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How to change the data type of an existing field for additional member information

  • Updated

In this article, you will learn how to change the data type of an existing additional information field without losing the data already recorded for your members.

Contents

Fast lane

  1. Go to Settings / Studio / Additional information.
  2. Leave the old field untouched and create a new additional information field with the desired data type.
  3. Import the data for the new field for all relevant members via bulk processing.
  4. After a successful check, deactivate or delete the old additional information field.


Background: Why a direct change is not possible

For data integrity reasons, it is not possible to directly change the data type of an additional information field (e.g., from "Number" to "Text") once it has been assigned to members. If you simply deactivate a field, the information stored in it will no longer be displayed in the member profile. This is intended behavior, but it doesn't help when you need to migrate data.

The following instructions will show you a way to achieve your goal anyway.

Instructions: How to change the data type in 4 steps

To change the data type and keep the existing data, we will simply create a new field and transfer the data before removing the old one.

Step 1: Keep the old field active
Do not deactivate or delete the existing additional information field for now. This ensures that all previously recorded information remains visible to you and your staff while you prepare for the change.

Step 2: Create a new additional information field
In the main menu, go to Settings / Studio / Additional information and create a new field. Give it a suitable name (e.g., the same name as the old field with a suffix like "new") and select the correct new data type (e.g., "Text").

Step 3: Transfer data to the new field
The easiest way to transfer the information from the old field to the new one is through bulk processing. You will learn how this works in the next section.

Step 4: Deactivate the old field
After you have successfully imported the data into the new field and verified that everything is correct, you can deactivate and then delete the old additional information field under Settings / Studio / Additional information.


Data transfer via bulk processing

With bulk processing, you can import data for many members into the newly created field at the same time.

To do this, you need an Excel or CSV file that contains at least two columns:

  • A column for the unique identification of the member (e.g., the member number).
  • A column with the data that should be imported into the new additional information field.

You can then upload this file using the bulk processing function to automatically assign the data to the correct members and the new field.

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