Editing Households

If you need to make changes or add to household attributes, names, addresses, phones, and emails, you open the Bio tab for the household, make sure the Profile tab is open, and click on the Edit button.

The Bio tab opens, and you can make any changes as follows:

Note that the fields that are listed below may not be the same as the fields that appear on your screen. This is because your administrator may have added, removed or rearranged the fields.

Step 1 - Names

On the first sub tab, Step 1, there is a list of all names in the household. Click on a name to display and change the details in the space below the list. If you are making changes to a couple, both names appear together.

Prefix, First Name, Middle Name, Last Name, Suffix - if you make changes to any of the name fields, the Display Name and Salutation for the name, the couple name (if any) and the household (if this is the primary name) are all updated to reflect the change.
Nick Name - nick names can be added just for reference. If you have included the nick name in the salutation, the salutation is updated to reflect the change..
AKA - this might be a maiden name or a prior name that can be used to search for this person.
Display Name - if you have used a formula to build the display name, it is automatically updated by any changes you made to the name fields. You can also select a different formula to use to build the display name. If you want to build a name different from what the formulas provide, select Add Custom Name and type in the name as you wish it to appear.
Salutation - if you have used a formula to build the salutation, it is automatically updated by any changes you made to the name fields. You can also select a different formula to use to build the salutation. If you want to build a salutation different from what the formulas provide, select Add Custom Salutation and type in the salutation as you wish it to appear.
1. If you use a custom name or salutation, it will not be updated automatically if you change any of the name fields in the future. You will have to make any changes to the custom name or salutation directly.
Job Title - in addition to adding this as an important piece of information about this person, you can choose to have this included in an office address.
Company/Division - you can use this field to record where this person works. This can be used in a query to find all of your constituents who work at a certain company, for example. It can also be included in an office address, along with the job title.
1. In additional to adding Job Title and Company/Division to the person's information here, you can also link them, from the Relationships tab, to the Organization record for the company they work for.
Birth Date - the person's birthday can be used to send birthday greetings.
Gender - if you know the person's gender, you can add it.
Is Primary - in each household, one person or couple is marked as the primary name for that household. The primary name is used to build the name of the household and is also used as the contact name for the household if no specific name is chosen. If you change the primary name, the name of the household changes to reflect the new primary name.
1. Note that for a couple, it is generally the couple that is marked as Primary. Make sure you also review the attributes associated with the couple. These appear in the right hand column when editing a couple name.
Is Solicitor - if this person is a volunteer solicitor for your fund raising efforts, check this box.
Is Volunteer - if this person volunteers at your organization, check this box. After you check the box, you can select a volunteer status for this person from the following list: Active, Inactive, On Call, Not a Volunteer.
Make Gifts Anonymous - if gifts from this person are generally anonymous, check this box.
Is Deceased - if this person is deceased, check this box. Checking the Is Deceased box simply marks this name. It does not exclude the name from mailings or lists. For more information about dealing with deceased names, see Deceased Names topic.
Notes - add any notes or comments about this person.
Person Tags - if you are making changes to an individual person, update the tags for that person.

Couple Attributes

If the name you are updating is a couple, there are some additional attributes you can edit:

Show Person 1, Show Person 2 - If you show an individual name, you can tag that name and add user-defined fields. You can also attribute gifts and direct mailings to that name alone. To add tags or other attributes to a person who is part of a couple, check the box to show their name and save your changes. Then select the name from the list at the top of the screen. The details for that person are displayed, and you can make changes to their tags and any user-defined fields.
Couple Name - the couple name is automatically updated by any name changes you have made. You can also select a different formula for building the name.
1. If you wish to type in a name for the couple that is different from what the formulas offer, select Add Custom Name from the list and type in the name as you wish it to appear.
Couple Salutation - the couple salutation is automatically updated by any name changes you have made. You can also select a different formula for building the salutation.
1. If you wish to type in a salutation for the couple that is different from what the formulas offer, select Add Custom Salutation from the list and type in the salutation as you wish it to appear.
Is Primary - use this to mark the couple as the primary name in the household.
Is Gift Anonymous - check this box if gifts from the couple are usually anonymous.
Notes - add or change notes about the couple
Couple Tags - make changes to tags attached to the couple.

Make sure you click on the Save button to save any changes you have made. If you do not wish to save your changes, you can close the screen without saving.

