Importing from external sources

On this page:

• Importing contacts from Google
• Importing contacts from Apple
• Bulk updating existing records through import
• Transferring data between Insightly accounts

Importing contacts from Google

Two routes, and they are not equivalent.

Export and import via CSV gives you full control over field mapping, including any custom fields you have created. Export your contacts from Google, then import the CSV to Insightly. This route is faster than the direct connection.

Import directly from Google connects the two accounts. It brings across name, organization, phone, email, and address, and nothing else.

To import directly:

1. Click Contacts in the left navigation bar.
2. Click Import Contacts And Notes in the right sidebar. Click Show Sidebar first if it is hidden.
3. Click Setup Google Integration. If Insightly is already connected to Google you will see an Import link instead, so skip to step 5.
4. Enter or confirm your Google credentials and click Allow.
5. Click Import your contacts from Gmail and wait for the list to load.
6. Check the names to import. The checkbox above the list selects all.
7. Click Import Selected Contacts.

A message confirms the import has started, and Insightly emails you when it finishes.

⚠️ Confirm the Google account before clicking Allow. The account is shown in the upper right of the consent screen. A wrong connection can be removed from your Google account’s security settings.

ℹ️ Loading the contact list can take 30 minutes or more, depending on how many contacts you have and how busy Google’s servers are.

ℹ️ Every Google contact appears in the list, including those outside your My Contacts group.

Contacts whose email addresses match existing Insightly contacts are skipped. They are not imported, and they do not update the existing records.

Importing contacts from Apple

Insightly needs an Excel or CSV file. Exporting from Apple’s Address Book or Contacts produces a vCard VCF, which will not import.

Two ways round it: export the contacts into a program that offers Excel or CSV export, such as Gmail, and export from there; or convert the VCF to CSV with a conversion tool.

Bulk updating existing records through import

Importing can update records in bulk, by matching the Record ID in your file to the Record ID in the CRM.

A Record ID is the number Insightly assigns to a record when it is created. It shows in the highlights bar and in the Details tab on the default Page Layout. If you cannot see it, an administrator can add it through a Page Layout.

⚠️ Record ID is required for bulk updating. Record names will not do. Two records can share a name, and matching on name can write your data to the wrong one. Two schools both called Sierra High School is one such example.

Getting Record IDs into the file

The straightforward case is a file that came out of Insightly, since the Record ID is already there in the first column.

1. Export the records you want to update.
2. Edit the file.
3. Import it back, choosing Update Existing Records or Add New Records and Update Existing Records.

Starting from an outside file means adding the IDs yourself:

1. Export the corresponding records from Insightly. Keep a spare copy of the export in case of mistakes.
2. Add an ID column to the spreadsheet you plan to import, labeled for the object, such as Organization Record ID.
3. For a handful of records, find and enter the IDs by hand. For many, a VLOOKUP in Excel or Google Sheets can match on record name and fill the ID column, depending on how your files are laid out.
4. Save as a comma-delimited CSV using Save As or Download As.
5. Import, choosing Update Existing Records or Add New Records and Update Existing Records.

Transferring data between Insightly accounts

Consolidating two accounts means exporting from one and importing into the other. Add your users and any customizations to the target account first, then move the data.

⚠️ Only main records transfer. Emails, file attachments, opportunity notes, project notes, comments, events, most links between records, and links to Google Drive files cannot be transferred and will be lost if the source account is closed.