Troubleshooting Empty Values in Waterfall Sequence Enrichment Columns | Clay

Troubleshooting Empty Values in Waterfall Sequence Enrichment Columns

Hi team, I have some columns where the value depends on which enrichment within a waterfall sequence is successful. However I noticed some rows (e.g. row 374-375) got empty value even though one of the enrichment in waterfall is successful. Just rerunning the enrichment again works but it's extra cost for no reason, any idea why this happened and what's the fix? Anything wrong with the column's formula?

24 comments

Hakiem
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cc Albert L.
Hakiem
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table URL https://app.clay.com/workspaces/258391/tables/t_JS3H7xEtboAS/views/gv_DGjGoXJdwQdu
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This issue typically occurs when enrichments don't run in the correct sequence or when the data hasn't been properly updated. Here's how to address it: 1. First, check if the enrichment is showing "waiting for its inputs" by double-clicking the row. If so, you can simply click "re-run this cell" for the specific rows affected. 2. For a more systematic approach: • Toggle the auto-update off and then on again • Accept the run prompt to update all affected rows To prevent this from happening in the future, consider adding conditional run settings to ensure enrichments only run when all required input data is present. This gives you better control over the enrichment process and helps avoid empty values. Remember that in a waterfall sequence, even if an enrichment is successful, it will continue to the next provider if the specific data point you want isn't found in the current enrichment.
Source: Enrich Companies (Waterfalls) [CRM Enrichment] - Clay University
Hakiem
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there's only 1 input for the enrichment (company domain) and it always exists
Hakiem
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as you can see in the screenshot, the enrichment is already successful
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This behavior is actually expected in waterfall enrichments. Even when an enrichment is successful, if that specific provider doesn't have the particular data point you're looking for, the waterfall will continue to the next provider. For example, a provider might successfully identify and match the company from the domain, but not have the specific information (like funding stage, tech stack, etc.) that you're trying to collect. In this case, the enrichment would be marked as successful, but the specific data field would remain empty and the waterfall would continue to the next provider. To get the best results, make sure you're using appropriate providers in your waterfall sequence that are likely to have the specific data points you're looking for. The domain is indeed your "corner piece" for company enrichment, but each provider may have different strengths in terms of what company information they can provide.
Sources: Enrich Companies (Waterfalls) [CRM Enrichment] - Clay University Enrich Companies (Waterfalls) [Clay 101] - Clay University
Hakiem
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it's just the columns which should be filled by the enrichment result remains empty
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This is actually expected behavior in waterfall enrichments. Even when an enrichment is successful in matching a company, it might not have the specific data point you're looking for. In this case, the enrichment will be marked as successful, but the particular field will remain empty and the waterfall will continue to the next provider. For example, if you're looking for funding stage data: ** Provider A might successfully identify the company but not have funding data ** The waterfall will then check Provider B for the same information * This continues until either the data is found or all providers are checked Looking at your provider columns is the best way to understand how the waterfall is working. All providers will ultimately feed their data into one final result column for use in your Clay table.
Sources: Enrich Companies (Waterfalls) [CRM Enrichment] - Clay University Enrich Companies (Waterfalls) [Automated Inbound] - Clay University
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To fix empty columns when an enrichment is successful, try these steps: 1. Make sure you've properly added the data fields as columns: • Click on the enriched cell to open the Cell Details panel • Look for the specific endpoints you want to display • Click "Add as column" next to each desired endpoint 2. Check if you've enabled the correct data fields: • In the enrichment configuration panel, verify that the relevant data fields are toggled on • Look for toggle switches next to fields like Emails, Type, Confidence, etc. • Enable the specific fields you want to display in your table If the columns are still empty after following these steps, you may need to map the enrichment endpoints to your existing columns or create new child columns to properly display the data.
Sources: Table columns | Documentation | Clay University Run an enrichment | Documentation | Clay University
Hakiem
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table URL https://app.clay.com/workspaces/258391/tables/t_JS3H7xEtboAS/views/gv_DGjGoXJdwQdu
Albert L.
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Need human support here Clay S.
Bo (.
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Hey Hakiem! I'm seeing your rows 374-375 had empty values despite successful enrichment in your waterfall sequence. This typically happens when auto-update is turned off.
Was your table set to auto-update off when you ran these enrichments? The system wouldn't automatically populate values from successful enrichments when auto-update is disabled, which would explain why rerunning works but costs you extra.
Let me know if you're still experiencing issues with the enrichment flow even with auto-update enabled.
Albert L.
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Bo (.
Was your table set to auto-update off when you ran these enrichments
No, it is always on. Would you be able to double check from your end as well? (system logs, etc)
Bo (.
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Hey Hakiem, I'm having a hard time replicating this issue on my end. It's not behaving like you mentioned when I try it.
Could you record a video showing how this happens? Are you able to replicate it right now?
Hakiem
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hi Bo (., hope this video is clear enough basically you can see at the start of the video rows 347-350 are already properly enriched, but the column Company Name (and other) is still empty when i rerun the enrichment it then became correctly evaluated
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Owen C.
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Hey Hakiem, thanks for reaching out! Looking into this now. How I'd go about this is instead of using a formula to grab these names, I would use a merge column as what's shown in the image below to have a clean approach to this and be able to troubleshoot a bit easier. After creating this merge column in your table, all of the names do appear, however, I'm uncertain if you re-ran this column or if anything has changed in this table. Please note that we've been seeing some issues with RocketReach's API that leaves us to recommend removing it from waterfalls moving forward. Hope this is helpful, this merge column is able to pull the desired names from cells within the waterfall without any issues when implementing it on my end. Let me know how else we can help! )
(254 kB)
Hakiem
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thanks! let us try this then
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Thank you so much for sharing your feedback Hakiem!
Albert L.
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It keeps happening even with your suggestion. It has consistently impacted our SLA in production. Do you think we can set up a quick troubleshooting call? Bo (. Owen C.
Owen C.
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Hey Hakiem, intersting okay thanks for pointing this out! Happy to hop on a call and talk through this. Feel free to find a time here that works for you! Booking Link Looking forward to chatting. :)
Albert L.
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Bo (. Owen C. It happened again just now. What's the status of this issue? Row 1405 https://app.clay.com/workspaces/258391/tables/t_4oUMRxccpgdQ/views/gv_GZHzsBoTCkN7
Owen C.
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Hey Hakiem, chatting with Albert about this over email. Have a feeling this is related to the timing of the "Enrich Company" column as the name of the company appears after re-running it. Escalating this to our team today and we'll get back to you as soon as possible. :)
Owen C.
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Hey Hakiem, following up here. Let us know if this is still giving you troubles or if there's anything we can do to help!