Custom attributes

An attribute is one piece of information on a record, such as a phone number or a close date. Brick gives every contact and deal a set of system attributes. You add custom attributes for everything else you want to track.

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See the attributes you have#

Open Settings with the gear icon at the bottom of the sidebar, then click Records. Pick Contacts or Deals.

The page lists every attribute with its Type and its Source. System attributes belong to Brick, and you cannot edit or delete them. Custom attributes are yours, and each one has a ⋯ menu.

You can also get to this page from the Contacts or Deals table: click the ⋯ next to the page title, then Manage attributes.

Create an attribute#

  1. On the Settings page, click Create attribute.
  2. Choose a Type. Read Choose a type first, because you cannot change the type later.
  3. Type a Name. It can have up to 50 characters. It cannot be the same as another attribute on that record, and it cannot be the name of a system attribute.
  4. Add a Description if you want one. It shows when you point at the ⓘ next to the name in Settings.
  5. For a Select or a Multi-select, add at least one option.
  6. Set a Default value if you want one. Brick puts it on records you create after this. Records you already have do not get it.
  7. Click Create attribute, or press ⌘ Enter.

You can also create an attribute from a table on the Contacts, Deals, or Lists page. Click Add column at the right end of the column headers, then Create attribute at the bottom of the list. Brick adds the new attribute to the table as a column, so you can fill it in immediately.

Choose a type#

| Type | Use it for | Example | | ---------------- | ------------------------------- | --------------- | | Text | Any words or notes | Spouse's name | | Checkbox | Yes or no | Pre-approved | | Number | A value you count or compare | Bedrooms wanted | | Select | One choice from a list | Type | | Multi-select | One or more choices from a list | Lead Source | | Date | A day | Move-in date | | Timestamp | A day and a time | Last showing |

Select or Multi-select#

Both give you a list of options with colours. They differ in how many options one record can have.

  • Select holds one option. Use it when a record can only be one thing at a time, such as a client stage. Only a Select can Group by on a board or a table, and you can sort by it.
  • Multi-select holds as many options as you need. Use it when a record can be several things at once, such as a contact who came from a referral and an open house. You cannot sort by a Multi-select, and you cannot group a board by it.

The Type, Lead Source, and Timeframe attributes that come with every new account are Select attributes.

Change the type of an attribute#

You cannot change the type of an attribute after you create it, because the values you already saved may not fit the new type. In Edit attribute, the type is greyed out. Point at it to see Create new attribute in Settings, a link that opens Settings in a new tab.

To move to a different type, make a new attribute and fill it in. For example, to let a contact have more than one Lead Source:

  1. In Settings, open the ⋯ menu on Lead Source and click Edit. Change the name to Lead Source (old), then click Save changes. The values on your contacts stay.
  2. Click Create attribute. Choose Multi-select, name it Lead Source, and add your options.
  3. On the Contacts page, add the new Lead Source column next to Lead Source (old).
  4. Go down the table and pick the options for each contact. The old column shows you what each contact had before.
  5. When every contact has its new value, delete Lead Source (old) in Settings.

Brick does not copy values from the old attribute to the new one. Duplicate does not help here, because the copy has the same type as the original.

If you group your Contacts board by an attribute, keep that attribute a Select. A board cannot group by a Multi-select.

Add and arrange options#

A Select or a Multi-select can have up to 100 options.

To add an option, click Add option in the attribute window, click the new empty box, and type the option's name. Click the colour dot next to an option to change its colour. Drag the handle on the left of an option to move it. Brick shows options in this order everywhere, including the columns of a board.

To remove an option, click the ✕ next to it, then Save changes. Brick removes that option from every record that had it.

You can also add an option while you fill in a record. Type the new name in the search box, then click Create "your option". Brick adds the option to the attribute and selects it.

Fill in an attribute#

In a table, double-click the cell. On a board card or in Record Details on the record page, click the value. An empty value in Record Details reads Set and the attribute's name.

For a Select, click an option and the list closes. For a Multi-select, click each option you want. A tick shows next to each one, and the list stays open. Click a ticked option again to remove it, and press Esc or click away when you finish.

A table cell and a board card show the first two options, then a count of the rest, such as +2. Open the record to see them all.

Custom attributes also show in the New Contact and New Deal forms, so you can fill them in when you create a record.

Edit, duplicate, or delete an attribute#

In Settings, click the ⋯ menu on a custom attribute:

  • Edit changes the name, the description, the options, and the default value.
  • Duplicate makes a copy with the same type, options, colours, and default value. The copy is named with (copy) at the end. It does not copy any values from your records.
  • Delete removes the attribute from every record. Brick asks you to confirm. You cannot undo this.

On a table, click a custom column's header and pick Edit attribute to open the same window. You can only delete an attribute in Settings.

Where custom attributes show#

A custom attribute works like a system attribute across Brick.

In a table, you can add it as a column, filter by it, and sort by it, unless it is a Multi-select. For a Select or a Multi-select, the is filter shows every record that has any of the options you pick. On a board, you can show it on cards, and you can group by it if it is a Select.

When you export contacts or deals to a CSV file, each custom attribute is a column. When you import contacts from a CSV file, you can map a column to it. Brick matches option names and ignores capital letters. For a Multi-select, separate the options with commas or semicolons. An import does not create new options, so add them first.

You can insert a custom attribute into an email as a variable. Ask Brick can read your custom attributes and fill them in on contacts, but to create a new attribute, use Settings.