Outlook Synchronization powered by Implicit Sync - How to Sync Contacts

Keeping your contacts in sync between Outlook and your CRM saves time, reduces manual updates, and makes sure everyone on your team is working with the same information.

If you're using the Outlook Sync plugin with BigContacts, this guide walks you through adding contacts from either side, triggering the sync, and understanding how changes or deletions behave, so your contact list stays accurate and organized across both platforms.

Adding a Contact in BigContacts

To sync contacts from BigContacts to Outlook, add a contact as you usually would in your BigContacts account.

If your sync plugin is configured to run automatically, the new contact will appear in Outlook after the next sync cycle. If you’re using manual sync, you’ll need to click the “Sync Now” button in Outlook.

Adding a Contact in Outlook

To sync a contact from Outlook to BigContacts, follow these steps:

1. Create the contact

Open Outlook and click the “New Contact” button to enter the contact details.

2. Mark the contact for syncing

After entering the contact details, click the “Sync Categories” button in the toolbar. This button appears as part of the Outlook Sync plugin.

You don’t need to change anything in the dropdown menus—click OK when the pop-up appears.

3. Confirm sync flag

After marking the contact for sync, you’ll see a small green flag on the contact record. This indicates it’s been marked for synchronization with BigContacts.

Syncing the Contact

If you haven’t enabled automatic sync, you’ll need to initiate the sync manually:

4. Click “Sync Now”

Open Outlook, click the Implicit Sync tab and make sure the “Contacts” checkbox is selected. Then click “Sync Now”.

Outlook 2007

Outlook 2013

If you’ve just finished setup, your initial sync may take longer, depending on how many contacts are in your account and how much data each record contains. After the first sync, only new, modified, or deleted contacts will be processed.

Also note: sometimes newly synced contacts don’t appear immediately in Outlook. Closing and reopening Outlook usually resolves this.

Important Sync Behavior Notes

Field Mapping Limitation

Because of a known limitation between Outlook and the plugin:

• The “Title” field in BigContacts will sync to the “Prefix” field in Outlook

This doesn’t affect functionality but may affect how names appear, so it’s worth keeping in mind.

Editing Contacts

You can edit a contact in either BigContacts or Outlook. Once the sync runs, changes made on either side will appear in the other system.

Deleting Contacts

This is important:

• If you delete a contact in BigContacts, it will also be deleted from Outlook during the next sync.
• If you delete a contact in Outlook, it will not be deleted from BigContacts. This safeguard prevents accidental data loss or incomplete syncs.

Check Your Deletion Settings

To avoid accidental contact restoration, we recommend reviewing your sync deletion settings. They should match the configuration shown in the image below:

If you’re looking for broader setup instructions or want to sync tasks, calendar events, or emails too, check out our full Outlook sync overview.

For anything else, feel free to contact our support team at support@bigcontacts.com—we’re happy to help.