Depending on your role in the event (venue, GSC, specialty supplier) you may obtain a list of exhibitors in an Excel format from show management or you may need to provide show management the exhibitor list template. Regardless of the source, an exhibitor list can be imported as long as the file is consistent with the format that Boomer expects (see Exhibitor List Template Information for more information and to obtain a blank template).
You can upload an exhibitor list multiple times as you obtain updates from your customer. Boomer will attempt to reconcile any additions, deletions or changes as best it can. Where computer logic cannot reconcile those differences, you as the user will need to make choices about which information you want to keep.
Import a List
To import an exhibitor list:
- Go to Event\Exhibitors.
- Click "Import Exhibitor List" at the top of the grid:
- Click "Browse" and select the Excel file to be imported:
- Once you have browsed and selected the file, click "Upload File" Boomer will review the file to make sure there are no format issues. If there are none, you will be prompted that there are no open exceptions:
Make sure your postal code column is formatted as text; otherwise, Excel will truncate any postal code that starts with zero since a number doesn't start with zero.
Import File
If Boomer knows what to do with the information contained in your spreadsheet, an "Import File" button appears along side the "no exceptions" message mentioned above:
Clicking the button will import your list into your event.
Spreadsheet Errors
If you receive an error regarding the format of the spreadsheet, the following are the likely causes:
- The spreadsheet does not have the right number of columns. See to make sure the columns in the spreadsheet are the same as outlined in Boomer help.
- The spreadsheet has extra data in columns beyond the expected columns or data in rows beyond the exhibitor rows, or extra tabs with information on them.
- A country and/or state in the spreadsheet has not be established in Boomer. You will need to add the Country and/or state and try to re-import.
Managing Exceptions
As with many things in life, importing an exhibitor list is not always tidy. There may be conflicts (called "exceptions") between the information Boomer has on the company and/or contact and what your exhibitor spreadsheet has. If there are exceptions, Boomer will report those back to you:
E-Mail Exists
The most common exception is that you already have a contact in Boomer that has the same e-mail address as one you are trying to import, but there is something different about the information. The difference(s) may be at the company level or contact level, but regardless of the difference, you need to communicate to Boomer what you would like done with the incoming information at both levels.
To select what you want to do with each record, click the "Email Exists (Pending Action)" to reveal your choices.
Company Level
Once you click "Email Exists (Pending Action)", you will see three choices at the company level:
Skip
Boomer will ignore this record completely. No company will be created or associated.
Add New
This action will create a new company from the spreadsheet, ignoring the existing record(s) Boomer Found.
Associate
Boomer will take the existing company you already have in your system and associate it as an exhibitor. If you choose this option, two additional choices become available, allowing you to decide which information "wins":
- Use Spreadsheet Info
Choosing this option will associate your existing company but update its contents with the information in the spreadsheet. - Use Boomer Info
Choosing this option will associate your existing company and leave the information as it already was in Boomer.
Choosing "Associate" and then "Use Boomer Info" is the equivalent of manually clicking "Associate an Exhibitor" above the Exhibitors grid.
Contact Level
After making your decision about the company information, you will then see the contact choices displayed:
Add New
This action will create a new contact from the spreadsheet, ignoring the existing record(s) Boomer Found. If you choose "Add New", an additional check box appears allowing you to switch the e-mail from the current Boomer contact over to the new contact to be created.
The contact from which the e-mail is being moved will no longer have a login if one existed since it no longer has an e-mail address.
Associate
Boomer will associate the existing contact you already have. If you choose this option, two additional choices become available, allowing you to decide which information "wins":
- Use Spreadsheet Info
Choosing this option will associate your existing contact but update its contents with the information in the spreadsheet. - Use Boomer Info
Choosing this option will associate your existing contact and leave the information as it already was in Boomer.
Similar Companies Exist
On occasion, you might see an exception in the "Similar Companies Exist" category. While the contact doesn't already exist, there are multiple companies in your system that have a similar name and the same zip code but since there is no contact, there is therefore no e-mail address against which the import can attempt a match:
Click "Select/View" Similar Companies and choose which company, if any, you would like to use as the exhibitor in this event.
Accepting Exceptions on a Bulk Basis
While scrutinizing exceptions one-by-one may seem time consuming, it is the best way you can assure your data is clean and accurate and that your exhibitors can access their entire order history with you. Ignoring the fact that they already have an account and password set and then re-importing their name and email address will disconnect them from their original username and prevent them from seeing any past orders. However, there may be times when speed and time supersedes the importance of accurate data. When this is the case, you can accept your exceptions on a mass basis using the following steps:
- Import the Exhibitor List as normal.
- Filter By the type of exception you want to bulk import.
- Click the "Click here to apply correction to all selected exceptions below" instruction:
- Select the rows you want to apply your mass edit to, or check the box in the upper left hand corner of the grid to select all the exhibitors.
- Make your choice regarding the exceptions in the dialog above the grid using the guidelines in earlier documentation in this topic.
- Click "Apply Correction".
The grid only displays 100 records per page. If you use the "Select All" check box, you are only selecting the 100 records appearing in the grid. If you have more exhibitors than that, you should either first change the Records per Page in the lower left hand corner of the grid or perform your bulk exception multiple times.