Solving Unique Identifier Issues for Contacts Without Emails in HubSpot: A Comprehensive Guide

HubSpot is a powerful CRM that uses email as the default unique identifier for contacts. However, what happens when some of your contacts do not have an email address? This situation can lead to duplicate entries, which not only clutters your database but also hampers your marketing efforts. In this article, we will explore various strategies to solve the unique identifier issue for contacts with no email in HubSpot.

1. Use a Different Unique Identifier

When dealing with contacts without an email address, consider alternative unique identifiers. Here are the options:

Phone Numbers: Utilize phone numbers for unique identification. This is particularly useful since many businesses collect phone numbers as a primary contact method. Custom Unique IDs: Generate and assign a unique customer ID or another identifier to each contact manually or via automation. This can include a combination of first names, last names, and a unique sequence number.

2. Custom Properties in HubSpot

HubSpot's flexibility allows you to create custom properties that act as unique identifiers. Here’s how you can implement this:

Navigate to Settings Properties Create a new contact property named “Unique Phone Number” or any other unique identifier Ensure that the property is included when importing or updating contacts

You can also use these custom properties in your deduplication logic:

When importing contacts, include the Unique Phone Number in the import file.

Furthermore, HubSpot's built-in deduplication tools allow you to merge contacts based on properties other than email. Explore these tools to automate the process of identifying and merging duplicates:

Go to Contacts Actions Manage Duplicates Use the tool to find duplicates based on the custom unique identifier Manually review and merge suggested duplicates based on other identifiers like phone numbers

3. Workflows for Data Management

To further streamline the process, set up workflows that automatically check for duplicates based on custom properties or phone numbers:

Create a workflow that checks for contacts with the same Unique Phone Number. If duplicates are found, merge these contacts or alert your team for manual review. Utilize HubSpot’s import tool’s deduplication settings to match contacts based on this custom property when importing new contacts.

4. Third-Party Tools for Advanced Deduplication

For more advanced deduplication and data management, consider third-party tools that integrate with HubSpot. These tools can help identify duplicates based on multiple fields and clean up your contact database:

Tools like Insycle and Dedupely can help manage and clean up your contact database by identifying duplicates based on properties such as phone numbers, addresses, and more.

5. Manual Deduplication

For more thorough cleaning, regularly review and clean your contact database manually. Use HubSpot’s contact view filters to identify and merge duplicates based on phone numbers or other unique identifiers:

Regularly review your contact data for duplicates Use Filters in the Contacts view to pinpoint contacts that share the same unique identifier Manually merge duplicate contacts or delete unnecessary records

Conclusion

Solving the unique identifier issue for contacts without emails in HubSpot is crucial for maintaining an accurate and efficient CRM. By using alternative unique identifiers, custom properties, workflows, third-party tools, and manual deduplication, you can effectively manage and prevent duplicate contacts.

By implementing these strategies, you will enhance your marketing efforts, reduce clutter in your database, and improve overall contact management in HubSpot.