Importing Timeline Items

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To import items onto the timeline of constituents you need an Excel file containing the data - you can start with the Donorfy data preparation template (see comments below) or use a file from another source - e.g. from a fulfilment agency.

If you want to use the Donorfy data preparation template you should

  • Download the data preparation template from Data Management | File Upload
  • Remove the worksheets you don’t need from the template
  • Add data about the timeline entries in the remaining worksheet, you also need to include
    • Data to find the constituent the timeline item belongs to (see Matching Timeline Entries to Constituents below ), or
    • Sufficient data to add new constituents for the timeline items
  • Upload the file, Donorfy will check it and report and problems
  • When you are happy with the file apply it to add the items to constituent’s timelines

Here are some more details about the process

Matching Timeline Entries to Constituents

Timeline entries you import need to be added to the timeline of the constituent they belong to, you can provide the following information so Donorfy can find the right constituent

  • Donorfy Constituent Number - Donorfy will link by the constituent number
  • External Key - if when you imported constituents you specified an external key you can link timeline entries via that key - see the knowledge base article about external keys for more help
  • Email Address - Donorfy will attempt to find an existing constituent with the email address provided
  • Phone Number - Donorfy will attempt to find an existing constituent with the phone number  provided

Donorfy will try and find a match by each item in the order given above - e.g. if a match is found by email address then items lower down the list (e.g. phone number) will not be checked.

The result of trying to match the items is shown in the Status column added to the worksheet

Checking Timeline Items

Donorfy will check the timeline data in the worksheet (e.g. if you are importing donations that a valid product was entered etc) any cells containing invalid or missing values will be highlighted in red and a comment added to the cell will explain what the problem is.

Fixing Data Problems

If a row in the worksheet matches more than one constituent you should

  • Check the details of the matched constituents added to the status column of the worksheet, find the constituent the item belongs to and enter the constituent number of that constituent into the Constituent Number column then change the Action to Import, alternatively
  • Change the Action to ‘Add New Constituent’ to add a new constituent (provided you have sufficient data)

If a match can’t be found but there are some constituent details in the spreadsheet row (e.g. email address, phone number, name etc) and you have entered a constituent type in the row then a new constituent will be added and the item added to the new constituent’s timeline.

Timeline items with data problems will have their action set to ignore - you should correct the data problems

Once you have sorted out the data problems it is usually best to recheck the worksheet, to do this you should

  • Delete the status & action columns from the start of the worksheet
  • Upload the file again for checking

If you apply a file with data problems only rows with an action of import will be imported - rows with other actions will be ignored.

Make sure the cell format does not change. For example, if you change the cell format for the Donation amount from the General format to say Accounting format (perhaps as a result of pasting the data in from your old database), it will not import correctly. In the case of Accounting format it will cause the donation amount to be imported as pence/cents, not pounds/euros/dollars.

Importing More Constituent Information

The worksheets for importing timeline items in the data preparation template do not include all the constituent data columns that you will find on the worksheet for that type of constituent  - e.g. date of birth is not included on the donation worksheet but is included on the individual constituent worksheet.

If you need to add constituents when importing timeline entries and want to import constituent data but the timeline worksheet does not have the column you can copy the column from another worksheet in the data preparation template (e.g. from Individual Constituents)

 

 

Please note that when uploading Activities and a match is found, no contact details will be updated or added for existing constitunets, only the Activity will be added to the Timeline. 

Existing Constituent details can be updated via the Constituent Update process: Updating Constituents using the File Uploader

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