Upcoming Update to ResearchPoint and Raiser's Edge Integration

Published
We are excited to tell you about work we're in development on for an improved integration between ResearchPoint and The Raiser's Edge for the upcoming ResearchPoint August (3.17) release.

Many months ago, the request for a better integration came from you, our users, to our Product Manager, who prioritized this as a must improve. Then, our User Experience Designer listened to your specific needs in Product Discovery. Since then, our product development team has been steadily working on this update, which uses a new technology approach, Blackbaud Web Services, to provide some key benefits we know you wanted.

  • You do not have to have ResearchPoint and The Raiser's Edge on the same workstation.When you configure you only need access to your Raiser's Edge database to obtain the database key and confirm the serial key matches. Even if you're already integrated, because of the new way we integrate with Blackbaud Web Services, you will need to configure your two databases again.
  • An improved user experience in how you update and keep the two databases synced.You have more choices in which information you want to sync between the two databases. Then, we have provided enhanced functionality in research lists so you can more easily sync and add records from The Raiser's Edge.
  • To return the best results, ResearchPoint uses information from The Raiser's Edge in individual and group wealth screens.
  • You no longer have to use Internet Explorer only for ResearchPoint. You can use the latest version of your preferred Internet browser such as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. If you are unsure if your browser is supported, we recommend you check the system requirements. Older versions of browsers may still work but may not display visually as well as new versions.
  • And, you can now see Raiser's Edge contact information as view only without having to leave ResearchPoint! From the prospect record, Biographical Information tab, click Contact to see the address, phone, email, and links for your prospect. Best of all... no syncing required!

While we prepare for the upcoming release at the end of August, we'll be preparing more information and documentation to help you understand the differences and all the new features. To stay updated on the latest information, I recommend you join the Target Analytics Community and follow the Raiser's Edge Integration category. I'll post updates here and when documentation, including videos and tip sheets are ready, I'll add a notice here.

Also, the community is a great chance for you to stay updated on not just release news but anything in the world of ResearchPoint and Target Analytics. You can provide feedback on how we're doing with your software. Do you want to see a feature improved? Join and submit your ideas! However, the community is not just an opportunity to help influence the direction of our products, we also hope it's a place where you can ask peer-to-peer questions, best practices, and more from people who really understand you best. Prospect research is a unique and powerful field; we want to help make sure you're connected with each other!

In the meantime, we at Blackbaud have been focused on how to make the update to the integration as easy as possible for you from configuration to syncing data. In addition to providing documentation and training before and after the August release, we do want to prepare you for one important requirement for the new integration.

Before the new integration is delivered, we recommend you complete an important update to your Raiser's Edge database. If you have not already, we recommend you update your version of The Raiser's Edge to 7.92 patch 5 or higher. The improved integration does not work in older versions of The Raiser's Edge because Blackbaud Web Services was not a part of The Raiser's Edge before then. We require Blackbaud Web Services because it enables the two databases to talk to each other in a more sophisticated manner. To you, it means that you have many more options now and in the future for what data can sync. News that is music to all of our ears!

More to come soon about the integration. Until then, we hope you are as happy as we are about this important improvement to ResearchPoint. We know having this connection work more efficiently is important to how you develop a complete view of your prospects and constituents.

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