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Search Your PAC Data with Ease and Accuracy

passpacs on January 21, 2025

PASS utilizes SQL Server to power our epacInfo® software. The SQL Full-Text Index is unlike traditional SQL queries, which match exact phrases or keywords. Full-Text Index enables users to perform more complex searches, including fuzzy searches, stemming, out-of-order words search, and wildcard search.

 

This capability proves invaluable for applications requiring advanced search functionality, such as PAC Disbursement maps and our PAC Match Charity Search tool that allows user to search over a million charities with high efficiency and flexibility.

 

Here are some tips and examples of how they can be applied:

  1. “Color” vs. “Colour”: If a user searches for “color,” but the database contains entries with the term spelled as “colour,” a fuzzy search could still return relevant results.
  2. “Organization” vs. “Organisation”: Similar to the previous example, a fuzzy search can handle variations in spelling such as “organization” and “organisation” to ensure relevant entries are retrieved regardless of the spelling used.
  3. Verb tense variations: Searching for “run” should return results for “running” and “ran.””
  4. Plural Forms: Fuzzy search can handle pluralization variations. For example, searching for “cat” could retrieve results containing “cats.” Another example: searching for “child” returns both “child” and “children.”
  5. Out of order words search: There is no need to enter words in the right order. Searching for “sacred heart Boston” would yield “BOSTON ACADEMY OF THE SACRED HEART INC.”
  6. Wildcard Search: searching for “india* child edu* found*” returns INDIAS CHILDREN AND AGED RELIEF AND EDUCAITON FOUNDATION,” which contains a typo.  This is a good way to get around misspelled charity names in the IRS database (there are plenty of them, believe it or not).

 

The SQL technology is built into PASS’ epacInfo® software and is available to all epac users. Clients with websites utilizing PAC Match and Candidate Contribution maps also benefit. For more information about how your PAC can benefit from using a PASS PAC website and our PAC match services, contact Mary O’Reilly (moreilly@pass1.com).

PAC Website Development Challenges and Solutions

passpacs on June 24, 2024

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, web development is pivotal in shaping a PAC’s online presence and success. However, technologies and user expectations are constantly evolving, and the Web Developers at PASS cannot afford to ignore this evolution as they strive to provide high quality, reliable solutions for PAC websites.

User experience

Great user experience is very important for a successful PAC website. PASS developers create user-centric PAC website templates and offer alternative designs to ensure the design is the best fit for clients.

Browser compatibility

Browser and platform compatibility are typically one of the biggest web application development issues. From mobile devices to tablets and even smart TVs, each browser has a different screen size, which poses a challenge for PASS developers as they attempt to adjust the User Interface for each possible device. Developers make sure the sites work on all the existing internet browsers and different screen sizes.

Performance & speed

According to a recent survey, 47% of users expect a webpage to load in two seconds. This is not an easy feat considering the many elements that render with every click. Ensuring website performance requires optimizing different elements such as content, navigational buttons, interface layers, etc. PASS Developers optimize the code and graphics and plug-ins to ensure PASS-hosted sites are working at the highest level of efficiency to load in the least amount of time.

Security

Website security is essential, as cyberattacks have increased drastically over the past few years. PASS uses HTTPS to send data between a web browser and a website to protect the website and any sensitive data.

Third-party Integrations

Third-party integrations for PAC websites include PayPal and Stripe for credit card and MetaMask for Cryptocurrency along with social media features. Third-party integrations allow PAC professionals to offer a wide range of site capabilities. PASS Developers program PASS-hosted websites so the site architecture is always in sync with changes made by third-party service providers for uninterrupted site performance.

Maintenance & support

Maintaining a website is the “behind the curtain” function of website hosting that no one sees but is always taking place. Once your website is live, users can experience unresponsive pages, browser errors, user login issues, and performance problems. PASS continuously monitors and updates our websites to immediately address issues that arise. Furthermore, PASS has a web architecture with minimal dependencies for higher uptime during the upgrade process.

Conclusion

PAC website development challenges are not limited to those listed in this blog.

