Answers.Body: <p>If you want to use a smart group (because it automatically keeps itself updated based on certain criteria) you start by doing a search. In your case, find all people with a membership (<strong>Search > Advanced Search</strong>). Then you save your search as a smart group by selecting all the results and in Actions > Create Smart Group. Then give it a name and it will keep itself updated for you. As others mentioned, if you want to add people manually, then you would create a regular group, not a smart group to keep it clean and simple.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2017-12-05T05:39:08.813Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2017-12-05T05:39:08.813Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Christia
Answers.Body: <p>Scroll down to the area on adding/removing members manually. This should allow you to do this:</p>
  
  <p><a href="https://docs.civicrm.org/user/en/latest/organising-your-data/smart-groups/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://docs.civicrm.org/user/en/latest/organising-your-data/smart-groups/</a></p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2017-12-04T06:39:38.690Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2017-12-04T06:39:38.690Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Jenni Simonis
Answers.Body: <p>Are you sure the scheduled job to rebuild the smart groups is switched on? THat might help! And as stated before, you should not add members to a smart group manually, that should only be done to a static old-fashioned manual group!</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2017-12-04T10:21:08.287Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2017-12-04T10:21:08.287Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: ErikH - CiviCooP
Body: <p>I have entered about 5000 contacts and i want to add some of these contacts to a smart group. This smart group is a list of our paying members. How to add individuals from the list of contacts to a smart group? i ihave done Contacts>Manage Groups. Then i select the particular Group (which is called BI Members). This gives me a list of contact who are already members (with the help of a co-worker who left the organization). Then i select "add contacts to BI Members". i enter a name of a contact and it appears in the list. i select and hit add. but the contact is not added to this smart group.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-12-04T04:47:45.690Z
Comments.Text: Welcome to CiviCRM.SE. Are you certain you understand the difference between a regular group and a smart group? You cannot directly add contacts to a smart group, basically by definition.
Comments.UserDisplayName: choster
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-12-04T20:45:58.937Z
Comments.Text: You 'can' add contacts directly to a Smart Group, but they will remain in the group even if the criteria change. But otherwise it may help if you explain why you want people added to a Smart Group that do not meet the 'search criteria'. As stated by others a 'smart group' is just a 'saved search'. If you need to add contacts to the group directly, you should be fine to do that too so long as you understand the difference
Comments.UserDisplayName: petednz - fuzion
Tags: <wordpress><smartgroups>
Title: how to add contacts to smart groups
ThreadText: # how to add contacts to smart groups
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2017-12-04)
  
  I have entered about 5000 contacts and i want to add some of these contacts to a smart group. This smart group is a list of our paying members. How to add individuals from the list of contacts to a smart group? i ihave done Contacts>Manage Groups. Then i select the particular Group (which is called BI Members). This gives me a list of contact who are already members (with the help of a co-worker who left the organization). Then i select "add contacts to BI Members". i enter a name of a contact and it appears in the list. i select and hit add. but the contact is not added to this smart group.
  
  **Tags:** wordpress, smartgroups
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Welcome to CiviCRM.SE. Are you certain you understand the difference between a regular group and a smart group? You cannot directly add contacts to a smart group, basically by definition.  
  > **username_2**: You 'can' add contacts directly to a Smart Group, but they will remain in the group even if the criteria change. But otherwise it may help if you explain why you want people added to a Smart Group that do not meet the 'search criteria'. As stated by others a 'smart group' is just a 'saved search'. If you need to add contacts to the group directly, you should be fine to do that too so long as you understand the difference  
  
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  ## 3 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2017-12-05. Score: 2
  
  If you want to use a smart group (because it automatically keeps itself updated based on certain criteria) you start by doing a search. In your case, find all people with a membership (**Search > Advanced Search**). Then you save your search as a smart group by selecting all the results and in Actions > Create Smart Group. Then give it a name and it will keep itself updated for you. As others mentioned, if you want to add people manually, then you would create a regular group, not a smart group to keep it clean and simple.
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2017-12-04. Score: 1
  
  Scroll down to the area on adding/removing members manually. This should allow you to do this:
  
  <https://docs.civicrm.org/user/en/latest/organising-your-data/smart-groups/>
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_5 on 2017-12-04. Score: 1
  
  Are you sure the scheduled job to rebuild the smart groups is switched on? THat might help! And as stated before, you should not add members to a smart group manually, that should only be done to a static old-fashioned manual group!
  
  
  ---
  
  