If you’ve ever stared at a mess of spreadsheets and thought, “There has to be a better way,” you’re in the right place. This guide is for anyone who’s ready to get their contact lists into Myphoner without the usual headaches—no fluff, no sales pitch. Whether you’re running a sales team or just want to keep your leads straight, I’ll walk you through how to import your contacts, clean up the junk, and set yourself up for less busywork later.
Step 1: Get Your Contact List Ready
Let’s not sugarcoat it: the import process in any CRM is only as good as the data you feed it. If your spreadsheet is a mess, expect headaches. Here’s how to get it in shape before even opening Myphoner.
Use the Right File Format
- CSV is king. Myphoner loves CSV files. Excel (.xlsx) might work, but CSV is safer and less likely to choke.
- UTF-8 encoding. If you’ve got names with accents or other special characters, save your CSV as UTF-8 to avoid seeing weird symbols later.
Clean Up Your Spreadsheet
- One row, one contact. No merged rows, no fancy formatting.
- Make headers clear. Use “First Name,” “Last Name,” “Email,” “Phone,” etc. Avoid cryptic names like “FN” or “Tel1.”
- Delete empty rows/columns. They just confuse things.
- Ditch formulas and images. Only raw data. Formulas will import as gibberish.
Pro tip: If you’re pulling contacts out of another CRM or tool, export only the fields you need. More columns = more hassle.
Watch for Duplicates
If you have two John Smiths with the same email, that’s a duplicate. Decide now if you want to keep both or merge them. Otherwise, you’ll spend time cleaning later.
Step 2: Start the Import Process in Myphoner
You’ve got your CSV. Time to get it into Myphoner without losing your mind.
How to Import
- Log in to Myphoner.
- Go to the Lists section (usually on the left sidebar).
- Click “Import Contacts” or the upload button.
- Choose your CSV file.
Map Your Fields
Myphoner will show you a screen to “map” your CSV columns to its fields. This is where problems usually start, so slow down here.
- Check each field. Make sure “Email” in your CSV is mapped to “Email” in Myphoner, not “Notes.”
- Custom fields? If you have columns Myphoner doesn’t know (like “Industry” or “Lead Source”), you can usually add custom fields during import.
- Ignore what you don’t need. If there are columns you don’t want, don’t map them.
Honest take: The field-mapping screen is the most tedious part. But getting it right now saves hours later.
Import Settings
You’ll see options like:
- How to handle duplicates: Usually, you can choose to skip, merge, or create new entries. Unless you’re sure, choose “skip duplicates” now—you can always merge later.
- Assign contacts to a campaign/list: If you want to organize by campaign, select or create the right list now.
Click “Import.” Go get coffee, but don’t go far—imports are usually pretty fast, unless you’re uploading thousands of rows.
Step 3: Review and Clean Up
Don’t trust that everything went perfectly. Check your new list before anyone starts calling or emailing.
Spot-Check for Errors
- Open the list in Myphoner. Sort by name, company, or email—look for weird characters, missing data, or fields that didn’t map right.
- Check for duplicates. Myphoner has basic tools for merging or deleting duplicates, but it’s not magic. If you see two identical contacts, merge them.
Clean Up Bad Data
You might see:
- Weird symbols or garbled text. This usually means your CSV wasn’t saved as UTF-8. If it’s a big mess, fix your original file and re-import.
- Emails in the “Phone” column, or vice versa. This is usually a mapping error during import. Delete the bad records, fix your CSV, and try again.
- Missing fields. If you forgot to map a column, you’ll need to re-import.
Merge or Delete Duplicates
- Use Myphoner’s “merge” function for contacts that are truly the same person.
- If you have a ton of duplicates, consider using Excel or Google Sheets to clean before importing again. Myphoner’s dedupe isn’t as robust as some CRMs.
Pro tip: If you’re obsessive about data quality (and you should be), export your freshly imported list and spot-check it in a spreadsheet. Sometimes, that’s faster than clicking around in the web app.
Step 4: Organize Your Contacts
Now that your data is clean, make it work for you.
Use Lists and Segments
- Lists are the big buckets—think “2024 Leads” or “Webinar Attendees.”
- Segments help you filter within a list, like “Hot Leads” or “Needs Follow-up.”
Set these up now. It’s easier to sort and filter contacts before your team starts working the list.
Assign Contacts to Agents or Campaigns
If you have multiple people making calls or following up, assign contacts to the right person or campaign. Myphoner lets you do this in bulk, which beats clicking one by one.
Add Tags or Custom Fields
Tags are gold for filtering later (“VIP,” “Do Not Call,” etc.). Custom fields help if you need to track stuff like “Industry” or “Lead Score.”
What to ignore: Don’t go overboard with custom fields or tags. Every extra bit of data is something to manage. Start simple.
Step 5: Set Up for Easy Updates
The best time to plan for the next import is now—before you forget what you did.
- Document your field mappings. Just keep a text file with “CSV Column → Myphoner Field” for next time.
- Standardize naming. Use the same headers and formats every time you build a new list.
- Schedule regular cleanups. Once a month, check for duplicates or contacts with missing info.
Honest take: Most people skip this. Then the next import is a pain. Don’t be most people.
Troubleshooting: When Things Go Sideways
Let’s be real—sometimes imports break.
Common Headaches (And Fixes)
- Special characters are messed up: Re-save your CSV as UTF-8.
- Import stalls or fails: Check file size—if it’s huge, split it into chunks. Or, try a different browser.
- Fields won’t map: Double-check your headers; fix them in Excel and try again.
- Duplicates everywhere: Clean in Excel first. Myphoner’s dedupe is basic.
When to Ask for Help
If you’ve hit a wall, Myphoner’s support is decent and usually answers within a day. Just be specific—“My file won’t upload” is less helpful than “My CSV won’t upload, and I get error X.”
Quick Checklist
- [ ] CSV file is clean, with clear headers.
- [ ] Duplicates handled before import.
- [ ] Fields mapped correctly during import.
- [ ] Spot-checked for errors after import.
- [ ] Lists, segments, and tags set up.
- [ ] Notes for next import saved.
Wrap-Up
Importing contacts into Myphoner isn’t rocket science, but it does pay to keep it simple and sweat the details up front. Don’t chase perfection—just aim for “clean enough” and make small improvements each time. The less time you spend wrestling with messy data, the more you can focus on actually reaching out to your leads. If you get stuck, back up, fix your spreadsheet, and try again. It gets easier, I promise.