Adding Field Data to the Direct Update URL

Adding field data to the Direct Update URL allows you to pass field to the application used to update contact fields.

To add a field to the Direct Update URL, you will need to use the exact spelling of the field. You can see a listing of all your contact fields by going to Contacts > Fields. Any field can be updated with Direct Update, but some fields only support certain operators.

Note: Before updating any field data using Direct Update, make sure you understand how Direct Update affects different field types. For more information on how Direct Update affects different field types, see How Direct Update Affects Different Field Types.

Be sure to use only lower case letters for the operators.

There are 5 different operators:
  • set: Adds a value to the specified field. If a value already exists in a field, it is replaced by the specified value. Field types supported:
    • number
    • decimal
    • currency
    • date
    • text
    • text area
    • check box
    • radio button
    • pull-down 
    http://public_domain/public/?q=direct_update&fn=Public_DirectUpdateForm&id=IDSTRING&field1=lastpurchasedate,set,12/15/2012
  • add: Increments a numerical value stored in a field. Field types supported:
    • number
    • decimal
    • currency 
    http://public_domain/public/?q=direct_update&fn=Public_DirectUpdateForm&id=IDSTRING&field1=lastpurchaseamount,add,25.25
  • append: Appends the specified value on to the existing value in a field. This allows you to track multiple values without having to create a large number of individual fields. Field types supported:
    • text
    • text area 
    http://public_domain/public/?q=direct_update&fn=Public_DirectUpdateForm&id=IDSTRING&field1=lastitemspurchased,append,socks
    Warning: append will add the specified value even if the value already exists. Hence, you could potentially end up with a field in your account that has the same value multiple times. Use appendifnew if you want to only append the value if the field value does not already exist.
    Note: Values added using the append and appendifnew operators will show up in fields separated by commas. For example: value1, value2, value3.
  • appendifnew: Appends the specified value to the field only if that value doesn't already exist. Field types supported:
    • text
    • text area 
    http://public_domain/public/?q=direct_update&fn=Public_DirectUpdateForm&id=IDSTRING&field1=education,append,Masters
    Note: Values added using the append and appendifnew operators will show up in fields separated by commas. For example: value1, value2, value3.
  • sub Subtracts numerical values stored in field. Field types supported:
    • number
    • decimal
    • currency
    http://public_domain/public/?q=direct_update&fn=Public_DirectUpdateForm&id=IDSTRING&field1=lastpurchaseamount,sub,25.25