#FFF – Fixes, Features, and Forecast – June 2017

By Jason | June 4, 2017

Thanks so much for signing up for CCBChimp! We are really excited about this integration because we know it answers a great need that many churches who use Church Community Builder have. As people have been commenting, we do our best to turn around features very quickly. That’s because we are dedicated to serving our…

One other question. It has been 7 years since we used MailChimp, but I found our account is still active as a free one. Any suggestions on what churches are using for custom template design? One of MailChimp’s templates or is there a company you recommend to do custom design?

By Jason | May 31, 2017

Good question. MailChimp Templates Basics https://MailChimp.com/features/email-templates Inspiration https://inspiration.MailChimp.com/#all You can also buy a template you like https://themeforest.net/tags/MailChimp For customization, any website dev company (like ours) can help. If you have someone on staff, you can ask them or check with the person who does your website. If not, you can hire someone on fiverr. https://www.fiverr.com/gigs/email…

There are two drop-downs next to each list. Can you explain those? First dropdown has three options (1) Create New (Saved Searches) List (2) Create New List (INSERT LIST NAME) (3) Select Redemption Church List. Second Dropdown has two options (1) None (Sync to List Only) (2) Create New Group (INSERT LIST NAME)

By Jason | May 21, 2017

We are planning on adding tooltips. Sorry about that. Ok, let’s start! In MailChimp you work with lists and “sub-lists” called interest categories / groups. It’s akin to campuses and groups on CCB in the broad sense.  In our application, you can sync CCB groups in a number of ways. This allows you to create…

If I use a saved search to sync contacts, will the saved search re-run when you sync? For example, say I set up a saved search on May 1st that lists all captured male contacts who aren’t children. If I add 5 adult males to the system on May 2nd, and sync my saved search in CCBChimp on May 5th, will the additional 5 adults be added to the synced mailing list in MailChimp?

By Jason | May 21, 2017

Absolutely! When we beta tested the app, saved searches was one of the features we added. It’s a great dynamic list for sure and in your case, our app will add all new participants. What it does not do, at this time, is remove any contacts on MailChimp that were removed from that saved search…

So, we could have one list for each of our campuses, and then people could create groups for their life group or serve team? Then, people would only be on one list and counted once for MailChimp pricing? Or are you saying that multiple CCB groups could be added to the same MailChimp list?

By Jason | May 21, 2017

Yes to both but our app can do this for you, automatically. You can choose to sync specific CCB groups to specific MC groups that exist or you can allow our application to create that for you from our interface.

Do you know if MailChimp counts the same people multiple times if they are on multiple lists? For example, if we have someone who is in a life group list and on our greeters team, would they be counted once in pricing or twice?

By Jason | May 21, 2017

Twice! Separate lists gives the list manager more control over the data. One major advantage is if someone unsubscribes from a specific list, they will still be subscribed on all other lists in MailChimp. Our application does allow you to merge CCB groups to one single MC list but group those CCB  groups as separate…

We have several people at our church using different free MailChimp accounts. Are we able to sync multiple MailChimp accounts? Or would we need to consolidate our MailChimp accounts into one (and pay since we would be over the 2,000 limit)?

By Jason | May 21, 2017

We have had a few requests like this – syncing to multiple MailChimp accounts. It has been added to our Phase 2 list of features. Of course, each person can sign up for a different CCBChimp account and sync to their own MailChimp account, but that might not be financially feasible. Alternatively, as was suggested,…

  I can’t get the CCB API info to connect. What is the CCB account name supposed to be?

By Jason | May 21, 2017

Locate your CCBchurch url. It’s also the same as ‘Your API URL’. Your CCB account name is the word between the double slash and the ‘.ccbchurch’. For example, in the URL “https://multisite.ccbchurch.com/api.php”, the account name is “multisite”. Now, make a note of your account name — you will need it later.

Why is MailChimp better than using the group messaging option within Church Community Builder

By Jason | May 21, 2017

The idea of “better” can be both subjective and objective. It really depends on your needs. Using the CCB group messaging option works well in many cases, and it’s included in your package. Many CCB users are already using MailChimp, and many more are seeing the powerful value of adding this tool to their ministry…