Turning Advocacy Activity Into Connected Constituent Data

Advocacy activity can provide valuable insight into how constituents engage with an organization. However, that data becomes harder to use when it lives in a separate platform from the rest of the constituent record.

The Humane Society of Huron Valley (HSHV) uses VoterVoice for advocacy management and Virtuous for CRM. To connect those systems, HSHV is using Data Sangria to create a one-way data integration between the two platforms.

The integration will keep advocacy activity and district information moving between the systems automatically.

Bringing Advocacy Actions Into Virtuous

Data Sangria will check VoterVoice every hour for new advocacy actions.

During each run, the integration will look for actions created since the previous successful sync. Then, it will identify the matching individual in Virtuous and add the advocacy activity to that person’s record.

This creates a direct connection between advocacy engagement and the constituent information already stored in Virtuous.

As a result, HSHV can keep more engagement data together without asking staff to manually move information between platforms.

Keeping Address and District Data Connected

Advocacy data also depends on accurate location information.

Because of that, this integration does more than sync advocacy actions. Data Sangria will also check Virtuous for contacts with new or changed addresses.

If the contact exists in VoterVoice, the integration will update the address there. Next, it will retrieve the updated district information and send it back to the contact record in Virtuous.

This workflow helps keep district data aligned as constituent information changes.

Automating the Integration Flow

Several steps happen during each Data Sangria sync.

First, the integration queries VoterVoice for new advocacy actions. Next, it matches those actions with the correct individuals in Virtuous.

Data Sangria also checks Virtuous for new contacts or address changes. When necessary, it updates VoterVoice and refreshes the corresponding district information in Virtuous.

The integration will run every hour. In addition, Data Sangria will provide monitoring capabilities so the HSHV team can keep an eye on the connection.

Building Around Real Business Rules

Moving data is only one part of an integration.

The systems also need clear rules for matching constituents, mapping fields, detecting changes, and determining what should happen during each sync.

For this project, the implementation includes testing for several key scenarios. These include new advocacy actions, individual matching, address changes, and district updates.

Defining those rules helps the integration support the actual workflow instead of simply transferring information from one platform to another.

Connecting Advocacy Data to the Bigger Picture

Organizations often use specialized platforms because each one serves a different purpose. The challenge is making sure the data inside those platforms can still work together.

For HSHV, Data Sangria will connect advocacy activity in VoterVoice with constituent records in Virtuous. It will also help keep address and district information current across the two systems.

That connection gives HSHV a more complete view of constituent engagement while reducing the manual work needed to maintain data across platforms.