Specific client requirements can lead to other technical and non-technical site challenges, and the PASS IT Team is adept at addressing all of these challenges to ensure our clients have the highest functioning websites regardless of the number of visitors or the features offered.

For more information about PASS’ PAC websites, contact Mary O’Reilly at moreilly@pass1.com.

Interested In Creating or Updating A PAC Website, But Don’t Know Where To Start?

passpacs on November 15, 2023

Whether you are a brand-new PAC and just getting started or have had years of PAC experience, creating or updating your PAC website can seem like a daunting task. There are many factors that need to be considered when developing a PAC website, but when you work with PASS, we help you step-by-step along the way!

One of the many questions I get when starting the website development process with a client is, “Do you have any sample content we can see?”. Being able to see an example of what your website could look like can really help you as you work to develop the site.

We know that with so much on your to-do list, developing website content is not a priority, and this is one of the many areas where PASS can help!

PASS created a PAC Website Development Tool. Users of the tool can see five fully functional sample websites. If you don’t have time to develop pages of content for your PAC site, you can choose a website template from the tool, provide us with updates to page language and enrollment card options, and the PASS IT Team will take care of the rest. The end result is a smart PAC website your PAC members can visit for up to date information and you can use to engage with and solicit PAC members.

Having a PAC website is one of the best solicitation tools and PAC member benefits you can offer. Don’t let the fear of not knowing where to start keep you from launching a PAC website. Contact us today if you want to learn more or see a demo of our PAC websites!

Single Sign On With A Dash Of Multi-Factor

passpacs on October 27, 2023

Single sign on (SSO) is a secure and efficient way to authenticate to your PASS applications without having to recall that pesky password or security questions when changing your password. SSO has been a website staple for quite some time and you have likely used it in one place or another, even if you didn’t know it. SSO is all handled through your network management group and allows for you to login to your workstation each morning and have access to all of the applications under your SSO umbrella. PASS website users have experienced SSO when clicking the link to a PAC enrollment site or using epacManager.

These applications seamlessly link to the Company intranet to provide more secure and efficient access.

While SSO was the standard for securing a site, multi-factor (MFA) will further enhance your authentication security. Implementing MFA adds an extra layer of security by having the application user provide a second form of identification. This includes an email or text message, which contains a one-time code, generated to the specific user’s inbox. The user provides the code back to the application and is granted access. While it may sound cumbersome, introducing MFA to your epacManager or PAC website authentication process increases site security exponentially.

Our goal at PASS is to provide top security and ease of access to our applications and PAC enrollment websites. Single sign on and multi-factor (MFA) authentication are straight-forward to implement and strongly encouraged. PASS will work directly with your network group to iron out the details and put these in place.  Reach out to Erin Ver Doorn at PASS with any requests for additional information.

3 PAC Website Features You Don’t Want to Miss

passpacs on January 24, 2023

Choosing what to display on your PAC website can be a daunting task! Of course you want the site to be user friendly, and you want the enrollment process to be straightforward, but what about site content? One of the questions we are asked frequently during the website development process is “What do your other clients do?” Here are the top 3 website features you don’t want to miss!

 

A question most PAC donors have is, where is my money going? I always recommend adding a disbursement map to your PAC website. Our disbursement map breaks down all disbursements by election cycle or a specific date range. Then your PAC members can click on the states to view where their PAC dollars went. If your PAC is looking for a way to be transparent with their PAC spending, you need this for your PAC site!

 

If you are looking for a way to boost your PAC  participation,

Charity Match is the way to go!

 

Your employees can enroll in the PAC and be directed to the Charity Match page to select their charity. If you choose PASS to facilitate your Charity Match program, we handle everything for you, you just have to get approval to start the program!

 

Finally, I would recommend including personalized calls to action! If someone hasn’t given before, ask them to join, and if they are a current member, prompt them to view their giving history or make a change to their enrollment. You can also do specific calls to action based on each employees suggested giving level. Having personalized calls to action gives you more options when planning your PAC solicitation.

 

Interested in adding one or all of these features to your PAC site? Let us know. Don’t have a PAC site? It’s not too late to get started! Schedule a demo to see our PAC services.