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Zoho CRM won't import your leads file?

Fix the problems that make Zoho CRM skip rows when importing a CSV spreadsheet, then import clean every week.

What Zoho CRM’s importer checks

  • Every mandatory field must have a value on every row: Last Name for a lead or a contact, Account Name for an account.

    we point out a record left without a Last Name once you mark the column required (column ⋯ menu → Edit column… → More options → Required Field; the Health panel’s Invalid tab lists each); the name itself is yours to fill in

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • A check box value is written True or 1 when selected and False or 0 when not.

    DocTransform fixes this: type

    In Email Opt Out, write 1 for Yes and 0 for No

    Or by hand

    open Health → Yes/No spellings, pick 1/0 as the spelling → Convert 8; Yes becomes 1 and No becomes 0

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • A Date field takes the one date format you choose when you map the column, so every date in it must follow that format.

    DocTransform fixes this: type

    Write Created Time as YYYY-MM-DD

    Or by hand

    open Health → Mixed date formats, pick YYYY-MM-DD as the format → Convert 7

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • Several values of a multi-select picklist are separated by a semicolon, like Option 1;Option 2.

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • Several tags on one record are separated by a comma, like Tag 1,Tag 2.

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • The first row must hold column names, not data values.

    Zoho CRM help centre

  • More than 10 empty rows in a row count as the end of the file, and every row after them is not imported.

    Zoho CRM help centre

What Zoho CRM does with a bad row

Zoho CRM skips a record with a mandatory field empty

Records with missing mandatory fields will not be imported.

Zoho doesn't publish its import errors as on-screen strings — this is how its help page says a record is treated.

Zoho CRM help centre

Zoho CRM ignores a date it cannot read

values being ignored

Zoho doesn't publish its import errors as on-screen strings — this is how its help page says a date in the wrong format is treated.

Zoho CRM help centreHow to fix this error

Before and after

3,100 leads

leads.csv
Last NameCompanyEmail Opt OutCreated Time
RuizSolymar SLYes12024/03/073
BlochNordic ABNo22024.04.03
4Praha s.r.o.No2024/03/15
NovakPraha s.r.o.Yes2024-05-21
SilvaLisboa LdaNo2024.06.28
KellerWien GmbHYes2024/07/11
MartinParis SASNo2024.08.02
BergOslo ASYes2024/09/30

    Before

    Fix it in DocTransform

    By hand: 11 stepsDocTransform: 1 sentence

    1. 1. Upload leads.csv into DocTransform.
    2. 2. Type

      In Email Opt Out, write 1 for Yes and 0 for No, and write Created Time as YYYY-MM-DD

      and press Send. Check the steps it adds; Undo takes them all back.
      Or by hand

      Apply the fixes: open Health → Yes/No spellings, pick 1/0 as the spelling → Convert 8, then Mixed date formats, YYYY-MM-DD → Convert 7. Mark Last Name as Required Field under Edit column… to see the empty ones; fill in the missing name by hand: DocTransform saves no step for it.

    3. 3. Download the cleaned file from Export, ready for Zoho CRM’s importer.
    “In Email Opt Out, write 1 for Yes and 0 for No, and write Created Time as YYYY-MM-DD” typed into DocTransform; two steps applied, eight Email Opt Out cells and seven Created Time dates rewritten; Undo shown
    1. Type the change in one sentence, in your own words.
    2. Wait about 5 seconds while the steps are written. Stop cancels.
    3. Check each step and how many cells or rows it changes.
    4. The file is clean. Not what you meant? One Undo takes it all back.

    Save this fix once, then rerun it on next week’s export with one click.

    Fix it by hand in Excel or Sheets

    1. In a blank workbook, choose Data → From Text/CSV, pick leads.csv, set Data Type Detection to Do not detect data types and click Load.
    2. Select the column C header (Email Opt Out), then choose Home → Find & Select → Replace.
    3. Click Options and tick Match entire cell contents, type Yes in Find what and 1 in Replace with, and click Replace All.
    4. Now type No in Find what and 0 in Replace with, click Replace All, then Close.
    5. Right-click the column D header (Created Time), choose Format Cells → Text → OK, so Excel keeps each date as you type it.
    6. Retype every date in the one format, YYYY-MM-DD: 2024/03/07 becomes 2024-03-07 and 2024.04.03 becomes 2024-04-03.
    7. Click the column A header (Last Name), then choose Home → Find & Select → Go To Special → Blanks → OK.
    8. Type the missing last name in the highlighted cell (A4, the Praha s.r.o. lead) and press Enter.
    9. Check that row 1 holds the column names and that no more than 10 empty rows sit between records.
    10. In any multi-select column, join the values with a semicolon (Option 1;Option 2), and in a Tags column with a comma.
    11. Choose File → Save As, pick CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited) as the file type and click Save.

    Questions

    Will DocTransform fill in a missing Last Name?
    No — it points out the empty cells once you mark Last Name required, and you type the name.
    Will DocTransform join multi-select values with a semicolon?
    No — it saves no step for that. Write Option 1;Option 2 by hand, and Tag 1,Tag 2 for tags.
    Can I reuse this fix next time I export my leads?
    Yes — save it once in DocTransform and rerun it on next week’s export.

    Common errors

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    Salesforce, HubSpot, Shopify, QuickBooks, Mailchimp, Pipedrive, WooCommerce, Klaviyo, Google Contacts, ActiveCampaign, Brevo, Zendesk, Square, Zoho CRM, and Xero are trademarks of their owners. DocTransform is not affiliated with them.