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Categories, Tags, or Custom Fields?
May 02, 2024
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Should you use a tag, a custom field or a category? Here are some guidelines, but you may find that you need to deviate at times.
- If the information is intended to be for “internal use” only and is used to segment records into groups. For example: Minority owned, Hot Prospect, Ice-cream lovers
- If you wish to track information "temporarily". For example: You may have a tag called "Hot Prospect", but would remove this tag if the contact became a member.
- If the information is unique to a particular record. For example: number of employees, organization license number, established date, birthdate.
- If you wish to merge the fields into documents, emails etc.
- If you wish to create membership types with pricing based on formula. For example: Number of employees, annual revenue heads of cattle
- If you wish to display the information publicly, in the Info Hub, and/or allow members to edit this information
- If you wish to allow for advanced filtering on your directories
- Is intended for public or internal use and is used to segment records into groups
- If you wish to allow visitors to your directory, web content, events, etc. ability to filter to specific categories
- If you wish to display the information publicly, in the Info Hub, and/or editable in the Info Hub use a custom field.
See the table below for further comparison of tags, custom fields and categories
| Tags |
Custom Fields |
Categories | |
| Membership | |||
| Collect on Membership Application | Individual & Organization custom fields can be collected on the Membership Application | Category can be collected on the Membership Application | |
| Membership Types | Can be used to calculate formula based pricing | ||
| Membership Invoices | Can be included on membership invoices | ||
| Reporting | |||
| Contact/Member | All contact member reports can pull tags | All contact/member reports can pull custom fields | All contact/member reports can pull categories |
| Billing | Some Billing Reports can pull tags | All Billing reports can pull custom fields | All Billing reports can pull categories |
| Event | Some Event reports can pull Individual and Organization custom fields | ||
| Directory | |||
|
Public Display on website |
Can be used as a filtering option in the Directory If Directory Listing is using Advanced Search Options | May display for filtering purposes on public website | |
| Member Only Directory | Can be viewed on Info Hub Directory | Can be viewed on Info Hub Directory | |
| Visibility | |||
| Visible to Staff | Can be viewed in the back office | Can be viewed in the back office | Can be viewed in the back office |
| Visible to Public | Can be viewed in the Info Hub, if configured as Member Viewable | Can be used as a filtering option if the directory is using the Advanced Search Options | |
| Ease of Access | Can be viewed and created on the top of profile tab | On a separate tab (More Info) | On the profile tab, but lower on the screen |
| Creation/Deletion Control | Any staff member can create tags | Staff are able to control restrictions on who of their staff can create/delete custom fields | Staff are able to control restrictions on who of their staff can create/delete categories |
| Events | |||
| Event Registration | Visible on Event registration pages or can be staff only fields (i.e. table numbers | ||
| Forms/Surveys | |||
| Visibility | Can be included in forms, and responses can automatically update a contacts record | ||
| Continuing Education | |||
| Available for Certificates | As a merge field can be included on certificates | ||
| Available for Roster | As a merge field can be included on the roster |
