Slate Integration - Import Configuration

Contact Import

This integration allows for the automated import of contacts from Slate to Cadence on a daily basis. This import is subject to the same  rules and validation as the standard manual import process in Cadence and has the same end result, but allows for the process to take place in an automated fashion.

To configure your import into Cadence:

1. Build query in Slate

This query needs to capture all of the fields you wish to load for your contacts. Note that you should only import contacts that need to be in Cadence for the purposes of receiving text messages. As a best practice, we recommend only importing these specific contacts rather than your entire population of Slate contacts

There are also some fields that will be required to import a contact record, so your query should only include records that have data in the required fields.

The required fields are:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Mobile Number

If you wish to assign contacts to users, a field containing the identifier for their assigned user should be included.  An opt in/out preference for texting can be included as well. Additionally, all other fields that you wish to load as  custom fields within Cadence should be included.

NOTE: If you are only testing your import, please make sure your query only includes a small set of contacts. This will ensure that your test imports will run faster.

2. Set up the schedule

  • Using the "Schedule Export" feature for the query, set up the export with the following settings:
  • Status: Active (this will enable nightly file generation and can be left set to "Inactive" until the configuration is complete
  • Server:  Technolutions
  • Path: "mongoose/SlateToMongoose_" followed by a date variable
  • Format:  Delimited
  • Delimiter: Tab
  • Headers: Include Header Row
  • Text Qualifiers: Double Quotes
  • Line Endings: <cr><lf>
  • Encoding: Unicode (utf-8)
  • Suppress Empty:  Allow empty files
  • Requested Delivery Window : Overnight (note, this is recommended, but any window can be chosen)

3. Configure Mongoose Import Settings

Under the "Import Configuration" tab, there are a series of configuration options to control how the incoming Slate file is mapped into Cadence.
File Information - Enter the file name (without the date extension) that was defined above in Slate, and indicate what delimiter was selected.
If more than one file is present on the SFTP server matching this prefix, the most recent file (with today's date) will be selected for import.

**Note: By default, SlateToMongoose is a provided example placeholder in the File Name Prefix box. Please be sure to actually type in your desired File Name Prefix. You will not be able to save the page if the File Name Prefix is left using the placeholder example.


Configure Standard Fields - Control how the incoming fields are mapped to required fields within Cadence for contacts.  The values entered should correspond exactly to the column headers within the Slate file. Staff ID is optional if you'd like to associate contacts with a specific user.
We recommend mapping Contact Id to Slate ID (or "Ref"), as the records in Slate and Cadence need to have the same identifier if you plan on setting up exports to Slate (continue to the "Exports" section at the end of this article for more information). If you want to bring in a secondary identifier for a record, you can include it as a custom field.
Opt Out Settings - If the file from Slate contains a column with each contact's opt out preference, it can be configured here. Along with the exact column header, the values that indicate opt in vs opt out must be specified, as well as what a blank value represents. The specified values must match what is shown in the file from Slate. If this section is skipped, all contacts in the file will be assumed to be opted in for texting.

Custom fields - If the file from Slate contains additional columns, they can be configured to load into custom fields within Cadence.  The exact column header from the Slate file is specified along with selecting the custom field from Cadence (which must be set up prior to this step).


Scheduling - The import process can be scheduled to take place at a specific time each day. This time should be after the window defined above in Slate.

Notifications - An email address can be specified to receive an email at the completion of every import job, containing details on the success/error counts.

4. Run Import

After making configurations, the import can be tested manually by using the Initiate Import button on the Import Log tab.

Note that when your import runs, Cadence will only attempt to import files from Slate that were created on that day. If there are other files in the same location on the Slate SFTP and they have older dates, they will not be picked up.

To continue to the next step of configuring the integration, click the following link: Exports

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