How do I add or import my contacts?

Q: How do I add or import my contacts?

Open Contacts and choose Import contacts. Export your list from your old email service as a CSV file and choose it. Every column is read: the address, name, company, phone, postal address, tags, notes, the signup date, and who is subscribed or unsubscribed. A column that matches none of those is kept on the contact as an extra detail under its own heading. Before anything is saved you see a review: how many people are new subscribers, how many are already in your contacts, and any rows that were skipped and why. People the file marks as not subscribed are added as contacts who are never emailed, or you can leave them out. If they did sign up and the file has it wrong, tick Everyone in this file is subscribed and they come in as subscribers. Someone who unsubscribed or bounced stays that way with or without the tick, and an import sends no email. To add one person by hand, open Contacts in Email Campaigns and choose Add contact. Each contact carries a status (Subscribed, Pending, Unsubscribed, Bounced, Complaint, or Wrote in only) and list memberships, and only Subscribed contacts count toward your monthly tier.

Contacts & Email · Full walkthrough

Get your people in one place.

Import contacts with a review first, keep subscription statuses intact and build lists for the right audience.

Before you start

Export your existing contacts as CSV and keep subscription status information. Only import people you are entitled to contact. An enquiry, purchase or imported name is not automatically permission for marketing email.

Step 1

Understand the audience you have

Open Email → Contacts. Filter by subscription status, how contacts arrived, website or list; use Search contacts to find one person.

Subscribed, Pending, Unsubscribed, Bounced and Complaints have different sending eligibility. Wrote in only identifies enquiries without a mailing subscription.

Use the website and list filters to avoid mixing audiences when preparing a campaign. A contact can exist in the account without being eligible for marketing email.

Step 2

Import and review before saving

Choose Import CSV, then Choose a CSV file or Paste rows instead. Read the column mapping, invalid rows, duplicate handling and import totals before confirming the import.

Every column is read; unmatched information is kept with the contact. Review the email column and subscription statuses instead of assuming the importer guessed correctly.

Previously unsubscribed or bounced addresses are not a shortcut to a fresh subscription. Keep those suppressions intact. Importing contacts does not send a campaign.

Step 3

Add an individual when needed

For one person, choose Add contact, enter the email and optional first and last name, then save. Review the resulting contact and status before including them in a campaign.

Use the person's actual address and avoid adding the same person through repeated variations. Search first when you are unsure whether they already exist.

A subscriber's eligibility comes from their saved status, not from being present in the table. Review Pending or Wrote in only separately from Subscribed.

Step 4

Create a useful list

Open Lists and choose New list. Give it a purpose-based name, then organize the contacts or groups that belong to that audience.

A list groups contacts; a group is a smaller slice within a list. Use names that help you choose the right audience at campaign time.

For automatic website signups into a list, configure the destination under Config → Signups. Verify the destination before promoting the signup form.

Step 5

Check the campaign audience

When building a campaign, choose its intended list and review the eligible audience before sending. Test the campaign separately from importing or editing contacts.

Only eligible subscribed contacts receive marketing campaigns; a list must not bypass unsubscribe, bounce or complaint status.

Confirm the subject, sender, links, list and recipient count together. A test email reviews the message; it is not proof that the selected audience is correct.

Review checklist

Import mapping and row totals were reviewed.
Subscription and suppression statuses remain correct.
Lists have clear purposes and signup destinations.
The campaign audience is reviewed separately from the import.

If you get stuck

A contact is present but will not receive a campaign

Check its subscription status. Wrote in only, pending, unsubscribed, bounced and complaint contacts are not an eligible subscribed campaign audience.

A signup reaches the wrong list

Review Email → Config → Signups and the signup's website or collection-page destination.

Try it in Podspun Cloud ↗