Merge duplicates and add the fields reactivation needs

Why it matters

Duplicates cause the two most embarrassing reactivation mistakes: texting the same person twice, and texting someone through a duplicate record after they opted out on the original. They also inflate your counts, so your pilot results look worse than they are.

Standard CRM fields do not record whether someone is a past client, when you last actually talked, or where their consent came from. Without those fields, every Smart List in chapter 4 is a guess.

Step by step

1. 01

   HighLevel: set how new duplicates are prevented

   Turn Allow Duplicate Contact off. Set Find Existing Contacts Based On to Email or Phone (pick the one your leads most reliably give you) and set the other in Second Preferences for Search.

   Check: The toggle shows off and both search preferences are filled.

2. 02

   HighLevel: find and merge existing duplicates

   Run Find By: Email first, then Phone, then Name. Click Review on each group, pick the record to keep, then Merge Contacts, tick the acknowledgment and Merge Duplicates. You can also merge by hand: select up to 10 contacts in a Smart List, then More > Merge and choose the Master.

   What HighLevel keeps on merge (per its help article)

   Data	Result
   Master's existing field values	Kept
   Custom fields	Copied only where the master is blank
   Notes, tasks, opportunities, conversations	Combined
   Tags	Can be combined
   Active workflows	Move to master; may end if master is already in that workflow

   Check: Running Find Duplicates by Email again returns no groups.

3. 03

   Follow Up Boss: merge people from a search list

   Search a phone or last name, open View List of People, select the duplicates (up to 10), then Mass Actions > Merge People. Choose the main contact and confirm Yes, Merge # People.

   The main contact keeps its name, assigned agent, lender, stage, running action plan, background and source. Notes and other data move in; custom fields fill only where the main contact is blank. The other records go to Trash and their action plans pause. Spouses who share an email can be kept as related people with Merge People As Relationships.

   Check: A timeline note on the main contact records the merge.

4. 04

   Catch near-duplicates in the spreadsheet

   CRMs miss (555) 010-1234 vs 555.010.1234, or Dana@Example.com vs dana@example.com. In WORKING.csv add four helper columns (formulas below assume phone in column E and email in column D, data from row 2):

   Phone key (column R):   =RIGHT(REGEXREPLACE(TO_TEXT(E2),"[^0-9]",""),10)        (Google Sheets)
   Phone key in Excel 365: =RIGHT(CONCAT(IFERROR(MID(E2,SEQUENCE(LEN(E2)),1)*1,"")),10)
   Email key (column S):   =LOWER(TRIM(D2))
   Phone dupes (column T): =IF(R2="","",COUNTIF(R:R,R2))
   Email dupes (column U): =IF(S2="","",COUNTIF(S:S,S2))
   
   Then filter T or U for values greater than 1 and sort by that key.

   Copy

   Every row with a count above 1 shares a phone or email with another row. Look each group up in the CRM and merge there. Do not delete rows from the CSV and re-import; merging in the CRM keeps the conversation history.

   Check: After merging in the CRM and re-exporting, no phone key or email key appears more than once.

5. 05

   Create the nine reactivation fields

   In HighLevel, create a folder called Reactivation (Folders tab > Create Folder), then add the fields below. In Follow Up Boss, the Account Owner adds them at Admin > Custom Fields > Add Custom Field (types available: Date, Text, Number, Dropdown; 256-character limit; type cannot be changed later).

   Field name	HighLevel type	Follow Up Boss type	Values
   Relationship	Dropdown (single)	Dropdown	Past client, Sphere, Lead, Unknown
   Relationship Strength	Dropdown (single)	Dropdown	1, 2, 3
   Last Conversation Date	Date Picker	Date	Last real two-way talk
   SMS Consent	Dropdown (single)	Dropdown	Yes, No, Unknown
   Consent Source	Short Text	Text	e.g. Website form 2025-03-04
   Phone DNC Check	Dropdown (single)	Dropdown	Clear, Listed, Not checked
   DNC Checked Date	Date Picker	Date	Date of last registry scrub
   Homeowner	Dropdown (single)	Dropdown	Yes, No, Unknown
   Year Purchased	Number	Number	e.g. 2017

   Check: All nine fields appear when you open any contact record.

6. 06

   Fill the fields for your top contacts first

   Start with past clients: you know their relationship, purchase year and when you last talked. Fill those by hand on each record. For hundreds of records, fill the columns in WORKING.csv and re-import (Contacts > Import in HighLevel; Admin > Import in Follow Up Boss) with the email column mapped so records update rather than duplicate.

   Check: Your 3 test contacts show the imported values and still have their notes and history.

Copyable templates

email,phone,first_name,last_name,Relationship,Relationship Strength,Last Conversation Date,SMS Consent,Consent Source,Phone DNC Check,DNC Checked Date,Homeowner,Year Purchased
dana.example@example.com,555-0100,Dana,Example,Past client,3,03/14/2025,Yes,Signed buyer agreement 2024-06-01,Clear,10/01/2026,Yes,2017

Try it

How to test it

1. Pick a contact you merged. Confirm notes from every original record are on the survivor.
2. Find a contact who had DND or an opt-out on any duplicate. Confirm the survivor still shows it.
3. Submit your own website form twice with the same email. HighLevel or Follow Up Boss should update one record, not create two.

Troubleshooting

Advanced technical details

Optional. You can follow every step above without these.