Making and maintaining lists

Amanda Polson · April 5

I am still learning a lot about making and maintaining useful lists, but I'm also frustrated with some of the list capabilities in RE NXT. Here's a recent example:

I wanted to send printed newsletters to a select number of our alumni families. It was just names I chose off the alumni list, I didn't filter it in any way. Now I would like to keep track of having sent that newsletter, but I'm not sure of the best way to do that. I can't even make a list that only includes them without making a list of all our alumni families and then figuring out how to exclude everyone else.

Question 1: Is there a way to add notes or something to a specifically chosen group of constituents?

Question 2: Does anyone have good resources for learning more about best practices in list making?

Thank you!

Alex Wong · April 6

If you need a way to "keep a custom list" that can be filtered on, there are a few ways to do it depending on how you plan to use it.

create a static query of the exact constituent id of the constituent record, if your list doesn't really change much, that's a good route, then you can build a constituent list using this static query
create an attribute (constituent custom field) that indicate this is the "group" of constituent. This is the "proper" way to "tag" a group of constituent record for easy filtering, you can easily add/update/remove constituent from the list by giving/removing the custom field

Joe Moretti · April 6

I will also add that Lists and Query are two different beasts. If you want more flexibility, always choose Query, since Lists only have so much capability and should not be a replacement for Query.

Lee Grisham · April 6

If you're picking and choosing from a list, you're doing it wrong. They were not designed to do what you were trying to do. The filters and Add/Exclude are the only ways to narrow that down to your target audience. Once you have that, you could apply a Workflow to add an action, send them an email through NXT, or create a static query to use in database view.

That said, if you've exported the list, you should be able to load those up into a query, dynamic or static, using Constituent ID and then apply an action, custom field, however you track those mailings to them after the fact, unfortunately, still in database view.

You can use multiple lists, and now queries which I didn't know, to create a list you're looking for using the Add/Exclude. Just make sure you understand how those work. Add will keep those constituents in the list, even when you change the filter set that might take them out. Exclude will do the same and keep them off the list, no matter the filters.

@Amanda Polson, you'll get the hang of them, but it does take some time to understand that they work differently than queries. Most data managers will still use queries, but lists can be great for working with fundraisers since they can be easier to read and you can take actions on records more quickly. You got this!

Amanda Polson · April 6

thank you! All these answers are very helpful. I haven’t ventured into custom fields yet but it looks like that’s what I need right now. And also just better list-keeping practices.

Sunshine Reinken Watson · April 6

You can globally add actions or notes to constituents based on a query in database view.

Bobby Steurer · April 7

I've come to generally use Lists as a super simple, dynamic reference for staff. For example, our Annual Fund director likes to keep ongoing tabs on who our monthly donors are. I've got them configured in such a way that they'll pull in a Constituent List. I shared the link to that list to that director, and she can now reference it any time she'd like without asking me to pull a spreadsheet. For naming conventions, I use the fundraiser's (i.e. the person who "owns" the List) Name_Project/Task, making it so specific that it takes the guesswork out of that List's purpose. That's all I've had the bandwidth to really do so far, and it's super basic, but it does help a lot for things like that.

Faith Murray · April 7

I am seconding the recommendation for using Query over List in this case, as you can do a "Constituent ID one of…" criteria. But I would add that Custom Fields are probably not your best location for storing a targeted newsletter mailing. The sent Appeals area is perfect for any sort of bulk direct mail initiative, and the Actions area is best for personal interactions of this sort. Both of these will allow much more granular data for tracking number sent, donor response, associated contacts, etc, plus it will keep your Custom Fields area much, much cleaner.

Sara Niemiec · April 10

I agree with @Faith Murray's post. I have a similar list of constituents for a specific stewardship piece who don't have the same details in common other than this stewardship piece. The "one of" query criteria is what I use.

Hallie Guiseppe · April 15

Similar to query lists, list in RENXT offer a specific advantages over queries. I think everyone hit the high points in their feedback but one thing I'd like to add is the ability to add/remove other lists or individual constituents to an existing list is very useful. Additionally, you can then filter the list. For example, we track email engagement by creating lists from any constituent who opens an email newsletter we sent. That list is used in a process to calculate an engagement score for our prospects but then I use that same list filtered by constituent code to calculate a separate alumni specific engagement score.

From an organizational view point, I recommend using a naming convention for your lists. For example, if the list was created to be used with a report request, we use RR_YYYYMMDD_ReportDetail, if the list is associated with a workflow we use WF_NAMEOFWORKFLOW, if the list is associated with a Power Automate process, we use PA_NAMEOFAUTOMATION, and so on.

You got this! 🤛

Making and maintaining lists

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