Import Contacts

Import Contacts into your Lome Address Book to save time and get your community engaged. You can copy and paste a list of contacts, add contacts one at a time, or you can import using a CSV file. This video demonstrates how.

Video Transcript:

0:00 So you've created some incredible signup forms, and you want to share them. Well, you can share them by adding individual contacts, copying the link, downloading a QR code, but maybe you already have contacts that you want to add. 0:15 You can add them or import them into our address book to save yourself some time. There are two ways to access your address book. 0:23 One is from your home screen. You can go up to the menu, and click on address book. Here, you can access, edit, update, any of your contacts. 0:36 You can also add tags, and you can go into an individual, um, and add additional information. However, if you want to add bulk ad contacts, you can paste in a list of names, perhaps you have this, they just need to be comma separated. You can add a single, or you can add via CSV. 0:59 You can upload a file, you'll click this import button, but if you want to make sure, if it has the right columns, name, email and phone number, you want to make sure that you download the example so that you're, CSV is formatted in the appropriate way. 1:15 Also, as you download, you can specify a group, or as you import, you can specify a group name. So anytime you're adding multiple, whether it be through a list, or via CSV, you could specify a group name, and that group name will get a tag added to all of them. 1:35 The other way you can actually, Access your address book is within an individual form. So we come into any one of our forms. 1:42 We can click on the Share button. And from Share, we can go to Address Book. Now you could Share by selecting. 1:52 We also can add contacts before you share. And this will load the same menu that we just walked through.

Understanding Duplicate Contact Restrictions

When importing contacts into your Lome Address Book, you may encounter situations where contacts cannot be added due to duplicate information. This is an important feature that helps keep your contact list clean and organized.

What Information Is Checked for Duplicates

Lome checks the following fields to identify duplicate contacts:

Email address - The primary field used to identify duplicates
Phone number - Secondary check for duplicate identification

Why This Restriction Exists

The duplicate contact restriction helps you:

Avoid sending multiple messages to the same person
Keep your contact database clean and organized
Prevent confusion when managing your community communications
Ensure accurate reporting and engagement tracking

Recommended Workarounds

If you need to manage contacts with similar information, try these approaches:

Update existing contacts - Edit the existing contact with any new information instead of creating a duplicate
Use different email addresses - If the person has multiple email addresses (work, personal), you can create separate entries
Add tags for organization - Use tags to categorize the same contact across different groups or activities
Use notes field - Add additional context or information in the contact's notes section

Troubleshooting CSV Import Issues

Having trouble importing your CSV file? Here are the most common issues and how to solve them step-by-step.

Required CSV Format

Your CSV file must include these columns in this exact order:

Name - Full name of the contact
Email - Valid email address
Phone Number - Phone number (any format is acceptable)

Important: Always download the example CSV template from Lome before creating your own file. This ensures your formatting matches exactly what the system expects.

Common Formatting Problems

Extra commas or special characters:

Remove any extra commas within names or other fields
Avoid special characters like quotation marks or semicolons
If a name contains a comma (like "Smith, Jr."), put the entire name in quotation marks

Missing or incorrect headers:

Ensure your first row contains exactly: Name, Email, Phone Number
Check for extra spaces before or after column headers
Make sure headers match the example template exactly

Empty cells:

While email is required, phone numbers can be left blank
Never leave the name field empty
Remove any completely empty rows from your CSV

File Size Limits

Keep your CSV imports manageable:

Maximum file size: 5MB per upload
Recommended batch size: 500 contacts or fewer per import
For larger lists, split them into multiple CSV files and import them separately

Step-by-Step Diagnostic Steps

If your import is still failing, follow these troubleshooting steps:

Step 1: Verify your file format

Ensure your file is saved as a .csv file (not .xlsx or .xls)
Open the file in a text editor to check for hidden characters
Compare your file structure to the downloaded example template

Step 2: Test with a small sample

Create a new CSV with just 2-3 contacts
Use the exact format from the example template
Try importing this smaller file to isolate the issue

Step 3: Check for data quality issues

Verify all email addresses are in proper format (name@domain.com)
Remove any duplicate contacts from your CSV before importing
Ensure names don't contain numbers or special symbols

Step 4: Clear your browser cache and try again

Sometimes browser issues can interfere with file uploads
Try using a different browser or incognito/private mode
Ensure your internet connection is stable during the upload

Common Error Messages and Solutions

"Invalid file format" - Your file isn't saved as a proper CSV. Re-save your file ensuring it has a .csv extension.

"Missing required columns" - Your column headers don't match the expected format. Download the example template and match it exactly.

"Invalid email format" - One or more email addresses in your file aren't formatted correctly. Check each email address for typos or missing @ symbols.

"File too large" - Your CSV file exceeds the size limit. Split your contacts into smaller batches and import them separately.