Setting up your Audience correctly is key to making sure your contact profiles integrate seamlessly with zkipster events and help you manage guest data effectively. Before adding any contacts, take a few moments to review your data and plan how you want to structure your Audience. Think about:
Unique Identifier (UID): Each contact in Audience has a unique identifier (UID)- a field you choose, such as email or CRM ID- that zkipster uses to match and sync data between your Audience and your events. This works alongside the internal Audience ID to keep contact profiles distinct and ensure updates are accurate without creating duplicates.
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What Information Should You Store? Every contact profile comes with default system fields like Name, Email, Phone, Organization, and Address. You can also create custom fields to capture any additional information relevant to your events or reporting needs.
Using Tags: Tags let you label contacts based on custom criteria—like VIP, Donor, or Press, so you can easily filter, segment, and organize your database. Tags go beyond standard fields and help you tailor guest communications or build targeted lists.
Initial Set up
Custom Fields
Start by creating all the custom fields you’ll need in your Audience. These fields will be used to sync guest information from both past and future events, so it’s important to define them clearly from the beginning.
To ensure everything syncs accurately, keep field names and formats consistent between your Audience and zkipster Events. It's important to create these fields at the Account Level in zkipster Events and ensure their names and options exactly match between your Audience and event setup. This prevents unintended fields or values from being created during syncing, helping maintain clean, accurate contact data across both systems.
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2. Tags: Tags can be created at any point—before or after importing contacts. If you already know how you plan to use them, it’s helpful to set them up in advance so you can apply them as contacts are added..
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Creating your contacts
There are two main ways to import contacts into your Audience: from a file or from existing events. Choosing the right method depends on where most of your contact data currently lives and how you use it in events.
If you are unsure which approach is best for you, speak with your Success Manager.
Import from File
Best for new zkipster users or users who store most of their guest data outside of zkipster events
If your contact information is currently stored outside of zkipster- like CRM or in spreadsheets- then importing from file is likely the best option. It allows you to upload a complete set of guest details and populate rich profiles in your Audience all at once.
Before uploading your file, you’ll first need to create any custom fields in your Audience to match the data in your spreadsheet. Once that's done, you'll use the import template as a guide and map your data accordingly. After the import, you’ll configure a unique identifier (such as an email address or CRM ID) to ensure each contact is recognized correctly in your events. Afterward, you can connect your Audience with Events and bring data to enrich these profiles using the steps outlined below.
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Import from Events
Best for users who already have most of their guest data in past or upcoming zkipster events
If you’ve been using zkipster Events and want to turn your guest lists into reusable contact profiles, importing from events is a simple and effective method. This option lets you sync guests from events into your Audience, creating your contact profiles with the event data available in your events.
We recommend starting with one event at a time to keep things manageable. Before syncing, set up your custom fields and define your UID (just as you would with the file imports). Then go to the Integrations section to connect your Audience with Events.
Initial sync settings we recommend:
Start with one event at a time: Build your Audience gradually to ensure data accuracy.
Turn off “Create Guest” and “Update Guest” during initial setup to avoid syncing new guest data before your profiles are finalized.
Turn off “Create Custom Fields” to prevent duplicate or unnecessary fields from being created during import.
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Resolving Conflicts and Duplicates:
Conflicts: Conflicts occur when incoming data doesn’t match the existing values for a contact. These will appear at the top of your contact list in red. To resolve, click into the contact profile, review the conflict, and choose the correct data to keep. Be sure to clear all conflicts before deduplicating your list.
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Duplicates: Audience can suggest potential duplicate contacts by identifying exact matches on key fields like name, email, or phone. From the duplicates section, you can either merge the profiles into one or choose to keep both.
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Filtering and Segmenting Contacts
Now that you have your Audience ready, you can start creating segments, using the fields and tags in your contacts' profiles to filter your contacts.
Filters: lets you search for contacts based on specific criteria, like organization, tag, or attendance rate. You can combine multiple filters to narrow your results for better targeting.
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Segments are saved filters. Once set up, they dynamically update- any contact that matches the criteria will be automatically included, and any that no longer qualify will be removed.
You can use both filters and saved segments when building guest lists, making it easy to add the right contacts with just a few clicks.
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Creating Guest Lists for Events:
In the Lists section, you can start building lists for upcoming events. Use the split view to search, filter, or select contacts and add them with a single click. You can even compare lists side by side to check for duplicates across events and avoid overlaps.
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Initial Tips and Best Practices when starting with Audience:
Use the Action Menu in the Contacts view to manage contacts in bulk.
Use the three-square icon to organize which fields are visible in your master contact list or segments.
Regularly resolve conflicts and duplicates to keep your data clean and reliable.
If you have any questions or need additional guidance on setting up, integrating, or using Audience alongside your events, don’t hesitate to reach out to your Success Manager. They’ll be happy to assist you or help schedule a walkthrough tailored to your needs.