Welcome to the SimpleImport User Guide. SimpleImport is a quick-to-adopt importing solution for Salesforce CRM aimed at streamlining repeat import tasks, designed to scale with your business, and offering unique functionality designed with the end user in mind.
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Getting this far means that we’re ready to start importing, but before we submit the job for processing, let’s take a look at the summary page.
The summary page contains:
Your selections – the file name you’re working with and the objects you’re importing into.Matching – if the import is an update or upsert, a description of the matching conditions.Mapping – a summary of the amount of fields mapped.Job estimation – an estimate for how many records will be inserted or updated.Save mapping – manage storing the mapping for reuse.This is the last chance to review your configuration before hitting Submit. If you need to make any changes, use the Back button in the footer of the app to navigate to your desired page.
SimpleImport is designed to streamline repeat imports, whether it be through the SimpleImport application, or by using ManagedImport. Either approach relies on a saved mapping.
You have the option to save a mapping once you reach the summary page.
If you loaded an existing mapping and made some changes that you want to keep, use the Save button to update the existing mapping.
To save a new mapping, use the Save As button and provide a name when prompted.
If you are working with a multi-sheet workbook and planning to use the mapping with ManagedImport, tick Store the current sheet name in mapping for use with ManagedImport.
Everything has been covered for configuring an import and you’re ready to go. When you’re happy, press Submit.
You will be navigated back to the Home and Upload screen where you can monitor the file’s progress and results once the job has been completed by viewing the tile’s state. You can refer back to the file states and actions article for more information.
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The destination object has been selected and the import type has been defined. We’re now ready to tell SimpleImport where we want the file’s data to be imported into.
This example will cover inserting accounts from the template file shown below. It contains three accounts shown in rows 2, 3 and 4 and has column headings shown in row 1.
The mapping page contains some key features:
File columns – populated with the row 1 data from the file.Sample data – displays the first 5 rows of data from the file. Use the left and right arrows next to sample data to scroll through the rows.Object fields – a place to select the Salesforce fields from the object you’re importing into. Clicking each row reveals the field finder.Add Constant – generate a new row to add a constant value to each record and map it to a Salesforce field.
The key objective on the mapping page is to associate each of the file columns that need importing with a Salesforce field. Select Map to Salesforce in the Object fields section to access the field finder for each row.
The field finder lists all fields that exist on the object you’re importing to and provides a search box to quickly locate the fields you want to map your import to.
Each field will be presented in the following format:
Field Name | External ID Field | Object Name | Required
Field Name provides the name of the field. This may be the field name, API name, or both depending on your configured preferences.External Id Field will be displayed if the field type is a lookup field. This allows you to populate lookup fields with any supported external ID specified on field selection’s destination object.Object Name will always display and is beneficial when importing into multiple objects. An M or D will follow in brackets highlighting whether the field is part of the master or the detail.Required will be displayed if the field is required.
To map file columns to Salesforce fields:
Map to Salesforce for the row you’d like to map. Field finder search to filter the list of fields.Select the field from the list. The field list is scrollable if there is a long list of fields.Repeat for each file column you want to import.To change an existing field mapping or remove an exiting field:
existing mapped field for the row you’d like to edit. Field finder search to filter the list of fields.--Click to Unmap-- found at the top on the list.Select the desired item from the list.
Constant values allow you to import a consistent data value into a Salesforce field for each record being imported. A common use case is importing new products and making them all active, or inserting new accounts and setting the billing country to a set location.
To add a constant value:
Add Constant to generate a new constant row.Map to Salesforce in the constant’s row. Field finder search to filter the list of fields.Select the field from the list.To delete a constant value:
more actions in the constant value’s row (down arrow).Delete.
You should now be confident in understanding how to map your spreadsheet file to Salesforce fields and optionally add constant values to the mapping. This covers all of the configuration required to import into Salesforce. We’ll now head to the summary page to review the import before submitting the job. Move onto the next article to continue.
The time has arrived! We’re so excited to share with you the SimpleImport Winter ‘22 (20211129) Release!
With an optimized workflow, updated error messages, a nifty feature addition and a new summary page, there’s plenty to cover so let’s get started.
Firstly… ambiguous toggles are gone from the mapping page! SimpleImport now has a dedicated page for defining your Import Type; choose between an Insert, Update or Upsert. A new quick-to-adopt Matching Conditions query builder finds existing records when you are configuring an Update or Upsert job.
Thanks to the dedicated Import Type page we’ve just seen, the mapping page now focuses on its key objective – mapping fields! It’s simpler than ever to map your spreadsheet columns to Salesforce fields, and the field finder has been revamped to be faster and more accurate than before.
Are you importing products and want them all to be active? Or inserting new US accounts? Introducing Constant values. Don’t waste time duplicating data in your spreadsheet; tackle it directly on the mapping page. Hit Add Constant, map the value, and away you go!
Sometimes errors happen and we’ve been working hard to make our messaging as clear as possible so that you can identify the issues and work on solving them. Perhaps something is misconfigured, or required fields are missing? SimpleImport will let you know!
