicable