How to manually add audience members to a cohort via file upload

Last updated: April 19, 2026

You can add contacts to a cohort in two ways: sync from your CRM based on criteria, or upload a spreadsheet with specific contacts. This guide covers the upload option.

Before you start

  • File upload capability must be enabled on your account. Contact your Customer Success Manager to activate this feature if you haven't already.

  • Your spreadsheet should be in CSV, XLS, or XLSX format with 3 to 100,000 rows.

Steps to upload an audience

  1. Log in to Influ2 and go to Cohorts > Create cohort.

If you're adding to an existing cohort, click the three dots menu and select Edit cohort.

The audience import screen showing the "Upload audience" option.

  1. Give your cohort a name, select a journey to map it to, and optionally set a reach limit.

  2. Next to Include, click Add audience and select Import from the dropdown.

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  3. Click Select values and then Upload audience.

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  1. Drop your file or browse to select it from your device.

Keep in mind:

  • Required fields: First Name, Last Name, Buying Group

  • Recommended: Include an External Target ID (like your CRM ID) to prevent duplicates and enable easier updates

  • Optional system columns: Owner name, Owner email, External Contact ID, External Account ID

  • Custom columns: You can add any custom columns — they'll become available as segmentation criteria later

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  1. Map your file columns to Influ2 fields.

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Influ2 recognizes standard headers like "First name," "Last name," and "Company." For custom columns, create new segmentation criteria by clicking Create new criteria.

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  1. Review your upload before submitting.

You'll see summaries for:

  • Total count — total rows in your file

  • New targets — contacts being added for the first time

  • Updated targets — existing contacts with changed data

  • Errors — contacts with missing required fields

Search for specific targets (2+ characters) and delete any via checkbox if needed.

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  1. Click Submit to finalize your audience.

Understand target statuses

After upload, targets are assigned statuses:

  • New — First-time imports; previously didn't exist in Influ2

  • Updated — Existing contacts whose data changed in system default columns. Click Update history to see what changed.

  • Error — Contacts with missing or invalid required fields. These won't be included in your cohort.

File requirements and validation

Your file must meet these specs:

  • Format: CSV, XLS, or XLSX

  • Minimum columns: 3

  • Maximum rows: 100,000

Common validation errors:

  • File exceeds 100,000 rows — System shows an error about the row limit

  • File is empty — System displays an empty file message

  • Fewer than 3 columns — System shows a minimum columns error

  • Incorrect file format — System displays a format or size error

  • Mandatory fields are empty — Fields are marked "Cannot be empty" with red highlighting

  • Duplicate records — System detects and removes duplicates after submit; only unique values are saved

Reuse previous uploads

Once your audience is imported, the segment displays the file name and target count. You can close the segment or import a new audience. Previously imported audiences are available via the Previously imported audience option — just select from the dropdown to reuse them without re-uploading.