How contacts are created

A complete reference of all the ways contacts can be created in eMarketeer — manually, through imports, web forms, the API, and engagement signals.

Contacts enter eMarketeer through several paths. Some are created manually by users, others are generated automatically when someone submits a form, engages with a signal source, or is pushed through the API.

User-created contacts

Contact import

The fastest way to bring a large number of contacts into eMarketeer is through an import.

Excel Upload a spreadsheet with contact data. Column headers map to contact fields in eMarketeer. See Import contacts from Excel for a step-by-step walkthrough.

Text file Works the same way as an Excel import, but you upload a tab-delimited or comma-separated text file instead of a spreadsheet.

CRM If you have SuperOffice or Microsoft Dynamics 365 integrated, you can search your CRM and import lists of contacts directly. This is useful for seeding eMarketeer with existing CRM data.

Manually create a contact

Go to Contacts and click Add Contact. Enter an email address and eMarketeer will attempt to enrich the profile automatically. Remaining fields can be filled in manually.

CRM web panel

The Contact Summary panel embedded in your CRM can create contacts on the eMarketeer side. If a CRM contact does not have a matching eMarketeer contact record, the panel gives you the option to create one.

Quick-send email

If you Quick Send an email to an address that does not exist in eMarketeer, a new contact is created for that address at the time of sending.

Web forms

A form that includes a Contact field: Email will create a new contact or match against an existing one when the form is submitted. Other Contact fields on the form update the matched contact record at the same time.

See Form editor: UI overview for more on Contact fields.

API

The /v1/contacts endpoint accepts a POST request to create a new contact programmatically. This is the standard method for syncing contacts from external systems or automating contact creation.

Full endpoint reference: api-doc.emarketeer.com

Signals

Signals are engagement events sent to eMarketeer from external sources. When a signal arrives for an email address that does not match an existing contact, eMarketeer creates a new contact automatically.

Signal sources that can generate contacts:

Facebook Lead Forms Leads collected through Facebook Lead Ad forms are sent to eMarketeer and create or update contacts.

LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms Leads collected through LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms work the same way.

SuperOffice Signals Engagement events from SuperOffice can be forwarded to eMarketeer as signals, creating contacts when no match is found.

Custom Signals API You can push custom engagement events from any external system using the Signals API. Each event creates or matches a contact by email address.