Could not parse ‘_______’ as field name

Fixing “Could not parse” errors during contact upload

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Click here for a complete list of contact upload errors and how to fix them!

If your contact upload fails with an error that starts with “Could not parse…”, it usually means one or more values in your spreadsheet don’t match the format Message expects.

You’ll fix this in two steps:

1. Check what format the field requires in Message

2. Update your spreadsheet to match, then re-upload

Step 1: Confirm the required format in Message

1. In Message, go to Programs → Manage Fields.

2. Find the field listed in the error message.

3. Match your spreadsheet column header to the Variable name column in Manage Fields.

   • Example: If your spreadsheet header is birth_date, look for birth_date under Variable name.

4. Check the field’s Type to see how the data must be formatted.

5. Scroll to the bottom of the page for the Field Types glossary (definitions + examples).

Different field types, their definitions, and examples

Most common fixes

The majority of “Could not parse” issues come from:

• Date fields

• Boolean fields (True/False)

Fix 1: Date fields (must be YYYY-MM-DD)

A very common issue is dates formatted in Excel’s default MM/DD/YYYY, but Message requires YYYY-MM-DD.

In Excel:

1. Open the spreadsheet and select the date column (click the column letter).

2. Right-click → Format Cells

3. Under Category: Date, choose a Year-Month-Day format with dashes (looks like 2012-03-14).

4. Click OK.

5. Repeat for any other date columns, save the file, and re-upload.

Fix 2: Boolean fields (must be only TRUE or FALSE)

Boolean fields accept only TRUE or FALSE. Values like Yes/No, Y/N, 1/0, or mixed capitalization can cause a parse error.

Replace incorrect values in bulk (Excel):

1. Select the Boolean column (click the column letter).

2. Open Find & Replace (magnifying glass or Ctrl/Cmd + F), then choose Replace.

3. In Find what, enter a variation you have (e.g., yes).

4. In Replace with, enter TRUE (or FALSE as needed).

5. Click Replace All.

6. Repeat for other variations (e.g., Yes, YES, true, True, etc.), then do the same for FALSE.

Verify with a filter:

1. Select the Boolean column.

2. Go to Sort & Filter → Filter.

3. Open the filter dropdown and confirm the only values present are TRUE and FALSE.

   • If anything else appears, repeat the Replace steps until only those two values remain.

Before you re-upload (quick check)

• All dates use YYYY-MM-DD

• Boolean columns contain only TRUE or FALSE

• File is saved as .csv and ready to import again