> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.fanaura.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Custom Fields
> Collect the data that matters most to you. Custom fields let you add your own data points to fan profiles — t-shirt sizes, birthdays, favorite songs, and anything else you need.
Every artist's relationship with their fans is different. A hip-hop artist might want to know which city fans rep. A country artist might want to know favorite songs for setlist planning. A pop artist might want to know t-shirt sizes for merch bundles.
Custom fields let you add your own data points to every fan profile, so you can collect exactly the information you need — and then use it to personalize your marketing.
***
## What Are Custom Fields?
Custom fields are user-defined data fields that appear on fan profiles alongside the standard fields (name, email, phone, location). Think of them as extra columns in your fan database that you get to define.
Each custom field has:
* A **name** (what the field is called)
* A **type** (what kind of data it holds)
* An optional **description** (to help you and your team remember what the field is for)
* Optional **options** (for select/dropdown fields)
Once created, a custom field appears on every fan profile and can be populated through forms, flows, manual entry, or CSV import.
***
## Default Custom Fields
Fanaura comes with four custom fields already set up for every artist. You can use them as-is, edit them, or delete them if they do not fit your needs.
| Field | Type | Description |
| ------------------ | ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **T-Shirt Size** | Select (dropdown) | Options: XS, S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL. Useful for merch fulfillment and bundles. |
| **Birthday** | Date | The fan's birthday (month and day). Enables birthday automations and special messages. |
| **Favorite Song** | Text | The fan's self-reported favorite song of yours. Great for setlist decisions and personalized messages. |
| **Discovery Song** | Text | The song that first got the fan into your music. Useful for understanding what hooks new fans. |
The "Discovery Song" field is particularly valuable. Knowing which song converts casual listeners into fans helps you understand what about your music resonates — and can inform your single strategy.
***
## Creating Custom Fields
Go to **Fans** in the left sidebar, then click **Custom Fields Settings** (gear icon near the top of the page, or accessible via Settings → Fan Data → Custom Fields).
Click **Add Custom Field**.
Fill in the details:
| Setting | Description |
| ----------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Field Name** | What the field is called. Keep it short and clear (e.g., "Hometown," "Vinyl Preference," "Met at Show"). |
| **Field Type** | Choose from the available types (see Field Types below). |
| **Description** | Optional. A note explaining what this field is for. Only visible to you and your team, not to fans. |
| **Required** | Toggle on if this field must be filled in on forms. Off by default. |
| **Show on Forms** | Toggle on to include this field on smart link forms and fan onboarding. On by default. |
Click **Save**. The field is immediately available on all fan profiles and in form builders.
### Field Types
| Type | What It Stores | Example |
| --------------------- | --------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Text** | Free-form text up to 500 characters | "How did you find us?", "Hometown" |
| **Number** | Numeric values | "How many shows have you attended?", "Age" |
| **Date** | A calendar date | "Birthday", "First Show Date" |
| **Select (Dropdown)** | One choice from a predefined list | "Favorite Album" with options: Album 1, Album 2, Album 3 |
| **Multi-Select** | Multiple choices from a predefined list | "Interests" with options: Merch, Tours, New Music, VIP |
| **Yes/No (Boolean)** | True or false | "Attended Fan Club Event?", "Wants Signed Copy?" |
| **URL** | A web address | "Spotify Profile", "Social Media Link" |
| **Long Text** | Free-form text up to 2,000 characters | "Tell us your story", "Special requests" |
### Configuring Select Options
For Select and Multi-Select fields, you need to define the available options:
1. After choosing the field type, click **Add Option**.
2. Type the option label (e.g., "Rock," "Pop," "Country").
3. Add as many options as needed.
4. Drag to reorder options.
5. Click the X to remove an option.
Keep your select options concise and mutually exclusive. Instead of "I kind of like merch" and "I really like merch," use "Casual" and "Collector."
***
## How Fans Populate Custom Fields
Custom field data can come from several sources:
When you create a smart link (pre-save page, RSVP page, landing page), you can add custom fields to the form. Fans fill in the fields when they interact with the link.
In the Smart Link builder, go to the **Form Fields** section.
Your custom fields appear in the available fields list. Drag the ones you want onto your form.
Set them as required or optional.
When a fan submits the form, their custom field values are saved to their profile automatically.
You can collect custom field data as part of a flow using a "Collect Data" step:
1. In the Flow Builder, add a **Collect Data** action.
2. Select which custom field to collect.
3. The fan receives a message asking for the information.
4. Their response is parsed and saved to the custom field on their profile.
This works especially well with SMS. For example, in a welcome flow after a fan texts your number:
> "Hey! Welcome to the fam. Quick question -- what's your t-shirt size? (XS, S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL)"
The fan's reply ("L") gets saved to their T-Shirt Size custom field.
You or your team can fill in custom fields directly on a fan profile:
1. Open the fan's profile.
2. Go to the **Info** tab.
3. Click into any custom field to edit it.
4. Type the value and press Enter or click Save.
When importing fans via CSV, you can map columns from your spreadsheet to custom fields:
1. During the CSV import process, you will see a column mapping screen.
2. Map any column from your CSV to an existing custom field.
3. If the CSV column does not match an existing field, you can create a new custom field on the spot.
***
## Using Custom Fields in Flows
Custom fields become incredibly powerful when you use them in automation.
