MassImpact and Multi Select Picklist Fields

QUESTION:

How do I update multi-select picklist fields using MassImpact?

ANSWER:

When using MassImpact to update a multi select picklist the default is to update the old values with the new selected values. 

Formulas can be used to either merge the new values with the existing values and/or remove a single value from the current selected values. 

1. Merging multi selects: 
   • The following formula, using a concatenate symbol, can be used to merge multi selects: 
     • {multi__c} + ";grapes" 
   • Be sure to put in the semi-colon, otherwise it will just append the new text to the last selected value in the multi select field. Also, may want to put in the conditions regarding which records to update, to only do this where the multi-select field does not currently include "grapes" (use the operator "excludes"), otherwise after the update the field will look like "grapes;grapes", even though only one is selected. If an edit and save is performed in Salesforce after the update, the multi-select field will be displayed correctly (just once), but to avoid confusion use the "excludes" condition. 
2. Removing an existing multi select value: 
   • To remove a specific value from a multi-select picklist field use the StringReplaceFunction. 
     • StringReplace( {multi__c} , "grapes", "") 
   • This will just take the word grapes out of the multi-select. In the results grid the "new_multi" will show a double semi-colon where grapes used to be (if it was in the middle of the values) but when processed it updates correctly, i.e. apples;;oranges, but Salesforce will show apples;oranges after update. 
   • If removing one value results in NO VALUES selected, be sure to check the box "Update Blank" at the bottom of the results grid to make sure the existing value is replaced with a blank, otherwise the old data will remain in the field.