Importing can be stressful so we’ve introduced a new summary page to provide an overview of the import job you’re about to submit. See your object selections, matching conditions, mapped fields and review the job estimation all in one place. Sound good? Well you can save the mapping here for future use!
Load mappings at the beginning of your journey, and save new ones at the end. With the import process now spread out over a couple of steps, loading a mapping at the earliest point allows you to blitz through your import task. Save a new mapping at the end of the process ensures you’ve followed all the required steps to set up your mapping how you need it.
Great question! This is a service update so you will automatically have access to the new workflow if you are already using SimpleImport Premium.
There are some additional tweaks and changes including removing the requirement to create a custom setting when configuring the ManagedImport Lightning Component. All old mappings will still work as expected. To accompany these changes, we’ve overhauled our documentation to make the transition and future adoption of the solution better than ever.
New documentation: SimpleImport User Guide
If you get stuck or have any questions, feel free to contact our Support team who are more than happy to help you: support@provenworks.com.
Importing files is so vital for so many organizations. It’s good news that Simplelmport makes this job as effortless as possible. Learn more and book a demo.
“SimpleImport frees up time to concentrate on the actual work that we do.”
Sharm Das, Database Manager at Mental Health UK
Bringing together the heritage and experience of four charities across the country who’ve been supporting people with their mental health for nearly 50 years, Mental Health UK provide support and services for the biggest societal challenges posing a threat to our mental health – and they won’t stop until everyone has the tools they need to live their best possible life.
Mental Health UK receives donations from various online platforms including Facebook, Virgin Money and Paypal donations. Centralising this data – contacts, donations and soft credit – in their Salesforce org is crucial to cultivate a single source of truth about their donors and communicate using the most up-to-date information.
They needed a solution to make importing Recurring Donations into Salesforce as straightforward as possible.
“I normally find importing such a laborious process, but now it is quick and easy!”
Jemima Woolgar, Senior Community & Events Fundraising Manager
With SimpleImport, Mental Health UK’s importing process is straightforward, even for multi-sheet files and master-detail records. Thanks to easy matching of Excel columns to Salesforce object fields, importing has never been so simple!
SimpleImport presents success and error files for each import, and the Mental Health UK team can use the handy Salesforce Records IDs on the import success files for further manipulations. Even better, the team can save import mappings for further use, saving time and effort on recurring jobs.
“SimpleImport has saved us so much time. So streamlined and easy to use!”
Johnston Connelly, Events Fundraising and Engagement Officer
With SimpleImport installed, the Mental Health UK team can handle their Recurring Donations imports with ease. Crucially, this frees up their time to focus on what matters most: their mission.
We asked Sharm Das, Database Manager at Mental Health UK why she would recommend SimpleImport:
“The most cost-efficient solution I have come across.”
We are privileged to support nonprofit organizations, such as Mental Health UK, with flexible discounts. And regarding support:
“The Support team has been amazing – very helpful and quick to respond.”
Find out more about Mental Health UK and support their vital work across the UK.
Importing files is vital for so many organizations. It’s good news that Simplelmport makes this job as effortless as possible. Learn more and book a demo.
Do you want to learn more about how SimpleImport could be a great addition to your Salesforce org? We’d love to chat! Use the scheduler to book a free call with our team and start your journey to faster, simpler imports.
Can’t find a time that works for you or would rather email first? Fill out our contact form and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Dale Carnegie supports their franchise network with over 50 unique file imports each month thanks to SimpleImport.
“SimpleImport is a must-have. It’s true to its name; simple, reliable and effective!”
Christopher Addeo, Vice President of Information Technology at Dale Carnegie Training
Dale Carnegie was founded in 1912, inspired by one man’s belief in the power of self-improvement. Since then, it’s evolved into a movement that’s crossed borders and generations, showing people how to tap into the best parts of themselves to create positive change.
Today, through franchises in over 90 countries and all 50 states, they help people gain greater influence and make meaningful contributions in the places that matter most.
As a global franchisor, Dale Carnegie was challenged by siloed information stored in separate franchises using different file formats and languages. Supporting their franchisees with a single org meant that imports needed to honour complex sharing rule configurations to segment their data.
Dale Carnegie needed a strong, efficient importing solution to speed up their regular complex importing jobs. With a small team supporting many franchises, the solution had to be efficient to use, and capable of managing multiple data sources and formats.
With its simple user interface, compatibility with Dale Carnegie’s unique Sales Cloud configuration and sharing rules, and support of multiple file formats, SimpleImport is the perfect answer to their problems.
After a simple and speedy installation, and with the straightforward solution configured, Dale Carnegie’s administrators can manage their complex importing processes with ease thanks to SimpleImport.
This new way of working has enabled the support, sales and even marketing teams at Dale Carnegie to focus on what’s most important: their customers.
“Cases are typically resolved quickly and professionally. I don’t reach out to ProvenWorks for support often – the application is robust, reliable and is self sustaining. The fact that we don’t need support very often speaks to why we love this product.“
Christopher Addeo, Vice President of Information Technology at Dale Carnegie Training
Importing files is so vital for so many organizations. It’s good news that Simplelmport makes this job as effortless as possible. Learn more and book a demo.
