January Survival Guide: Essentials Edition
Year end reporting is a critical process for any organization, and CDM+ is here to help make this task as smooth and accurate as possible.
Webinars
CDM+ Year-End Webinar for Essentials
Email Updates
Beginning in November we send out notices to call out useful help articles. If you haven't received any emails from us, please contact support, support@cdmplus.com to add your email to our distribution list.
Year End Checklist
Below you will find a checklist PDF of CDM+ procedures to guide you through your year-end tasks. Use this checklist and time frames as suggestions only
Year End Checklist CDM+ Essentials.pdf
Process Pending Donations
Before generating statements, be sure to process pending contributions so that all donors receive acknowledgement of their gifts.
Process Pending Donations/Gifts
Merge Donor Records
If you have multiple records for the same donor, be sure to merge those records so the donor only receives one statement.
Prepare and Send Statements
Once your records are ready, it's time to send statements!
How to Generate and Publish Online Giving Statements
How to Print End of Year Giving Statements
Tips for Getting Help in January
Each January our clients revisit annual tasks and often need help getting them completed before the end of the month. As such, the month of January is our busiest for support. We receive twice as many support requests during January as the other months of the year.
We’ve put resources together on this site to help you succeed in your January tasks, but we also stand ready to give you help when you need it. Our goal is to ensure we get you a great answer as soon as possible.
Here are some tips to help ensure you have the best experience possible when contacting us for help.
Open a ticket directly
Whether you use the Help Center, email, or call, you'll create a ticket in our support queue. The most direct path to our support team is using the Help Center.
Click Contact Support in the lower right-hand corner of this page
Fill out the form
Submit
You'll get an email reply letting you know the ticket was created.
You can use this form to indicate your need is urgent. This will put your ticket towards the top of the queue.
You can also open a ticket by emailing us at support@cdmplus.com with the following information:
Your name
Your organization's name
Your callback number
Your availability
Share some details
If you have a screenshot, PDF report, or other example, you can include those in the Contact Support form or your email. The more details you provide, the faster we can help you get a solution.
Skip the line, even if you want a call
We're happy to work with you via phone, email, or both. If you would prefer a phone call, the fastest way to get on our call back queue is to open a ticket and let us know you prefer a callback.
Please know we endeavor to respond to requests within 8 business hours, which are 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday - Friday. If you request help within the last 8 business hours of the day, please let us know the next day and time you will be available as well.
We are always happy to speak with you if you call us at 800-633-9581. When you call, a receptionist will take your information and open a ticket for you. This ticket goes into the same queue that receives emails, so clicking Contact Support or emailing us to request a callback will skip the line to have a receptionist enter a ticket on your behalf.
Our support team will respond as soon as possible, following the order in which tickets were opened, regardless of if the ticket came from an the Help Center, email, or was created by a receptionist.
Schedule calls in advance
If you prefer a phone call and have limited availability or need special personnel present for your call, such as an IT person or CPA, try scheduling a callback. Calls are prioritized based on when they are received, so emailing us on a Tuesday to schedule a callback on a Thursday will prioritize your call ahead of any call requests that come in the day of the callback.
To schedule a callback, simply open a ticket with your name, organization name, phone number, and requested callback time. While we can’t guarantee the exact minute we’ll call you back, a scheduled call is much more predictable and can often arrive within a 30-minute window.
Save project calls for February
We never want to encourage you to not contact us for help. However, if you have a project that can wait until February and you expect to need our help, it may be preferable to wait until the January rush is over to begin the project. This will ensure you can get timely help and succeed in your work.
Please note there is no formal deadline for archiving. If you need help our support team's help when archiving we recommend focusing on other year-end tasks in January, then contact us for help with archiving in February.
Leave complete voicemails
We staff both extra receptionists and support technicians during January. If you prefer to have a receptionist create a callback ticket for you but are unable to reach a receptionist, please be sure to include ALL this information in your voicemail:
Your church or organization’s mailing zip code
Your church or organization’s name
Your church or organization’s city
Your name
Your callback number
Your email address
Your availability
A brief description of what you need help with
You can always email support@cdmplus.com to request a callback as well.
In summary
We are ready and waiting to help you succeed in your January tasks. Our hope is these tips will help you succeed in January and get you complete solutions as quickly as possible.