How to Connect to & Open ConstantContact Data in Microsoft Excel



This article uses the CData ODBC driver for ConstantContact to import data in Excel with Microsoft Query. This article also demonstrates how to use parameters with Microsoft Query.

The CData ODBC driver for ConstantContact uses the standard ODBC interface to link ConstantContact data with applications like Microsoft Access and Excel. Follow the steps below to use Microsoft Query to import ConstantContact data into a spreadsheet and provide values to a parameterized query from cells in a spreadsheet.

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Start by setting the Profile connection property to the location of the ConstantContact Profile on disk (e.g. C:\profiles\ConstantContact.apip). Next, set the ProfileSettings connection property to the connection string for Profile (see below).

ConstantContact API Profile Settings

ConstantContact uses OAuth-based authentication.

First, you will need to register an OAuth application with ConstantContact. You can do so from the ConstantContact API Guide (https://v3.developer.constantcontact.com/api_guide/index.html), under "MyApplications" > "New Application". Your Oauth application will be assigned a client id (API Key) and you can generate a client secret (Secret).

After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:

  • AuthScheme: Set this to OAuth.
  • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to manage the process to obtain the OAuthAccessToken.
  • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client_id that is specified in you app settings.
  • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client_secret that is specified in you app settings.
  • CallbackURL: Set this to the Redirect URI you specified in your app settings.

You can then work with live ConstantContact data in Excel.

NOTE: In recent versions of Excel, Microsoft Query is not visible by default. To enable visibility, Navigate to Options > Data and check From Microsoft Query (Legacy) under the Show legacy data import wizards section.

  1. In Excel, open the Data tab and choose Get Data -> Legacy Wizards -> From Microsoft Query (Legacy).
  2. Choose the API DSN. Select the option to use Query Wizard to create/edit queries.
  3. In the Query Wizard, expand the node for the table you would like to import into your spreadsheet. Select the columns you want to import and click the arrow to add them to your query. Alternatively, select the table name to add all columns for that table.
  4. The Filter Data page allows you to specify criteria. For example, you can limit results by setting a date range.
  5. If you want to use parameters in your query, select the option to edit the query in Microsoft Query.
  6. To set a parameter in the query, you will need to modify the SQL statement directly. To do this, click the SQL button in the Query Editor. If you set filter criteria earlier, you should have a WHERE clause already in the query.

    To use a parameter, use a "?" character as the wildcard character for a field's value in the WHERE clause. For example, if you are importing the Contacts, you can set "CompanyName=?".

  7. Close the SQL dialog when you are finished editing the SQL statement. You will be prompted to enter a parameter value. In the next step, you will select a cell to provide this value. So, leave the box in the dialog blank.
  8. Click File -> Return Data to Microsoft Excel. The Import Data dialog is displayed. Enter a cell where results should be imported.

  9. Close the Import Data dialog. You will be prompted to enter a parameter value. Click the button next to the parameter box to select a cell. Select the option to automatically refresh the spreadsheet when the value changes.
The data is now imported into Excel. When you change the value in cell B1, the data will be filtered by the specified search criteria.

Ready to get started?

Connect to live data from ConstantContact with the API Driver

Connect to ConstantContact