If you work in sales, ops, or marketing, you know the headache of duplicate contacts. They waste time, mess up reporting, and drive teams nuts. If your company uses Tractioncomplete, you've got tools to solve this problem—but only if you use them right. This guide cuts through the noise and shows you, step by step, how to actually merge duplicate contacts efficiently. Whether you’re a CRM admin or just the unofficial “data person,” this is for you.
Why Duplicate Contacts Are a Pain (and Why You Should Care)
Let's be honest: nobody wakes up excited to clean up CRM data. But duplicates come back to bite you. Here’s how:
- Sales reps call the same prospect twice—or worse, miss them completely.
- Marketing sends duplicate emails, which looks sloppy and can get you flagged as spam.
- Reports are off, so leadership makes decisions based on garbage data.
Merging duplicates isn’t glamorous, but it’s one of those things that actually saves you time (and embarrassment) down the road.
Step 1: Get Prepared—Don’t Just Dive In
Before you start merging, get a handle on your data and your process:
- Understand your CRM setup. Are contacts tied to leads, accounts, or opportunities? Merges can have ripple effects.
- Figure out who owns the process. If you’re not the admin, get their blessing before you start making changes.
- Back up your data. Tractioncomplete writes changes back to Salesforce. If something goes wrong, you’ll want a backup or a way to roll back.
- Know your merge rules. Decide up front: which fields take priority when there’s a conflict? Ask your team if you’re not sure.
Pro Tip: Run a quick report on recently merged records (if you can) to spot any past problems or oddball field values.
Step 2: Find Duplicates—Don’t Rely on Gut Feel
Tractioncomplete gives you tools to actually find duplicates, but you need to set them up:
- Use Duplicate Reports or Dashboards.
- Check if your Salesforce or Tractioncomplete org already has a “Duplicate Contacts” report.
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If not, set up a new report in Tractioncomplete using common match criteria (like same email, name, or phone).
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Tweak Your Matching Rules.
- Don’t go overboard—matching on “First Name” alone will flag too many false positives.
- Best practice: match on email first, then add name or phone as secondary.
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Customize rules as needed. For example, ignore capitalization or common misspellings if Tractioncomplete allows fuzzy matching.
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Review the List.
- Scroll through the results before merging anything. Watch for contacts that look like duplicates but aren’t (e.g., father and son with similar names).
What to Ignore: Don’t waste time chasing every possible duplicate. Focus on the ones that actually cause confusion—usually with the same email or phone.
Step 3: Set Merge Preferences—Avoid “Mystery Merges”
Not all merges are the same. Tractioncomplete lets you control how records are combined. Get this right:
- Choose the Master Record Carefully.
- Usually, the oldest record or the one with the most complete data is best.
- Decide on Field Priority.
- For fields like phone, address, or notes, pick which record’s values “win.”
- Some tools let you auto-fill blanks from other records; use this for non-conflicting fields.
- Attachments and Activity History.
- Double-check if these get merged over. Sometimes, you’ll lose call logs or emails if you’re not careful.
Pro Tip: If your org uses custom fields, make sure you know what’s important before merging. Once you merge, there’s no “undo.”
Step 4: Merge—Here’s Where You Actually Do It
Ready? Here’s how to merge in Tractioncomplete without blowing up your data:
- Select the Duplicates You Want to Merge.
- Use the Tractioncomplete interface to pick contact records flagged as duplicates.
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Don’t merge more than three at a time unless you’re confident.
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Review the Merge Preview.
- Tractioncomplete should show you a side-by-side comparison of fields.
- Make manual adjustments if something looks off.
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If you see a weird mismatch (like two different people with the same email), stop and investigate.
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Hit Merge.
- Confirm your choices. Some systems ask you to double-confirm; don’t skip this.
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The system will combine the records based on your selections.
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Check for Errors or Warnings.
- If Tractioncomplete throws an error, read it. Don’t just click through—sometimes you’ll spot a workflow or validation rule you forgot about.
What Works: Merging in small batches. It’s tempting to bulk-merge hundreds of records, but mistakes multiply fast. Fix a few, check your results, then keep going.
Step 5: Clean Up After Merging
You’re not done until you’ve checked your work. Here’s what to do next:
- Double-Check the Master Record.
- Make sure all the right info is there, and nothing important got lost.
- Spot-Check Related Records.
- Look at related activities, opportunities, and emails to confirm nothing broke.
- Communicate with the Team.
- Let sales or support know if you merged a major contact—sometimes, reps get spooked if a contact “disappears” or changes.
- Update Any Reports or Automations.
- If you have dashboards, lead assignment rules, or automation flows tied to contacts, check that they still work.
Pro Tip: Set a recurring reminder to clean up duplicates, not just a one-time blitz. Monthly is usually enough for most teams.
Common Pitfalls (and How to Dodge Them)
Don’t fall into these traps:
- “Merge Everything” Mentality: Don’t assume every duplicate is a real duplicate. Sometimes, two people share an email (yes, it still happens).
- Ignoring Custom Fields: If your org has fields like “Sales Owner” or “Preferred Contact Method,” check them during each merge.
- Forgetting Integrations: If you connect tools like Outreach, ZoomInfo, or Marketo, merges can break syncs or trigger weird behaviors. Test after your first few merges.
- Skipping Backups: If you can, export your contact list before you start. You’ll thank yourself if something gets deleted.
When Not to Merge
Sometimes, merging is the wrong call. Hold off if:
- The contacts have different company names, and it’s not clear if it’s a duplicate.
- You spot warning signs (like very different job titles or locations).
- You’re not sure which data should be kept—ask the contact owner or your CRM admin.
Tools and Features in Tractioncomplete Worth Using
Some features make your life easier. Here’s what’s worth your attention:
- Fuzzy Matching: Helps catch duplicates with small typos (e.g., “Jon” vs “John”).
- Bulk Merge Preview: Lets you see what will happen before you commit. Always use this for big jobs.
- Merge Logs: Audit trails so you can see who merged what, and when. Handy for tracking down mistakes.
- Integration with Salesforce Validation Rules: Tractioncomplete respects your org’s rules. If a merge fails, it’s usually because of a validation error—read the message, don’t just dismiss it.
What to Skip: Overly complex match criteria. If you start matching on “Department” or “Mailing Address” alone, you’ll end up with false positives.
Keeping It Simple: Your Data, Your Rules
The best way to keep your CRM clean is to make merging duplicates a regular habit, not a one-time sprint. Use the tools in Tractioncomplete, trust your gut, but don’t get bogged down trying to make everything perfect. Clean data is a process, not a destination. Start with the obvious duplicates, communicate with your team, and don’t be afraid to iterate as you go. Your future self (and your sales team) will thank you.