Migrate from Data Team DDS to Mailchimp

Data Team DDS patient contact records map 1:1 to Mailchimp subscribers within a target audience. The email address field serves as the primary key for subscriber identity and deduplication during import. Phone and address fields map to standard Mailchimp merge fields.

The patient first name stored in Data Team DDS maps directly to Mailchimp's built-in FNAME merge field. If your Data Team DDS setup uses a different internal field name, we map it to FNAME during import so Mailchimp's default personalization tokens function immediately.

The patient last name in Data Team DDS maps to Mailchimp's LNAME merge field. This is a direct passthrough with no transformation applied, ensuring that Mailchimp's default greeting personalization tags function correctly without additional configuration. The field content is preserved exactly as stored in the source system.

Email address is the primary identifier in Mailchimp and must be unique per audience. We deduplicate on email address during import, keeping the most recently updated record if duplicates exist in Data Team DDS. Hard bounces and unsubscribed addresses are flagged and excluded.

Phone numbers stored in Data Team DDS map to Mailchimp's PHONE merge field. Mailchimp supports SMS marketing in some tiers — if SMS is enabled, we ensure phone numbers are E.164 formatted. If SMS is not active, PHONE is available for reference only.

Data Team DDS address components map directly to Mailchimp's standard address merge fields. When Data Team DDS stores a consolidated address string instead of separate components, we parse and split it into individual fields before import. This ensures that Mailchimp's geolocation segmentation features function correctly and practices can leverage geographic targeting in their campaigns.

Patient segments or clinical tags defined in Data Team DDS (e.g., 'Ortho Patient', 'Recall Due', 'No-show Risk') are created as Mailchimp tags on each subscriber record during import. Tag names are carried over verbatim. If the source uses a hierarchical segment structure, we flatten it to individual tags per patient.

Any Data Team DDS custom field on patient records requires a corresponding Mailchimp merge field to be pre-created in the destination audience before import. Text fields map to Mailchimp text merge fields with the 255-character limit enforced — longer values are truncated and flagged. Date fields map to date merge fields. Pick-list values map to radio or dropdown merge fields depending on value count.

Mailchimp's native subscriber timestamp is set at import time, not preserved from source. The original patient record creation date from Data Team DDS is stored as a custom merge field (e.g., Patient_Since_Date__c) so recall and age-based segments can reference the true onboarding date.

If Data Team DDS tracks which provider or staff member is assigned to a patient, we map that relationship to a Mailchimp tag (e.g., 'Assigned: Dr. Smith') or a text merge field. This enables campaigns segmented by provider, which is common for specialty practices sending provider-specific newsletters.

Insurance carrier or coverage status stored in Data Team DDS maps to a Mailchimp merge field. The pick-list values from Data Team DDS become Mailchimp merge field options — we validate that value count does not exceed Mailchimp's 40-option limit for radio fields.

Appointment schedules and recall dates are practice management data with no Mailchimp equivalent. We do not migrate active appointment records. Instead, we preserve the recall date as a merge field and provide your Mailchimp admin with a rebuild guide for Mailchimp automation workflows that trigger based on that date — such as automated 6-month recall emails.

Treatment records, clinical notes, and procedure history are protected health information and practice management data with no functional equivalent in Mailchimp's email marketing model. These records must remain in Data Team DDS. The patient contact and segment data migrates independently.