Uploading Lead Lists

You can upload a CSV of leads straight from the Portal, with no help from Aktify needed. The same upload flow can also mark existing contacts as Do Not Contact, End Contact, or Closed so they stop receiving messages.

Uploading a list of new leads happens in two stages:

1. Import. You upload the file and map its columns. Aktify then cleanses the list, checking every row for invalid phone numbers, fake or inappropriate names, and other questionable data.
2. Send. Once cleansing finishes, you review the results and send the list to its campaign. Nothing is sent to your leads until you do this.

Before you begin

• Prepare a CSV file. The first row must contain column headers, and every other row is one lead. Excel users can use File → Save As → CSV. Keep header names simple: a comma inside a header name will split it into two columns.
• Include a phone number column. It's the only required column. For new leads, also include a first name or full name column. For Closed lists, include a created date column.
• Choose your campaign. New leads must go to a live campaign.

Step 1: Start a new import

1. Open Leads from the main navigation.
2. Select the New tab.
3. Drag your CSV onto the Drag and drop a CSV area, or click Browse to pick it.

Once you choose a valid file, the Portal moves to the next step automatically. If the file isn't accepted, you'll see "Invalid file. Please upload a valid CSV file with sufficient data and a reasonable name." A file can be rejected because it isn't a .csv, because it's empty, or because its file name is longer than 256 characters.

Step 2: Select the list type

Pick a List Type. The type decides what happens to the leads in the file.

List Type	What it does	Campaign
New	Imports new leads. They're cleansed, then sent to a campaign once you approve them.	Required. Only live campaigns are listed.
Closed	Marks the leads as Closed (for example, they've already converted). They'll no longer receive messages.	Not needed.
End Contact	Marks the leads as End Contact. They'll no longer receive messages.	Optional. Tick End contact for campaign to limit it to one campaign.
Do Not Contact	Marks the leads as DNC. They'll no longer receive messages.	Not needed.

For New lists, pick a Campaign and click Next. If you pick Closed or Do Not Contact, the Portal moves on to the next step automatically.

Step 3: Map your columns

The next screen lists every column found in your file under CSV Columns. Next to each one, choose the Aktify System Field it holds. Columns you leave as Select Field are ignored.

The Portal fills in as many mappings as it can for you, based on your column names. Check them before you continue. Each system field can only be mapped to one column.

The Portal also remembers the mappings you use for each campaign and list type. The next time you upload a list with the same columns to that campaign, your mappings are filled in for you. They're saved in your browser, so they won't carry over to a different computer or browser.

System Field	What it holds	Auto-detected from headers like
Phone Number	The lead's phone number. Required.	phone, cell, mobile number, tel, contact
First Name	The lead's first name.	first, first name, given name, fn
Last Name	The lead's last name.	last, last name, surname, ln
Full Name	The lead's full name. Use this when first and last name share a column.	full name, or any header containing name if no other name column is found
Email	The lead's email address.	email, mail
Locality	City.	city
Region	State.	state, region, st
Postal Code	ZIP or postal code.	zip, postal code
Timezone	The lead's timezone. If you leave it out, Aktify works it out from the lead's other details.	timezone, time zone, tz
Ext Lead Id	Your own ID for the lead, for example your CRM record ID.	lead id, id
Source	Where the lead came from.	source, src, campaign, company
Created	When the lead was created. Recommended for Closed lists.	created
Ext Created	When the lead was created in your own system.	ext created
IP Address	The IP address the lead submitted from.	ip, ip address

A progress bar at the top of the screen tells you how complete your mapping is:

Message	Meaning
Phone Missing	No column is mapped to Phone Number. You can't continue until one is.
Duplicate mappings not allowed.	Two columns are mapped to the same system field. Fix this before you continue.
First or Full Name?	A New list has no First Name or Full Name mapped. You can continue, but leads without names are more likely to be rejected, and your messages can't greet them by name.
Created Date?	A Closed list has no Created date mapped. You can still continue.
Perfection.	Everything recommended is mapped.

Click Next when you're done.

Step 4: Review and import

The Review & Complete Import screen shows:

• how many rows will be imported
• the file name, list type, and campaign
• a confirmation that your columns are mapped

The row count is only an estimate. The exact number is known once cleansing finishes.

