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Housekeeping

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4. Poll

5. Margie Worrell
Margie Worrell is the Curriculum Manager at
Bloomerang. She serves on the board of the Peace
Learning Center in Indianapolis, and has worked
extensively with nonprofits as both a staff member
and a lead volunteer. Her passions include education,
theatre, her two children and her two small dogs.
Curriculum Manager

6. Custom Fields

7. What will we
cover today?
1. What are custom fields?
2. How custom fields are
structured
3. Organizing custom fields
4. How data gets into custom
fields
5. Where do you find custom
fields?
6. Deactivating or removing
custom fields
7. Custom fields vs. Groups

8. What are
custom
fields?
Custom fields allow
you to customize
your Bloomerang
database to
capture whatever
data is most
important to your
organization.
You can create custom fields in the
following areas:
● Constituent: Appear on the
constituent's profile page
● Transaction: Appear on every
transaction
● Interaction: Appear on every
interaction
● Note: Appear on every note

9. Current location for Custom fields

10. New location starting 8/10/2023!

11. Biggest changes to note in relation to
Custom fields…
1. Transactions area has been broken out
a. Top row is strictly custom fields
b. Funds, campaigns and appeals are under Custom Values on the bottom row
Current view Updated view
Updated view: Top row
Updated view: Bottom row
Updated view: Payments tab
under Settings

12. How custom
fields are
structured
Categories-> Fields-> Values
Select from five data types:
● Text: Any character can be
entered.
● Date: Only dates can be entered,
in the mm/dd/yyyy format.
● Date (Year Only): Only a four-digit
year can be entered.
● Number: Only numbers can be
entered. Decimal points are
allowed, with up to two decimal
places.
● Currency: Only numbers can be
entered, and they are stored with
a decimal and two decimal places.

13. Entering data
Select one of three ways to enter
the data:
● Type It In: Users can type in
any value, as long as it is
within the field's data type.
● Pick 1 Value from a List:
Users can pick one
predefined value from a
menu. You set up the values
allowed.
● Pick Multiple Values from a
List: Users can pick multiple
predefined values from a
list. You set up the values
allowed.
PRO TIP:
Carefully choose the data type and entry method,
especially for text fields. The combination affects
how useful text fields are later. Filtering on preset
text is more reliable than filtering on freeform
text. When adding a custom field for text, ask
yourself:
1. Will I need to filter on this field's data?
2. Can I set some reasonable predefined values
for the field?
Yes to both questions? Set up the field as a Pick 1
Value from a List or Pick Multiple Values from a
List.
If you can't predefine the values, create a policy
for how freeform text should be entered.

14. Organizing
custom fields
A->Z
Z->A
Custom
● Click and drag to reorder
● Show up in same order on
profile
● Consider how you will
enter data as you order
your categories

15. Deactivating
or deleting
custom
fields
Deactivating a custom field
● Deactivating does not erase existing data. It just
makes it so you will not see it as an option in the
future.
● Custom fields that already had data continue to
display their values.
● If a deactivated value was used on a form, the form is
refreshed to remove the value.
● In the Settings area, deactivated fields and values
appear in italicized, gray font.
Deleting a custom field
Warning: This process is not reversible. Deleting custom
fields that are in use will remove data from your database.
Only delete custom fields you are certain you no longer
need.
Categories must be empty prior to deleting. Delete all of the
category’s fields before deleting the category.
PRO TIP: Run a report to check on where
custom fields are in use prior to deleting.

16. What happens after I delete a category?
Here’s what happens next…
● Constituent Profile - The custom field is removed from the constituent profile.
● Reports - The custom field is removed from any filters or columns in existing
reports. Check your reports, especially scheduled reports, to make sure they are
still accurate.
● Letters and Emails - The custom field is removed if it was in use as a filter. A
placeholder is added to the content to denote that a custom field was previously in
use as a merge field. If the custom field was in a data table, the column is removed
entirely. The next time you use the template, check your filters to make sure they
are still accurate and remove placeholders from the content.
● Imports - The custom field is removed from import templates. You should not
include the custom field in your CSV files going forward.
● Forms - The custom field is removed from Bloomerang hosted forms and standard
forms you may have embedded on your website. You will need to update
self-hosted forms to remove the custom field as an option.
● Transactions, Interactions, and Notes - The custom field is removed, but existing
entries will otherwise remain intact.

17. Custom fields vs. Groups
● Is this related to constituents?
● For this data segment, will we need quick views of things like:
○ Demographics
○ Average transaction amount
○ Month-over-month giving
● Will we frequently reference this group as a segment in reports or communications?
When should I use each of these? Ask yourself these questions:
OR
Probably Groups
Probably Custom fields
● Will we more occasionally refer to this information for things like an annual event?
● Will we likely use this information for individual conversations with
donors/stakeholders on more of a “one-off” basis?

18. Set up policies around Custom fields and Groups
● Will you need a staff member who is the point of reference for setting up Custom
fields and Groups in your organization? What is their role in relation to the staff?
● Process for adding/removing Groups and/or Custom fields
○ Will all staff have access to editing Groups?
○ List all of the steps to ensure that you keep your data clean and consistent
○ Process for people who don’t have access if you choose to limit access
● Guidelines about determining what belongs in Custom fields vs. Groups for future
reference
● Processes for maintaining groups
○ Will you assign someone to run periodic reports as part of an auditing process?
What other policies can you imagine needing around the use of Custom fields and
Groups?
Consider what is best for your organization

19. What does
this look
like in your
database?

20. Resources
Bloomerang Knowledgebase and Support Portal

21. Resources
Knowledgebase
Custom Fields
Edit Categories, Custom
Fields, and Values

22. Thank you for attending!
And thank you for all you do in
your communities!
Visit our website to see more upcoming
Bloomerang Academy webinars!