How our New Raiser's Edge NXT Integration Matches Constituents

When someone makes a purchase on your Trellis fundraiser, our integration completes three steps:

1. Match or create a constituent

2. Sync the gift

3. Sync event participants (if applicable).

This article covers the first step on how we match constituents.

How Matching Works

1. Initial Search: We search your database using Last Name, Last Name + Email, and Last Name + Phone.
   1. Raiser's Edge NXT requires a last name for every search, so it's always included.
2. Ranking: We rank every candidate from that search using First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone, and Address.
   1. We check all contact info on file for a constituent, not just the primary entry.
3. Match Decision: If one candidate is a clear, perfect match, we sync the gift to that constituent.
   1. If several candidates rank closely, we send the top matches to an AI model to validate the best fit.
   2. If no matches rank closely, we err on the side of caution and create a new constituent.

Matching Organization Constituents

If a purchase is made on behalf of a company or organization, we run the individual match logic first, then check if that individual has a relationship to an organization with the same name.

• If a matching relationship exists, we use that organization.
• If not, we search Raiser's Edge NXT by organization name and rank best fits.
  • An exact name match is made automatically.
  • If several constituents rank closely, we send the top matches to an AI model to validate the best fit.

Preventing Match Errors

To avoid syncing a gift to the wrong constituent, our system prioritizes creating a duplicate over risking an incorrect match.

• False Positive: The integration matches the wrong constituent. This is rare, since ranking checks all contact info before a match is made.
• False Negative: The integration doesn't find an existing constituent. This can happen when there isn't enough contact info on the checkout or the constituent record to make a confident match. You can correct this later using Raiser's Edge's de-duplication tools.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to set up match criteria?

No. Matching is now fully automatic. There's nothing to configure in your fundraiser builder.

Can the integration match with non-constituents?

Yes. It searches both full and non-constituent records. Non-constituents can't have gift data added directly, so they need to be converted to full constituents to sync correctly. If the non-constituent is just an event participant (guest of host), they can remain as a non-constituent.

What happens if the integration can't find a match?

If no clear or validated match is found, Trellis creates a new constituent using the information collected at checkout.

Is my donor data used to train AI models?

No. We use a paid, open source AI model hosted on AWS only to validate close matches. Your data is never shared with third parties or used for training AI models.

Can we disable the AI portion of the matching logic?

No. AI validation is required to maintain match accuracy. Since every part of the integration depends on the gift syncing to the correct constituent, this step can't be turned off.

We sell raffle tickets in Canada to donors that don't have email addresses. Can we use the integration if we enter dummy emails at purchase?

Yes, however the integration will be less accurate, as the email addresses on the constituents are inaccurate. We recommend gathering email addresses for all sales.

Can we control what contact information gets added to constituents?

No. Our integration will never override existing data on your constituents. We will only ever add any new contact information to constituents. This includes email addresses, phone numbers, and mailing addresses. 

How are mailing addresses matched and saved? 

Our integration will standardize common words in addresses to Canada Post and USPS standards before we match and sync the address.

What should we do if integration matched to the wrong constituent?

In the rare case that our integration matched to the wrong constituent, please report the incident to us using this form, so we can investigate. With our updated logic, this typically happens because the constituent has incorrect contact information on their record in RE NXT, that caused the logic to make the match.