CAA Product Help

(HELP ?) Circles provide narratives on Training, Explanations, and Hints. These can be related to the overall screen, or to specific items on the screen.



** Note: Refer to the (NAVIGATION HELP ?) circle on the Information Bar of MemberLink immediately after logging into MemberLink to see the screen sections and layouts used by all the CAA Products.



This (HELP ?) circle narrative is for the "CONTRIBUTIONS" screen or Display Panel in ContributionLink.



Section 1 - Overview



Everything having to do with Contributions (Donations) starts on this screen.



The records that appear on this CONTRIBUTIONS Display Panel are the "active records" related to contributions that have been posted in MemberLink®. Tithes, offerings, and financial gifts can be posted to a "person" or to an "envelope number", whichever method your church prefers to use. Each envelope number is linked to a specific person in MemberLink.



** Note: Donations not related to any specific person can be posted to Envelope Number = "GIFT". For example, loose cash and change from the offering plate and anonymous contributions can be accounted for in this way.



Section 2 - Navigation Panel



Navigation Panel RESET

Click this Hyperlink to show all donations on the CONTRIBUTIONS Display Panel again. The list of donation transactions may have been filtered or limited by a previous SEARCH or other functions. The "RESET" hyperlink will clear the settings and make all donations "active" again.



Navigation Panel SEARCH

Click this Hyperlink to go to the "SELECT CONTRIBUTIONS" screen to SEARCH for a specific donation or group of donations. You can use this function to narrow the list of contributions that are active on the CONTRIBUTIONS Display Panel . You can SEARCH for transaction records by contribution date range, by person name, by fund, by envelope number, by status, by check number, or by batch number, etc.



Navigation Panel ADD NEW CONTRIBUTION

Click this hyperlink to go to the "ADD CONTRIBUTION" screen to enter donations. This is the first way you can enter donations.



Navigation Panel CONTRIBUTIONS QUEUE

Click this hyperlink to go to the "CONTRIBUTION QUEUE" screen to enter donations. This is the second way you can enter donations.



Navigation Panel EXPORT CONTRIBUTIONS

Click this hyperlink to go to EXPORT donation transactions to a spreadsheet. The Export is immediate, it does not go to another screen to do the Export.



Navigation Panel EXPORT FUND TOTALS

Click this hyperlink to go to EXPORT donation fund sub-totals to a spreadsheet. This does not EXPORT the individual transactions, only summaries for each Fund. The Export is immediate, it does not go to another screen to do the Export.



Section 3 - Display Panel



On this CONTRIBUTIONS Display Panel , you can view the name of the donor; the amount, date, and description of the donation; and more.



Here is an overview of each column:



"SELECT" Column:

This column offers "highlighting" Checkboxes. When you click a Checkbox, that row is highlighted. You may highlight one or more rows. This feature is provided as a convenience if you need to focus on certain rows of records (donation transactions).



Also, there are special buttons above and below the "SELECT" column that you can use to retain or exclude highlighted rows. In effect, this removes the records you do not want to see, leaving as active records only those you do want to see.



"ENV. NO." Column:

This column shows the Envelope Number assigned to each posted transaction. You can sort the transactions by Envelope Number using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header area.



** Note: The Envelope Number is also a hyperlink. Clicking the "ENVELOPE NUMBER" hyperlink allows you to add another contribution for this person - automatically using this same Envelope Number. This would be a fast method for posting another donation, since the Envelope Number and Donor Name will already be plugged in when the "ADD CONTRIBUTIONS" screen comes up.



"NAME" Column:

This column shows the Donor Name assigned to each posted transaction. You can sort the transactions by Name using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header area.



"AMOUNT and TYPE" Column:

This column shows the amount of the posted transaction; and in parentheses, the Contribution Type. You can sort the column by either Amount or Type using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header.



** Note: Amounts in the column displayed in green are "split" contributions (meaning one donation amount split into two or more smaller amounts going into different funds). For example, a check for $200 could be posted $150 to the general fund and $50 to the capital campaign fund.



"FUND" Column:

This column shows which Fund the amount was applied to. You can setup as many Funds as you want, giving them any name you want to meet your church's specific needs. You can sort the transactions by Fund using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header area.



To add or update Fund Categories, click on the "FUNDS" tab on the Operations Bar .



"DESCRIPTION or BATCH NUMBER" Column:

This column shows the Description of the posted transactions, if one was entered. Description is an optional field. However, if you click the "CIRCULAR ARROW" symbol in the column header, the column changes to show the Batch Control Number, if one was entered. Batch Number is also an optional field. The "CIRCULAR ARROW" symbol toggles the column back and forth between Description and Batch Number. You can sort the transactions by either Description or Batch Number using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header area.



"DATE" Column:

This column shows the Contribution Date (or posting date) of the donation. The default sorting of transactions displayed on this CONTRIBUTIONS Display Panel will be descending values in this "DATE" column. In the default sorting, the most recent transaction will be at the top, the oldest at the bottom of the list. However, you can sort the transactions by Date using the ascending and descending arrows provided in the column header area.



"VIEW" Column:

This column has a hyperlink that allows you to "View" a specific posted transaction and a hyperlink that allows you to see a "Report" for the person in the "NAME" column.



"MODIFY" Column:

This column has a hyperlink that takes you to the "MODIFY CONTRIBUTION" screen where you can update or correct an existing donation transaction.



"REMOVE" Column:

This column allows you to delete existing transactions. Use the Checkboxes to identify those posted transactions you want to remove "” to delete completely from the system. Then scroll to the bottom of the screen and click the [DELETE CHECKED CONTRIBUTION(S)] button.



** Warning:

Deleted transactions disappear from the database and cannot be recovered. They are gone!

"CAA Product Help" from CAA Ministries at Support@CAAsoftware.com or 404-551-4230