CoherenceCOHERENCE

Duplicate Management

Find and merge duplicate people to keep your data clean

Duplicate Management

Duplicate records create confusion and skew your data. Coherence provides tools to find, prevent, and merge duplicates.

Finding Duplicates

Automatic Detection

Coherence continuously scans for potential duplicates based on:

Match TypeCriteria
Exact EmailSame email address
Similar NameFuzzy name matching
Same PhoneMatching phone numbers
Name + AccountSame name at same company

Duplicate Review Queue

Access the duplicate queue:

  1. Go to People
  2. Click Duplicates in the toolbar
  3. Review potential matches

Each potential duplicate shows:

  • Confidence score
  • Matching fields highlighted
  • Preview of both records

Merging Duplicates

Manual Merge

  1. Select the duplicate pair
  2. Click Review & Merge
  3. Choose the primary record
  4. Select which fields to keep
  5. Click Merge

Choosing the Primary Record

The primary record:

  • Keeps its record ID
  • Retains activity history
  • Is the "winner" in conflicts

Choose the record with more complete data or older history as the primary.

Field-by-Field Merge

For each field, choose:

OptionResult
Keep PrimaryUse primary record's value
Keep SecondaryUse duplicate's value
CombineMerge values (for multi-select)

What Happens After Merge

  • Secondary record is deleted
  • All activities move to primary
  • References update automatically
  • Email history combines
  • Person type is preserved from primary

Preventing Duplicates

Import Duplicate Detection

During import, Coherence checks for:

  1. Exact email matches
  2. Similar names at same company
  3. Matching phone numbers

Choose how to handle:

  • Skip duplicates
  • Update existing records
  • Import anyway (creates duplicate)

Real-Time Detection

When creating a new person:

  1. Coherence checks for matches
  2. Warning appears if similar found
  3. You can merge or create anyway

Duplicate Rules

Configure detection sensitivity:

  1. Go to Settings > Modules > People
  2. Click Duplicate Rules
  3. Adjust matching criteria
SettingOptions
Email matchingExact, fuzzy (ignore dots/plus)
Name matchingExact, similar, sounds-like
Required matches1 field, 2 fields, 3+ fields

Bulk Duplicate Management

Scan All Records

Run a full duplicate scan:

  1. Go to People > Duplicates
  2. Click Scan All
  3. Review results by confidence

Auto-Merge Rules

For high-confidence duplicates:

  1. Set up auto-merge rules
  2. Define merge field priorities
  3. Run automatically on detection

Auto-merge is powerful but risky. Start with manual review before enabling.

Export Duplicates

Need to review externally?

  1. Click Export Duplicates
  2. Download CSV with all pairs
  3. Include match scores and fields

Person Type Handling

When merging people with different types:

ScenarioResult
Same typeType is preserved
Different typesPrimary record's type wins
One has type, one doesn'tType is preserved

Review person types after merging to ensure the correct classification.

Undo Merge

Made a mistake?

Recent Merges

  1. Go to Settings > Activity Log
  2. Find the merge action
  3. Click Undo

Undo is available for 30 days after merge.

Restoring Data

If undo isn't available:

  • Check backup/export history
  • Activity data is preserved
  • Contact support for recovery

Best Practices

Regular Reviews

Schedule weekly duplicate reviews:

  1. Check the duplicate queue
  2. Merge confirmed duplicates
  3. Mark false positives

Clean Before Import

Before large imports:

  1. De-duplicate your source file
  2. Standardize formatting
  3. Validate email addresses

Train Your Team

Ensure everyone knows:

  • How to check for duplicates
  • When to merge vs. create new
  • How to report issues

Related: Importing People | Data Enrichment