Who Are The Main Characters Of Raiser’s Edge?

Constituent Records
Constituent records store information about the people and businesses that interact with your Organization, such as donors or event attendees. There are two types of constituent records, Individual and Organization. For example, you could have an individual constituent record for James Weatherby and an organization record for his employer, Weatherby and Sons, Inc.

Relationship Records
Relationship records track relationships my constituents have with other individuals or organizations. For example, James Weatherby has a relationship with his spouse, Sarah Weatherby. Sarah may or may not be a constituent in my database. If Sarah does not have a full constituent record in my database, I could store information about Sarah’s relationship to James on a relationship record.

Not all the organizations and individuals stored in your database need a full constituent record. Sometimes, a relationship record is a better fit. If you aren’t sure, check your policies and procedures guide for when to use each!

Constituent Codes
Constituent codes describe the relationship your organization has with individuals or organizations. Simply, constituent codes define why the record is in your database. For example, a constituent could be Volunteer, Board Member, Alumni, or Staff Member. Constituent codes are defined by your organization. As a best practice, keep your list concise and clear.

Constituent Attributes
Constituent attributes are organization-defined fields for tracking additional qualities, characteristics, and preferences you associate with a constituent. Attributes are a great way to store information you want to track, but do not have an appropriate field already on the constituent record. For example, I may want to track constituent interests, so I know which donors would be especially interested in my Golf Tournament. By storing this information as a constituent attribute, I can easily group these records and send an event invitation when needed!

Primary Addressees
Primary addressee is a name format that represents the most common way you refer to your constituents. An addressee is usually formal, such as Ms. Penny Weatherby or Mr. and Mrs. James F. Weatherby. I like to think of this as how I would address an envelope to the constituent.

Primary Salutations
A salutation is a name format commonly used for greeting a constituent in correspondence. Depending on your relationship with the constituent, and the type of mailing, a salutation can be formal or informal. A salutation may be how I would address a constituent following the word “Dear,” when writing a thank you letter.

Additional Addressee and Salutations
Additional addressees and salutations are alternate name formats that you can use for a variety of purposes, such as mailings, annual reports, and directories. These are helpful for those special instances. For example, I may publish a donor recognition wall on our website. If a name appears a certain way on the donor wall, I can store this as a special type of additional addressee and salutation.

Well, there you have it: a quick run-down of your major Raiser’s Edge characters.

Are there other Raiser’s Edge characters you think should be included in my list above? What terms did you have to get to know before smooth sailing? Let me know in the comments below!

Tip: Add some of the new characters you have found in Raiser’s Edge and print out the list. Then, hang it by your desk for reference. You can use it to quickly identify terms and keep track of who’s who!

Bonus Tip: Take one of Blackbaud University’s Fundamentals courses to get a guided tour and explanation of how each of these Raiser’s Edge characters can help you with your job and your organization’s mission. See Blackbaud University’s full Raiser’s Edge Curriculum or search Training Central by any of the key words in this list.