How to update MailChimp from Excel

The CData Excel Add-In for MailChimp enables you to edit and save MailChimp data directly from Excel. This article explains how to transfer data from Excel to MailChimp. This technique is useful if you want to work on MailChimp data in Excel and update changes, or if you have a whole spreadsheet you want to import into MailChimp. In this example, you will use the Lists table; however, the same process will work for any table that can be retrieved by the CData Excel Add-In.

Establish a Connection

If you have not already done so, create a new MailChimp connection by clicking From MailChimp on the ribbon.

You can set the APIKey to the key you generate in your account settings, or, instead of providing your APIKey, you can use the OAuth standard to authenticate the application. OAuth can be used to enable other users to access their own data. To authenticate using OAuth, you will need to obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL by registering an app with MailChimp.

See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

Retrieve Data from MailChimp

To insert data into MailChimp, you will first need to retrieve data from the MailChimp table you want to add to. This links the Excel spreadsheet to the MailChimp table selected: After you retrieve data, any changes you make to the data are highlighted in red.

1. Click the From MailChimp button on the CData ribbon. The Data Selection wizard is displayed.
2. In the Table or View menu, select the Lists table.
3. In the Maximum Rows menu, select the number of rows you want to retrieve. If you want to insert rows, you need to retrieve only one row. The Query box will then display the SQL query that corresponds to your request.
4. In the Sheet Name box, enter the name for the sheet that will be populated. By default the add-in will create a new sheet with the name of the table.

Insert Rows to MailChimp

After retrieving data, you can add data from an existing spreadsheet in Excel.

1. In a cell after the last row, enter a formula referencing the corresponding cell from the other spreadsheet; for example, =MyListsSheetInExcel!A1.
2. After using a formula to reference the cells you want to add to MailChimp, select the cells that you are inserting data into and drag the formula down as far as needed. The referenced values you want to add will be displayed on the Lists sheet.
3. Highlight the rows you want to insert and click the Update Rows button.

As each row is inserted, the Id value will appear in the Id column and the row's text will change to black, indicating that the record has been inserted.