> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zigpoll.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zigpoll.com/participants.md).

# Participants

Dig deeper into individual participant data and view response history

By default, a unique id is assigned to everyone who fills out a survey on your website. This id is unique for each customer's session and will follow them around on the website as they fill out your surveys.

Each session id becomes a participant in your participants list. You can customize the ID and metadata for each participant by following the instructions in our [participant metadata](/embed/participant-metadata.md) section.

#### How participants are named

Each participant is listed under a handle. Zigpoll uses the first of these it finds: a `name` in the participant's metadata, an `email` in their metadata, their Shopify customer id, or an email address they typed into a survey. If none are present, the participant is listed by their id.

#### How participants are merged into one record

The same person often shows up on more than one surface — your storefront widget, a Shopify checkout or Thank You page survey, an email or SMS survey link. Zigpoll automatically merges these into a single participant record when it can identify them as the same person:

* The **Shopify customer id** is the authoritative join key — two records with the same customer id are merged, and two records with *different* customer ids are never merged.
* A verified customer **email** (from Shopify or survey metadata) can also join records. Free-text email answers typed into a survey are deliberately **not** used for merging, so a typo can't fold two people together.

Merging happens automatically in the background, and old session ids keep working — looking up a merged-away id resolves to the combined participant, so exports and integrations don't break.

{% content-ref url="/pages/-LZv5HhSlUqm6srkUKqh" %}
[Participant Metadata](/embed/participant-metadata.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

#### How Zigpoll Participants interact with Shopify

For customers who have purchased from your brand, Zigpoll will automatically sync historical survey data with the matching customer records in Shopify. This is all displayed within Zigpoll's participant dashboard.

From Zigpoll, you'll be able to see key Shopify data including the customer email, orders, and any other available metadata in Shopify.

We join these records using the Shopify customer id (with email as a fallback — see above). See a demo screenshot below:

<figure><img src="https://1643988190-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-LZpanNFqg3aCUZgXh3X%2Fuploads%2FEQjH2iArv6SspZo2cSFy%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=51bdc983-f3be-4a9d-8d17-642137d0b065" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Viewing participant history and activity

Zigpoll stores data on each participant, allowing you to see how they responded to your surveys and associated metadata such as IP address, geo, and any Shopify related data such as customer email or orders.

To access the participant history, click **Participants** in the sidebar. Inside a survey, its own **Participants** page lists only the people who answered that survey.

<figure><img src="https://1643988190-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-LZpanNFqg3aCUZgXh3X%2Fuploads%2F5w5mOoo2DDXPZK4cWwM6%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=e1e7d983-a59b-4fca-bde1-d6db59c22330" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

You can choose to view participants for **All Surveys** or a specific survey via the drop down menu. To find someone, use the search box: it matches names, ids, and email addresses.

<figure><img src="https://1643988190-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-LZpanNFqg3aCUZgXh3X%2Fuploads%2FsY3Y98fIeMNF7CvRvOGG%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=e1b20b4e-c803-4cc8-9965-942069fffa8b" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

And if you want to drill deeper into a specific participants, you can click into each participant to see their entire history.

<figure><img src="https://1643988190-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-LZpanNFqg3aCUZgXh3X%2Fuploads%2Fb7j1W5aTemTLscPZOafo%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=3b243597-42b4-43e3-b59a-195738b311ab" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://1643988190-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-LZpanNFqg3aCUZgXh3X%2Fuploads%2FQPopE25Mw3v7bIvKuvSn%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=10e9ac65-8e82-4028-9304-a6c1ba0ae079" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### Exporting participants

Click **Export to CSV** on the **Participants** page. Turn on **Include Responses** to add each participant's answers to a survey, then click **Email CSV**. The file is emailed to you. See [Exporting Data to CSV](/tutorials/exporting-data-to-csv.md).

#### Deleting a participant or their responses

Open the participant and click **More Actions**:

* **Delete Participant** removes the person and everything they submitted.
* **Delete Responses** lets you tick individual responses to remove.

Both are permanent and don't lower your monthly response count. See [Removing Participant Data](/tutorials/removing-participant-data.md) and [Deleting Survey Responses](/tutorials/deleting-responses.md).


---

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