Most failed Salesforce imports aren't Salesforce problems. They're CSV problems that only surface at row 4,812. Here's the preflight I run before any Data Import Wizard or Data Loader job.
1. Save as UTF-8, not "CSV (Excel default)"
Accented names and smart quotes turn into é garbage when the file isn't UTF-8. In Excel use CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited); in Google Sheets, File → Download → CSV is already UTF-8.
2. One header row, exact field names
Delete title rows, merged cells, and blank columns. Rename headers to match the Salesforce field labels you're mapping to so auto-mapping does the work.
3. Dates in one format
Mixed 10/23/2026, 23-10-2026, and Oct 23 in one column is the classic silent failure. Pick YYYY-MM-DD and convert the whole column.
4. Picklist values must match exactly
CA, Calif., and California are three different values to a restricted picklist. Pull the allowed values from Setup and find-and-replace before import.
5. Dedupe on email before you import, not after
Sort by lowercase-trimmed email and remove repeats. Cleaning duplicates inside the CRM later costs far more time than a sort in a spreadsheet.
6. Strip leading/trailing spaces and invisible characters
" jane@acme.com" won't match jane@acme.com. A TRIM()/CLEAN() helper column fixes it.
7. Required fields filled on every row
Last Name and Company (for Leads) are required. Filter for blanks and fill or drop those rows first.
Rather hand off the cleanup? Send up to 200 rows to the $25 Quick Clean and get back a cleaned CSV (same-email duplicates merged, possible duplicates flagged) plus a change log within 24 hours. No CRM login needed: email us your CSV (reply to your receipt or send it to slrescue@mail.grokbot.com). Bigger list? Intro $99 covers up to 500 rows, and Growth ($299, up to 2,000) and Bulk ($499, up to 5,000) are on pureservices.store. Want to check the file first? The free CSV preflight checker runs in your browser.
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