Practical guide

Reconcile an import without trusting a success banner

Last materially reviewed 2026-09-20

Quick answerCompare intended records, actual changes and important relationships before allowing the next batch.
What to know

Troubleshooting: a success banner can hide a mapping error

An import success banner tells you that the system accepted an operation; it does not prove that the business meaning survived. Compare what you intended to create or update with the actual records. Counts are useful, but they cannot reveal every incorrect relationship or overwritten value. Use the source snapshot and pilot expectations as independent evidence. Do not rerun the same file simply because one expected record is difficult to find.

What to know

Reconcile at three levels

First compare totals: intended input, exclusions and observed outcomes. Then inspect identifiers and key fields for representative records. Finally test the relationships colleagues rely on, such as a person linked to the correct organization and an action attached to the intended context. Record discrepancies by cause rather than combining them into a vague “import issue.” A mapping error, an unresolved duplicate and a visibility filter require different repairs.

What to know

Preserve an uncertain outcome

If an import times out or returns an unclear result, keep the original file and operation evidence. Inspect supported history or actual records before attempting another write. A repeated submission can create duplicates even when the first response looked unsuccessful. Where the product does not provide sufficient evidence, stop the next batch and seek a precise supported recovery path. Do not replace uncertainty with a fresh operation that makes the original result harder to identify.

What to know

Verify the batch with exceptions visible

Write a short reconciliation result: accepted changes, unresolved records and the person responsible for each exception. Proceed only when the next batch will not compound an unknown outcome. Keep the evidence until the migration and retention decisions permit its disposal. This is not a claim of transaction-level rollback or complete restoration. It is a practical discipline for making migration outcomes explainable before live work depends on the new records.

Continue when useful

Next: Choose a clear CRM cutover point

Name the final source, freeze period and exception owner so two systems do not become competing truths.

Open Choose a clear CRM cutover point →

Sources used for this page

These records support the facts and comparisons above. Merchant-controlled records are labelled so you can separate product claims from independent evidence.

  1. Capsule importing contacts — Merchant documentation · capsulecrm.com · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-20
  2. Capsule exporting and deleting contacts — Merchant documentation · capsulecrm.com · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-20