A step-by-step guide to preparing your CSV file, mapping columns correctly, previewing the import, and handling errors so your entire email list lands in UniLink Audience cleanly.
If you are moving to UniLink from another platform, or if you have been collecting email addresses in a spreadsheet, an email marketing tool, or a CRM, the contact import is the fastest way to get your audience into UniLink Audience without requiring subscribers to opt in again. This guide covers everything from file preparation to post-import verification.
The import process is designed to be forgiving — you do not need a perfectly formatted file to get started. UniLink guides you through column mapping during the upload, automatically skips invalid emails, and shows you a preview before anything is committed. You are always in control of what gets imported.
What This Feature Covers
UniLink's contact import accepts CSV files (comma-separated values). This is the format exported by virtually every email marketing platform, CRM, and spreadsheet tool, including Mailchimp, ConvertKit, HubSpot, Beacons, Stan, Google Sheets, and Excel. If you have contacts in any of those systems, exporting a CSV takes one or two clicks.
During the import, you map your CSV columns to UniLink's contact fields. Email is the only required field. First name and last name are optional but recommended because they enable personalization in your email campaigns. Tags are optional but powerful — they let you segment your imported audience by source, product purchased, or any other label you want to apply at import time.
After the import completes, your contacts appear in UniLink Audience and are immediately available for email campaigns, automation triggers, and CRM filtering. The import is additive — it does not delete or overwrite existing contacts unless you import a contact with an email address already in your list, in which case UniLink updates that contact's record with any new information from the CSV.
How to Get Started
- Export your contacts from your current platform — in Mailchimp, ConvertKit, Beacons, Stan, or wherever your list lives, find the export or download option and save as CSV. Most platforms export to CSV by default.
- Open the CSV in a spreadsheet tool — open the file in Google Sheets or Excel to review its structure. Confirm you can see the email addresses clearly and identify which columns contain the data you want to import.
- Check for obvious data quality issues — scroll through the email column and look for entries that are clearly not email addresses (phone numbers, blank rows, column headers repeated mid-file). Remove these before uploading.
- Save the file as CSV (UTF-8) — if you made any edits in Google Sheets, download the file again as CSV. In Excel, use Save As → CSV UTF-8. UTF-8 encoding ensures names with accents or non-Latin characters import correctly.
- Log into your UniLink dashboard — go to unilink.us, sign in, and navigate to Settings → Audience.
- Click Import — the Import button is at the top right of the Audience section. Click it to open the import dialog.
Step-by-Step Guide
- Upload your CSV file — in the import dialog, click Choose File or drag and drop your CSV. UniLink reads the file and displays the first few rows so you can verify it loaded correctly before proceeding.
- Map the email column — UniLink asks you to match each column in your CSV to a contact field. Find the dropdown next to your email column and select Email. This is the only required mapping.
- Map optional fields — if your CSV includes a first name column, map it to First Name. Repeat for Last Name. If you have a column you want to use as a tag (such as "source" or "product"), map it to Tags. Columns you do not map are ignored.
- Add import tags (optional) — below the column mapping, you can enter one or more tags to apply to every contact in this import. This is useful for labeling contacts by where they came from (e.g., "mailchimp-import", "event-2025") so you can filter them later in the CRM.
- Preview the import — UniLink shows a summary: total rows in the file, estimated number of valid contacts to be added, and any rows that will be skipped due to invalid email format. Review this summary carefully before confirming.
- Confirm the import — click Import Contacts. UniLink processes the file in the background. For large lists (over 10,000 contacts), processing may take a few minutes. You will see a progress indicator and a completion notification when the import finishes.
- Verify the results — after the import completes, go to the Audience section and confirm the contact count increased as expected. Use the search and filter tools to spot-check a few specific contacts and verify their fields imported correctly.
Key Settings Explained
| Setting | What it controls | Best practice |
|---|---|---|
| Email column mapping | Tells UniLink which CSV column contains email addresses | Always verify the mapping before confirming — selecting the wrong column results in invalid data across your entire import |
| Import tags | Labels applied to every contact in this specific import batch | Always add an import tag so you can identify and filter contacts from each import source separately |
| Duplicate handling | What happens when an imported email already exists in your Audience | UniLink updates the existing contact record with new field values from the CSV rather than creating a duplicate |
| Invalid email behavior | What happens to rows with email addresses that fail format validation | UniLink skips invalid emails automatically; review the import summary to see how many were skipped and why |
| Import history | A log of all past imports including date, file name, contact count, and skip count | Check import history after each upload to confirm counts match your expectations and to troubleshoot any discrepancies |
How to Get the Most Out of It
The most valuable thing you can do immediately after a contact import is set up a re-engagement campaign for your imported list. Many of these contacts have not heard from you in a while or never received an email through UniLink before. A short three-email sequence that reintroduces you, delivers something useful, and links to your top product or content performs well with imported audiences because it re-establishes the relationship on a positive note.
