Fields
Fields define what is stored against each contact. Every organisation starts with a set of reserved fields covering names, identifiers and postal addresses, and can add custom fields for anything else it needs to hold. Together they are the contact fields that appear on a contact record, in segment conditions and in the variable menu of a template.
Fields are held at organisation level, so adding or removing one changes every contact at once. Select Fields in the sub navigation to open the page. Campaign Manager, Admin and Org Admin can manage fields; see Roles and Permissions.
The Fields Page
The page holds two collapsible sections, either of which can be collapsed out of the way while working in the other.
Custom Fields
This section comes first, because it is the one you can change. Add Custom Field sits above it.
| Column | Shows |
|---|---|
| Field Name | The name the field was created with. |
| Field Type | Text, Number or Date. |
Each row has an action menu holding the actions available for that field. See Custom Fields for what a name and type can be, and for what happens when a field is removed.
Reserved Fields
Reserved fields are listed in four groups, General, Identifier, Address and Additional, the same grouping used on a contact record. Every row carries a Reserved badge and a lock, because these fields cannot be created, renamed or deleted. Reserved Fields lists them all and what each one holds.
Field Names
A field is named once and then shown two ways. On this page, in the variable menu when building a template, and in the lists that match a file's columns to fields, it appears under its raw name, the exact string the field is stored under. On a contact page the same field appears in a readable form, spaced and capitalised so it reads as a label. Both refer to the same field, which is worth keeping in mind when naming a custom field: the raw name is what a campaigner sees while writing a message.
Reserved Fields gives both forms side by side for every reserved field. A custom field has one name only, the one it was created with, so nothing is translated for it.
Where to Next
- Reserved Fields. The full reserved list, group by group.
- Custom Fields. Creating, filling and deleting your own fields.
- Contact Records. How the same fields appear against a single contact.
- Variables and Default Values. How a field becomes a variable in a message.