The Service Provider Import is used to bulk-load Service Providers into RMS via a .csv file.

Overview

A Service Provider is an external business contracted to carry out tasks for Event Management or Job Management, such as catering, entertainment or maintenance. Service Providers can be linked to the tasks on an event, for example when you set up Master Tasks.

The Service Provider Import allows properties to add multiple Service Providers to RMS in a single operation rather than creating each one individually. This is particularly useful during initial setup or when migrating data from another system.

The requirements for the Service Provider Import in RMS are outlined below.

Please Note! RMS is highly configurable. Some Terminology, User Access & Permissions, Images, Labels, and Functions used in these articles may differ from your setup. CLICK HERE to find out more.

Import Overview

The Service Provider Import has the following requirements:

• To start the import, go to Tools > Data Import and select Service Provider as the File Type.
• The import file must be in a comma-delimited .csv format (Field Delimiter).
• If a data field within this file contains commas, it should be surrounded with "double quotes" (Text Delimiter).
• The import file must contain exactly 11 columns in each row, in the order shown below. A row with more or fewer columns stops the import with an error message.
• The import only creates new Service Providers. It cannot update a Service Provider that already exists in RMS, and there are no import options to choose from.
• On a multi-property (Enterprise) database, the Data Import screen also shows a Property drop-down. It makes no difference to where Service Providers are imported: every imported Service Provider is created for all properties and shows (All) in the Property column, whichever Property you select.
• Microsoft Excel is able to save using a .csv format that matches these requirements. Save the file as UTF-8 (CSV UTF-8 in Excel). A file saved in the older Windows-1252 (ANSI) format imports, but accented letters are stored as a replacement character.
• A line break inside a Note is kept when the Note is surrounded by double quotes. The pipe character (|) is not converted to a line break.
• A header row is optional. If you include one, the first column of that row must read exactly Type, and RMS skips the row. The other column names in the header row are not checked. If the first column of the first row reads anything else, RMS imports that row as a Service Provider.

Import File Field Order

The Service Provider Import file has 11 columns, and RMS reads them by position in the order shown below.

Type Values

The Type field controls where the Service Provider is available in RMS. It must be one of the following values. The value is not case sensitive.

• Event Management - the Service Provider is available in Event Management only.
• Job Maintenance - the Service Provider is available in Job Management only.

Any other value does not cause an error. A Type that is blank, misspelt or worded differently, such as Both, All or Job Management, imports with the Type (All), which makes the Service Provider available in both Event Management and Job Management. The Type drop-down on the Service Provider screen names the second value Job Management, but the import file must use Job Maintenance.

Please Note! The Event Management Type is only available on properties that have the Event Management module. If your property does not have the module, Event Management does not appear as an option in the Type field when you add a Service Provider.

Service Provider Name Rules

The Service Provider column must meet the following rules:

• Each Service Provider name must be unique within the import file. Names are not case sensitive, so "Example Catering" and "example catering" count as the same name.
• A Service Provider name that already exists in RMS is rejected, whatever its capitalisation, and on a multi-property database the check covers all properties. The existing Service Provider is not changed.
• Service Provider names are limited to 50 characters.

Important! A Service Provider name longer than 50 characters is not rejected. Validate and Import both report it as successful, but RMS saves only the first 50 characters. The same applies to the other fields: text longer than the Max Characters in the table above is cut off without a warning, for example ABN at 20 characters and State at 10. Keep every value within its limit before you import.

Information Not Imported

The Service Provider Import loads the business details only. After the import, add the following to each Service Provider in RMS, under Setup > Event Management > Service Providers:

• Address Line 3 and Classifications.
• Contacts.
• Memos.
• Properties. Imported Service Providers show (All) in the Property column and have an empty Properties tab. Any property allocation is made on the Properties tab of each Service Provider in RMS.

Import Messages

The Results grid, or an error box, shows one of these messages when a Service Provider Import file has a problem.

Import Validation

To ensure that your data is clean, consistent, and ready for the Live production environment after it has been validated and imported into the Training environment, follow these steps. For the full process, see Data Validation & Trial Imports.

1. On the Data Import screen, select Validate before you select Import. The results show how many records were processed, how many were successful and how many were unsuccessful. The header row, if there is one, is counted as a processed record.
2. Review any unsuccessful rows in the Results grid, correct the file and validate again.
3. Select Import and confirm when asked.
4. Navigate to Setup > Event Management > Service Providers.
5. Confirm that the imported Service Providers appear in the list, and that the Type, Provider, Description/Notes, Address and Order columns match your import file. Imported Service Providers are active.
6. Open an imported Service Provider and confirm that the Address Line 1, Address Line 2, Town, State, Post Code, Email, ABN and Report Order fields match your import file.
7. Repeat the process for additional imported records to confirm the entire file imported correctly.

Tip! Because the import cannot update existing records, correct a mistake in an imported Service Provider by editing it under Setup > Event Management > Service Providers.

Downloadable Import File

The attached import file below contains the required file format for a Service Provider Import. Download the file and review the column headers. Populate the file with your data, ensuring that each value sits under the column with the matching name.

> Next Article: Data Validation & Trial Imports