Finding Non-SF Users Efficiently: Best Practices and Tips

Rebecca R. · 2025-12-03T15:54:54.674Z

Hey there! Really dumb question... is there a way to find people that are not in my SF instance while spending the least amount of credits? I guess I'd just have to run a find people table, then run it against my SF instance for ids and enrich whoever doesn't come back with a SF ID? Is that the best way to think of it? TIA for any help here!

Finding Non-SF Users Efficiently: Best Practices and Tips | Clay

12 comments

· Sorted by Oldest

Clay Support
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You're on the right track! Here's the most credit-efficient approach:
1.
Use Find People - This is free and draws from our regularly ingested people database rather than live data
2.
Set up exclusions - In the Find People modal, use the "Exclude people" filter to select your Salesforce table containing existing contacts [1]
3.
Skip default enrichments - When importing, skip enrichments to conserve credits. Add them later only for people you want to pursue
This way you get a clean list of prospects not in your SF instance without spending credits upfront. You can then selectively enrich only the most promising contacts.
Before diving in, try using Sculptor (top-right corner) - it can help you set up this exact workflow quickly and it's totally free to use!
Clay Support
APP
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Is that what you were looking for?
Rebecca R.
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TY! Glad I'm not super far off base here. I'll give it a whirl.
Clay Support
APP
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Great! Take your time testing it out, and feel free to ask if you have any questions or need more help.
👍1
Rebecca R.
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I'm getting a little stuck on setting up an exclusion via csv. When I run my find people query without the exclusion of people via csv I get ~48k contacts. When I add in the exclude people via csv with their linkedin profiles it returned me 2 contacts. My CSV file is only 16k contacts in total so that math doesn't add up.
Clay Support
APP
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That's definitely odd math! The exclusion feature requires exact matches on profile URLs, so here are the most likely causes:
Format mismatch: Your CSV profile URLs might not exactly match Clay's format. Even small differences (like trailing slashes, www vs non-www, or different URL structures) will prevent matches.
Column mapping: Double-check that you've mapped the correct column containing the profile URLs when uploading your CSV.
URL quality: Some URLs in your CSV might be incomplete or formatted differently than what Clay expects for exclusions. [1]
Try exporting a small sample from your existing Salesforce table to see Clay's exact URL format, then compare it to your CSV. The URLs need to match exactly for the exclusion to work properly. [2]
Want to test with just a few hundred rows first to troubleshoot the format issue?
Rebecca R.
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Sure, is there any documentation you can point me to about Clay's LinkedIn URL structures in the meantime?
Clay Support
APP
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The sources show profile URL examples in our integrations, but they're mainly for post URLs rather than personal profiles. [1]
For exclusions to work properly, the profile URLs in your CSV need to match exactly what we store. The best approach is to export a small sample from your existing Salesforce table to see our exact URL format, then compare it to your CSV format.
Even small differences like trailing slashes, www vs non-www, or different URL structures will prevent matches. Try testing with just a few hundred rows first to troubleshoot the format differences.
Clay Support
APP
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·
Was that helpful?
Rebecca R.
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Sort of. I'll give it a whirl, TY!
Clay Support
APP
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Glad to hear you'll give it a try. Let me know if you run into any other issues or have more questions along the way.
Clay Support
APP
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If you still need help with setting up the exclusion via CSV or troubleshooting the URL format, I’m here to assist. Would you like to share more details about what you’re trying to resolve or any specific challenges you’re facing?

Clay Support
APP
·
·
You're on the right track! Here's the most credit-efficient approach:
1.
Use Find People - This is free and draws from our regularly ingested people database rather than live data
2.
Set up exclusions - In the Find People modal, use the "Exclude people" filter to select your Salesforce table containing existing contacts [1]
3.
Skip default enrichments - When importing, skip enrichments to conserve credits. Add them later only for people you want to pursue
This way you get a clean list of prospects not in your SF instance without spending credits upfront. You can then selectively enrich only the most promising contacts.
Before diving in, try using Sculptor (top-right corner) - it can help you set up this exact workflow quickly and it's totally free to use!
Clay Support
APP
·
·
Is that what you were looking for?
Rebecca R.
·
·
TY! Glad I'm not super far off base here. I'll give it a whirl.
Clay Support
APP
·
·
Great! Take your time testing it out, and feel free to ask if you have any questions or need more help.
👍1
Rebecca R.
·
·
I'm getting a little stuck on setting up an exclusion via csv. When I run my find people query without the exclusion of people via csv I get ~48k contacts. When I add in the exclude people via csv with their linkedin profiles it returned me 2 contacts. My CSV file is only 16k contacts in total so that math doesn't add up.
Clay Support
APP
·
·
That's definitely odd math! The exclusion feature requires exact matches on profile URLs, so here are the most likely causes:
Format mismatch: Your CSV profile URLs might not exactly match Clay's format. Even small differences (like trailing slashes, www vs non-www, or different URL structures) will prevent matches.
Column mapping: Double-check that you've mapped the correct column containing the profile URLs when uploading your CSV.
URL quality: Some URLs in your CSV might be incomplete or formatted differently than what Clay expects for exclusions. [1]
Try exporting a small sample from your existing Salesforce table to see Clay's exact URL format, then compare it to your CSV. The URLs need to match exactly for the exclusion to work properly. [2]
Want to test with just a few hundred rows first to troubleshoot the format issue?
Rebecca R.
·
·
Sure, is there any documentation you can point me to about Clay's LinkedIn URL structures in the meantime?
Clay Support
APP
·
·
The sources show profile URL examples in our integrations, but they're mainly for post URLs rather than personal profiles. [1]
For exclusions to work properly, the profile URLs in your CSV need to match exactly what we store. The best approach is to export a small sample from your existing Salesforce table to see our exact URL format, then compare it to your CSV format.
Even small differences like trailing slashes, www vs non-www, or different URL structures will prevent matches. Try testing with just a few hundred rows first to troubleshoot the format differences.
Clay Support
APP
·
·
Was that helpful?
Rebecca R.
·
·
Sort of. I'll give it a whirl, TY!
Clay Support
APP
·
·
Glad to hear you'll give it a try. Let me know if you run into any other issues or have more questions along the way.
Clay Support
APP
·
·
If you still need help with setting up the exclusion via CSV or troubleshooting the URL format, I’m here to assist. Would you like to share more details about what you’re trying to resolve or any specific challenges you’re facing?