Your downloaded NCOA results contain several ID fields. These IDs serve as unique identifiers. Input_ID and Record_ID are especially helpful when uploading files back into your CRM and uploading updated addresses. Address_ID, Household_ID, and Individual_ID are helpful when finding duplicate records. In this post, we define each of these fields, and show you how to use them to get the most out of your TrueNCOA results.
You can read more about the output process here.
input_individual_id
An individual ID is a unique identifier given to each record. Usually a set of numbers, the individual ID aids users in matching new addresses to their database. TrueNCOA allows you to include an individual_id when uploading a file.
Users must include certain fields to run a file with TrueNCOA. The United States Postal Service requires the following fields in order to return
corrected addresses and give the user the most accurate information. To upload a file, TrueNCOA requires the following fields:
- First Name and Last Name or Full Name
- Address 1
- City and State or Postal Code
You can read more about the mapping and input process here.
record_id
Our system assigns a record_id to your records as a unique identifier. Different from Global ID, this ID is unique to each input record. This Record ID will be the same for moves with updated addresses.
global_id
Our system assigns a global_id to your records as a unique identifier. This Global record ID is different from Record ID. This Global ID will be the same for moves with updated addresses.
individual_id
Individual_ID is unique to each person. This ID is unique to the Individual Name and Address. For example: Jane Smith at 123 Main Street Chicago IL has an Individual ID of 35467, but if she moves her Individual ID changes as well because she is now Jane Smith at 1010 Brown Street, Chicago IL.
household_id
Household_ID, as the name states, is unique to each household. For example: Jane and John Smith’s Household ID is the same because they live at the same household. The Household ID is unique to both Individual Names and Addresses. This ID is different from the Individual ID.
address_id
Address_ID is unique to each address. For example: 123 Main Street, Chicago, IL will always have an Address_ID of 12345. If the owner changes for this address, the Address ID will always be the same.
Using individual_id, household_id, and address_id to de-dupe your TrueNCOA file.
TrueNCOA’s process does not de-dupe your file; however, we do provide IDs that can be used to identify duplicates. By using Individual ID, Household ID, and Address ID, you can find if there is a duplicate record in your file. By finding duplicates in each column separately, you can find any duplicate records. In the example below, we identify a constituent record placed in the file six times. In each record, his Address ID, Household ID, and Individual ID are the same for each record.
Note: We have highlighted duplicate fields for demonstration purposes only. Your downloaded file will not highlight duplicate IDs.
You should remove any duplicate records, leaving just one in the file. Remember: duplicate records must have matching Address ID, Household ID, AND Individual ID.