Import and export your data

Get started fast by importing your existing contacts and events, and export your data whenever you need it.

Arriving with history — a contacts spreadsheet you patiently built, a schedule of past and upcoming events, a list of client companies? Importing this data into Joinways saves you hours of re-typing and lets you start with your business already in place. And in the other direction, export keeps you in control of your data at all times: you can pull it out for analysis, accounting or backup, without ever being locked into the tool.

This article details what can be imported and exported, the accepted formats, how to prepare a clean file, and how to re-run an import after fixing it. The goal: that your first day in Joinways starts from a complete base rather than a blank page.

Prerequisites

Having a Joinways account and access to your workspace.
Having your source data in a spreadsheet (Excel, Google Sheets) or a CSV file.
For importing, the right to access the workspace Settings; some sensitive imports are reserved for administrators.
Ideally, a clear header row in your file (Name, Email, Phone, etc.) to make column mapping easier.

What you'll learn

Import your existing contacts, companies and events.
Prepare a clean file for an error-free import.
Map your file's columns to Joinways fields.
Export your contacts, events and reports.
Fix and re-run a partially failed import.

Import data

Import reads your file line by line and creates, in Joinways, one record per row. You stay in control at every step: choosing the data type, mapping the columns, then checking before records are actually created.

Open Settings then the Import / Export section of your workspace.
Choose the data type to import: contacts (people), companies, or events.
Upload your file in CSV or Excel format from your computer.
Map each column of your file to the matching Joinways field (for example the « Mail » column to the Email field).
Run the import: Joinways processes the rows and creates the records.
Check the result shown — the number of rows imported and, where applicable, those that were skipped.

Prepare a clean file

Import quality depends above all on the quality of the source file. A few minutes of upfront cleanup save hours of fixing afterwards. The idea is to arrive with a regular table, where each column holds a single type of information and where formats are consistent.

Put an explicit header row on the first line (Last name, First name, Email, Phone, Company, Date…).
One piece of information per column: don't mix first and last name, or city and postal code, in the same cell.
Standardize date formats (for example DD/MM/YYYY everywhere) and phone formats.
Remove empty rows, obvious duplicates and stray characters.
Save as CSV (UTF-8) or as Excel before uploading.

Export data

Export does the reverse: Joinways generates a spreadsheet file from your records, which you download in a few clicks. This is useful for external analysis, sending to the accountant, a periodic backup or a migration.

Open the list you want to export (contacts, events) or the Reports section.
Run the export from the Import / Export section or the list's export action.
Download the generated file in spreadsheet format.
Open it in your usual tool for your analysis or accounting.

Reference: what imports and exports

Here are the supported data types and the expected format, with a one-line description of what each covers.

Contacts (people) — your contacts: name, email, phone and associated details.
Companies — the client or prospect companies to which you attach your contacts and events.
Events — your schedule: past and upcoming events with their dates.
Reports — on export, your aggregated data for analysis or accounting.
Accepted import format — CSV and Excel (the common spreadsheet formats).
Export format — a downloadable spreadsheet file, usable in Excel, Google Sheets or accounting software.
Column mapping — the step that links each column of the file to the right Joinways field.
Import report — the summary of imported and skipped rows shown at the end of the import.
Recommended encoding — UTF-8 to preserve accents and special characters in CSV files.
Backup — export also serves as a backup copy independent of the tool.

How it works

During an import, Joinways reads your file's header to suggest a column mapping, then goes through each row to create a record. Compliant rows are created; rows with an empty or badly formatted required column are set aside and flagged in the report. No data is created until you have confirmed the column mapping.

On export, Joinways assembles the records of the chosen list or report into a single spreadsheet file, respecting the visible columns, then hands it to you for download.

Edge cases

Large file: split it into several batches if the import seems slow, keeping the same header row in each batch.
Duplicates: the same contact present twice in the file creates two records; deduplicate before importing.
Ambiguous dates: a mixed format (DD/MM and MM/DD) can shift event dates; standardize before uploading.
Missing columns: if a required column is absent, mapping fails; add it to the file and re-run.

💡 Tip: always run a test import on a small sample (5 to 10 rows) before importing the whole file. You validate the column mapping and the formats without risking polluting your base with hundreds of mis-mapped rows.

Best practices

Start with a reduced sample to validate the mapping and the formats.
Standardize date and phone formats across the whole file.
Check for duplicates after each import and clean them up if needed.
Import companies before contacts so you can attach the latter to the former.
Keep your source file: it serves as a backup and lets you re-run a corrected import.

Troubleshooting

Problem: some rows weren't imported. Cause: a required column is empty or a format is invalid on those rows. Solution: open the report, fix the flagged rows in the file, then re-run the import on the corrected file.

Problem: the columns don't map correctly. Cause: the header row is missing or ambiguous. Solution: add explicit headers on the first line and redo the mapping manually at the mapping step.

Problem: accented characters display wrong after import. Cause: the file is not encoded in UTF-8. Solution: re-save the CSV in UTF-8 (or use the Excel format) then upload it again.

Real-world example

A reception venue migrates from a 400-contact Excel spreadsheet. The manager first cleans the file (one Name column, one Email column, one Phone column, removing duplicates), imports the companies first, then tests the import on 10 contacts. With the mapping validated, she runs all 400 contacts at once: the report shows 396 imported and 4 skipped for a missing email.

She fixes the 4 rows in the file, re-imports them, and gets her full address book in Joinways in under a quarter of an hour.

Another example

At quarter-end, the manager exports his events to hand them to his accountant. From Import / Export, he generates a spreadsheet file of all the quarter's events, opens it in Google Sheets to check the amounts, then sends it to the accounting firm.

The same file doubles as a monthly backup: he keeps a dated copy, independent of Joinways.

FAQ

Which file formats are accepted for import?

The common spreadsheet formats: CSV and Excel. Prefer CSV in UTF-8 to preserve accents.

What can I import?

Your existing contacts (people), companies and events.

What can I export?

Your contacts, events and reports, in a downloadable spreadsheet file.

How do I map my columns to Joinways fields?

At the mapping step, you link each column of your file to the matching field (Email, Phone, etc.).

Why aren't some rows imported?

Because a required column is empty or badly formatted on those rows; fix them and re-run.

Should I import companies before contacts?

It's recommended, so you can then attach each contact to its company.

Does my data belong to me?

Yes. Export lets you retrieve your data at any time, for analysis, accounting or backup.

Can I re-run an import without creating duplicates?

Re-run only on the corrected rows from the report, rather than the whole file, to avoid recreating records that were already imported.