Processing Checks Faster

Yam Burke

Hello everyone,


I'm new-ish to managing RE. I'm wondering if there's a system out there that syncs depositing checks through a scanner/remote image device directly to RE? We are using batch to enter checks that have been deposited to the bank via remote image teller device. But I'm curious if this is the fastest method that RE offers. We do not have FE.


Thank you,

Yam

Casey Blair

We do the same process, so I'd like to know if there is another method too.

Patti Hommes

Following! I've not heard of any plug in that ties in a remote back deposit scan to RE, so if there is one out there I am all ears!!

Karen Diener

I think that PaperSave offers something. I went to their happy hour presentation at the last BBCON and they were demonstrating some workflow capabilities that they have, and am almost certain that one step of it was to add the gift based on the image of a check. I don't know much more about it, but I'm fairly sure it was this product:
https://www.papersave.com/solutions/features/transaction-automation/


Karen

Yam Burke

Thank you Karen Diener‍ !!

Holly Finneran

We manually add checks to a batch after they are deposited, and we would love a faster method. I could spend 2 days working on deposits sometimes. We are looking for a faster way as well, because the delay in receiving, depositing and then manually adding checks to RE can give us up to a week before the constituent gets mailed a thank you letter. We would love to shorten that timeline. I am curious to hear peoples solutions.

Kristine Marvin

We also use Batch to enter checks as well. You can make this process smoother by creating Batch Templates. This will save you time in having to size the columns and adding defaults that are commonly used. I have ones for... Personal Checks, Check Attributes, Credit Cards, Stock ect.

Sheila Wortham

Currently, we are in the implantation phase using Aqurit (AQ2) software in streamline our donation process and receipting operations. The new system will automatically capture, pose and manage donor information and gifts from donor cards, appeals and correspondence with unsurpassed speed and accuracy.

Yam Burke

Fascinating, @SheilaWortham! Thank you for sharing! I'll look into the AQ2 software.

Christine Cooke

Interesting idea -- makes me cautious about a pile of dupes that will need investigation and merging though. Just an item for the con column.

Kris Countryman

Sheila, does this eliminate the gift processor position?

Karen Diener

Holly Finneran‍ how are they "manually" added? Just curious because Papersave would allow this too. (No, I don't work for Papersave and never have. ?). And I don't remember which specific product it is, but a small scanner is connected to the computer of the gift processor. You scan anything you want - check, RSVP card or reply device, note included in the envelope - at the end of a gift batch row. When the batch is committed, all of the images attach to the gift record.


This is different than media or attachments that are native to RE. If it is something your organization might look in to, I would definitely investigate other software that might allow for scanning and attaching to Attachments in RE in addition to PaperSave.


Karen

Karen Diener

Unsurpassed? Sounds like they have good marketing people!


I'm curious to know how this is going? And what do you mean by "pose and manage"? I always appreciate real user reviews of products so that I can better inform my clients who might be looking for similar technology.


Thanks!


Karen

Holly Finneran

Hi Karen,

We currently manually type all our checks into a batch, we still get a large amount of physical checks. I have considered utilizing importomatic, but someone would still need to type them into an Excel CSV. I would love to speed up this process, but our biggest issue is the flow of paper through our office. Our Management would like thank you letters to go out 48 hours after the checks are in house. Currently the day they arrive they are typed into a check log to be sent out to management, the checks are then dropped to finance for deposit (which is typically done at the end of the day), then they come to me for input into RE, but I manage our entire database of 60,000+ constituents (I do all gift entry, online gifts, mailing lists, cleanup, managing TeamRaiser for events, so on and so forth). I do my best to get them into RE as quick as possible to be able to merge letters, but the 48 hour timeline, plus the amount of hands it touches before it gets to me, greatly slows down the process.


We did a big appeal and in the last 2 days we have received 100+ checks, it took me almost all day yesterday to input the information into a batch. Luckily these are all existing constituents, but a majority of them need to be linked to tributes. Not only am I looking to refresh our internal process in the office but also ways to make the input into RE quicker, to get letters out quicker.


I have never utilized PaperSave, so I don't know much about it. We can be cheap when it comes to adding products, we still utilize RE7 (self hosted) and we also have Import-o-matic as well.


All suggestions are welcome

JoAnn Strommen

UGH! Just had "Error processing Your Request" when I clicked post. Switched to Azure and it seems BB is timing out and disconnecting more frequently.


Highlights - ask if not clear as don't have time for original detail.


Paper flow - are you getting copies/scan file of checks? Can you get those after entry onto the log without waiting for deposit?


Gift entry -

• batch use is key with as many defaults as possible.
• If you have an appeal piece with payment and have constituent ID put that as first field in batch. Can be quicker than keying in names.
• Tributes are you big time factor I imagine. Using icon at top of batch?
• Are you entering account # from check. I know some do. I don't know why. Have never needed that in my years. If so ask why. If no good reason, don't waste time entering that.
• Do you have constituent field window displayed at side of batch? Quick easy way to see if address/info needs updating without having to open every record.
• When processing stack of gifts for Swim for the Y event, if donor was not in db I marked my doc and went to next gift. Then added all the new records at one time with a batch containing as many defaults as needed. Then came back and entered gifts from those new records. Found much faster than adding one by one.

Think that was most of my thoughts from earlier.


You have management supporting a quick turn around time. Get them involved in looking for ways to adjust. Having them/finance understand the desire for 48 hours has always been my biggest obstacle.


Keep your head up. You're on track.

Sheila Wortham

Yes. We migrated to a system which works through the Sky API called Aq2.