The import file must be a comma delimited (.csv) file. An excel file can easily be saved as a comma delimited (.csv) file by selecting the File >> Save As option and changing the Save As Type field to “CSV (Comma Delimited) (*.csv)”.
The first row of the import file is referred to as the header row. Every import must contain one of these and it must adhere to the rules outlined below. If the rules below are not followed the import will be unsuccessful. The second row of the file will be considered to be the first row of data to import.
If an error occurs on any row, it will flag that row as an error and continue processing subsequent rows. The import screen will then display any errors that occurred and will provide the number of rows that failed/succeeded. These rows will be available as a new CSV download from the “View Failed Rows” link. This CSV will contain the original failed row and corresponding error message as the first two columns for greater usability, so after errors are fixed, delete those two columns to have a file that can be reimported.
If you want to remove data from a field you can enter <Blank> instead of data. The import will blank the data out of the specified field for you. If you just leave the field blank, the import will skip that field and not change the data that exists in that field. There is one caveat to this; if the field you are trying to blank out is encrypted, the import does not recognize <blank> as a command and instead will actually import a value of “<blank>”.
If you try to import data into a text field and that data is longer than what the text field can accept, your data will not be imported and will receive an error message stating that the row exceeds the field’s maximum length. For example, the employee name fields are limited to 50 characters. If you try to import a name that exceeds 50 characters, you will receive and error message.
Any date values should be expressed in a sortable date format or in US standard month-dayyear format. This includes “YYYY-MM-DD”, “YYYY/MM/DD” and “MM/DD/YYYYY.”