Contact Manager Setup

Configure the Contact Manager to streamline your CRM workflow, customize data collection, and enable auto-save for your team. This guide walks through the essential settings to optimize contact management from day one.

Prerequisites

Before configuring Contact Manager, ensure you have:

• Admin access to your GoHighLevel sub-account
• A basic understanding of your contact data structure
• A list of custom fields you want to track (if any)
• Deduplication strategy (primary match field: email or phone)

Configure Contact Deduplication

Prevent duplicate contacts from cluttering your CRM with smart deduplication rules.

Navigate to Settings > Business Profile > Contact Deduplication Preferences.

Choose your primary match field. Use email if most contacts submit forms or sign up online. Use phone if you primarily collect contacts via calls or SMS.

Select a secondary match field as a fallback. This provides a second layer of duplicate detection when the primary field is missing.

Save your preferences. CSV imports will now automatically check email and phone numbers and merge matching records. Forms and integrations will also respect these rules to prevent duplicate creation.

If duplicates already exist, navigate to Contacts, select up to 10 duplicate records, and choose Merge Contacts from the bulk actions menu. Select the master record to preserve, and the system will combine all data from the duplicate records.

Customize the Add Contact Form

Control which fields your team sees when creating contacts manually, ensuring consistent data capture.

Navigate to Contacts > Smart Lists > + Add Contact to open the contact creation modal.

Click Customize Form in the modal header.

Add standard fields (name, email, phone, address) by checking the boxes next to each field. Add contact-level custom fields by expanding the Custom Fields section and selecting relevant fields.

Drag fields to reorder them. Place the most critical fields at the top for faster data entry.

Toggle the Required switch for any field that must be completed before saving. Required fields show an asterisk and prevent contact creation if left blank.

Click Preview to see the form as your team will see it. Verify field order, labels, and required status match your workflow.

Save the form configuration. This applies to all users in the sub-account immediately.

Test the form by clicking + Add Contact again. Confirm required fields block submission when left empty, and all desired fields appear in the correct order.

Enable Auto-Save

Eliminate manual save clicks and speed up contact editing for your entire team.

Navigate to Settings > Contacts > Details Tab.

Locate the Auto-Save toggle and enable it.

Confirm the change when prompted. This applies the setting account-wide for all users immediately.

Test auto-save by opening any contact record from Contacts. Edit a field (such as phone number or a custom field). Leave the field by clicking elsewhere or pressing Tab.

Verify the field saves automatically without clicking a save button. Check the activity timeline to confirm the change logged immediately.

If you prefer per-user control, users can also enable auto-save individually. Open any contact record, make an edit to trigger the Save bar at the bottom, click the kebab menu (3 dots), and select Enable Auto-Save.

Set Up Contact Types

Categorize contacts for segmentation and reporting by defining contact types relevant to your business.

Navigate to Settings > Contacts > Contact Types.

Click + Add Contact Type and enter a name (for example, Lead, Customer, Partner, Vendor).

Add descriptions if you want to clarify when each type should be used.

Save the contact type. Repeat for all categories you need.

Once configured, you can assign contact types when creating or editing contacts. Use contact types as filters in Smart Lists to segment your database.

Configure Communication Preferences (DND Settings)

Set default Do Not Disturb rules to respect contact communication preferences and comply with regulations.

Navigate to Settings > Contacts > Communication Preferences.

Enable Email Opt-Out settings if you want to track email unsubscribes globally. Configure whether unsubscribes apply account-wide or per-location if you operate multiple locations.

Enable SMS Opt-Out settings to respect text message preferences. Define whether opt-outs apply to all SMS or only marketing messages.

Configure Call Blocking options if you want to prevent outbound calls to specific contacts or groups.

Save your preferences. These settings serve as defaults, but you can override them at the contact level by editing individual contact records and adjusting the DND tab.

Organize Smart Lists

Create filtered views to focus on specific contact segments without scrolling through your entire database.

Navigate to Contacts > Smart Lists.

Click + Create Smart List and name it based on the segment you want to isolate (for example, Active Leads, Customers in [your area code], Contacts Created This Month).

Add filters to define the criteria. Use filters like:

• Tags (contains or does not contain specific tags)
• Custom fields (matches specific values)
• Date added (within a range)
• Contact type
• Owner
• Activity status

Combine multiple filters to narrow the segment. Use AND/OR logic to create precise conditions.

Save the Smart List. It appears in your Smart Lists menu for quick access. The list updates dynamically as contacts meet or leave the criteria.

Use Smart Lists to perform bulk actions, export specific segments, or assign workflows to targeted groups.

Test Your Setup

Verify your configuration by creating a test contact and confirming behavior matches your preferences.

Navigate to Contacts > Smart Lists > + Add Contact.

Fill out the Add Contact form using test data. Leave a required field blank and attempt to save. Confirm the form blocks submission and highlights the missing field.

Complete all required fields and click Save. Verify the contact creates successfully.

Open the newly created contact record. Edit a field (such as email or phone). Leave the field and confirm auto-save triggers immediately if enabled. Check the activity timeline for the logged change.

Test deduplication by creating a second contact with the same email or phone number (depending on your deduplication settings). Verify the system either blocks creation or prompts you to merge the records.

Navigate to the contact’s DND tab. Confirm communication preferences match your defaults, and test toggling settings on and off.

Create a task in the Tasks panel. Assign it to yourself, set a due date, and save. Verify the task appears in both the contact record and your task list.

Test keyboard shortcuts by navigating between contacts using the arrow keys (← and →). Press ESC to collapse the right panel, then reopen it.

Add the test contact to a Smart List by applying the appropriate tags or field values. Confirm it appears in the filtered list.

Next Steps

Now that Contact Manager is configured, explore related features to build a complete CRM workflow:

• Smart Lists to create advanced filtered views and automate list management
• Tags and Segments to organize and target contacts dynamically
• Custom Fields to capture business-specific data points
• Workflow Builder to automate actions when contacts are created or updated
• DND Settings to manage communication compliance at scale

For a complete overview of Contact Manager features, capabilities, and best practices, read the Contact Manager Guide.