Hello all,
I'm setting up an Order Import Set for the first time and was wondering if anyone out there could help me with a set-up question. After watching the Order Import webinar and reading the documentation, I'm still not sure if it is possible to import the order numbers received from the outside vendor into each imported constituent's record in Tessitura as a numeric Attribute entry (perhaps using the Import_Ref_No_Location field?). If it is possible, does anyone know how and where I could set this up to be used for this utility?
The reason I wanted to create it as a Constituent Attribute, and not have it pre-pended to the order notes or a custom order field as the documentation might be suggesting, is so that our ticket agents can look up this unique outside vendor order number if they need to for a patron (using the Attribute search). As far as I'm aware, if each unique outside vendor order number is pre-pended to the order notes or a custom order field, it is not searchable (at least, not easily) for a front-end user? But perhaps that's not the case? Anyway, thanks for any help you can provide!
Hi Dana,
The only way to import the external order number as an attribute would be to put in the external constituent ID field in your import file. The only drawback to doing this is that you would just lose the ability to record the external ID as an attribute.
Kevin Sheehan
Senior Documentation & Learning Resources Specialist
Tessitura Network
+1 888 643 5778 x 329
ksheehan@tessituranetwork.com
Thank you, Kevin. That's what I thought may have to happen to work around this. If I went ahead and did this, does that mean that only new accounts will be created? I think what the documentation is saying is that the utility will try to find any established constituent accounts with the same value already entered in this Attribute field...and if an entry in this Attribute field does not exist/match, a new constituent account is created? Is that the case? If so, is there an easy way to pre-populate each constituent account with each unique Attribute value?
For some of the entries on the import data set, we do have established internal constituent ID's associated in that data set column. Would that override anything I've said above (if applicable)?
Thank you so much!