To enable the system to perform logic checks for you automatically as accounts are being entered
  manually or grouped by a batch process, there is an  Account Matching Setup window that needs to be
  filled out.  This setup window will contain your company's preferences and parameters that the
  system will use as default settings to decision whether each incoming account is the same person as
  any debtor in pre-existing inventory.  It also contains general defaults that will govern what other
  possible actions will, or will not, happen as a function of accounts being grouped together.
  The Account Matching Setup window is located via the menu path "System\Preferences\Plans and Reference
  Tables\Account Matching Setup".
  The window is organized into sections labelled Options, Check, Copy, Cascade and Advanced Match
  Conditions.
Click Here to Close this Form.
  Account matching automatically detects matching
  accounts and groups these accounts together.
  The Account Matching Setup form stores default settings
  for Collect! to use when matching accounts. These settings
  determine how Collect! looks for matches and what it does
  if it finds them.
   
  
Account Matching Setup Window
  Account matching handles two basic conditions - first,
  when new accounts are entered, and second, when existing
  accounts are grouped together arbitrarily.
  When entering new accounts, Collect! checks for matching
  entries such as name, or social security number. When you
  exit from a field after typing something, Collect! checks if
  there's another account with a matching or close value. If there
  is, it displays a list and lets you choose one.
 When adding accounts to an existing group, the
          current settings in the Account Matching Setup
          window are set on added accounts. When creating new
          group, the current settings are set on all accounts.
 When adding accounts to an existing group, the
          current settings in the Account Matching Setup
          window are set on added accounts. When creating new
          group, the current settings are set on all accounts.
Accessing Account Matching Setup
  The Account Matching Setup window may be accessed in
  multiple ways. Provided your User Level provides the software
  access, you can use one of the following ways to get to the
  Account Matching Setup:
  
    - Using the menu bar at the top of your screen, click
        "System\Preferences\Plans and Reference Tables\Account
        Matching Setup".
- From the Main Menu, click the "System Administration"
        button on the left of the window, then click "Setup and
        Configuration" button.  This will take you to the same
        menu options as above.  Click "Plans and Reference Tables\Account
        Matching Criteria" to complete the navigation to the
        same destination as in #1 above.
 
Options
  This section contains account matching
  options.  The selections are explained below.
 
Enable Account Matching
  This switch turns on the account matching
  feature.  When you turn the switch off,
  account matching is disabled.
 
Disable Account Matching
  You can enable or disable account matching
  using the 'Enable account matching' check box.
 
Prompt Before Cascading Changes
  Turn ON the Prompt before Cascading Changes
  switch with a check mark to receive a prompt
  to verify before copying data.
  It is important to switch this ON if you
  have any doubts about the data you may
  be copying.
 
Prevent Cascade When Closed
  Switch this ON with a check mark to prevent
  cascading of data to group members where the
  account has a Closed Mode. Collect! will still
  show matching records if the account is closed,
  but it will not cascade any data or changes to
  closed accounts. This switch is in the Group
  Member Setup form as well.
 
Cascade Phone Deletions
  Switch this ON with a check mark to cascade
  phone deletions. With this switch ON, you can
  delete a phone number for one group member
  and Collect! will delete the number from the
  other group members, as well.
  Any phone number deleted by this process will be
  logged to the Debtor's Notes.
 
Prompt On Phone Deletes
  Switch this ON with a check mark to alert
  the user before cascading phone deletions.
  If this switch is ON, the user will be
  warned only when a phone number is about
  to be lost due to a blank cascading across
  the group. This prompt will only occur
  once per set of group members. If the
  user selects NO, blanks will not cascade
  across, otherwise they will.
  Any phone number deleted by this process
  will be logged to the Debtor's Notes.
  This switch is visible only when "Cascade
  phone deletions" is switched ON.
 
Manage Group Promises
  Switch ON 'Manage group promises' to
  have Collect! manage promised payments for group
  members. Collect! will advance the debtor's
  Promise date when the promise is met. Specified
  contact plans for full payment, underpayment,
  overpayment, NSF payment and broken payment
  conditions are called when necessary. The
  payment can be posted to any group member and
  Collect! will find the next qualifying promise
  contact in the group to manage.
  When this switch is ON and a payment is posted,
  Collect! automatically fills in Promise details
  based on the Promise contact's promised Amount
  and the setting for Transaction Type in the
  Payment Values form.
  For this feature to work, 'Automatically manage
  promises' on the Payment Posting Options form
  must be set to ON.
 If this feature is enabled, when an
          account's balance reaches $0.00, then
          the Promise Contact will move to the
          next Group Member with the highest balance.
 If this feature is enabled, when an
          account's balance reaches $0.00, then
          the Promise Contact will move to the
          next Group Member with the highest balance.
 
Prompt To Run Plan On Group
  Switch this ON with a check mark to to enable
  run plans on groups from the RUN PLAN field
  and ACTION button on the debtor form. When
  enabled, if you run a contact plan on the debtor,
  and you are on a group, Collect! will prompt you
  asking if you want to run the contact plan on
  the entire group or just the current member.
 
