SQL Standardize Text Case
Combining TRIM and INITCAP for consistent, presentable names — regardless of how inconsistently the source data was originally entered.
What & Why
Real name data arrives in every case imaginable — all lowercase, all uppercase, randomly mixed. Standardizing means applying INITCAP (for consistent capitalization) after TRIM (to remove stray whitespace first) — the same combination the INITCAP lesson introduced, worth reinforcing as the standard pattern.
See How It Works
Marketing wants equivalent lead sources grouped regardless of capitalization or edge spaces.
| id | campaign_id | created_at | qualified_at | converted_at | lead_score | source | country | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | 1 | ana@example.com | 2024-01-21 09:10:00+00 | 2024-01-22 11:00:00+00 | 2024-02-02 10:00:00+00 | 86 | google_ads | US |
| 302 | 1 | ben@example.com | 2024-01-24 12:40:00+00 | NULL | NULL | 52 | google_ads | CA |
| 303 | 2 | chloe@example.com | 2024-02-16 08:30:00+00 | 2024-02-18 14:20:00+00 | NULL | 74 | GB | |
| 304 | 3 | dev@example.com | 2024-03-20 17:15:00+00 | 2024-03-21 09:00:00+00 | 2024-04-04 16:00:00+00 | 91 | US |
SELECT
LOWER(TRIM(source)) AS standardized_source,
COUNT(*) AS leads
FROM marketing.leads
GROUP BY standardized_source
ORDER BY leads DESC, standardized_source;| standardized_source | leads |
|---|---|
| google_ads | 2 |
| 1 | |
| 1 |
LOWER(TRIM(source)) produces the three real source groups.
Practice this concept
Marketing wants equivalent lead sources grouped regardless of capitalization or edge spaces.
marketingPrefix tables with marketing.table_name.
standardized_sourceleadsmarketing.leads| Column | Type |
|---|---|
| id | integer |
| campaign_id | integer |
| text | |
| created_at | timestamp with time zone |
| qualified_at | timestamp with time zone |
| converted_at | timestamp with time zone |
| lead_score | integer |
| source | text |
| country | text |
| archive_status | text |
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