Use import tags strategically. If you import contacts from multiple sources — your old Mailchimp list, a downloaded event attendee list, a CSV from your online course platform — tag each import with a descriptive label. Later, when you want to send a campaign to only your course buyers, or only attendees from a specific event, the tag filter in Audience makes that segmentation immediate.
If your CSV includes columns beyond email, first name, and last name — such as purchase dates, product names, or custom attributes — check whether UniLink supports custom contact fields for your plan. Custom fields let you map those additional columns and retain that data in your CRM for future segmentation and personalization.
Review the import history regularly, especially if multiple team members have access to your UniLink account. Import history shows who uploaded each file, when, and what the results were. It is a useful audit trail for understanding how your Audience list grew over time and identifying any accidental or duplicate imports.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Import completes but contact count did not increase as expected | Many rows contained invalid emails or all emails were already in the list as duplicates | Check the import summary for the skip count and reason; filter existing Audience by the import tag to see what was actually added |
| Names appear garbled or contain strange characters | CSV was not saved as UTF-8 before uploading | Re-open the file in Google Sheets, download as CSV (UTF-8), and re-import |
| Tags are not appearing on imported contacts | Import tags were not entered in the import dialog, or column mapping for tags was skipped | Use the import history to identify the affected batch, then manually apply tags in the Audience CRM or re-import a corrected file with tags mapped |
| File upload button does nothing or shows an error | File is not a valid CSV format (may be .xlsx or .numbers instead), or file size exceeds the upload limit | Open the file in Google Sheets and download as plain CSV; ensure the file is under the size limit (typically 10 MB for the import dialog) |
Pros
- Imports are fast — even large lists of tens of thousands of contacts process within minutes
- Invalid emails are skipped automatically so you do not need to pre-clean every address in the file
- Duplicate emails update existing records rather than creating clutter in your Audience
- Import tags make it easy to segment and track contacts by source from the moment they enter your list
Cons
- Custom fields beyond email, name, and tags may require a higher plan tier depending on your account
- Historical engagement data (open rates, click rates from another platform) does not transfer with the import
- Very large files may take several minutes to process, during which the contact count in Audience will not yet reflect the import
Frequently Asked Questions
Do imported contacts need to re-confirm their subscription?
No. Contacts imported via CSV are added to your Audience list directly without requiring re-confirmation. You are responsible for ensuring that these contacts have previously consented to receive emails from you in accordance with applicable email marketing regulations such as GDPR and CAN-SPAM.
What is the maximum CSV file size for import?
The standard import supports files up to 10 MB, which covers most contact lists up to several hundred thousand rows. If your file is larger, split it into multiple files and import them sequentially. Each import appends to the existing Audience list, so the order does not matter.
Can I import contacts without a first or last name?
Yes. Email is the only required column. If your CSV does not include name columns, those fields will be blank on the imported contacts. You can update individual contacts manually later, or leave the name fields blank if personalization is not a priority for your campaigns.
What happens if I import the same CSV twice by accident?
UniLink deduplicates on email address. If you upload the same file twice, existing contacts are updated (not duplicated), and no new contacts are created. The only side effect is that the import history will show two entries for the same file, which you can use to verify the duplicate import had no negative effect.
Can I undo a contact import?
There is no one-click undo for an import. If you need to remove imported contacts, filter your Audience list by the import tag you applied during the upload, select all matching contacts, and delete them in bulk. This is why adding a unique import tag to every batch is strongly recommended.
Key Takeaways
- Email is the only required column in your CSV; first name, last name, and tags are optional but recommended.
- Save your CSV as UTF-8 before uploading to prevent encoding errors on names with special characters.
- Always add an import tag during upload so you can filter and identify contacts by their source later.
- UniLink skips invalid email addresses automatically and shows a skip count in the import summary.
- Test with a small sample file before importing your full list to catch column mapping errors early.
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