You can configure Salesforce duplicate rules so that MoveData matches incoming data against existing lead records. When a match is found, Salesforce automatically converts the lead into a contact, and MoveData continues processing against the resulting contact record.

MoveData uses standard Salesforce lead conversion — this is required because out-of-the-box extensions use Contacts or Person Contacts in contact phases.

Before you begin#

• You need access to Setup > Matching Rules and Setup > Duplicate Rules in Salesforce.
• Familiarise yourself with Duplicate rules.

Excluding MoveData from lead duplicate detection#

If you have lead duplicate detection rules but do not want MoveData to trigger lead conversion, exclude the MoveData Authorised User from your lead duplicate detection rule using conditions.

Important: how Salesforce handles lead conversion#

Salesforce requires a Company field on every lead record. When a lead is converted, Salesforce assigns the resulting contact to an organisation account based on this company value — not a household account.

After conversion, the contact is associated with an organisation account:

This is standard Salesforce behaviour, not MoveData functionality. MoveData cannot change the fact that the converted contact is associated with an organisation account instead of a household account — this is controlled entirely by Salesforce's lead conversion process. If you use NPSP household accounts and need the converted contact moved into a household, you will need custom business logic in Salesforce to handle this.

LeadStatus convertStatus = [SELECT Id, MasterLabel FROM LeadStatus WHERE IsConverted = true LIMIT 1];

Database.LeadConvert lc = new Database.LeadConvert();
lc.setLeadId(leadId);
lc.setConvertedStatus(convertStatus.MasterLabel);
lc.setDoNotCreateOpportunity(true);
Database.LeadConvertResult lcr = Database.convertLead(lc);

Worked example#

Step 1 — Create a lead matching rule#

1. Navigate to Setup > Matching Rules.
2. Create a new matching rule for the Lead object.
3. Define your matching criteria. In this example, the rule matches on First Name, Last Name, and Postcode.
4. Activate the matching rule.

Step 2 — Create a contact duplicate rule#

1. Navigate to Setup > Duplicate Rules.
2. Create a new duplicate rule for the Contact object.
3. Reference the lead matching rule you created in Step 1.
4. Set both Actions On Create and Actions On Edit to Allow.
5. Set both Operations On Create and Operations On Edit to Report.
6. Save and activate the duplicate rule.

Step 3 — Verify the conversion#

To test, create a lead in Salesforce that matches the criteria in your matching rule, then trigger a notification from your connected platform with equivalent data.

You should see:

• The lead is detected as a match and converted into a contact.

• The MoveData execution log confirms the lead conversion.

• The resulting contact record is created from the converted lead.

Related articles#

• Duplicate rules
• Advanced: Salesforce duplicate and matching rules
• Conditional Business Rules based on Source Platform