Configure Donation Notifications to Honoree
Quick Start
🌹 Setting up memorial/tribute notifications? Configure honoree acknowledgment fields to notify individuals or families when donations are made in their honor.
- Open donation opportunity → 2. Go to Donation Information → 3. Configure honoree fields → 4. Set acknowledgment status → 5. Verify setup
What you'll accomplish: Configure honoree acknowledgment fields for memorial and tribute donations to enable professional notification of honored individuals or families when gifts are made in their honor in about 8 minutes.
🚀 Quickstart
- Navigate to donation opportunity with honoree component
- Open Donation Information tab
- Configure honoree information fields
- Set honoree acknowledgment status
- Verify all required fields are populated
⚠️ Before You Start
📋 Prerequisites Checklist
- You have appropriate administrative permissions
- Access to Donation Acknowledgments app
- Memorial or tribute donation opportunities exist
- Understanding of honoree notification policies
- Email templates configured for honoree communications
💡 Understanding Honoree Acknowledgment Configuration
What Honoree Notifications Enable:
- Memorial gift notifications to families of deceased individuals
- Tribute gift notifications to living individuals being honored
- Professional communication about donations made in someone's honor
- Sensitive handling of memorial and tribute situations
Types of Honoree Donations:
- Memorial gifts - Donations in memory of deceased individuals
- Tribute gifts - Donations in honor of living individuals
- Special occasion - Donations for birthdays, anniversaries, achievements
- Recognition gifts - Donations honoring service or contributions
Honoree Workflow:
- Donation received in honor of individual
- Honoree information configured with appropriate details
- Acknowledgment status set for notification processing
- Notification sent to honoree or family
- Separate receipt sent to donor
Sensitive Communications
Honoree notifications require special sensitivity, particularly for memorial gifts. Ensure templates and processes are appropriate for these circumstances.
📘 Detailed Instructions
Step 1: Access Memorial/Tribute Donation
- Navigate to the Donation Acknowledgments app
- Find the donation opportunity that includes an honoree
- Open the opportunity record
- Verify this is a memorial or tribute donation
Step 2: Open Donation Information Tab
- Locate the Donation Information tab
- Click the tab to access donation-specific sections
- Find the "Honoree Information" section
- Prepare to configure honoree details
Step 3: Configure Honoree Information Fields
🌹 Required Honoree Information Fields
| Field | Required | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honoree Name | ✅ | Name of person being honored | "John Robert Smith" |
| Honoree Email | ✅ | Email for notification delivery | "family@smiths.com" |
| Honoree Acknowledgment Status | ✅ | Workflow tracking | "To Be Acknowledged" |
| Honoree Acknowledgment Status - Preview | ❌ | Preview email testing | "To Be Acknowledged" |
| Amount | ✅ | Donation amount (from opportunity) | $250.00 |
| General Accounting Unit | ✅ | Fund designation | "Memorial Fund" |
Special Considerations:
- Memorial gifts - Honoree name is deceased individual, email goes to family
- Tribute gifts - Honoree name and email can be the same person
- Family notification - Email address should reach appropriate family members
- Sensitive timing - Consider timing of notifications for memorial gifts
Configure Honoree Fields:
- Click "Honoree Information" to expand section
- Enter honoree name exactly as it should appear in notification
- Add appropriate email address for notification delivery
- Consider whether email goes to honoree or family
- Verify name spelling and email accuracy
Step 4: Set Honoree Acknowledgment Status
📧 Honoree Acknowledgment Status Options
Standard Status Values:
- "To Be Acknowledged" - Ready for honoree notification
- "Acknowledged" - Notification sent to honoree/family
- "Do Not Acknowledge" - Family requested no notification
- "Manual Acknowledgment Required" - Needs special handling
Preview Functionality:
- Enable preview - Set preview status to test email templates
- Test notifications - Verify email content and formatting
- Quality control - Ensure appropriate tone for memorial/tribute
Special Handling Cases:
- Recent loss - May need delayed notification for fresh memorial
- Family preferences - Some families prefer no notification
- Multiple honorees - Separate configuration for each honored individual
- Set "Honoree Acknowledgment Status" to "To Be Acknowledged"
- Optionally configure preview status for testing
- Consider timing sensitivity for memorial notifications
- Save opportunity record to preserve settings
Step 5: Verify Supporting Information
Check Related Information:
- Review donation amount and purpose
- Verify General Accounting Unit assignment
- Confirm donor information is also configured
- Check opportunity details for completeness
Memorial-Specific Verification:
- Deceased date if applicable for memorial tracking
- Relationship information between donor and honoree
- Special instructions from donor about notification
- Family contact preferences if known
✅ How to Know It Worked
Success Indicators:
- ✅ All required honoree information fields are populated
- ✅ Honoree acknowledgment status is set appropriately
- ✅ Email address is valid and reaches intended recipients
- ✅ Opportunity saves without validation errors
Testing the Configuration:
- Send preview email to verify template and content
- Check notification tone is appropriate for memorial/tribute
- Verify honoree name appears correctly formatted
- Test complete workflow from configuration to delivery
🆘 Troubleshooting
❌ Honoree Information Section Missing
Problem: Cannot find Honoree Information section on opportunity
Contact your System Administrator to verify:
- ✅ Page layout includes Honoree Information section
- ✅ Field-level security allows access to honoree fields
- ✅ Record type has correct page layout for donation opportunities
- ✅ Donation type configuration includes honoree functionality
❌ Honoree Email Validation Issues
Problem: Cannot save honoree email or validation errors occur
Solutions:
- ✅ Check email format - ensure valid email address format
- ✅ Verify field length - email may exceed character limit
- ✅ Test deliverability - confirm email address is active
- ✅ Check validation rules - may restrict certain email formats
❌ Acknowledgment Status Not Available
Problem: Cannot set or change honoree acknowledgment status
Solutions:
- ✅ Check picklist values - verify status options are configured
- ✅ Review permissions - ensure edit access to acknowledgment fields
- ✅ Verify field dependencies - status may depend on other fields
- ✅ Check workflow rules - may automatically control status values
❌ Preview Email Not Working
Problem: Preview functionality not available or not working
Solutions:
- ✅ Verify preview status - ensure preview field is populated
- ✅ Check email templates - confirm honoree templates exist
- ✅ Review permissions - ensure access to email preview functionality
- ✅ Test template merge - verify template field mappings work
💡 Best Practices
Honoree Notification Best Practices
- 🌹 Sensitive Communication - Use appropriate tone for memorial and tribute notifications
- 📝 Accurate Information - Double-check honoree names and family contact information
- ⏰ Timing Consideration - Be mindful of timing for memorial notifications
- 👥 Family Preferences - Respect family wishes regarding notifications
- 🧪 Template Testing - Always preview memorial/tribute emails before sending
- 📞 Personal Touch - Consider personal calls for significant memorial gifts
Communication Sensitivity:
- Memorial language - Use respectful, comforting language for memorial gifts
- Tribute tone - Use celebratory, honoring language for tribute gifts
- Family consideration - Consider family's grieving process and preferences
- Cultural awareness - Be sensitive to cultural and religious differences
Data Management:
- Honoree name accuracy - Verify correct spelling and full names
- Family contact validation - Ensure emails reach appropriate family members
- Relationship tracking - Document relationship between donor and honoree
- Privacy protection - Maintain confidentiality of family information
Workflow Management:
- Timely processing - Process memorial notifications promptly but sensitively
- Exception handling - Have procedures for special cases
- Follow-up tracking - Monitor whether notifications were received appropriately
- Coordination - Work with development team on sensitive memorial gifts