Using the Data Manager with Contacts

This is a very powerful tool that allows you to import and manage contacts in batch using your own Excel spreadsheets.

To reach the data manager

1. From the green contacts ribbon menu, click "Import : Excel file"
2. This takes you to the data manager screens

Creating new contacts by spreadsheet

You'll need to create a "data map" that will match up your spreadsheet columns to data fields in Brightpearl. To start off with, create a simple import with only a few rows to get familiar with the system. That's really important. don't run before you can walk!

1. Create a new data map, give it a name such as "Test contact import"
2. Add some columns. The screen shot below shows the minimum columns needed to create new contacts.
    - The first column needs to be either 'contact id','code' or 'email address'. These values should be unique. 
3. Save your data map
4. Click "Import data"
5. Tick the "import values" (otherwise it will just be a test run) and import your file.
6. Brightpearl will check each row to make sure it contains the right kind of data, and then only if the whole file is OK, each contact will be created.

Note that if a contact is found in Brightpearl with matching data in column A, then that contact will be updated.

Also note that if more than one new contact exists for the same company, then the contact listed first will be created as the primary contact and all subsequent contacts as secondary.
The company primary contact holds the accounting data for the company.

Updating contacts by spreadsheet

You can also use the data manager to update contacts that are already in your Brightpearl system. Very useful for a number of things:

• Updating status
• Importing notes from another system
• Adding missing information
• Adding a Tag in bulk
• Updating custom fields (some pay plans only)

Column A - the "hook" field

We need to use something to match your spreadsheet rows to an existing contact in Brightpearl, and this can be the Brightpearl contact ID (a number), a code, or the contact email address.

For example, if you imported your contacts from Sage, then the Sage customer code (CUST001) will have been inserted into the "code" field in Brightpearl. Brightpearl doesn't enforce unique codes or email addresses per contact, so you need to be careful.

Extra columns

Use the rest of the column options to edit fields in Brightpearl. So to update the credit limit for a set of contact:

1. Choose something suitable as a hook field for column A and choose "Credit limit" for column B.
2. Create a 2 column spreadsheet to match. Make sure that the column headers in your spreadsheet match those on the data map setup screen - this is used for error checking to make sure that you don't change the wrong field!
3. Make sure your data map is saved, and then click "Import data"
4. Browse to your saved XLS file, tick "import data" and upload the file. Brightpearl will check each row to make sure it contains the right kind of data, and then only if the whole file is OK, each item will be updated.

You can update multiple columns at once if you need to.

Column data

Some of the less obvious fields are described below.