When cleaning your data, there are two main lenses to have:

When reviewing the columns in your spreadsheet, evaluate whether each piece of data will be used within the next six months. If a column contains information that is unlikely to be needed in that timeframe, consider removing it. Keeping only relevant data ensures your records remain organized, manageable, and useful.

Next, assess whether each column has been updated within the last six months. For example, a field like "Graduation Year" may be relevant, but if it hasn’t been updated recently, it could be outdated and less useful. In such cases, consider removing the column to ensure your file contains only current, high-quality data.

Now your master file includes relevant and up-to-date information, it's time to clean each field or data type. Here's a categorized summary of the default Subsplash Fields we'll cover.

Upon importing the data, Subsplash will look for and merge duplicate contacts. It does so when a contact's name and at least one contact detail (see table above) matches an existing contact within your file or within Subsplash.

While individuals can still be imported without contact details, we recommend against it. High-quality data should be up-to-date and useful for future decisions. Contacts missing basic details are difficult to utilize effectively and will likely lead to duplicate entries later due to insufficient identifying information.

The first and last name should be split into different columns. Remember, each row can be thought of as one individual, while each column is information about the individual. Therefore, you cannot have more than one name, like a spouse, listed in "First Name." For example, here is a correct example:

If your file contains the first and last name in a single column, there is a quick and easy solution called Split Text. Click to view how to Split Text in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel.

To minimize duplicates, ensure each contact has at least one contact detail. As mentioned above, our system uses both the Name and Contact Details to automatically merge existing and new contacts. For example, if you import a contact who later creates a profile in your app, the system will check for matching Name and Contact Details. If a match is found, the contact is automatically merged, helping to maintain a clean and organized database.

Each contact should have a unique email address, as emails are used for creating and logging into profiles on your app or website. Additionally, having a unique email becomes even more important as donors begin to give so that only they see their own contributions.

Shared emails can prevent individuals from accessing their own accounts and may lead to miscommunication when sending emails or managing contact records. To maintain accuracy, filter the master file by email to identify shared emails. Shared emails often occur when spouses share an email or a parent uses the same email for their child. Remove or update duplicate emails to keep your records clean and ensure smooth account access.

A household is a group of contacts connected by a common relationship, typically individuals living in the same home. Households play a key role in Subsplash Check-In, as only members of the same household can be checked in together. Ensuring accurate household groupings helps streamline the check-in process and improves overall organization.

This field groups contacts into the same household if they share the same Household ID.

This field is used to name newly created Households.

Roles are used for Subsplash Check-in to determine whether the contact is an adult or child.

While Profile Address and Household Address may contain similar information, they serve different purposes and should be treated separately as they are not automatically linked. A Profile Address is assigned to an individual contact and may be unique to them, while a Household Address is shared among all members of a household.

There are many other data points organizations wish to collect. Subsplash provides additional fields in hopes to catch as much of your data as possible. Remember, if you don't see a data field you'd like, custom fields can be created later in our process.

This is used to capture the status of an individual and their interaction with the Church.

While Subsplash includes many default fields, your file may contain data points not built into the Subsplash system.

For example, if your file includes a "Preschool Snack Preference" column, you won’t find a default field for this in Subsplash. To import and store this information, you’ll need to create a custom field in Subsplash before uploading your data.

Compare the columns in your file to the Subsplash fields. Within your file, highlight any column that cannot be found below.

Each column you identified in the previous step is considered custom data and needs to have its own custom field created in Subsplash.

Custom Fields offer five field types allowing you to choose the best format for importing the data. Here are the five types in detail.

A short answer field is used for collecting brief responses or single-line answers.

A long answer field allows you to enter more detailed or extended responses than a Short Answer field.

A dropdown lets you choose one option from a list of choices. It's used when you want to limit what people can choose and make sure the data is consistent.

A Multi Choice field lets you select more than one value from a list of options. This is useful when you want to allow multiple choices for a single field, while also making sure the data is consistent.

A date field is a type of input field that allows users to enter a specific date.

When the CSV uploads to Subsplash, you will be directed to a new page. Each row represents a column header from your spreadsheet. On the left, you’ll see the name of each column header that existed within your file, on the right there is a dropdown menu containing the Subsplash data fields.

If a contact had incompatible or incomplete data, it may not have been imported. Subsplash will place the non-imported contacts into a file for review.

If contacts existed in Subsplash before your import, it's possible the import created a few duplicates. This may have been caused by the Name and Contact Details not matching an existing contact. If you need a review on this, revisit the Name & Contact Details step for more info.

Thankfully, Subsplash has the handy-dandy Duplicator Detector. Here's how you can find and merge duplicates.

A final way to review your data is to compare contacts between your .CSV and the Subsplash Dashboard.

Congratulations on your successful import! With your newly imported contacts, you can easily reach out and support your community using tools like Check-in, Group Messaging, and other communication features.