Duplicate Rejection Rules

A Duplicate Rejection Rule turns away a contact that went onto one of your contact lists too recently. It stops a source from sending you the same people again and again.

Instructions

1. Go to Contact Lists and open the Duplicate Rejection Rules tab.
2. Click Create Contact List Rule.
3. Enter a Rule Name.
4. Enter the Days before a contact can re-enter, from 1 to 365.
5. Pick the Contact Lists the rule covers.
6. Click Save.

To change a rule, click its number or its name on the grid.

How the days work

A contact is turned away if it went onto any of the rule's contact lists within that many days.

• The days cover every list in the rule, not only the one the contact was sent to. A rule over lists A and B with 30 days turns away a contact sent to B if it went onto A nine days ago.
• The days count from the last time the contact was really added. A turned-away contact does not restart them.

One rule per contact list

A contact list can be in one rule at a time. In the Contact Lists picker, a list that another rule already has is greyed out and shows the name of that rule.

Turning a rule off

Use the Active switch on the grid, or the one on the rule. An inactive rule turns nobody away.

Turning a rule off keeps its contact lists assigned to it, so another rule still cannot take them. To free a list, remove it from the rule.

A contact list that a rule covers cannot be deactivated. The dialog names the rule. Remove the list from that rule first.

What happens to a turned-away contact

• It is not added to the list.
• Its details are not updated.
• It starts no triggered sequence.

Where a rule applies

A rule checks contacts added through the Contact API, and single contacts added with Add Record on a contact list.

Through the Contact API, each turned-away contact comes back with the message Duplicate Contact. The rest of the request is handled as normal. What the response looks like is on the Contact API Reference.

A rule does not check contacts in an uploaded file.

Common questions

Why was my contact rejected as a duplicate? A rule covers the list you sent it to, and the contact went onto one of that rule's lists within the rule's days. Open Contact Lists > Duplicate Rejection Rules to see the rule.

I set up a rule but nothing is turned away. Check that the rule is Active.

Why can I not deactivate my contact list? A rule covers it. Remove the list from that rule first.