Test a contact column for empty, null, or zero values

For contact columns, rule conditions can detect:

  • Whether a string condition is empty or not empty.

  • Whether a numeric condition is null or has a value of zero.

To find out if a string condition is empty or not empty:

  1. Select Contact List Column from the Type list.

  2. Select a string column from the Column Name list.

    Tip: The column you select must be of the String data type.

  3. Select Is from the Comparator list.

  4. Leave Value blank. The rule will detect whether the contact column contains an empty string.

    Figure shows how to test a string to see if it is null

    Tip: To find out instead whether the contact column is not empty, set Invert Condition to Yes.

To find out if a numeric condition is null or has a value of zero:

  1. Select Contact List Column from the Type list.

  2. Select a numeric contact list column from the Column Name list. Example columns might be intended to store currency amounts, integer values, and so on.

  3. Select Equals from the Comparator list.

  4. Type 0 in the Value column. The rule will detect whether the numeric column contains zero or is empty.

    Figure shows how to test a numeric condition to determine if it has a zero or empty value

    Tip: For numeric columns only, if the data value is empty, the system treats that like a zero value.