Click Preview to see 10 rows of your file laid out with your mappings. Use this to catch a column mapped to the wrong field, such as last names showing up under First Name. Click Load random rows to see a different 10 rows. The preview doesn't validate anything; that happens during cleansing.

When everything looks right, click Import.

Closed, End Contact, and Do Not Contact lists take effect immediately

For these list types, you'll be asked to confirm before the import runs. Once you confirm, Aktify stops messaging those contacts. This can't be undone.

New lists are not sent to the campaign yet. Aktify imports and cleanses the file first, and you send it once you've reviewed the results.

Step 5: Wait for cleansing

The Portal shows "Hang tight while your list is importing…" while it uploads your file. When the upload finishes, you'll see Success! and be taken to the Pending tab.

Each New list on the Pending tab has a card with its campaign, import date, who imported it, and its status:

Status	Meaning
Queued	The file is uploaded and waiting to be cleansed.
Cleansing	Aktify is checking each row.
Cleansed	Cleansing is finished and the list is ready to send.
Errors	There was a problem processing the list. Contact your Aktify Account Manager.
Sent	The list has been sent to its campaign.
Canceled	The import was canceled and the file deleted.

The Pending tab refreshes on its own, so you can leave it open while a list is cleansing. Closed, End Contact, and Do Not Contact lists never appear on Pending, because they don't need to be sent. You can find them on the Imports tab.

Step 6: Review rejected rows

When a list is Cleansed, its card shows the Acceptance rate (the percentage of rows that passed cleansing) and how many rows were rejected. Rejected rows are never sent to the campaign.

To see why rows were rejected, click Review rejected rows. Each rejected row lists the fields that had problems, including:

• Raw: the value from your file
• Normalized: how Aktify interpreted it
• Reason: what was wrong
• Severity: how serious the problem was, as shown below

Severity	Meaning
ERROR	This problem caused the row to be rejected. Examples: an invalid, non-US, or toll-free phone number, or a name containing a banned or flagged word.
WARNING	Questionable data that might have contributed to the rejection, such as a suspicious-looking phone number, an invalid email, or an unrecognized state.
INFO	A note only, usually about the timezone. It doesn't cause a rejection.

If a lead was rejected only because of its name, and you know the name is real, click the pencil icon (Override name) next to it. Enter the corrected name and click Save changes. The row updates to show its new result. You can only override names before the list is sent.

If a large share of your list was rejected, check your column mappings first. A column mapped to the wrong field is the most common cause. To start over, cancel the import (see below) and upload the file again with corrected mappings.

Step 7: Send the list to the campaign

When you're happy with the results, click Send to Campaign on the list's card and confirm. This button only works once the list is Cleansed.

Sending can't be undone

Once sent, the accepted leads enter the campaign flow and start receiving texts and calls. Make sure the campaign and its outreach are ready before you send.

Accepted leads are then posted to the campaign over time. You can track their progress on the Leads page's Lists tab, and see each lead individually on the Audit Trail tab.

Canceling an import

To cancel a list that hasn't been sent, open the ⋮ menu on its card on the Pending tab and choose Cancel Import. Then confirm with Yes, Cancel the Import and Delete. The file is deleted and none of its leads are sent.

Finding past imports

The Imports tab lists every lead list uploaded for your company, of every list type. It shows each list's file name, number of leads, campaign, import date, and status, with the newest first. Click a row to open that list's details, including who imported it and its rejected and acceptance counts.

Troubleshooting

Problem	What to do
"Invalid file…" when choosing a file	Make sure the file is saved as .csv (not .xlsx), isn't empty, and has a file name under 256 characters.
Columns are split up or mislabeled on the mapping screen	A header probably contains a comma. Rename the header in your spreadsheet and export the CSV again.
My campaign isn't in the Campaign list	Only live campaigns can receive new leads. Contact your Aktify Account Manager if the campaign should be live.
Send to Campaign is grayed out	The list hasn't finished cleansing. Wait for the status to change to Cleansed.
Status shows Errors	Something went wrong while processing the file. Contact your Aktify Account Manager, and include the file name and when you imported it.
"We can't seem to upload the list at this time." or another upload error	Click Start Over and try again. If it keeps happening, contact your Aktify Account Manager.