What is happening?
The Budget Optimiser is unable to sync your manual spend data. This occurs because you have listed marketing channels in your "Custom Spend" source that the Alvie system doesn't recognize because they haven't been defined in your Channel Grouping rules.
Error: The custom spend channel configuration is invalid. Please review your custom grouping settings and make sure all channels in the custom spend source are also defined in the custom grouping settings.
Why did this happen? Alvie acts as a bridge between your data and your reports. For the bridge to work, every name must match exactly. This error occurs when:
Naming Mismatch: You named a channel "Influencers" in your Google Sheet, but in your Alvie Grouping settings, it is named "Paid Influencers."
New Channel Added: You added a new row for a new platform (e.g., "Podcast Ads") to your spend sheet but forgot to create a corresponding rule in Alvie.
Typo/Case Sensitivity: A simple typo (e.g., "Facebok") or a difference in capitalization between the source and the configuration.
Follow these steps to resolve the issue:
Navigate to Settings: Open your Custom Spend Source (your Google Sheet or BigQuery table).
Locate the Source: Make a list of all unique names in the Channel column.
Action: * Go to Setup → Custom Groupings in the Alvie dashboard.
Compare your list to the existing rules.
If a channel from your sheet is missing, click Add Rule and enter the name exactly as it appears in your sheet.
Ensure the Category assigned to this new rule is correct (e.g., Social, Video, etc.).
External Steps: If you prefer to change the name in your spreadsheet to match Alvie instead, simply update the cells in your sheet and wait for the next sync.
Verify: Once the names match perfectly in both places, return to the Budget Optimiser and click Run now. The status should turn Healthy (Green).
Prevention & Tips To avoid seeing this error again:
Exact Matching: Always copy and paste channel names from your grouping settings into your spend sheet to avoid typos.
Pre-fill Groupings: Before adding a new experimental channel to your spend tracker, create the category in Alvie first.
Still need help? If you have verified that the names match but the error persists, check for "hidden" characters like trailing spaces in your spreadsheet cells. If that doesn't work, don't hesitate to reach out to the Alvie support team.
If you encounter any further issues or need additional assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out to the Alvie support team.