Share Notes By Default
  Switch ON 'Share notes by default' to display
  the 'Share Notes' tab on the Debtor by default.
  The 'Share Notes' tab displays all the notes
  from all group members in a single tab. The
  notes in this tab are read only and cannot
  be edited.
 
Full SSN Wildcard
  Switch ON 'Full SSN Wildcard' to search the
  entire SSN for the partial match when using
  the * character. When off, only the last 4 of
  the SSN are used for the partial search.
 
Check And Prompt On Near Matches
  Check and Prompt on Near Matches controls
  which fields are automatically checked for
  matching debtors as you enter information.
  You will be prompted when near matches are
  found. The settings are explained below.
 
Match Name
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the Name
  field.
 
Match Contact
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the Contact
  field.
 
Match Phones
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in any of the
  phone fields.
 
Match SSN
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the SSN
  field.
 
Match DOB
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the DOB
  field.
 
Match DL
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the DL field.
 
Match Email
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the email field.
 
Match Acct
  Enabling this switch invokes an attempt to
  try to match newly entered or newly edited
  accounts based on information in the acct field.
 
Copy When Creating
  The Copy When Creating New Records controls
  whether or not you will copy a particular
  field's information FROM the EXISTING account
  TO the NEW account being entered.  This will
  save you time, should the information be
  identical.
  Data in the new debtor will be overwritten
  by the data in the matching existing account.
  If you do not want to risk losing possibly
  newer information or previously unknown trace
  leads if a prior demographic is unknown on
  existing accounts, then DO NOT use this feature.
  The options below control which fields you
  have overwrite ability FROM and EXISTING account
  TO a NEW account being entered:
 
Copy Name
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the Name field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy Contact
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the Contact field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy Phones
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in all phone fields to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy SSN
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the SSN field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy DOB
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the DOB field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy DL
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the DL field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy Address
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the address fields to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy POE
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the POE field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Copy Email
  When this switch is ON, the process will copy
  the information in the email field to a newly
  entered account from the original account,
  if there is a match.
 
Cascade Data To Other
  The Cascade Data to Other Group Members
  controls how the accounts in a group are
  synchronized with respect to shared fields
  when an update takes place on ONE account
  in the group.
  We recommend caution with this feature: it
  does overwrite information in the target fields
  once an update has been initiated on any
  account in the group.
  A popular switch pairing is the use of Cascade
  along with the Options switch to "Prevent
  cascade when closed".
  Each group member has its own cascade settings
  located inside the Group Tab, Group Member
  Setup.  It is possible to fine-tune the settings
  ad hoc on a per group basis if the need arises.
  Additionally, you can modify the settings to
  be different on select members within a group
  such that some group members remain independent
  and/or unaffected by updates.
  The choices to control cascading data are
  explained below:
 
Cascade Name
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered into the Name field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade Contact
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered into the Contact field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade Phones
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered into any phone fields
  across all matching accounts.
  If you want to cascade deleting phone numbers,
  you must switch ON "Cascade phone deletions."
 
Cascade SSN
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered in the SSN field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade DOB
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered into the DOB field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade DL
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered in the DL field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade Address
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered in the address
  fields across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade POE
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered in the POE field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade Email
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade any edits entered in the email field
  across all matching accounts.
 
Cascade Worked
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade the Worked Date of an account across
  all matching accounts.
  The Worked Date on grouped accounts is
  always kept up-to-date on all group members,
  and is shown in red if someone worked the
  account already today. In this way, you can be
  sure you won't be calling the same account in
  one day.
 
Cascade Status
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade changes of the Status Code of an
  account across all matching accounts.
  If your site uses statuses such as PIF,
  SIF, DIS etc., you may wish to leave
  this switch OFF to prevent an accidental
  sweep of a status code that was meant
  for a single account inside the group.
 
Cascade Notes
  When this switch is ON, the feature will
  cascade notes to other members in the
  established group, provided the 'Cascade
  notes' switch is also activated within the
  Group Tab of the individual debtor accounts.
  Visit the Collect! Member Center for a utility
  report to assist with mass updating of the
  "Cascade notes" and "Share notes" switches
  in pre-existing groups.  Choose the drop-down
  menu Add-Ons, then the category "Utility Reports
  and Snippets" from the body of the page.  If
  you are logged into the Member Center, the
  zip called "Group Notes - Cascading and Share
  Notes Tab".  The zip file contains a write back
  report that will optimize your ability to activate
  the new fields. To utilize the report, import the
  .rpt file into your system and follow the
  directions which come with the report zip file.
  Cascade notes may be further controlled for
  each individual site by the 'Prevent cascade
  when closed' and 'Prompt before cascading
  changes' switches in the Options area of the
  Account Matching Setup window.
 
