Update a Customer Attributes Dataset

This content is only for clients with the one-click DATASETS option in the top navigation bar. If you click DATASETS and see Product Data and Customer Data listed as menu options, then this content doesn't apply to your account. Instead, see Update or Replace a Customer Dataset.

You may find it necessary to update a Customer Attributes dataset, perhaps with more customers with actionable data or with new information about the customers already captured in the dataset.

The type of update you need to perform determines the method(s) available for accomplishing the task.

Updating or Adding Rows

Perhaps you need to update the values that appear in the recently_viewed_products attribute in a dataset for customer IDs (cust_id) 111 and 115. Therefore, you need to update the rows for those two customer IDs, which you can accomplish through a partial update.

Two rows from a Customer Attributes dataset spreadsheet that includes the cust_id attribute and recently_viewed_products attribute

Maybe instead of updating attribute values, you need to add data for customers with the IDs 116, 117, and 118. Each customer ID represents a new row, which you can upload to the dataset through a partial update.

Three rows from a customer data spreadsheet that contain information for customer IDs 116, 117, and 118

If you need to add or replace rows of customer information within a dataset, you can perform a partial update through the Data API, via SFTP, or using the Upload Data wizard in the platform.

For more information about using the Data API for an update, refer to Update a Customer Attributes Dataset via the Data API. See Update a Customer Attributes Dataset via SFTP for more information about using an account's specific SFTP setup to send an update.

When using the Upload Data wizard to add or update rows in a product catalog dataset, you can either drag and drop a file directly into the wizard, or you can input a URL to a dataset file that you store on Amazon S3. Regardless of which of these two upload options you select, the file that you use must be in the CSV or TSV format.

Uploading a File Directly

Follow these steps to add rows to or update existing rows in a Customer Attributes dataset by uploading a file directly to the Monetate platform.

  1. Click DATASETS in the top navigation bar, and then select Customer Attributes from View on the Datasets list page.

    Callout of the View selector on the Datasets list page. One of the options is Customer Attributes.

  2. Find the Customer Attributes dataset that you want to update, click the upload icon for its entry, and then select Data File Upload.

    Callout of the upload icon and the 'Data File Upload' option for a dataset entry on the Customer Attributes list page

  3. Select Partial Update and then click NEXT.

    Step 1 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Partial Update' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  4. Select Manual File Upload and then click NEXT.

    Step 2 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Manual File Upload' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  5. Drag and drop the file into the wizard.

    Step 3 of the Upload Data wizard, with a callout of the file upload field

Monetate ingests the file and closes the Upload Data wizard. When the dataset's Update History tab loads, a message briefly appears that informs you that the file was successfully uploaded. Additionally, PENDING appears where the timeframe of the last update normally appears.

The 'Update History' tab of a Customer Attributes dataset's details page, with a message informing the user that a CSV file was successfully uploaded and with a callout of the PENDING status

If the file failed to upload or the platform encountered other errors, you see messages indicating the problem. See Failed Updates in this documentation for more information.

Uploading a File Using an Amazon S3 URL

Follow these steps to add rows to or update existing rows in a product catalog by uploading a dataset file using an Amazon S3 pre-signed URL.

  1. Generate the pre-signed URL for the file you want to upload.

    Refer to Sharing objects using presigned URLs in the Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) user documentation for more information about generating a URL for this purpose.

  2. Click DATASETS in the top navigation bar, and then select Customer Attributes from View on the Datasets list page.

    Callout of the View selector on the Datasets list page. One of the options is Customer Attributes.

  3. Find the Customer Attributes dataset that you want to update, click the upload icon for its entry, and then select Data File Upload.

    Callout of the upload icon and the 'Data File Upload' option for a dataset entry on the Customer Attributes list page

  4. Select Partial Update and then click NEXT.

    Step 1 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Partial Update' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  5. Select Upload File Using Pre-signed S3 URL, and then click NEXT.

    Step 2 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Upload File Using Pre-signed S3 URL' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  6. Paste the Amazon S3 URL into the field, and then click FINISH.

    Step 3 of the Upload Data wizard, with a callout of the Amazon S3 presigned URL input field and of the FINISH button

The Upload Data wizard closes and Monetate ingests the file. When the dataset's details page loads, a message briefly appears that informs you that the file was successfully uploaded from the Amazon S3 URL. Additionally, PENDING appears where the timeframe of the last update normally appears.

A Customer Attribute dataset's details page, with a message informing the user that the file was successfully uploaded via a presigned Amazon S3 URL and with a callout of the 'PENDING' status

If the file failed to upload or the platform encountered other errors, you see messages indicating the problem. See Failed Updates in this documentation for more information.

Updating Attributes

Perhaps the dataset update you need to perform entails adding information about whether or not each customer made a purchase in the last month. That information is captured in the purchased_in_last_month attribute, which currently the dataset doesn't include.

Callout of the purchased_in_last_month column in a customer data spreadsheet

Whether you need to add one or multiple attributes to a Customer Attributes dataset, you have two options to accomplish this task:

  • Send a full file update using the Data API
  • Use the Add Attribute modal accessible from the dataset's details page

You cannot use the Data Update wizard to add attributes to a Customer Attributes dataset. You can only use the wizard to remove attributes. See Removing Attributes in this documentation for more information.

Using the Add Attribute Modal

Follow these steps to add an attribute to a Customer Attributes dataset's schema.

  1. Navigate to the dataset's details page.
  2. Click ADD ATTRIBUTE on the Attributes tab.

    Callout of the ADD ATTRIBUTE button on the Attributes tab of a Customer Attributes dataset's details page

  3. Type the new attribute's name into ATTRIBUTE NAME.

    Attribute names must begin with a letter and contain only letters, numbers, and underscores.

