Raiser's Edge NXT: Web View vs Database View

This short blog post is designed for users of Raiser’s Edge NXT to get a quick view of which system to use for what purpose. There are two views into Raiser’s Edge: the Web View and the Database View.

It should be noted that the list below is subjective and should be used as a basis for further development - each organisation has different needs! We’ve tried to include record data entry and key data management functions.

Web View - What To Use It For:

  1. Creating/Editing Constituent records, address, notes, relationships etc.
  2. Consent.
  3. Opportunities/Prospects.
  4. Actions (some fields not available) – Summary is Action Note description, Notes is the Action Note.
  5. Gifts: one-off gift transactions are fine for Web View (Gift code is not available in Batch).
  6. Recurring Gifts. Only Blackbaud Merchant Services (BBMS) committed gifts supported. I.e. credit card regular donations.
  7. Gift Aid Declarations (and Gift Aid Claims).
  8. Required fields are not currently enforced in Web View- if they have repurposed or labelled fields in Database View, they will show as the standard (“out-of-the-box”) fields in Web View.
  9. Relationships: Constituents & Spouse.
  10. Attachments: remember to link to SharePoint, rather than drag and drop into the Files options in Raiser’s Edge NXT.
  11. Merging constituents.
  12. Query and Lists.
  13. Analytics and (most) Standard Reports

Database View - What To Use It For:

  1. Relationships: non-constituents only.
  2. Volunteering.
  3. Contributions and Giving Preferences.
  4. Assigned Appeals.
  5. Recurring Gifts - ie. All Direct Debits.
  6. Grid-style Batches.
  7. Tributes. (Although the basics can be entered in Web View.)
  8. Events - although there is lots in the Web View!
  9. Membership - although the basics are in the Web View.
  10. Imports, Global Change, Global Delete, data managements rules in Business Rules.

NXT is evolving all the time, so let us us know if this needs a change!