Our charity is quite new to salesforce and we're looking to import data about our donors from a csv file from elsewhere (Enthuse) into salesforce.
Each time someone donates, we receive their contact information (email, phone number, address) which may have changed since the last time they donated, so we would like to update the 'contact' object with this information.
However, primarily, we want to import the donation amount and details as an 'opportunity' object that is linked to a contact within the NonProfit Success Pack.
Would I be able to import the data to both update the contact details as well as update a new opportunity linked to that contact record, simultaneously in one data import? Or do these need to be done separately one after the other?
Thank you in advance for your help!
#Nonprofit Success Pack #Import Data Challenge
Hi @Helen Cordina,
Great question, this is a common scenario when working with donor data and the Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP).
You’ll need to handle Contacts and Opportunities (donations) in two separate imports, rather than all at once. Here’s why and how:
- Update Contacts first
- Use the Data Import Wizard or Data Loader to import your contact information (email, phone, address, etc.).
- Make sure each contact has a unique identifier (such as email or Salesforce Contact ID) so Salesforce knows which records to update instead of creating duplicates.
- Import Opportunities next
- Once your contact records are updated, import your donation data into the Opportunity object.
- Include a field in your CSV (like Contact ID or email) that allows Salesforce to link each opportunity to the right contact.
- In NPSP, donations are often linked to Contacts through the Primary Contact field on the Opportunity or via the Contact Role relationship.
Unfortunately, Salesforce doesn’t support creating or updating records in two different objects simultaneously in a single import. Doing it in two steps ensures your data stays accurate and relationships link correctly.
If you’re planning to do this regularly, you might also explore NPSP Data Importer, which helps manage both Contacts and Opportunities in one process, but still handles them as separate records behind the scenes.
Hope that helps clarify the process!
If this resolves your question, please mark it as the Best Answer so others can find it too.
- Update Contacts first
