Attio organizes data with Objects, Records, Attributes, Lists and Entries. Understanding the difference avoids many mapping mistakes.
Note: In Enginy, a contact corresponds to a Person record. A Company corresponds to a Company record.
Basic concepts
Attio concept | What it means | Example |
People | The Object containing people | Enginy contacts |
Companies | The Object containing companies | Enginy Companies |
Record | One specific person or company | A Person inside People |
Attribute | A field on an Object | Email, phone, domain or job title |
List | A collection of Records used to organize a process | A prospecting list |
Entry | A Record's membership in a List | A Person added to a List |
People
Each contact is stored as a Record inside People.
Its common Attributes include name, email addresses, phone numbers, job title, primary location, LinkedIn and company.
Attio can store several emails or phone numbers on the same Record. Depending on the flow, Enginy may use the first available value when importing. Review the result if you depend on secondary values.
The integration does not use a separate Lead object.
Companies
Each company is stored as a Record inside Companies.
Common Attributes include name, domains, description, primary location and LinkedIn.
Enginy mainly uses the domain to identify an existing Company. It can also fall back to the name when you choose a matching option that allows it.
Lists and Entries
A List groups Records from one specific Object. It can be a People List or a Companies List.
The same Person can belong to several Lists without being duplicated. Attio creates an Entry for each membership, and they all point to the same Person record.
Important: An Entry is not a copy of the contact or the company. It is the link between the Record and one specific List.
Object and List Attributes
Attio lets you store information in two places:
Type | Where it is stored | Where it is visible |
Object Attribute | On the Person or Company record | In any view or List where that Record appears |
List Attribute | On the Entry | Only inside that List |
An email, a domain or a job title is usually an Object Attribute. A sales status or a priority specific to a List can be a List Attribute.
This difference affects Enginy:
Field Mapping configures People and Companies Attributes.
When importing from a List, Enginy uses its Entries to locate the Records.
List Attributes do not automatically become general fields on the contact or the Company.
When exporting, you can add the Record to a List and fill in compatible List Attributes.
The relationship between People and Companies
Attio relates a Person to a Company through the company Attribute on People.
Enginy writes a Company reference into that field. The integration works with a single reference. If another Company already exists there, a new export can replace it.
Review the associated Company in Enginy before exporting the contact.
Custom Attributes and custom Objects
You can use custom Attributes created inside People and Companies if the type is compatible with Enginy.
Custom Objects other than People and Companies are not part of the current import and export flows.
What to review per operation
Goal | Configuration |
Import contacts | People or a People List |
Import companies | Companies or a Companies List |
Export contact data | Contacts Field Mapping |
Export company data | Companies Field Mapping |
Add Records to a List | List selection in Export to CRM |
Fill in Entry data | Custom list attributes during the export |
See Attio's official explanation of the model if you need more detail.