Most import problems start in the spreadsheet, not in Amplify. Ten minutes of prep saves you an afternoon of cleanup.
Step 1: Save your file as a CSV
The importer takes a .csv file with one sheet, under 50MB. If your list is an Excel file (.xlsx), open it and use File > Save As (or Save a Copy), then pick CSV. In Google Sheets, use File > Download > Comma-separated values (.csv).
If your workbook has more than one tab, save each tab you need as its own CSV.
Step 2: Set up your columns
Put a header row at the top, one column per field. The basics are first name, last name, email, and phone. Add any others you need, like company or address.
Phone numbers import most reliably with the country code, like +1 772 555 0123. Formats like 772-555-0123 or (772) 555-0123 usually work too.
Step 3: Decide what to do with contacts missing an email
When matching contacts, the importer looks at email first, then phone. A row with no email still imports, as long as it has a name or a phone number. If an email or phone matches someone already in your account, the importer updates that contact instead of making a copy. A row with only a name comes in, but you can't text or email that person until you add a way to reach them.
If someone has neither, they won't be much use for follow-up anyway. Fill in what you can or leave them out.
Step 4: Tag each segment before you import
Past customers, open estimates, and new leads shouldn't all get the same messages. Add a Tags column and fill it in per row, like "past customer" or "estimate 2026." For more than one tag, separate them with commas: past customer, hvac.
Splitting a big list into separate files by segment works too. Import each one with its own tag.
Step 5: Import
- Go to Contacts, open the Smart Lists tab, and click Import Contacts.
- Upload your CSV.
- Match each column to the right field. Use the preview to check it.
- On the last step, you can add tags, create a Smart List from the import, or add the contacts to a workflow.
- Tick the compliance box to confirm these contacts opted in to hear from you, then finish.
About Do Not Disturb (DND) and consent
Only import people who agreed to hear from you. If someone asked not to be texted or emailed, add a DND column to your file and fill it in for those people. Heads up: a DND column turns off every channel for that contact, text, email, calls, all of it. If someone only opted out of texts, leave them out of the DND column and tell us. We'll set it up so only texting is blocked.
If the import has errors
Go to Contacts > Bulk Actions. You'll see your recent imports, including any that didn't fully go through. Open the error log. Each error shows a line number that matches a row in your CSV, so you can fix that row and import it again.
Still stuck? Send the file and the error to support@earnworthy.com.