There are many ways in Slate to send your donors acknowledgements and receipts following a donation.

Tracking gift receipts and acknowledgements per-person, rather than per-gift, provides several benefits. In particular, if a donor has a gift that’s split among multiple funds, they’ll receive a single, aggregated receipt in lieu of a receipt per individual gift.

In this article, we lay out four options that you can employ to generate receipts and acknowledgements.

Option 1: Tracking query → mail merge

In this option, we do this with a query configured such that the donor record appears both in the history of the receipt run and also in new runs when a new gift is created.

Query results can be batch managed and exported to a previously uploaded Mail Merge document (multiple merge documents can be uploaded and stored in Slate). The gift processor can either export and continue to modify the merge document or export and execute the merge immediately.

Try a Slate example 💼

Use Suitcase to import the query described in this article into your database:

51fe7fbf-5ce8-65b0-8cef-46ae43628ac0@slate-advancement-showcase

Creating the receipting query

We’ll create a query with execution options set  to retrieve all records each time the query is run and save the results history.

1. Go to Queries / Reports.

2. Select New Query

3. Configure the following settings:

   • Name: Provide an intuitive name for the query

   • Type: Configurable Joins

   • Category: Records

   • Base: Person

4. Select Save.

5. Select Edit Properties.

6. Configure the following settings:

   • Limit Rows: Leave blank

   • Execution Option: Retrieve all records and save result history

   • Fetch Behavior: Preserve where clause on fetch if required by one or more filters

   • Queue: None (default)

   • Secondary Key: Leave blank
     

7. Select Save.

Adding a filter to find new gifts

Because we set the execution mode to return all records each time the query is run, a filter must be added to control for only returning records for which a new gift (one that hasn't been included in a previous query run) exists.

Because a person may have have multiple gifts that meet this criteria, let’s add a subquery filter:

1. In the query, select Subquery Filter.

2. Enter a name for the filter, like Has New Gift Since Last Query Run.

3. Add a Join to the Gifts table.

4. Add the following Exports:

   • Gifts Created Date

   • System Current Query Run Timestamp Start

   • System Current Query Run Timestamp Stop

5. Add any necessary exports to further refine the types of gifts that need receipting. For example, hard credits, received, or amounts above a certain amount.

6. Configure the remaining settings as follows:

   • Type: Dependent subquery

   • Aggregate: Comparison

   • Field 1: Gifts Created Date

   • Operator: between

   • Field 2: System Current Query Run Timestamp Start

   • Field 2 End Range: System Current Query Run Timestamp Stop

     

7. Select Save.

This filter returns only those records where a gift was created between the time the query is executed and when it completes its execution.

This allows for the tracking of subquery criteria, enabling the same record to be returned in the query as long as the subquery criteria (like a gift) is new and hasn't been included in a previous query execution.

Adding exports for use in a merge

With our subquery filter in place, Slate now returns only those records where a new gift has been created since the last time the query was run.

Now, we need to add exports to both properly identify biographical information on the donor and return detailed information on gifts created since the last query run.

To return detailed information on new gifts, we need to create a subquery export. This export must have filters for the same criteria as the filter on the overall query in order to ensure only the appropriate gifts are returned.

1. In the query, select Subquery Export.

2. Enter a name to the export, like Gift Details.

3. Add a Join to the Gifts table.

4. Add a second Join from Gifts to Funds.

5. Add any exports you want to reference in the receipt. For example:

   • Gift Date

   • Literal :

   • Gifts Amount

   • Literal --

   • Funds Name

6. Configure the remaining elements of the subquery export:

   • Type: Dependent subquery

   • Output: Concatenate

   • Row Separator: \n (newline)

   • Row Offset: 1

     

7. Still within the subquery export, select Subquery Filter.

8. Add the following exports:

   • Gifts Created Date

   • System Current Query Run Timestamp Start

   • System Current Query Run Timestamp Stop

9. Configure the remaining settings as follows:

   • Name: Provide an intuitive name, such as "Gift Created"

   • Type: Dependent subquery

   • Aggregate: Comparison

   • Field 1: Gifts Created Date

   • Operator: between

   • Field 2: System Current Query Run Timestamp Start

   • Field 2 End Range: System Current Query Run Timestamp Stop
     

10. If desired, add any additional filter criteria for the gifts, like credit type, amount, etc.

11. Select Save to save the nested subquery filter.

12. Select Save to save the subquery export.

Select Preview Results and you’ll see all gifts. Why is that? The filters that were added reference the query run. Since the query hasn't actually been run (a preview has been generated), the results won't appear as configured. When the query is executed, only the appropriate gifts will be returned.

Executing the query and merging to letter

With the query configured, the query can be run and the results will be saved for future reference.

After each query run, the number of matching rows should return to zero and increase as new gifts are created. The query execution is an audit event and will be displayed on a person's audit log, ensuring they received a receipt for a particular gift.

You can merged the results of the query into a Word document in order to assist sending the receipt.

To export the records to Word:

1. Select Run Query.

2. Select the new row added to the results history.

3. From Output, select Mail Merge Word Document.

   

4. Select Export.

5. Upload a Word document to serve as the receipt template.

6. Select Export.

In Word, leverage the query exports as merge fields within the document.

Example output: Setup

Example output: Merged

Option 2: Form communications

With form communications and recurring Deliver mailings, you can send acknowledgments and receipts electronically.

On an externally-facing gift entry form, select Edit Communications. Here, you can configure a message that sends upon form submission.

Merging in details from the gift and payment details gives you an immediate (or close-to-immediate) method by which to thank a donor for their gift.

Add filters to a mailing's recipient list that restrict the delivery of acknowledgments using this method to donations under a certain amount, or if a donor selects to receive electronic delivery of a gift receipt on the online giving form.

🦈 Slate Bytes Video

Please watch the following Slate Bytes video for more information on this topic!

Option 3: Automated printed letters

With the multiple print options in Deliver, recurring letters can be configured to automatically send through the USPS to a donor's mailing address.

As in email messages, merge fields can display the appropriate gift and payment information.

Option 4: Print-ready PDF

You can also create PDF acknowledgements and receipts in Deliver with the Document method (methods here refer to the message medium, others being email, SMS, etc.).

Find examples you can import with Suitcase in this Get Inspired post, or watch the Slate Byte to learn how to use the Document method:

🦈 Slate Bytes Video

Please watch the following Slate Bytes video for more information on this topic!