Do you want to learn more about how SimpleImport could be a great addition to your Salesforce org? We’d love to chat! Use the scheduler to book a free call with our team and start your journey to faster, simpler imports
Can’t find a time that works for you or would rather email first? Fill out our contact form and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
This article is for those already familiar with how to configure a saved mapping for Managed Import. Want to find out how to configure Managed Import, check out the setup article here.
The Managed Import component from SimpleImport allows you to pass a record ID to your import by leveraging a Record ID Tag. This removes the requirement to copy a record ID into the file every time you want to add related records to an existing record.
Traditionally, import files would need to specify a valid record ID for each row in a dedicated column. This involves sourcing the ID from your Org and manually copying it onto each row every time you want to insert new related records. This can be seen in the example below.
This file demonstrates inserting three Contacts relating to the Account: 0010Y00000RgvYgQAJ.
With with record ID tag, we can now specify {!Record.Id} in the column. These cells are then dynamically populated with the record ID either specified in the component or fetched from the record being viewed at the point of use.
The record ID tag can be populated via two available methods which is chosen when adding the component to your desired destination:
{!Record.Id} tags. This can be useful if using the component in a Salesforce Screen Flow but is available wherever the component is placed.The following steps will demonstrate using a custom record ID that belongs to an Account with the component sat on a Lightning Home page.
Navigate to Setup and select Lightning App Builder from the setup menu.
If you already have a custom Lightning Page where you want the component to be placed, select Edit next to it, alternatively, select New and follow the steps through to creating a new page. We will edit Home Page Default.
In the Component Search, search for Managed Import.
Drag the Managed Import component onto your layout.
Once placed, a design parameters menu will appear on the right of the screen.
Enter the ID for your saved mapping – not sure what this is? See here.Enter custom textEnter custom textEnter custom textEnter a Record ID you want to pass to the importFalse
Select Save and Activate.
The Managed Import component will now be configured to pass the ID placed into the design parameter and populate the {!Record.Id} tags in the file when in operation.
The following steps will demonstrate using the current record ID of an Account with the component placed on a Lightning App Page.
Navigate to Setup and select Lightning App Builder from the setup menu.
If you already have a custom Lightning Page where you want the component to be placed, select Edit next to it, alternatively, select New and follow the steps through to creating a new page. We will edit Account App Page.
In the Component Search, search for Managed Import.
Drag the Managed Import component onto your layout.
Once placed, a design parameters menu will appear on the right of the screen.
Enter the ID for your saved mapping – not sure what this is? See here.Enter custom textEnter custom textEnter custom textLeave empty for this exampleTrue
Select Save and Activate.
The Managed Import component will now be configured to pass the ID of the record you’re viewing to the component and populate the {!Record.Id} tags in the file when in operation.
If you are experiencing any issues with the setup of your Managed Import component in your Org, please reach out to support@provenworks.com where a member of our team will be happy to assist.
SimpleImport by ProvenWorks for Salesforce CRM allows you to import data from Excel into Salesforce without being an admin user. Administrators can choose to remain in control over the fields and objects users can import into by giving a non-admin user a license to SimpleImport with restrictions in place. These restrictions will allow the admin to specify the exact objects the user will have access to import into. See below, we’ve restricted this sales user to only be able to import into the Lead object.
Want to take it a step further and restrict the fields users can import into as well? Take a look at our guided import wizard functionality which gives users a drag and drop component with your predefined object and field mappings. This means that if a user were to try to import into a field that wasn’t configured in the mapping, the import would fail. You can open up importing to non-admin users with the assurance that they can only import into objects and fields specified by the admin.
We understand that you don’t want community and portal users to be able to import into any object and fields in Salesforce, so our Managed Import component can also be used in a Salesforce Community. This is perfect for recurring imports like product and sales data, or deal registration.
Install SimpleImport from the Salesforce AppExchange
Arrange a free demo of SimpleImport to see it in action.
SimpleImport caches field and object data on its initial load per Salesforce session. If a field or object is created or edited during that time of an active session, you must log out of your Salesforce org and log in again for the changes to be acknowledged. When you reload SimpleImport in the new session, the changes to the organization’s metadata will become available.
When inserting data via an import solution into Salesforce, it’s best practice to add the record owner field to the records being inserted so that they’re not all assigned to the user importing the data. This can be easily achieved when using SimpleImport in Salesforce by using the users’ usernames. Let’s start by taking a look at how to find a Salesforce Username.
When importing a file with SimpleImport, you can specify the owner of each record so that it is assigned to said owner once imported. To complete this you will first need the username, as follows:
You now need to add the desired username(s) to each row within your spreadsheet, all rows must have a valid username entered otherwise an error will occur when importing.
Once your data has been imported, the owner of each individual record will be set to the user whose username had been entered in the spreadsheet.
If you are still having problems with setting the owner of individual records, or require more assistance with SimpleImport, please contact us at: support@provenworks.com