How to Use Custom Values in Sparkforge

By Sparkforge Support Team ·Last reviewed May 3, 2026

Custom Values are reusable data placeholders you can drop into emails, SMS, funnel pages, and workflows. Create them in Settings → Custom Values, then reference them with merge tags like {{contact.first_name}} or {{location.name}}.

Custom Values let you store a piece of data once and reference it everywhere — contact details, account info, appointments, attribution data, and timestamps. Update the source value, and every message and page that uses it updates with it.

Why Custom Values matter

  • Personalization — drop a contact's first name, last visit, or preferred service into any email or SMS.
  • Consistency — store your support email or office address once; reuse it across every template.
  • Automation — fire workflow steps that branch on a custom value.
  • One-edit updates — change a value at the source and every reference updates automatically.

Create, edit, and delete Custom Values

Open the Custom Values menu

  1. From the sub-account dashboard, click Settings.
  2. Choose Custom Values.

Add a new value

  1. Click + Add Custom Value.
  2. Enter a name and the value to store.
  3. Pick a folder.
  4. Click Save.

Edit or delete

  1. Find the value in the list.
  2. Click the three-dot menu and choose Edit or Delete.

Where Custom Values can be used

  • Conversations — drop merge tags into any SMS, email, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, or WhatsApp reply.
  • Workflows — personalize automation messages, internal notifications, and branching logic.
  • Websites and funnels — show personalized content on pages where the visitor's data is already known (form submission or appointment booking).
  • Email campaigns — use them in subject lines, body copy, sender name, and even color inputs (the builder applies the color instantly on the canvas).
  • Social Planner — schedule posts that fill in dynamic data at publish time.

Practical example: fitness club re-engagement

Store each member's name, preferred workout, membership tier, and last-visit date as Custom Values. Then:

  • Email the Gold-tier yoga members a yoga-specific reactivation offer.
  • SMS the Silver-tier cardio members a cardio class invite.
  • Show a personalized welcome banner on the member portal that references their last visit.

Merge tag reference

Contact

  • {{contact.name}} — full name
  • {{contact.first_name}}, {{contact.last_name}}
  • {{contact.email}}
  • {{contact.phone}} or {{contact.phone_raw}} (recommended for trigger links and UTMs)
  • {{contact.company_name}}
  • {{contact.full_address}}, {{contact.address1}}, {{contact.city}}, {{contact.state}}, {{contact.postal_code}}
  • {{contact.timezone}}, {{contact.date_of_birth}}, {{contact.source}}, {{contact.website}}

User

  • {{user.name}}, {{user.first_name}}, {{user.last_name}}
  • {{user.email}}, {{user.phone}}, {{user.phone_raw}}
  • {{user.email_signature}}, {{user.calendar_link}}
  • {{user.twilio_phone_number}}

Appointment

  • {{appointment.title}}, {{appointment.start_time}}, {{appointment.end_time}}
  • {{appointment.only_start_date}}, {{appointment.only_start_time}}
  • {{appointment.day_of_week}}, {{appointment.month}}, {{appointment.timezone}}
  • {{appointment.cancellation_link}}, {{appointment.reschedule_link}}
  • {{appointment.meeting_location}}, {{appointment.notes}}
  • {{appointment.add_to_google_calendar}}, {{appointment.add_to_ical_outlook}}
  • {{appointment.user.name}}, {{appointment.user.email}}, {{appointment.user.phone_raw}}

Account

  • {{location.name}}, {{location.full_address}}, {{location.phone}}, {{location.email}}
  • {{location.website}}, {{location.logo_url}}, {{location.id}}
  • {{location_owner.first_name}}, {{location_owner.email}}

Right Now (current time)

  • {{right_now.day_of_week}}, {{right_now.month_name}}, {{right_now.year}}
  • {{right_now.hour}} (24h), {{right_now.hour_ampm}}, {{right_now.ampm}}
  • {{right_now.middle_endian_date}} (US), {{right_now.little_endian_date}} (EU)

Attribution

  • First touch: {{contact.attributionSource.utmSource}}, {{contact.attributionSource.utmMedium}}, {{contact.attributionSource.utmCampaign}}, {{contact.attributionSource.referrer}}, {{contact.attributionSource.fbclid}}, {{contact.attributionSource.gclid}}
  • Latest touch: same fields under {{contact.lastAttributionSource.*}}

Raw vs. formatted values

Some merge tags have a raw variant (e.g., {{contact.phone_raw}}). Use raw when you need a clean string with no formatting — for trigger links, UTM parameters, or international numbers.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between a Custom Value and a Custom Field?
Custom Fields store per-contact or per-opportunity data. Custom Values store account-wide constants and dynamic merge tokens (like {{location.name}} or {{right_now.year}}) that you reuse in messages, pages, and workflows.
Where do I create Custom Values?
Sub-account Settings → Custom Values. Click + Add Custom Value, name it, set the stored value, choose a folder, and save.
Can I use a Custom Value inside a website page?
Yes, but the visitor must have stored data first — usually from a form submission, appointment booking, or trigger link that carries their data in the URL.
Why use phone_raw instead of phone?
phone_raw returns a clean number with no formatting characters, which is what trigger links, UTM parameters, and international phone formats need.
Do Custom Value updates apply retroactively?
Yes. Change the value at the source and every email, SMS, and page that references it updates automatically. Already-sent messages are unaffected.

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