Import proposals with CSV files

You can import proposals to Orchidea using CSV files.

Choose a channel, challenge, or workshop to which you want to import the proposals:

1. Press on the upper right corner of your channel, challenge, or workshop.

2. From the opening menu, choose Import.

From import click on Select a local CSV file to bring your files from your computer.

When you import a file, it will be arranged by choosing the delimiter.

If a column with data includes a date format, you need to select the correct date format before the import.

Ignoring line count will ignore the selected lines.

For example, The titles of the Excel cells will be ignored.

Choose the fields to define where on the proposal the data in the selected column will be shown.

You can choose to import multiple text columns into one text field in Orchidea. They will be imported into the same Orchidea field, separated by an empty row.

Click the View button at the beginning of each row of data to preview its appearance in Orchidea.

You must define how each column in the CSV file is imported. However, you can also choose the "Do not import" option.

Here are some tips on specific data types:

• Hashtags
  • You can import both 1) hashtags that exist already in Orchidea and 2) create new hashtags with the import
  • If you import several hashtags, please separate them with a comma "," and avoid spaces in hashtags, as they are converted to underscore "_"
    • For example, the hashtag "ideas from customers" in the CSV file is converted to hashtag "#ideas_from_customers" in Orchidea.
  • Hashtags in the CSV file can be with or without the #-sign, so both IdeasFromCustomer and #IdeasFromCustomer are acceptable formats in the CSV-file and both will converted to #IdeasFromCustomer in Orchidea.
• Creator email
  • You can import both 1) users that already exist in Orchidea and 2) users that do not have an account in Orchidea. If the creator of an imported proposal does not have a matching user account in Orchidea, they are not created as a user account. However, the creator's email will be visible in the proposal.
  • If you do not have a creator email in the CSV file or you select not to import the email, you, as the user performing the import, will be shown as the proposal creator.
• Classification
  • To import a classification, the following conditions have to be met
    • The target channel or challenge of the import has to have a classification tree in one of the forms. The classification tree name is shown among other field types in the Choose field dropdown menu.
    • If you import several classifications, please separate them with a comma ","
    • The text imported to the classification tree must be at the lowest level in the tree structure. Here are a few examples
      • You have the following two-level classification tree in the channel
        • 
      • If you want to classify an imported proposal as "User experience => safety," the classification data column in the CSV file needs to have the text "safety."
      • If you want to classify an imported proposal as "Accessories," the classification data column in the CSV file needs to have the text "Accessories".

Once you have completed your selections for each column in the CSV file, choose Submit to import the data. 

After submission, the proposals will appear on the channel, challenge, or workshop as new proposals.