Advanced Match Conditions
  This section is where you define the criteria
  that will be used to determine which fields
  in combination of Boolean AND/OR conditions
  will be used to decision whether a new account
  entering the system will be deemed a match to
  one or more accounts currently existing in your
  database.  Criteria for the match conditions
  are chosen from the pick lists on the fields.
  Press F1 for additional details when your
  cursor is within this input entry area.
 
Commit
  Select this button to commit your changes.
  In progress.
 
OK
  Selecting this button will save any data
  you have entered and return you to the
  previous form.
 
Cancel
  Select this button to ignore any changes
  you may have made and then return to the
  previous form.
 
Help
  Select this for help on the Account
  Matching Setup window and links to related
  auto-grouping topics.
 
 
  Check this ON if you want to use automated account matching.  Leave it unchecked if you will not be
  utilizing grouping at all.
  Check this ON if you want the system to give you a popup window to which the user must respond by
  clicking Yes or No each time it prepares to cascade data across the group.  Leave this unchecked if
  you want the system to cascade information as per the switch settings, with no prompt to the user.
  Check this ON if you want the system to ignore any account with Mode "Closed" that may be part of a
  group when information is available to be cascaded.  This is a popular switch to have turned ON where
  agencies are required by their  clients to cease documenting accounts in any way once accounts have
  been closed/recalled/reassigned to other agencies.  This switch ensures only accounts with Mode
  Active (and any status) will be eligible for auto-cascade.
  Check this ON if you want the system to remove the same phone number on all accounts in the group
  at the same time (Mode Active or Closed being governed by the switch above).  Leave this unchecked
  if you do not want auto-removal of a phone number on all  matching accounts.
  The switches in this section decide whether a user will be presented with a browse list of "near"
  matches when data-entering  New Business or keying in a search for a specific debtor.
  Recommendation is to leave all of the switches in this section OFF rather than have your staff being
  inundated with lists of accounts that are not remotely related to the new debtor or account being
  searched for.
  The switches in this section are inquiring for specific fields you may, or may not, wish to have
  auto-copied to NEW accounts from EXISTING accounts if there is a grouping taking place.
  Recommendation is to leave all of these switches in this section OFF.  If there is any error or
  omission in existing inventory OR the new account incoming has more recent / good demographics,
  then having this switch ON will mask that data with the overwrites. Additionally, if your office
  does litigation, you would not want to alter the exact name with which the debtor entered into their
  obligation with the creditor.
  The switches in this section pertain to how the system will handle updates made to an account that
  is a member of a group of accounts. There are 11 different types of cascades you can turn ON or
  OFF, as per your site's preferences. Because these switches overwrite existing data on all files
  in the group (Active or Closed, depending on a separate switch under Options), we recommend extreme
  care be taken and that your  Access Rights "Log to Notes" switches are set on individual fields.
  Because typographical errors can also occur with staff doing field updates that will cascade, you
  may also wish to limit which fields are allowed to cascade.
  This section governs what criteria will be used to decision whether an incoming account is a match
  to one or more accounts already existing in your database AND what fields to make comparisons with
  when accounts are being manually grouped together by a user.
  Collect! ships with a set of default match conditions that should be reviewed and updated for your
  site's preferences before commencing to group accounts manually or via batch process.
  The entry area is visual, but represents Boolean logic checks:  reading across horizontally, these
  are fields which are joined by "AND" conditions.  Example, the match will only be made if the Name
  AND social security number of the NEW account compared to an existing account are the same. If that
  is not true, then the decision tree moves to the next condition. The separate lines of conditions
  are joined by an "OR" mathematical  operator.  It is the "OR" condition that allows the process to
  continue to read vertically through the four lines of logic the system provides to define matching
  criteria.  While it sounds laborious, the software manages these checks live while a staff member
  is working or in batch mode very quickly.
  Accounts which are successfully matched will become associated with a system assigned Group ID Number
  along with the sequential Group Member Number each account is separately assigned to distinguish
  each account within the group.
  There is a Member Setup button in this screen. Click the button when any particular group member
  is selected and you will see the settings for that specific Debtor.
  If you modify any settings on this specific debtor that differ from the system global Account
  Matching Settings for which fields to share/cascade across all files, it will be these new, individual
  settings that will override the global defaults from that point forward.  This can be useful if you
  have a client with different preferences as compared to the rest of your database.
  The Shared Notes tab provides a thumbnail view of ALL notes on ALL accounts within the group
  consolidated into a single Shared Note tab.  If a user is looking for a specific note in a
  particular date range but does not recall which individual file it may be located on, this tab
  would be a handy utility tool.
  The switch within the Group Member Setup does not automatically turn itself on.  There is a Write
  back report on the Member Center in the Utility  Reports and Snippet section which Members may
  download to set these switches globally in their existing grouped accounts and add into  contact plans
  to routinely switch on the items of interest in new accounts grouped go forward. The mini-package
  with instructions is called "Group Notes - Cascading and Share Notes Tab".
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