How do I switch from ActiveCampaign to SendFox?

Export each ActiveCampaign list with its status set to Active, then upload the CSV in Audience → Contacts → Import contacts and rebuild your forms. On every plan.

What comes across from ActiveCampaign?

SendFox has no direct ActiveCampaign connection, so you move your lists with CSV files: export them from ActiveCampaign, then upload them to SendFox. SendFox reads the email address, first and last name, and any column you map to a custom field you've created in SendFox. Other columns aren't imported.

SendFox adds every row of a file as a subscribed contact, and imported contacts don't get a confirmation email. In ActiveCampaign a contact can be unsubscribed from one list and still active on another, so export list by list with the status set to Active.

Importing works on every plan. The Free plan holds up to 1,000 contacts and sends 3,000 emails a month; for more, see Which SendFox Pro tier should I choose? Moving from another tool as well? See How do I switch to SendFox from another email platform?

How do I export my contacts from ActiveCampaign?

1. In ActiveCampaign, open Contacts → Lists and click the list you want to move.
2. Check that the Status dropdown is set to Active. That's the default, and it leaves out unconfirmed, unsubscribed and bounced contacts.
3. Click Export, tick the fields you want in Export Options, and click Export. If you name the export, avoid special characters, or it downloads as a text file instead of a CSV.
4. Download the file from the link in the confirmation message, or from Contacts → Exports. The link works for 7 days; after that the export shows as Expired and Retry runs it again.
5. Repeat for each list.

Don't use the export on the main Contacts page: it doesn't include each contact's list status, so you can't tell unsubscribed or bounced contacts apart.

How do I import the files into SendFox?

1. Go to Audience → Contacts and click Import contacts.
2. Click Upload a file and choose one of your ActiveCampaign exports.
3. Map your columns. Email is required, and you can map first and last name. To keep an ActiveCampaign custom field, create the matching custom field in SendFox first. Columns you don't map aren't imported.
4. Optionally add a tag such as from-activecampaign under Tag them on import.
5. Under Select a list for your new contacts, choose an existing list or name a new one, then click Continue & import contacts. Repeat for your other files.

Files with fewer than 1,000 rows are added right away. Larger files run in the background, and SendFox emails you when the import is done.

How do I bring my ActiveCampaign tags across?

Your list export puts all of a contact's tags in one column, which SendFox doesn't read. Export one tag at a time instead:

1. In ActiveCampaign, open Contacts, click the search field, then Advanced Search.
2. Add the condition Tag → Exists → your tag, and a second condition Is subscribed to list (active) → the list. Click Search, then Export.
3. Import the file into SendFox and type the same tag name under Tag them on import. SendFox creates the tag if it doesn't exist yet.
4. Repeat for each tag.

Contacts already in SendFox aren't duplicated; they just get the new tag. See How do contact tags work?

What do I rebuild after importing?

Only contacts come across. Your past ActiveCampaign campaigns stay in ActiveCampaign, and the rest is rebuilt in SendFox:

• Signup forms: create a SendFox form and replace the ActiveCampaign form code on your site.
• Automations: recreate your ActiveCampaign automations as SendFox automations, one email and delay at a time.
• Signup pages: rebuild them as Smart Pages and update your links.
• Personalization: use SendFox's personalization tags, such as {{contact.first_name}}.
• Sending domain: validate your domain so your emails come from your own address.

Troubleshooting

My import was blocked

• A CSV file can have up to 100,000 rows. Split a larger file and import it in parts.
• An import can't take you over your plan's contact limit. SendFox tells you before it starts, and only email addresses that are new to your account count toward the limit. On the Free plan, click Upgrade! in the top nav to see your options.

My export downloaded as a text file

• The export name had special characters. Export again with a plain name, or skip naming it.

Fewer contacts arrived than I have in ActiveCampaign

• Only active contacts are exported, one list at a time. People on several lists become one SendFox contact.
• SendFox keeps one contact per email address and skips rows without a valid email address.

Still stuck? Browse the SendFox Help Center or email support@sendfox.com with the number of rows in your file and the name of the list you imported into.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my ActiveCampaign contacts get a confirmation email?

No. SendFox doesn't send a confirmation email to imported contacts, so import only people who subscribed to you.

Will my subscribers notice the switch?

Only in small ways: until you validate your domain, your emails send from a SendFox address, and on Free and Lifetime they carry a small SendFox badge in the footer (Pro removes it). Once you validate your domain, your emails come from your own address.

How do SendFox and ActiveCampaign compare?

See SendFox vs ActiveCampaign for a side-by-side comparison.