    Callout of the 'ATTRIBUTE NAME' field in the Add Attribute modal

  4. Select the new attribute's data type from ATTRIBUTE TYPE.

    If an attribute has the wrong data type associated with it, then the data cannot be processed correctly when you use the dataset within the platform.

    Callout of the 'ATTRIBUTE TYPE' selector in the Add Attribute modal

  5. If necessary, click ADD ATTRIBUTE to generate another set of fields for another attribute, and then repeat steps 3 and 4 for the additional new attribute.

    Callout of the 'ADD ATTRIBUTE' button in the Add Attribute modal

  6. Click SAVE.

    Callout of the SAVE button in the Add Attribute modal

The new attributes appear at the bottom of the table. There is no indication the new attributes have no data associated with them.

Because the new attributes now exist within the dataset schema in the platform, you must perform a partial update with a file that contains values for them. Refer to Updating or Adding Rows in this documentation for more information about partial updates.

Removing Attributes

If you need to remove attributes from a Customer Attributes dataset, then you can upload a full file update using the Upload Data wizard within the platform.

You cannot remove the attribute set as the Unique ID. If you want a dataset that doesn't include the attribute selected as the Unique ID, then you must create a new dataset.

Even though removing attributes from a dataset rebuilds the dataset schema, you must ensure the full update still matches the order of attributes in the existing schema. Furthermore, you cannot revise the data type for any existing attributes

You cannot edit existing attribute names, their corresponding data type, nor can you change the Unique ID or Identifier Name. If you need to change any of these aspects, then create a new dataset.

When using the Upload Data wizard to remove attributes, you can either drag and drop a file directly into the wizard, or you can input a URL to a dataset file that you store on Amazon S3. Regardless of which of these two upload options you select, the file that you use must be in the CSV or TSV format.

Uploading a File Directly

Follow these steps to remove one or more attributes by uploading a dataset file directly to the Monetate platform.

  1. Click DATASETS in the top navigation bar, and then select Customer Attributes from View on the Datasets list page.

    Callout of the View selector on the Datasets list page. One of the options is Customer Attributes.

  2. Find the Customer Attributes dataset that you want to update, click the upload icon for its entry, and then select Data File Upload.

    Callout of the upload icon and the 'Data File Upload' option for a dataset entry on the Customer Attributes list page

  3. Select Full Update and then click NEXT.

    Step 1 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Full Update' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  4. Select Manual File Upload, and then click NEXT.

    Step 2 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Manual File Upload' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  5. Drag and drop the file into the wizard.

    Step 3 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Full Update' and 'Manual File Upload' selected and a callout of the drag-and-drop file upload field

Monetate ingests the file and closes the Upload Data wizard. When the dataset's details page loads, a message briefly appears that informs you that the file was successfully uploaded. Additionally, PENDING appears where the timeframe of the last update normally appears since the update is in progress.

The 'Update History' tab of a Customer Attributes dataset's details page, with a message informing the user that a CSV file was successfully uploaded and with a callout of the PENDING status

If the file failed to upload or the platform encountered other errors, you see messages indicating the problem. See Failed Updates in this documentation for more information.

Uploading a File Using an Amazon S3 URL

Follow these steps to remove one or more attributes by uploading a dataset file using an Amazon S3 pre-signed URL.

  1. Generate the pre-signed URL for the file you want to upload.

    Refer to Sharing objects using presigned URLs in the Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) user documentation for more information about generating a URL for this purpose.

  2. Click DATASETS in the top navigation bar, and then select Customer Attributes from View on the Datasets list page.

    Callout of the View selector on the Datasets list page. One of the options is Customer Attributes.

  3. Find the Customer Attributes dataset that you want to update, click the upload icon for its entry, and then select Data File Upload.

    Callout of the upload icon and the 'Data File Upload' option for a dataset entry on the Customer Attributes list page

  4. Select Full Update and then click NEXT.

    Step 1 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Full Update' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  5. Select Upload File Using Pre-signed S3 URL, and then click NEXT.

    Step 2 of the Upload Data wizard, with 'Upload File Using Pre-signed S3 URL' selected and a callout of the NEXT button

  6. Paste the Amazon S3 URL into the field, and then click FINISH.

    Step 3 of the Upload Data wizard, with a callout of the Amazon S3 presigned URL input field and the FINISH button

The Upload Data wizard closes and Monetate ingests the file. When the dataset's details page loads, a message briefly appears that informs you that the file was successfully uploaded from the Amazon S3 URL. Additionally, PENDING appears where the timeframe of the last update normally appears.

A Customer Attribute dataset's details page, with a callout of the file upload success message and of the 'PENDING' status

If the file failed to upload or the platform encountered other errors, you see messages indicating the problem. See Failed Updates in this documentation for more information.

Failed Updates

If the platform encounters an error with the update, you see UPDATE FAILED in multiple places within the platform:

  • In the LAST UPDATED column for the dataset's entry on the Customer Attributes view of the Datasets list page

    Callout of the 'UPDATE FAILED' message for a Customer Attributes dataset on the Customer Attributes list page

  • In place of the last update's timeframe on the dataset's details page

    Callout of the 'UPDATE FAILED' message on a Customer Attributes dataset's details page

  • In the UPLOAD DATE column in the Update History table on the Update History tab

    Callout of the 'UPDATE FAILED' message in the Update History table of the Update History tab of a Customer Attributes dataset's details page

Click that message to view the File Upload Error modal containing the reason(s) for the failure.

Example of the File Upload Error modal for Customer Attributes dataset update failure

Refer to Customer Dataset Upload Requirements to ensure the update file conforms to the criteria for this type of dataset.