This article instructs you on how to export donation details into a file for syncing information to QuickBooks Desktop accounting software. (For QuickBooks Online, see this article.)

Step 1: Export Donations in Quickbooks Format

Salsa CRM's Finance Export for QuickBooks exports the following Payment Types:

Select Manage > Finances > Finance Export from the main menu.
In Step 1: Select Criteria (of the Finance Export Wizard), use the Fund pull-down control (a) at the left to limit exports to a particular fund if desired.
Use the Sorted Order pull-down control (b) list to specify how the records returned from the database should be sorted. The default is by Fund Name, but if your accounting software requires that donations split across multiple funds remain sorted together, select Donation ID.
Select a Limit Export By option. The Finance Export allows you to export transactions to a file that you then import into your accounting software, such as QuickBooks. How you have entered donations and how your accountant manages the books determines which donations you choose to export:
- - Items stored since last export (c)—This setting allows you to choose only donations added since the last export. If you enter donations into batches over long periods but still do a daily export to your accounting software, then this option may make sense for you. You can continue adding new donations to your batches over days or weeks and still ensure that your accounting software is up to date with daily donations.
  - Batch (d)—This setting enables you to select previously created batches. If you enter your donations into daily batches, then exporting by batch may be your best option. For instance, you would enter all your donations for the day into a unique batch, export that batch to your accounting software, deposit any cash or checks, and close the batch.
    1. 1. Select the Batch radio button, then click Select Batch. The Batch Search screen will open.
      2. Click the Batch that you want to use. The window will close.
      3. You can also export Batches to the Finance Export by searching for a Batch, then viewing the Donations in the Batch Explorer.
  - Fund Item Stored Date (e)—This setting enables you to choose items based on the time stamp recorded when you entered the donations into Salsa CRM. If you update your accounting software once a month, then this option may work best for you. For instance, you can enter a date range from the first day of the month to the last day to export all donations stored for that month.
    
    Note: Batches can make your workflow more efficient if you manage multiple funds under the same batch. If you only have a few funds, using Fund Item Stored Date may be better. Alternately, if you want to capture all of the donations that have been stored since your last import (regardless of but including batches), you can use Items stored since the last export.
Click Next (f) at the lower right to continue. There will be a pause as your query is processing.
In Step 2: Preview, Exclude, and Modify Data, you will see all the donation information to be exported. This is not the format the export will take when exported. You may deselect individual records in this step.

NOTE: Only non-zero transaction amounts display in the results.
Select Next at the lower right to continue.
In Step 3: Save Export File, enter an Export File Name (a). Develop a good naming convention so that you can quickly identify the file that you want.
Select the Export File Type. For QuickBooks, you should use QuickBooks IIF Format, Version 3 option. (The one labeled QuickBooks IIF Format is for backward compatibility and is no longer supported.) NOTE: "IIF format" is just a tab-delimited text file.
- - Exporting Customer Data is optional—Some standard operating procedures in the past may have required that you track donor names and addresses in Customer records. Moving forward, you should be managing donors in Salsa CRM. Please check the Export Customer Data checkbox if you desire to continue that process. If it is not selected, only transactions are exported.
  - Export Gifts in Kind is optional. If you select this setting, in-kind donations are included with the rest of the "cash-in" transaction types, such as Cash, Check, Credit Card.
    NOTE: Pledges (for example) are NOT exported.
Select the Export button (d) at the lower middle portion of the screen to complete the export. The file will be downloaded to the default download folder selected in the internet browser for your computer.
Select the Finish button (e) at the lower right corner of the window.

NOTE: Last Names are appended with the donor's Salsa Constituent Number to make unique QuickBooks Customers. Donation Memos include the unique Salsa CRM Donation ID.

Step 2: Import Donations Into QuickBooks

Newer versions of QuickBooks now offer two ways to import IIF files:

An older method—which you may have used with older QuickBooks versions—and continues to work just fine.
A new method that is bug-filled, slow, and unreliable.

This first option, the older, recommended method, is hidden behind an intimidating warning message. You must use the Import it for me link at the bottom, or else your import will not work properly.

Select File > Utilities > Import > IIF Files... from the QuickBooks menu.
If you see this warning below, click Import it for me. I'll fix it later.
Select the file exported from Salsa CRM.
Assuming you have set up Salsa CRM properly and followed the workflow to this point, your import should be successful. The donations enter QuickBooks as undeposited sales receipts, ready to be deposited into a cash account.
Next, select Banking > Make Deposits from the QuickBooks menu. The window that appears will allow some or all donations to be directed to a specific bank account.

Step 3: Merge QuickBooks Customers

This step is necessary if you are managing donors in QuickBooks as customers. This step is not necessary if you are managing your donors with Salsa CRM. QuickBooks has an intrinsic bug in their IIF import functionality: their software does not account for unique Customers when you import transactions.

In the IIF data file example above, the first Willie Gates is imported as a Customer, and the second Willie Gates overwrites all the contact information of the first Customer.

To make every customer unique, Salsa CRM appends the first or last name of the Customer with their Salsa CRM Constituent ID in the export file.

Because of this, you may need to merge customers in QuickBooks. Eventually, all customers who you interact with frequently should get renamed according to the Salsa CRM standard.

To merge customers in QuickBooks...

Double click the customer to be changed.
Change the name in the customer name box.
QuickBooks warns that the name already exists and asks if you want to merge. Click yes.

Step 4: Reconcile Accounts in QuickBooks

Reconcile your accounts with Quickbooks' Profit & Loss (P&L) Detail Report. This report shows year-to-date transactions (instead of totals only, as in the P&L summary report) for each income and expense account. To run this report, go to QuickBooks' Reports menu, then select Company & Financial > Profit & Loss Detail.