### As Conditions
Use custom field values to branch your flows:
* **If T-Shirt Size is "XL" or larger** → Send merch email featuring extended sizes
* **If Favorite Song is "Midnight Drive"** → Send the acoustic version as a thank-you
* **If Birthday is this month** → Send a birthday message with a discount code
### As Triggers
When a custom field value changes, it can trigger a flow:
* **When "Vinyl Preference" changes to "Yes"** → Enroll in vinyl drop notification flow
* **When "Birthday" is populated** → Schedule a birthday message flow
### In Wait Conditions
Wait steps can use custom fields:
* **Wait until "RSVP Status" equals "Confirmed"** → Then send event details
***
## Using Custom Fields as Merge Tags
Merge tags let you insert custom field values into your messages dynamically. When the message is sent, the merge tag is replaced with the fan's actual value.
```
Hey {{first_name}}, we know {{favorite_song}} is your jam —
so we thought you'd want to be first to hear the acoustic version.
```
If the fan's Favorite Song field says "Midnight Drive," the email reads:
> Hey Sarah, we know Midnight Drive is your jam — so we thought you'd want to be first to hear the acoustic version.
```
Happy birthday, {{first_name}}! Here's 20% off merch
just for you: BDAY20. Your size is {{tshirt_size}}, right?
Check out the new drop: [link]
```
### Available Merge Tags
Every custom field automatically gets a merge tag based on its name:
| Custom Field | Merge Tag |
| ---------------- | ------------------------------ |
| T-Shirt Size | `{{tshirt_size}}` |
| Birthday | `{{birthday}}` |
| Favorite Song | `{{favorite_song}}` |
| Discovery Song | `{{discovery_song}}` |
| Any custom field | `{{field_name_in_snake_case}}` |
### Fallback Values
If a fan does not have a value for a custom field, the merge tag will be empty — which can look awkward in a message. Set fallback values to handle this:
```
Hey {{first_name}}, we know {{favorite_song|one of our tracks}} is your jam!
```
The `|one of our tracks` part is the fallback. If the fan has no Favorite Song set, the message reads "we know one of our tracks is your jam" instead of leaving an empty gap.
Always set fallback values for custom field merge tags. Nothing looks worse than a message that says "Hey , we know is your jam" because both fields were empty.
***
## Managing Custom Fields
### Editing a Custom Field
Go to **Custom Fields Settings**.
Click the **Edit** button (pencil icon) next to the field. You can change the name, description, required status, and form visibility. For Select fields, you can add, remove, or reorder options.
Click **Save**.
Renaming a field does not change existing data. If you rename "Favorite Song" to "Best Track," fans who already have a value will keep their data — it just appears under the new name.
### Deleting a Custom Field
Deleting a custom field permanently removes that field and all its data from every fan profile. This cannot be undone. Make sure you export the data first if you need it.
1. Go to **Custom Fields Settings**.
2. Click the **Delete** button (trash icon) next to the field.
3. Confirm the deletion.
### Reordering Custom Fields
Custom fields appear on fan profiles and forms in the order you set. Drag and drop fields in the Custom Fields Settings to reorder them.
***
## Real-World Examples
1. Create a Select custom field: "T-Shirt Size" (if not already using the default).
2. Add it to your pre-save smart link form.
3. When fans pre-save, they also enter their size.
4. When the album drops with a merch bundle, you already have sizes. Export the list and send it to your fulfillment team.
1. Create a Text custom field: "Song Request."
2. Add a flow step that asks fans via SMS: "We're building the setlist for the spring tour. What song do you NEED to hear live?"
3. Fan responses get saved to the "Song Request" field.
4. Export the data and tally the results. You now have data-driven setlist insights.
1. Make sure the "Birthday" custom field is populated (collect it on forms or via a flow).
2. Create a flow triggered by "Birthday is today."
3. Send an automated birthday message with a discount code or exclusive content.
4. Fans feel seen and valued. You get increased merch sales every time a fan has a birthday.
1. Create a Long Text custom field: "Your Story."
2. Add it to a special smart link or flow: "Tell us how you discovered our music."
3. Fan stories can be used for social content (with permission), artist liner notes, or tour visuals.
***
## Tips & Best Practices
* **Start with a few fields and expand.** It is tempting to create 20 fields, but fans will not fill out a long form. Start with 3-4 high-value fields and add more over time.
* **Make fields optional unless truly necessary.** Required fields increase form abandonment. Only require fields you absolutely need.
* **Use Select over Text when possible.** "Favorite Album" as a dropdown with your album names gives you clean, filterable data. A text field gives you 47 different spellings of the same album name.
* **Review field data periodically.** Check if fans are actually filling in your custom fields. If a field has less than 10% completion, consider removing it from forms or making it more prominent.
* **Use merge tags in every blast.** Even a simple `{{first_name}}` in the greeting makes messages feel personal. Layer in custom fields for even more personalization.
Custom fields are available as filter criteria in Dynamic Lists, so every field you create also becomes a way to segment your audience.
***
## What's Next
See custom fields on individual fan records.
Filter lists by custom field values.
Collect and use custom field data in automations.
Add custom fields to your forms.