Add Contacts
Add new contacts to your Brew audience for targeted email marketing
To send campaigns, automations, and transactional emails with Brew, you’ll need to add contacts to your audience. Brew makes it simple to import existing contacts and collect new ones through multiple methods.
How to add contacts to Brew
Brew offers four ways to add contacts to your audience.
We recommend importing your existing contacts via CSV first, then setting up forms, integrations, or API to collect new contacts going forward.
CSV Upload
Upload a spreadsheet with contacts — duplicates are removed automatically
Sign-Up Forms
Create customizable forms to collect contacts directly on your website or landing pages
Integrations
Connect your tools and platforms to automatically add contacts when people sign up, make a purchase, or take any other action
API
Use our API to automatically sync contacts from your application, database, or custom tools
Understanding Contact Properties
Every contact in Brew has properties that store information about them. These properties can be used for personalization in your emails and for segmenting your audience.
Default Properties
All contacts include these default properties:
Property | Description | Example |
---|---|---|
Contact’s email address (required) - used as the unique identifier | contact@example.com | |
First Name | Contact’s first name | Jane |
Last Name | Contact’s last name | Smith |
User ID | Unique external identifier from your system (optional) | user_12345 |
Source | Where the contact originated from (defaults to “API” or “Form”) | Website signup |
Subscribed | Whether the contact can receive marketing emails | true |
Custom Properties
In addition to default properties, you can create custom properties to store additional information about your contacts. These can include:
- Demographics (location, industry, etc.)
- Preferences (communication preferences, interests)
- Account information (plan type, subscription status)
- Behavioral data (purchase history, feature usage)
Reserved Field Names: The following field names are reserved and cannot be used for custom properties: email
, firstName
, lastName
, userId
, source
, subscribed
, and subscriptionGroups
. Use descriptive alternatives like companyEmail
or workEmail
if you need similar fields.
To add a custom property to your audience:
- Go to the Audience page
- Click on any column header in the table (or the + icon on the far right of the table header)
- Select “Add property” from the dropdown menu
- In the modal that appears, enter a clear and descriptive name for your property
- Select the property type from the dropdown menu
- Click “Add” to create the property
Property Types
Brew supports four types of custom properties:
Custom properties are powerful for segmenting your audience and personalizing your emails.
Contact Profiles
Each contact in your audience has a detailed profile page that shows their properties and activity history. To view a contact’s profile:
- Go to the Audience page
- Click on the contact’s email address in the table
This opens the contact profile view, which includes:
- All contact properties (default and custom)
- A chronological timeline of the contact’s activity
- Email engagement history (opens, clicks, etc.)
- Subscription group memberships
Learn about Contact Management
Discover how to handle bounces, manage suppression lists, and maintain contact data
Importing Existing Contacts
If you already have contacts that you want to import into Brew, the simplest way to get started is with a CSV upload.
Prepare your CSV file
Format your CSV file with at least these columns:
- Email (required)
- First Name (optional)
- Last Name (optional)
- Subscribed (optional, defaults to true if not set)
Include any custom properties you want to add as additional columns in your CSV.
Import your contacts
- Go to the Audience page
- Click the “Add Contacts” button in the top right
- Select “CSV Upload”
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the import
Review import results
After uploading, you’ll see a summary of:
- Successfully added contacts
- Updated contacts (if they already existed)
- Any errors that occurred
Brew will not re-subscribe contacts who have previously unsubscribed, even if they’re included in your CSV import.
For detailed CSV import instructions, see our CSV Upload Guide.
Collecting New Contacts
To continuously grow your audience, you’ll want to set up at least one method for collecting new contacts:
Website Forms
Add a sign-up form to your website to collect new subscribers:
- Go to the Forms page in Brew
- Customize your form’s appearance and fields
- Copy the generated code to your website
For detailed instructions, see our Sign-Up Forms Guide.
Integrations
Connect Brew to your existing tools to automatically sync contacts:
- E-commerce platforms
- CRM systems
- Payment processors
- Marketing tools
- And more
This ensures new customers, leads, and users are automatically added to your audience.
API Integration
For programmatic contact management, use our REST API:
Visit our API Documentation for complete reference.
Targeting Your Contacts
Once you’ve added contacts to Brew, you have two main methods for targeting your communications: Audiences and Subscription Groups.
Audiences
Dynamic filters based on contact properties and engagement
Subscription Groups
Explicit membership groups with subscription preferences
Need Help?
Our team is ready to support you at every step of your journey with Brew. Choose the option that works best for you:
Search Documentation
Type in the “Ask any question” search bar at the top left to instantly find relevant documentation pages.
AI Assistant Chat
Click the sparkle ✨ icon next to the “Ask any question” search bar in the top left to chat with our AI assistant that’s been trained on our entire documentation.
ChatGPT/Claude Integration
Click “Open in ChatGPT” at the top right of any page to analyze documentation with ChatGPT or Claude for deeper insights.
Search Documentation
Type in the “Ask any question” search bar at the top left to instantly find relevant documentation pages.
AI Assistant Chat
Click the sparkle ✨ icon next to the “Ask any question” search bar in the top left to chat with our AI assistant that’s been trained on our entire documentation.
ChatGPT/Claude Integration
Click “Open in ChatGPT” at the top right of any page to analyze documentation with ChatGPT or Claude for deeper insights.
Schedule a Call
Book time with our founders for personalized guidance on strategy, best practices, or complex implementation questions.
Call Us Directly
Need immediate assistance? Reach us at +1-(332)-203-2145 for urgent issues or time-sensitive questions.
Slack Channel
Our preferred support channel. You’ll receive an invite after signup for direct founder support and fast responses.
Email Support
Contact us at hey@getbrew.ai for detailed inquiries or if you prefer not to use Slack.