Managing Your Contact List Outside of Constant Contact

Suggestions for when you manage your list using non-Constant Contact tools and import it into your account before sending an email

We recommend importing your contacts and using our contact management tools to maintain your list, so that you can take full advantage of all the great features we offer. But, we get that there are times when this isn't always possible.

If you manage your contact list outside of Constant Contact, be sure to keep your list clean and organized in that program. When it's time to send an email to your list, we can help bring it into Constant Contact:

• Import a New List Each Time
• Manage Outdated Contacts
• Use Your Results 
• Keep Us in Mind

Import A Fresh List Each Time

When you're ready to upload your list into Constant Contact:

• Make Sure Your List is Clean - If the contacts on your list are over two years old it's a good time to take a look at them and make sure they should still be on your list. If you have contacts that don't open your emails or didn't opt-in to your contact list remove them before you upload them.
• Format Your File - Make sure your file is compatible with Constant Contact to prevent file import errors. Use our standard contact headings, and create custom fields as needed.
• Create a New List - You can always import all of your contacts into the same General Interest list, but it's better to create a brand new list, with a unique name, so that you can distinguish each version. This ensures that you aren't sending your email to any contacts that have been removed since your last email.

Manage Outdated Contacts

Every time you import a contact list, new contacts are added and existing contacts are updated with any new information from your file. It's worth taking some time to manage the contacts in your Constant Contact account, even if you do the bulk of your contacts management outside of it.

• Use Tags - Each time you import a new list, give the contacts on the list a unique tag to help filter your contacts when you send your email. If you create the tag in your account, you can then add a "Tags" column to your spreadsheet so that your contacts are tagged automatically each time you import.
• Export Old Lists - For record keeping purposes, you have the ability to export groups of contacts, specific contact lists, or all the contacts in your account.
• Delete Old Lists - If you don't need them, delete your old lists to keep your account clean and up-to-date. You have the choice to delete just the list or to delete all the contacts with it. Deleting lists and contacts doesn't affect your email reporting - deleted contacts appear with a strikethrough through their email address.

Use Your Results

Once your email has been sent, we have information that can help you manage your list:

• Export Your Email Report - Use the information in your email reporting to compare your opens, clicks, bounces, and overall email performance over time.
• Export Your Unsubscribed Contacts - Make sure you're keeping track of the contacts that have opted out of your contact list after every send!
• Create New Lists - You can create a segment of everyone that either opened or did not open your email and export the results. Use the information to reward your most engaged contacts, and either try to re-engage your least engaged contacts or clean them off your list. 

Keep Us In Mind

We've got lots to offer to help you manage your contacts when you're ready for us! With Constant Contact you can:

• Track implied and express permission from your contacts. This is especially important if you need to comply with CASL or the GDPR.
• Track unsubscribed contacts and make sure you never send email to someone that opts out of your contact list.
• Use robust segmentation tools to help you get the right content in front of the right contacts, at the right time.
• Use list import tools and integrations to bring your contacts into your account with ease.
• Use contact capture and lead generation tools that help you grow and segment a permission-based contact list.
• Understand your contacts' engagement and use your insights reporting to reward your most engaged contacts, try to win over your least engaged contacts, or clean up your list to improve your open rates.

Questions?