The Merge button is not available at studio level
Grow does have a merge function, but it is locked at the studio level, so you cannot combine two records into one yourself. The workaround below moves the important identifier (usually a phone number) onto the right contact. If a duplicate is actively breaking something (wrong pipeline, an automation firing on the wrong record), email grow@strongpilates.co and the team can help.
Duplicate contacts are a reality in any CRM that receives data from multiple sources. In the STRONG system, contacts can be created from website forms, Facebook lead ads, Core account creation, and manual entry. When the same person enters through two different channels with different email addresses or phone numbers, Grow creates two separate contact records.
What it looks like
- Two contact records for the same person in Grow, each with partial data.
- A member receiving duplicate SMS or email messages because both records are active in workflows.
- The same phone number showing up in Conversations under two different contact names.
- The named contact has the email and the Core sync, while the phone number sits on a separate record that often has no name at all.
How duplicates are created
Different entry points, different identifiers
The most common scenario: someone fills out a Facebook lead form using their personal email, then later creates a Core account at the studio using a different email (or no email at all, just a phone number). Grow treats each as a new contact because the matching identifier (email or phone) does not overlap.
Apple Private Relay emails
Members who sign up via Apple services sometimes have an Apple Private Relay email (ending in @privaterelay.appleid.com) on one record and their real email on another. Core stores whichever email was used at account creation, and the Facebook lead form captures whichever email Facebook has. When these do not match, a duplicate is created.
Manual entry without checking
Studio staff sometimes create a new contact in Grow manually instead of searching for the existing record. This is most common when a walk-in asks about an offer and the staff member creates a quick contact instead of looking up whether they are already in the system from a prior ad response or website enquiry.
How to consolidate a duplicate without merging
Since you cannot merge at the studio level, this is how you consolidate two contacts when one person has their email on a named contact and their phone number sitting on a separate record. You move the phone number onto the named contact, then make Core match so the sync does not undo your work.
Only do this when there is one contact in Core
This workaround assumes the person has a single record in Core. You are reconciling Grow's split records to point at that one Core record. If there are two separate Core records, fix Core first, because the Core to Grow sync will keep recreating the split otherwise.
Watch: how to consolidate a duplicate without merging
Find both contacts
In Contacts, search the phone number that is sitting on the wrong record. You should see two contacts: the record that holds just the phone number (often with no name), and the named contact you want to keep (the one with the email and the Core sync).
Give the phone number contact a first name
Open the contact that only has the phone number and add any first name, for example David. Save it. Grow will not let you remove a phone number from a contact that has no name, so this step has to happen before you can move the number.
Remove the phone number from that contact
Still on that record, copy the phone number first so you have it, then delete it from the phone field and save. The save only goes through because the contact now has a first name.
Confirm the number is gone
Go back to Contacts and check that the phone number has been removed from that record before you carry on.
Add the phone number to the contact you are keeping
Open the named contact, the one with the email and the Core sync, paste the phone number into the phone field, and save.
Match it in Core
Make sure the same person in Core has the exact same phone number. If Core does not have the phone number, add it in Core too. If Core and Grow do not match, the next time Core updates it will delete the phone number you just added.
The first name is what lets you save
A contact with no first name cannot have its phone number removed. Grow blocks the save. If the delete will not stick, the missing first name is almost always why.
Core wins on the next sync
The phone number only stays on the contact if Core has the same number. Core is the source of truth, so anything that does not match Core gets overwritten on the next sync. Always update Core as the final step, not Grow alone.
Remember that this does not truly merge the two records. The conversation history, notes, and activity on the old record do not come across. All you are doing is consolidating the phone number onto the correct contact so the person has one usable record going forward.
When not to do this
Leave contacts with an active intro offer alone
If either record has an active intro offer (check the Active Package Category and Intro Offer Pipeline Status fields), do not touch the phone number until the offer period is complete. Editing identifier fields can trigger field change events that cascade into false pipeline activations. See Pipeline Inaccuracy, Bug 3 for the full explanation.
Preventing duplicates
Complete prevention is not possible because contacts arrive from multiple systems with potentially different identifiers. But you can reduce the volume:
- Search before creating: always search by phone number AND email before creating a new contact manually. Some contacts will only match on phone (if they used a different email) or only on email (if the phone format differs).
- Use consistent identifiers on forms: where possible, ensure that lead forms capture both email and phone. The more identifiers Grow has, the better it can match incoming data to existing records.
- Periodic dedup review: Grow does not have an automatic deduplication feature. Periodic manual review of contacts with matching names or phone numbers helps catch duplicates before they cause workflow conflicts.