Uploading or Importing Data From Files / Spreadsheets

If you have event-related information stored in spreadsheets (like Excel or Google Sheets), contacts stored in other applications, or electronic calendars outside of Planning Pod that you use (Gmail, Apple, Outlook, etc.), you can upload or import data from those sources via a file into your Planning Pod account.

For the following tools, you can upload information into your account via a .CSV file (see below on how to convert your spreadsheet to a .CSV file):

• Attendee List (RSVP Events only)
• Budget
• Checklist
• Contacts
• Itinerary
• Time Tracking
• To-Do's

NOTE: For Attendee Lists and Contacts, you can also upload/import information via a .VCF file, which is a file specific to address book applications for importing/exporting contact information.

You can upload or import data from another electronic calendar by downloading the .ICS file from that e-calendar and then uploading this file into our Calendars tool. Note that this is a one-time upload that imports all the current items in your other e-calendar; it is does not sync data between the two calendars.

You can upload/import data via the "Settings / Import From Files" area of your account, or you can go into the specific tool, click on the "Import/Export" button in the tool and select the "Import From File" option.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you want to see what kinds of data you can import into your account with regard to a specific tool - OR - if you need a spreadsheet as a "starting point" for organizing data to upload, you can download .CSV Template files in the "Settings / Import From Files" area.

To Convert Your Spreadsheet to a .CSV File:

• In Excel - Go to File > Save As; in the "File Format" dropdown, select the "Comma Separated Values (.csv)" option; click "Save".
• In Google Sheets/Drive - Go to File > Download As; select the "Comma-separated values (.csv, current sheet)" option.

To Upload or Import Data Via the Settings Area:

1. Click on your name in the top left corner and select the "Settings" option.
2. Under the "Data Sharing" heading, click on the "Import From Files" link.
3. Find the type of data you want to import and click on the corresponding "Import" button.
4. For uploading files to the Attendee List, Budget, Checklist, Itinerary, Time Tracking and To-Do's tools, select the Event to which you wish to upload data.
5. Click on the "Choose File" button to select the .CSV/.VCF/.ICS file from your computer.
6. Click on the "Start Import Process" button.
7. Match the fields from your file to the available fields in Planning Pod. When you are done, click the "Continue to Next Step" button.
   • NOTE: If your file does not have a header row, make sure the "Imported file has column headers?" checkbox IS NOT checked.
8. Review the data on the page. If there are any fields that can be edited, double-check them to ensure they contain valid information and edit them if necessary. If the information is not in a valid format, you will not be able to submit it until it has been fixed.
   • NOTE: If the information here looks incorrect, you may need to go back and re-match fields, or you may need to fix your original .csv file and re-try this process.
9. Once all fields are correct, click the "Looks Good - Import Now" button. Your information will be uploaded momentarily.

To Upload or Import Data Via a Specific Tool:

Click on the links below for how to upload data from inside the following tools:

• Attendee List (RSVP Events only)
• Budget
• Calendars
• Checklists
• Contacts
• Itinerary
• Time Tracking
• To-Do's