A donor buys two seats at your spring gala, then calls a week out: her guest changed, she wants to move up to the patron level, and she’d like the vegetarian meal. Three small changes. In Altru, each one can take a different route, and some of them are a lot harder than they sound.
This guide sorts the common registration edits by how much they touch money, because that’s what decides how much work an edit takes in Altru.
Start by asking one question: does the edit change what was paid?
Special event registrations in Altru are tied to revenue. The registration says who is attending; the payment behind it records what was bought, at what price, and which batch or deposit it landed in. Edits that leave the money alone are usually manageable. Edits that change the money usually aren’t really “edits.” They’re a reversal of the original sale and a new one.
Edits that usually don’t touch revenue
- Replacing a guest’s name. The common case is swapping an “unnamed guest” or a placeholder for a real person, or replacing one guest with another.
- Attendance details. Things like meal choice, seating, or other preferences your event tracks.
- Marking attendance after the event.
- Linking the registrant to the right constituent record when someone registered under a duplicate or a misspelled name.
For these, look on the event record and on the registrant’s own record before going any further. Exactly which fields you can change after the fact depends on your Altru version and your security role, so test in a sandbox or with a test constituent before telling staff “just edit it.”
Edits that do touch revenue
- Switching to a different registration option or price level.
- Adding or removing guests on a paid registration.
- Moving a registration to a different event or a different date.
- Changing the payment method or the amount.
Staff often expect an “edit” button for these. In practice, the dependable path is usually to cancel or refund the original registration and then register the person again under the correct option. If you’re not sure your version allows a direct change for a given case, ask Blackbaud support before building a procedure around it. A workaround that quietly breaks a posted batch causes more trouble than a slow, clean one.
Doing the cancel-and-rebook cleanly
When you have to reverse and re-enter, the order matters. Here’s a sequence that keeps finance and the event team from contradicting each other:
- Write down the original details first: registration option, guest names, preferences, amount paid, payment method, and any notes. Once the registration is cancelled, you’ll want that in front of you.
- Agree on the money with finance. Is this a full refund and a new charge, or a price difference? Is the original revenue already posted? Your finance team may have a rule for adjustments across periods. Find it out now, not after the fact.
- Cancel or refund the original using the standard process, not by editing the revenue record directly.
- Register the attendee again under the correct option, re-enter guests and preferences, and apply payment.
- Leave a note on the constituent record saying what changed and why. Six months later, someone running a gift report will wonder why this donor has a refund and a second purchase on the same day.
Upgrades are where the soft-credit and tax questions hide
Moving someone from a general ticket to a sponsor or patron level often changes the split between the benefit value and the deductible portion. Rebooking under the new option normally sorts that out, because the new option carries its own values. Editing the amount by hand can leave the receipt and acknowledgment showing the wrong deductible amount. Check the acknowledgment before it goes out.
Watch recognition and soft credits too. If a table host paid for guests, make sure the rebooked registration still credits the host the way your development team expects.
Cutting down how often you need to edit
Most edits are predictable, so some of the work can happen before registration opens:
- Allow unnamed guests where your setup permits it, so buyers don’t have to name every guest at checkout. Filling in a name later is far easier than replacing the wrong person.
- Collect preferences close to the event with a short follow-up email instead of at purchase, when people haven’t decided yet.
- Set a change deadline and state it in the confirmation. After that date, changes go through one person who knows the rebooking process.
- Use a query of event registrants with missing guest names or preferences, and work that list a week out instead of fielding changes one call at a time.
Quick answers
Can I change the price on an existing registration?
Treat it as a revenue change. Unless you’ve confirmed your version supports a direct adjustment, cancel or refund and rebook, and coordinate with finance first.
Can I move a registrant to a different event?
Plan on cancelling the original and registering them for the new event. Bring over their preferences and notes by hand.
Who should be allowed to make these changes?
Name-and-preference edits can sit with event staff. Anything that reverses revenue is better handled by a small group that knows your batch and refund rules.