Step 2 - Household Attributes

Household Name - if your household name was created using a formula, it will be automatically updated by any changes you made to the primary name in Step 1. You can choose a different formula for the household name or you can add a custom name by select Add Custom Name from the list.
1. If you use a custom name, it will not be automatically updated by any changes you make to the primary name in the future. You will have to make any changes yourself.
Sort Key - a sort key is created for you when you first add a household. This is used when you wish to sort your households in alphabetical order. The sort key is not automatically updated when you change the name fields. You may need to edit the sort key if you have changed the names in the household.

The following list includes the additional fields that are available for defining household attributes. As noted above, these may be in a different order, they may not all be present, and there may be additional user-defined fields that are unique to your organization.

Type - this indicates the Type of this household, for example, a family, an individual, or a student's household. This list of options for household Type is created in the Admin tab.
Source - the Source code indicates how this name was acquired, for example from someone responding to a direct mail piece or from a list of friends supplied by a board member. This information can be used to track the best source of new prospects. The list of Source codes is created in the Admin tab.
Solicitor - if you wish to assign someone as the primary solicitor for this household, select the solicitor from the list. Solicitors and teams are set up in the Admin tab.
Do Not Solicit - if this household should not be included in solicitations, check the Do Not Solicit box.
Do Not Mail - if this household should not receive any mailings, check this box.
Do Not Phone - if this household should not receive any phone calls, check this box.
Do Not Email - if this household should not receive any email, check this box.
Web Site - if this household has a website, you can add it here.
Mailing Method - indicate if the household prefers to hear from you by email or by regular mail.
Notes - the notes box provides unlimited space to enter comments about this household.
Tags - tags can be used to categorize the household in many ways. You define your own set of household tags on the Admin Tab.

Make sure you click on the Save button to save any changes you have made. If you do not wish to save your changes, you can close the screen or move to the next tab without saving.

Step 3 - Addresses

You can add any number of addresses to a household. For each address, you add not just the address, but you indicate which names in the household the address belongs to, whether the address is not valid at certain times of the year, and whether the address is preferred for certain types of mailings.

As you look at the address fields below the list at the top, notice the label says "Add Address" or "Edit Address." This indicates whether you are adding a new address when you type in an address or changing an existing address.

When you first open this tab, the address fields are blank and the label says "Add Address." If you wish to add a new address, you can begin typing without clicking on any buttons.

If you wish to make changes to an existing address, select the address from the list at the top. The label changes to "Edit Address" and the details of the address appear below. Make any changes and click on Save.

If you have been editing existing addresses but wish to add a new address, click on the "Clear" button. This changes the label to "Add Address" and clears the address fields so you can enter a new address.

Make sure you click on the Save button to save any changes.

If you have made changes that you do not wish to save, use the "Reset" button to reset the fields back to their original values before you starting making changes.

Step 4 - Phones

You can add any number of phone numbers to a household. For each phone, but you indicate the type of phone number, whom in the household the phone belongs to, whether it is ok to call the number, and which phone number is preferred.

As you look at the phone fields below the list at the top, notice the label says "Add Phone" or "Edit Phone." This indicates whether you are adding a new phone when you type in an phone or changing an existing phone.

When you first open this tab, the phone fields are blank and the label says "Add Phone." If you wish to add a new phone, you can begin typing without clicking on any buttons.

If you wish to make changes to an existing phone, select the phone from the list at the top. The label changes to "Edit Phone" and the details of the phone appear below. Make any changes and click on Save.

If you have been editing existing phones but wish to add a new phone, click on the "Clear" button. This changes the label to "Add Phone" and clears the phone fields so you can enter a new phone.

Make sure you click on the Save button to save any changes.

If you have made changes that you do not wish to save, use the "Reset" button to reset the fields back to their original values before you starting making changes.

Step 5 - Email

You can add any number of email addresses to a household. For each email, you indicate whom in the household the email belongs to, whether it is ok to contact the person using that email address, and which email is preferred.

As you look at the email fields below the list at the top, notice the label says "Add Email" or "Edit Email." This indicates whether you are adding a new email when you type in an email or changing an existing email.

When you first open this tab, the email fields are blank and the label says "Add Email." If you wish to add a new email, you can begin typing without clicking on any buttons.

If you wish to make changes to an existing email, select the email from the list at the top. The label changes to "Edit Email" and the details of the email appear below. Make any changes and click on Save.

If you have been editing existing emails but wish to add a new email, click on the "Clear" button. This changes the label to "Add email" and clears the email fields so you can enter a new email.

Make sure you click on the Save button to save any changes.

If you have made changes that you do not wish to save, use the "Reset" button to reset the fields back to their original values before you starting making changes.