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Introduction to importing

Types of import #

You can import most types of data into Royalties HQ.

The main import page allows you to import these types of data. Click on each for more details.

On the main import page, the dropdown allows you to choose from a list of each type.

Sales data is imported on its own page, accessible via the main menu > Add New Sales.

Tips for formatting your data for import #

Avoid issues formatting numbers and dates in Excel and other spreadsheet software by following these instructions.

  • You must format numbers as text (see instructions below)
  • Dates must be in this format: YYYY-MM-DD (e.g. 2020-12-30)

Excel (and other software including Google Sheets) tries to be ‘helpful’ by converting numbers and dates into formats it thinks might be useful.

For instance, long numbers such as ISBNs are converted to things like this: “9.78191E+12”.  In Excel, make sure the correct ISBN is still there (click the cell and check the value in the top bar), then format the cells as text.

Tip: If Excel asks if it can convert your numbers and dates – say no!

We recommend using Google Sheets instead of Excel; it has fewer of these types of issues.

Converting all cells in a spreadsheet to text format #

Here are instructions for converting all cells in a spreadsheet to text format for Excel (PC and Mac), Google Sheets, and OpenOffice:

Excel #

Note: We recommend using Google Sheets instead of Excel as Excel is more aggressive in its auto-formatting of numbers and dates. Here is how to format your numbers in Excel.

  1. Select All Cells:
    • Press Ctrl + A (on Mac, it’s  Command + A) to select all the cells in the worksheet.
  2. Open Format Cells Dialog:
    • Right-click on any of the selected cells.
    • Choose Format Cells from the context menu.
  3. Change Format to Text:
    • In the Format Cells dialog box, go to the Number tab.
    • Select Text from the Category list.
    • Click OK.
    • You may need to click in the cells in Excel to see the format change

Google Sheets #

  1. Select All Cells:
    • Click the rectangle at the top-left corner of the sheet, where the column and row headers meet. This selects the entire sheet.
  2. Change Format to Text:
    • In the menu, click on Format.
    • Select Number.
    • Choose Plain text.

OpenOffice Calc #

  1. Select All Cells:
    • Press Ctrl + A (Command + A on a Mac) to select all the cells in the worksheet.
  2. Open Format Cells Dialog:
    • Right-click on any of the selected cells.
    • Choose Format Cells from the context menu.
  3. Change Format to Text:
    • In the Format Cells dialog box, go to the Numbers tab.
    • Select Text from the Category list.
    • Click OK.

These steps should help you convert all the cells in your spreadsheet to text format across different platforms and software.