Objects

What are objects?

Objects hold a specific type of record, like a category of record. Objects contain records of a specific type, as well as their attributes and values.

As an example, one built-in standard object in Attio is Companies. The Companies object in Attio holds company records like Google, along with company attributes like domain, city, and estimated ARR, and attribute values like google.com, Mountain View, and $10B+.

You can also create your own custom objects. This is useful when you have relationships or processes that involve entities with their own sets of data outside Attio’s standard, built-in objects that you need to track.

Standard objects

All Attio workspaces have a set of standard objects that are built-in. Since Attio understands what they represent, each standard object comes with a set of attributes. People and Companies standard objects also come with additional functionality such as enriched attributes, email syncing, and communication intelligence.

The standard objects that are automatically enabled in all workspaces are People and Companies. There are also Deals, Workspaces, and Users standard objects that you can enable for your workspace if you choose.

Deals standard object

The Deals standard object is useful for tracking potential sales that your business wants to track between your company and another organization or individual.

It includes the following attributes: Deal name, Deal stage, Deal owner, Deal value, Associated people, and Associated company. These attributes cannot be deleted.

Users standard object

The Users standard object is useful for tracking information about the users of your own product (such as a SaaS product), including the person and workspace records they are connected to.

It includes the following attributes: User ID, Primary email address, Person, Workspace, List Entries, and Next due task. User ID and Primary email address are both required attributes, meaning every user record has to have an ID and email. These attributes cannot be deleted.

Workspaces standard object

The Workspaces standard object is useful for tracking information about accounts using your product (such as a SaaS product), including connected users of your product and their companies.

It includes the following attributes: Workspace ID, Name, Users, Company, Avatar URL, List Entries, and Next due task. Workspace ID is a required attribute, meaning every workspace record has to have an ID. These attributes cannot be deleted.

Enable a standard object

To enable a standard object, you must be a workspace admin. First, click on your workspace name, select Workspace settings from the dropdown, then click Objects in the sidebar on the left. Click the Activate button next to a standard object to begin using it.

Deactivate a standard object

Admins can deactivate a standard object by clicking your workspace name, then selecting Workspace settings. In the lefthand sidebar select Objects, then select the standard object you want to deactivate. Click Deactivate Object. Note that it's not possible to deactivate Companies or People objects.

Deactivating a standard object will hide its records, data, and views. Any associated lists will be permanently deleted.

Custom objects

If your company’s data doesn’t fit within Attio’s standard objects, you can create your own custom objects to suit your business requirements. Custom objects give you the flexibility to adapt Attio to your business’s exact needs.

Things to consider before creating a custom object

Before you create a new custom object, it’s important to ensure it is the best option for your data. Consider:

• Does your data fit within one of Attio’s standard objects? If so, consider using the standard object instead. The standard object will include built-in attributes, enrichment data, and features that may not be available with custom objects.

• Do you need to sync emails or send emails to the records? If so, consider using a standard object instead. Emails can only be sent to people records, and you can only sync emails to person and company records.

⁠Here are some examples of use cases that are a good fit for custom objects:

• A SaaS company may want to create a custom object for:

  • Subscriptions, to track data such as subscription type, status, renewal date, and seat count

• A B2B marketplace may want to create custom objects for:

  • Buyers, to track data such as total spend, number of purchases, or peer ratings

  • Sellers, to track data such as total earnings, number of sales, or buyer ratings

  • Transactions, to track data such as date, amount, and product

Create a new custom object

Workspace admins can create new custom objects in Workspace settings. First, click on your workspace name, then select Workspace settings from the dropdown. In the left-hand sidebar, click Objects under Data. Then click + Create custom object in the top right.

⁠Designate the singular and plural nouns for your object. Using the Companies object as an example again, this would be “company” and “companies”. These nouns can be updated later if needed from the object’s page in Workspace settings on the Configuration tab.

Also give the new object an Identifier, or name, which will also be used for its slug. This will be used to identify your object in URLs, and you will be unable to change this once it is set. As an example, the Companies object’s identifier is ‘companies’, and this is shown in the URL when you view the Companies page: https://app.attio.com/progression-ventures/companies/view/

Then click Create Object.

Manage record labels

On the Objects page in Workspace settings, go to the Appearance tab. Here you can manage the attributes used as a custom object’s record labels to configure the way its records are displayed in views.

Record text

The Record text is the primary identifying attribute that will be used for all records within your custom object. Often this is a Name attribute, but it could also be an ID, email address, username, or something else.

The record text you designate will show in the top left of each record page, and will be shown in the first column in lists. As an example, for the standard Companies and People objects, the record text is the Name attribute.

Select the attribute you want to use for the record text. Keep in mind, the attribute must be of the Text attribute type. If you have just created a new object, you’ll need to click Choose an attribute, then + Create new attribute, and create the text attribute you want to use. Learn more about attributes.

Record image

If you would like your records to display an image, click the dropdown under Record image. Create or select the attribute that will contain the images shown on records within your custom object. It will need to be an attribute of the Text attribute type, because it hold URLs for the records’ images.

The record image will be displayed in the top left next to the record text on record pages, and in the first column of lists.

Delete a custom object

Admins can delete custom objects in Workspace settings.

⁠To proceed with permanently deleting a custom object, click Objects in the left-hand sidebar within Workspace settings, then select the custom object you want to delete. On the Configuration tab, scroll down and click the red Delete Object button. If you're sure, confirm by clicking Delete Object again.

Manage object attributes

You can create and manage attributes for your objects, which will hold data you want to track about your records. To manage an object’s attributes, open the Attributes tab on the object’s page within Workspaces settings. Learn more about attributes.

You can also customize which attributes are shown when creating a new record for a particular object. Learn how to create templates (available on Pro and Enterprise plans).