Customer Import

Customer import synchronizes customer master data from the external platform into VARIO ERP. In many integrations, customers are created implicitly during order import, but standalone customer import is useful for maintaining a unified customer database.

When to Use Customer Import

• Order import with customer matching — Import customers before orders so that order import can match existing customers

• CRM synchronization — Keep customer data in the ERP up to date with platform data

• Marketplace compliance — Some marketplaces require customer data to be reflected in your ERP

Import Flow

Customer import follows the same three-step pattern as other inbound integrations:

1. Fetch — Retrieve customer records from the platform API

2. Transform — Map platform customer fields to the ERP customer format

3. Import — Use the MultiPart Import API to create or update customer records

Key Fields to Map

Platform Field	ERP Concept	Notes
Customer ID	External reference (EAV)	Store for future matching
Email	Contact email	Primary matching criterion
First name / Last name	Contact name	Split or combine as needed
Company name	Account name	For B2B customers
Billing address	Invoice address	Map address components
Shipping address	Delivery address	May differ from billing
Phone	Contact phone	Optional
Customer group	Customer group	Use mapping configuration
Tax ID / VAT number	Tax number	For B2B/EU customers

Customer Matching

Before creating a new customer in the ERP, check whether the customer already exists. Common matching strategies:

Match by Email

The most common approach — look up the customer by email address using VQL:

const ErpApi = require('@vario-software/vario-app-framework-backend/api/ErpApi');

async function findCustomerByEmail(email)
{
  const { data } = await ErpApi.vql(
    `SELECT id, accountNumber
     FROM account.queryAccounts
     WHERE email = '${email}'
     LIMIT 1`,
    {},
    1
  );

  return data.length > 0 ? data[0] : null;
}

Match by External ID

If you store the platform customer ID in an EAV custom field, you can match on that:

async function findCustomerByExternalId(platformCustomerId)
{
  const { data } = await ErpApi.vql(
    `SELECT id, accountNumber
     FROM account.queryAccounts
     WHERE custom.myShop.externalCustomerId = '${platformCustomerId}'
     LIMIT 1`,
    {},
    1
  );

  return data.length > 0 ? data[0] : null;
}

Match by Account Number

If the platform uses the same customer number as the ERP, match directly on the account number.

Handling Addresses

Platforms and the ERP may structure addresses differently:

• Separate fields vs. combined — Some platforms combine street and house number; the ERP may expect them separately

• Country format — Map between country names and ISO country codes

• State/region — Not all platforms provide this field

Inline Customer Creation

In many integrations, customers are not imported separately. Instead, they are created as part of the order import process. The import preset can be configured to create a new customer automatically when an order references a customer that doesn't exist in the ERP.

This approach is simpler and avoids the need for a separate customer import flow. However, it means customer data only enters the ERP when the customer places an order.

Customer Groups

Map platform customer groups (e.g., "Wholesale", "VIP", "Retail") to ERP customer groups using your mapping configuration. Customer groups affect pricing, payment terms, and visibility in the ERP.

Deduplication

Duplicate customers are a common problem in integrations. Strategies to prevent them:

• Always check before creating — Use the matching strategies above

• Canonical matching — Normalize email addresses (lowercase, trim whitespace) before matching

• Merge duplicates — If duplicates do occur, provide a UI or process to merge them