Does anyone have a useful way to track if a constituent prefers email over traditional snail mail? There is a checkbox on Bio 1 "requests no email", but I'm looking for exactly the opposite. I would rather not use Attributes as I would like this info readily available, and it may get lost there.

Ashley,

I don't have a need for such a code, but one thought that comes to mind is the solicit codes on Bio 1.  They're traditionally used as removal codes, so you may be able to create a "prefers snailmail" code so that when you are creating a snailmail mailing, you can sub those folks out.  Best of luck,

Leslie

I want to be sure I'm following correctly - are solicit codes the check boxes on the lower right corner of Bio 1? If so, can you create custom check boxes for your database? That would be perfect, if there is a way to do this!

I don't think you can create a customized checkbox; there doesn't even seem to be any way to rename fields using checkboxes (e.g., "no valid address" or "inactive").  The solicit codes use a drop-down table, so you can create your own entries to suit your needs.  Some pretty standard table entries would be "do not solicit," "no mail," "no greeting cards," etc.  Good luck!

 Leslie

Oops, meant to tell you that solicit codes are on the bottom left of the Bio 1 tab.  You'll find the code in tables in Config and create table entries from there.

Leslie

No - solicit codes are table driven and organizational (i.e. mine are different than yours.)  The only way to do them as checkboxes is if they were yes/no fields which they are not (and even still you would need the API or VBA module to do a custom form - API/VBA = lotsa $$$$)

 Although you say you don't want to use attributes in my opinion it really is the best way to go. That's what they are designed for. We use the Address attribute for every single mailing we send. That way the donor is only getting the mail they request. For example we have the following attributes.

MAIL TYPE:

NO MAIL AT ALL, E-MAIL ONLY, JULY MAILING ONLY, etc. Then when you pull a mailing you pull Mail Type equals one of. AND Mail Type does not equal one of...

I'm not sure how else you could do this 

I have to agree with Laura, I think an attribute is your best bet.  Since you are trying to flag a constituent's contact preference, you might consider a constituent attribute rather than an address attribute.  You can exclude people from mailings on the Attribute tab in mail (or include only those who prefer email if you are exporting a list).

I understand that making attributes for everything can quickly get out of hand.  One thing that helps is if you always assign a date in the date field for the attribute when it is applied or updated.  That way, you can occassionally run exports to check if any attributes have become useless for your organization.

Hi!  We use a Solicit Code - Email Only removes them from snail mails and triggers emailings.  Hope this helps.

 Denise Thompson
IOCC