seemingly simple query not working

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I'm looking for donors who bought tickets for one event 3 years consecutively.  I need it to be a constituent query so I can merge it with other constituent queries.  My criteria is:

(Appeal ID equals TOC12

AND Appeal ID equals TOC13

AND Appeal ID equals TOC14)

AND Package ID equals Tickets

This query results in 0 records.  I removed the packagae ID in case the probelm lies there, but still results in 0.

 Am I off base in assuming this should work and need to create separate queries and merge them for desired results?

 THANK YOU.

Comments

  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    I'm looking for donors who bought tickets for one event 3 years consecutively.  I need it to be a constituent query so I can merge it with other constituent queries.  My criteria is:

    (Appeal ID equals TOC12

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC13

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC14)

    AND Package ID equals Tickets

    This query results in 0 records.  I removed the packagae ID in case the probelm lies there, but still results in 0.

     Am I off base in assuming this should work and need to create separate queries and merge them for desired results?

     THANK YOU.

    That's the way I would have thought to do it first, too, but you're right that it doesn't work. Instead, try using the "one of" operator, entering your three appeals, and checking the "each record must meet all specified criteria" box at the bottom.
  • Vanessa Taylor:
    That's the way I would have thought to do it first, too, but you're right that it doesn't work. Instead, try using the "one of" operator, entering your three appeals, and checking the "each record must meet all specified criteria" box at the bottom.

    Thanks Vanessa.  That did not work when I add the packagae either.  BB is suggesting I create 3 separate queries and merge using AND.  I'll go that route, but this really seems to me that it should be possible to accomplish in one query.  Met some resistance when I continued to question :( 

    Thanks for your reply and have a great day.

  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    Thanks Vanessa.  That did not work when I add the packagae either.  BB is suggesting I create 3 separate queries and merge using AND.  I'll go that route, but this really seems to me that it should be possible to accomplish in one query.  Met some resistance when I continued to question :( 

    Thanks for your reply and have a great day.

    Try package description "contains" instead of one of in your query and that may work.

  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    I'm looking for donors who bought tickets for one event 3 years consecutively.  I need it to be a constituent query so I can merge it with other constituent queries.  My criteria is:

    (Appeal ID equals TOC12

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC13

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC14)

    AND Package ID equals Tickets

    This query results in 0 records.  I removed the packagae ID in case the probelm lies there, but still results in 0.

     Am I off base in assuming this should work and need to create separate queries and merge them for desired results?

     THANK YOU.

    I recall being told by Blackbaud support that RE queries do not like when you repeat the same criteria with different parameters - so here you have three query lines with the same field but three different 'equals' conditions. I think RE does not handle this well - hence their suggestion to do this in separate queries and then use merge. Sometimes you can use the 'one of', enter all three criteria and then check the 'must meet all criteria' to get around this.
  • Gina Gerhard:
    I recall being told by Blackbaud support that RE queries do not like when you repeat the same criteria with different parameters - so here you have three query lines with the same field but three different 'equals' conditions. I think RE does not handle this well - hence their suggestion to do this in separate queries and then use merge. Sometimes you can use the 'one of', enter all three criteria and then check the 'must meet all criteria' to get around this.
    That's frustrating! It worked for me in our sample database when I tried Appeal ID one of X, Y, Z (must meet all criteria) and package ID equals W. I didn't try it with differing package IDs, though.
  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    Thanks Vanessa.  That did not work when I add the packagae either.  BB is suggesting I create 3 separate queries and merge using AND.  I'll go that route, but this really seems to me that it should be possible to accomplish in one query.  Met some resistance when I continued to question :( 

    Thanks for your reply and have a great day.

    From what you wrote, it would appear that you're looking at the gift appeal. What RE is doing in that situation is looking at the appeals on each gift -- and one gift wouldn't have all three, which is why you're getting 0 records.

    Sadly the way the query module is set up, running three queries and merging them is pretty much the only way to do it.

    You can speed up the query merge process by using the REMail segmentation function and creating an output query.

  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    I'm looking for donors who bought tickets for one event 3 years consecutively.  I need it to be a constituent query so I can merge it with other constituent queries.  My criteria is:

    (Appeal ID equals TOC12

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC13

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC14)

    AND Package ID equals Tickets

    This query results in 0 records.  I removed the packagae ID in case the probelm lies there, but still results in 0.

     Am I off base in assuming this should work and need to create separate queries and merge them for desired results?

     THANK YOU.

    If you want them donors who bought tickets in consecutive years.  You could run the Reports --> Analytical Report --> Consecutive Years Report and filter on the Appeals.  and on the General Tab of that report check the box at the bottom for Export a Query.  That way you have a query with this info.
  • Kathleen McGuinness:

    I'm looking for donors who bought tickets for one event 3 years consecutively.  I need it to be a constituent query so I can merge it with other constituent queries.  My criteria is:

    (Appeal ID equals TOC12

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC13

    AND Appeal ID equals TOC14)

    AND Package ID equals Tickets

    This query results in 0 records.  I removed the packagae ID in case the probelm lies there, but still results in 0.

     Am I off base in assuming this should work and need to create separate queries and merge them for desired results?

     THANK YOU.

     I set this up the way you have it and I got everybody if they had any one result with a combined appeal and package. It looks like support is correct and you will have to do three queries and then merge. Unfortunately, you will not be able to use the segment feature of mail to merge your queries. Segment will add everyone who is in one of the three queries. You will get a constituent if they only bought tickets to one or two events.

     You will need to merge Query TOC12 with Query TOC13, using the operator AND, to create Query 12+13. Then merge Query 12+13 with Query TOC14 to create your final query.

  • Michael Sherman:

     I set this up the way you have it and I got everybody if they had any one result with a combined appeal and package. It looks like support is correct and you will have to do three queries and then merge. Unfortunately, you will not be able to use the segment feature of mail to merge your queries. Segment will add everyone who is in one of the three queries. You will get a constituent if they only bought tickets to one or two events.

     You will need to merge Query TOC12 with Query TOC13, using the operator AND, to create Query 12+13. Then merge Query 12+13 with Query TOC14 to create your final query.

    Thank you everyone for your responses. Yes, Michael, I did it that way succesfully.  Though I tried every which way beforehand, to no avail!  I'm kind of stubborn that way.  I got close in one query where I used package "not one of", but still did not result in exactly what I needed. 

    Christine, I started this trying the consecutive years report but it does not filter on packages, which is where we code ticket purchases.

    Thanks again everyone.  I really appreciate having peers who are so willing to help.

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