You can generate a Year-End Letter within the Constituents Grid using the Mail Merge feature.
- First, create a letter in Workspace > CRM > Mail Merge CRM Templates to act as the Cover Letter. See How Do I Create a Mail Merge Template to learn how to create a new template or edit an existing template.
- Next, filter the Constituents Grid to identify the constituents who will receive the letter. For example, you might want to filter the list under the YTD Received Amount and filter it for Is greater than or equal to 1. Or, you could also use the Last Gift Date column and filter for gifts Is equal to of after January 1st of this year. This will provide a list of all the constituents who have made a gift over the last year.
- Once your cover letter template is created and the grid is filtered, use the Actions menu and select Print/Email Mail Merge.
- A new dialog box will open where you can select the cover letter template you created and you can attach Cumulative Giving from the second dropdown box.
- Filter the date range and determine how you would like the data sorted and you have the option to suppress small transactions by entering the value of transactions you would like excluded from the list.
- The next box allows you to exclude different types of transactions, or transactions for specific For, Fund, Events or Appeals.
- The final option allows you to choose how you would like the Cumulative Giving report formatted.
Once you've completed those selections, you'll choose the delivery and archive options. Click OK to run.
Because this list will likely involve a large number of constituents, it may require additional time to process and execute the mail merge. If this happens, you will receive a message indicating the the mail merge is in the Mail Merge Queue. When it has been executed, you will receive an email letting you know that it is ready. You can check the status and download the documents from the Workspace>Reports>Mail Merge Queue. Click on View in the Link column.
