In this video:
Step-by-step breakdown of the import template
Add Client and Contact data
Before we get started adding information let's take a look at the spreadsheet and how it is organized.
The spreadsheet is color-coded to help you organize your information.
Orange | Fields for Client Information |
Blue | Fields for Business Information |
Grey | Fields for Primary Contact Information |
Red | Field for Spouse Contact Information |
Purple | Fields for Additional or Unlinked Contact Information |
In addition to the color-coded fields, the Workbook is also separated into three separate worksheets.
Individual Clients
Business Clients
Unlinked Clients
A few things to note when filling out the spreadsheet:
Each ROW represents a single client. You will scroll from left to right to add the client information.
Not all information is required. Information that is required for import will have an asterisk*.
When using a field with specific entries like Client Type, Status, or Contact type you want to ensure you have the spelling and Capitalization that matches the options listed on this guide.
We will use the following Client and Contacts as an example to demonstrate how to fill out each section.
Walter and Skyler White
Luca Parugo
Hometown Bakery LLC.
Individual Clients
First, we will navigate to the second tab in our Excel document: Individual Clients
Client Information
Client Type * | This column will be prefilled with Individual, or Business depending on the worksheet. |
Client Name* | The client name is the name you will see across the app. It is recommended that you create a naming convention to use throughout your firm. For example, you may want to have all individual clients organized by Last name and first name(s). Examples:
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Client Facing Name | You may want to use a different name from the client name (above) on items like the client portal, and invoices. This field is optional but you can include a different name here. Example:
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Client Owner | Type the email (used to log into Canopy) of the team member who will be the primary owner of this account. |
External ID | Enter the identification you use for each client. |
Filing Status | Indicate the client’s filing status from the following options:
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Source | List the referral source. Select from the following:
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Client Since | Enter the date the client started at your firm in a month, date, year XX/XX/XXXX format. |
Client Status | Select from the following client statuses:
Note: You can add a custom source here or in Canopy. To map to an existing custom source just ensure you use the same spelling. To create a new source simply type it here. |
Active | Type Yes to indicate the client is active. (Y, Yes, T, or True are all acceptable answers for Active). No to indicate the client is inactive (N, No, F, and False are all acceptable answers for inactive). Note: This will default to active unless stated otherwise. So if this column is left blank the client will be considered active. |
Client Group | Clients under the same organizational structure can be organized into Client Groups. Type the group name in this column. Make sure you use the same spelling and capitalization to avoid creating duplicate groups. |
Client Tags | Tags are used in Canopy to help organize and identify your clients. Add as many tags as needed—separate tags with a comma. Tags will be created in Canopy based on what you type here. Keep spelling and capitalization the same to ensure you don’t create duplicate tags. Tags will also map to any you have previously created in Canopy. |
Custom Field | Custom fields are used in Canopy to help you add additional information to client records.
You can add a custom Field by clicking on the Add Custom Field button in the spreadsheet. Note: you must use the desktop version of Excel and have Macro enabled to use this feature.
Note: you will map and create custom fields as part of the upload process. Keep in mind that custom fields in Canopy can be one of the following:
Custom fields created and assigned in the import process are for both individual and business clients. If you create a custom field prior to the import process make sure it is marked as Both in the “Apply to:” setting.
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Contacts
Individual Client Contacts: Primary Contact, Spouse, and Additional Contact Information
Business Client Contacts: Primary Contact, Additional Contact
Each contact section will include all of the same information fields. The only difference will be the Contact Type which will reflect one of the following options:
Primary
Spouse (Individual Clients Only)
Dependent (Individual Clients Only)
Other
Heads-up! Every Individual Client needs to have at least one contact (Primary).
Let’s take a look at the columns associated with the contact.
Contact Type | Select from the following options:
Note: You will not see these field for Primary or Spouse contacts as it is automatically added on import. You can only have one primary contact for each client. You should only have one spouse per client. For any additional contacts: if no selection is made the contact type will default to other. |
Contact Description | Type any description desired. This could include: the head of the family, owner, partner, etc. |
First Name * | First names are required for individual clients. |
Middle Name | Optional |
Last Name * | Last names are required for individual clients. |
SSN | Formatted as xxx-xx-xxxx |
Birthday | Formatted as month, day, year xx/xx/xxxx |
The rest of the columns will include additional contact information and will be entered as free text.
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When you are done take a moment to review your spreadsheet. Make sure everything has been entered correctly and all your contact information lines up with the associated clients.
Note: You can add additional contacts that are not associated with any clients. These contacts will be added to the Unlinked Contacts Tab.
How to import one contact to multiple clients
You may have clients with the same contacts. During the import process, you can add the same contact to any client. However, to ensure you don't create a duplicate contact you want to include as much of the following information as possible every time you add a contact to the client:
First Name
Middle Name
Last Name
DOB
SSN
Example:
Business Clients
Let’s head to the next worksheet Business Clients.
You will start with the same Client information as above.
Business Information
Business Clients also have information specific to their business.
Business Name * | This is the name of the business. This can be the same as the client name above or can include additional information like LLC, etc. |
Business Date Est. | Dates should be entered as month/day/year. |
Business EIN | Should be entered as xx-xxxxxxx |
Business Type | Select from one of the following: |
Business Type | Select from one of the following:
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Business Industry | Select from one of the following:
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Business Email | The Business email will be used as the primary email for communication in Canopy. |
Continue to add the following details.
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Contacts (Business Clients)
Contacts are optional for Business Clients, however can be helpful for you to track contacts who are associated with multiple contacts. Contact information is the same for individual and business clients. You can jump back up to the contact section here.
Unlinked Contacts
The third worksheet is for any unlinked contacts. These contacts will be added to your contact list but will not be associated with any clients. This will include all the same contact information from the previous worksheets.
Unlinked contacts can always be added to clients in Canopy after imported. You can learn more here.
Save the spreadsheet.
Once you have entered all your information save the workbook as a .xlsm file and return to Canopy to Upload. You can learn more about the upload process here.