CRM (Advanced): Merge Duplicate Contacts

Contacts are considered duplicates when you have more than one contact with the same email address, phone number, and name, and there are no conflicting fields among them. If you end up with duplicate listings, merge them either automatically or manually. If you merge two or more contacts that are linked to different accounts, the resulting contact will still be linked to those accounts.

Covered here:

• Which Contacts are Flagged as Duplicates
• How to Best Update Contact Information With Additional Imports
• How to Merge Duplicate Contacts Automatically
• How to Merge Duplicate Contacts Manually

Which Contacts are Flagged as Duplicates

Contacts are considered duplicates when the completed fields all contain the same data. Contacts are still flagged as duplicates when one or more has less completed fields, as long as all of the provided data matches.

In the example below, the two contacts wouldn’t be flagged as duplicates because their data doesn’t fully match.

Contact 1:

First Name: Bob
Last Name: Smith
Contact Name: Bob Smith
Phone: (555) 555-5555

Contact 2:

First Name: Bob
Last Name: Smith
Contact Name: Bob Smith
Phone: (444) 444-4444

First Name: SAME
Last Name: SAME
Contact Name: SAME
Phone: DIFFERENT

In the example below, the two contacts would be flagged as duplicates because all their available data matches, even though the first has less.

Contact 1:

First Name: Bob
Last: Smith
Contact Name: Bob Smith
Phone: (555) 555-5555

Contact 2:

First Name: Bob
Last Name: Smith
Contact Name: Bob Smith
Phone: (555) 555-555
DOB: 8/1/1955
Address: 123 Main St.
Phone 2: (995) 222-444
Best Time to Call: 8 p.m.

First Name: SAME
Last Name: SAME
Contact Name: SAME
Phone: SAME
DOB: MISSING FOR CONTACT 2
Address: MISSING FOR CONTACT 2
Phone 2: MISSING FOR CONTACT 2
Best Time to Call: MISSING FOR CONTACT 2

Though some data is missing for Contact 2, all of its available data matches Contact 1, so they are flagged as duplicates.

How to Best Update Contact Information With Additional Imports

If you would like to update your contact information with a new import, follow these guidelines:

1. Export your existing contacts. For commonly used applications, find the details here.
2. Add any additional columns to your spreadsheet for info you’d like to include (e.g., DOB, Address, Phone 2, or Best Time to Call).
3. Do not modify the existing columns. See Which Contacts Are Flagged as Duplicates above to see which contacts won’t merge.
4. Import your contacts as described here. Map fields exactly as you did before, plus add the new ones.
5. When you get to the linking-accounts step, do not select any fields if you don’t wish to link contacts to accounts.
6. Once the import is completed, you’ll see a duplicates report.
7. Click the MERGE DUPLICATES button.
8. If the new contacts are exactly the same as the old contacts—but with additional fields added—they will successfully merge.

How to Merge Duplicate Contacts Automatically

To merge all of them at once:

Go to the Clients section, open the Contacts tab, then click the MERGE DUPLICATES button. The MERGE DUPLICATES button will be displayed only if TaxDome has found duplicates (your contacts are scanned hourly for duplicates).

To merge them one by one:

1. Go to Clients, open the Contacts tab, then click on a contact’s name in the list. If TaxDome finds a duplicate listing for a contact, a Duplicates section is displayed on the bottom of the right sliding window.

2. Click the bracket-arrow icon to the right of the duplicate’s name to merge it. All fields from a duplicate listing are copied to the main contact, and the extra one is deleted.

Attention! When merging this way, duplicates shouldn’t have conflicting fields or you’ll lose data.

How to Merge Duplicate Contacts Manually

If your contacts have conflicting fields, but you still consider them duplicates, merge them manually.

Note:

• If some of the duplicates’ matching fields contain data, select the data you want to keep for the resulting contact.
• If the duplicates’ matching fields contain different data, select the data you want to keep for the resulting contact.
  
  For example: There are three contacts for the same person. In the First Name field, the first says “Mike”; the second, “Michael”; and the third, “M.” Select the first name you prefer for the resulting merged contact. Once you save it, the others are deleted.
• If any of the contacts are linked to one or more client accounts, the resulting contact is still linked.
• When merging contacts with different values in multiselect dropdown custom fields, you will be able to select which data should be kept: value for one of the accounts, or a union of all values.
• Once contacts have been merged, they cannot be unmerged. However, you can always create a new contact.

To merge contacts manually:

1. Go to Clients, open the Contacts tab, then select the checkboxes to the left of the contacts you want to merge.

2. Click on the Merge selected link.

3. You’ll see the fields for the person’s contact information. Carefully review each field by clicking on it and selecting the information you want to keep.

4. Then click SAVE.