Swivel uses Carriers & Institutions to represent the carriers that you are licensed with, and organizes them into categories known as Institution Types. These Institution Types refer to the category or classification of the organization and include:
Insurance Carrier
Banks
Broker-Dealer/Custodian
🔍 Tip: Want to add additional Institution Types quickly? Use the +Create Institution Type button on the +New Institution button drop-down.
The Carriers & Institutions page allows you to add, edit, and view the carriers and products you offer to your clients as well as store important information for the carrier such as contact information, notes, and carrier brochures & documents. Think of it as your carrier rolodex!
Add New Institution
Select +Create from the top navigation bar anywhere in Swivel.
Select the Carriers/Institution Accordion
Select the appropriate Institution Type
Complete New Institution form.
Legal Name
Common Name optional
Description optional
Phone Number optional
Fax optional
Tags optional
Click Save button.
Add New Institution From Business Management
From left side navigation menu, go to Business Management > select Carriers & Institutions.
Click +New Institution button and select the appropriate Institution Type.
Complete New Institution form.
Click Save button.
🔍 Tip: You can also add a New Institution when attaching a new product to a contact. Check out this video tutorial on the Product Form.
Edit & Manage Institution
From left side navigation menu, go to Business Management > select Financial Institutions > click on the desired Financial Institution
The carrier's show page includes the below functionality:
Add Notes and Run Workflows
Upload Documents
View all associated Product Offerings
View all Contacts with a Product serviced by the Financial Institution
Merge Duplicate Carriers and Institutions
If your account contains duplicate carrier or institution records, you can merge them into a single record. This is most common after migrating from another CRM, but duplicates can also accumulate through manual entry or repeated imports. Merging consolidates duplicates while preserving all associated products, contacts, documents, and notes under the retained record.
When to Merge
Common scenarios where merging is helpful:
After migrating from another CRM (e.g., Redtail or Wealthbox), where the same carrier may appear under multiple spellings or formats
Standardizing carrier names to match Swivel's standardized naming format for optimal Swivel Sync performance
Consolidating duplicates introduced through manual entry or repeated imports
🔍 Tip: Only merge records that truly represent the same real-world entity. Review carefully to avoid losing meaningful distinctions between intentionally separate institutions.
How to Merge Institutions
From the left-hand navigation menu, go to Business Management > select Carriers & Institutions.
Click the three-dot action menu at the top of the page.
Select Merge.
In the Merge From field, select the carrier or institution you want to remove.
In the Merge To field, select the carrier or institution you want to keep.
Confirm the Remove original institutions after merge toggle setting (see tip below).
Click Merge.
🔍 Tip: What does "Remove original institutions after merge" do? Swivel strongly recommends keeping this option on. When toggled on, the original "Merge From" institution record is deleted after the merge, leaving only the consolidated record. This keeps your data clean and avoids leaving behind empty duplicate records.
Warning: Merging is permanent and cannot be undone. Confirm both records represent the same entity before merging.
Video Tutorial: How to Merge Duplicate Carriers
What Happens to Associated Data
It is common for duplicate carriers to each have products and contacts associated with them. This is expected and not an issue. When carriers are merged:
All products associated with the "Merge From" institution are reassigned to the "Merge To" institution
All contacts linked through those products remain associated
All documents, notes, and tags on the "Merge From" institution are retained under the "Merge To" institution
No client or product data is lost during a merge.
Carriers & Institutions FAQs
Can I undo a merge?
No. Merging is permanent. If you merge two records by mistake, you'll need to recreate the removed institution manually and reassign products as needed. Always confirm the Merge From and Merge To selections before clicking Merge.
Do I need to merge duplicate carriers before turning on Swivel Sync?
It's strongly recommended. Swivel Sync maps to a single standardized carrier record. Merging duplicates into the standardized name beforehand ensures Sync correctly maps your existing products and avoids creating additional records.
How do I edit an Unspecified Institution Type in my account?
Navigate to Business Management > Carrier & Institutions
Select Institution with the Unspecified badge
Click the Action Menu > Change Type
Complete the Change Institution Type form > click Save button
How do I remove Unspecified Institution Type from the Carrier & Institutions?
Once you have removed all Institutions from the Unspecified Institution Type (see above), using the left-hand navigation menu navigate to Settings > Advanced Setup and > click Product.
From the Product drop-down > click Institution Types
On the Unspecified Institution Type > click the
three-dot Action Menu > Delete
🔍 Tip: If you do not see a Delete option, this means you still have Financial Institutions assigned to the Unspecified type. Remember to check both Active and Inactive Financial Institutions. Another option is to use the Archive button.