Summary: This article guides you through creating, editing, and managing custom Profile Fields to precisely categorize individuals in your Tithely database according to your ministry's unique needs.
Before You Begin
Permissions: You must have access to Account Settings (typically an Admin role) to modify profile fields.
Global Impact: Any changes made here (adding, renaming, deleting) update the database for every person in your system.
Locked Fields: Some fields have a lock icon. These are primary system fields (used for emailing, directories, etc.) and cannot be deleted, though they can be moved.
Step-by-Step Instructions
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Navigate to Account Settings.
Click the gear icon in the top right corner of your dashboard.
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Select Profile Fields.
This opens the editor where you can manage the layout and data types for your people profiles.
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Add new fields.
Drag items from the left-hand menu and drop them into the desired section on the right.
Tip: You can create a New Section to group related data (e.g., "Emergency Contact Info").
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Edit or Rename fields.
Click on any specific field to open its settings.
Rename: Change the label (e.g., change "Employer" to "Profession").
Modify Options: For multiple choice or dropdowns, you can change the available answers (e.g., change "No Longer Attends" to "Inactive").
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Reorder your fields.
Drag and drop individual fields or entire sections to customize the order in which data appears on a person's profile.
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Click Save Changes.
Ensure you save your work to update the database.
Understanding Profile Field Types
| Profile Field | Descriptions |
|---|---|
| New Section | Creates a new block where data can be stored and grouped together. (i.e. member information, contact information, important dates, emergency contact information). |
| Section Description | Provides a description to each section letting users know what data is being stored there, or if data is being stored in a certain way. |
| Text | Offers a placeholder for [text] that may not match other profiles. (i.e., second address, second cell phone / home phone number). Text limit for characters is 65,000 characters. Note:if adding a link, it will need to include the https:// portion of the URL to be clickable. |
| Multiple Choice | Gives users the option to select one option specific to the field. (i.e., campus location, worship service attended, membership status). Once an option is selected on someone's profile, there is not a way to un-select that Profile Field when on an individual's profile. Users need to do a People Search, and then click the Update People option. They then need to select the (multiple choice) Profile Field they want to edit. They need to make sure no options are selected and then click Update. |
| Checkbox | Gives users the option to select multiple options specific to the field. (i.e. stewardship commitments, spiritual gifts). |
| Dropdown | Gives users the option to select one option specific to the field. (i.e., campus location, worship service attended, membership status). |
| Notes | Stores notes in specific sections. Notes can be up to 2,500 characters. |
| Date | Stores important dates that can then be searched. (i.e., baptisms, birthdays, confirmations, funerals).1 |
| File | Stores up to 8mb files. (i.e. certificates, background checks). |
Troubleshooting & FAQs
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Why can't I delete or edit certain fields?
If a field has a lock icon (:lock:), it is a primary information field required by Tithely for features like mailing labels and text messaging.
Solution: You can move locked fields to a less visible section or "Hide" them via Role Permissions, but they cannot be deleted.
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How do I un-select a "Multiple Choice" option?
Once an option is selected on an individual profile, it cannot be un-selected directly on that page.
Solution: Perform a People Search for that individual, click Update People, select the specific Profile Field, ensure no options are selected, and click Update.
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How do I delete a custom field?
Click the Profile Field you wish to remove and click the "x". You can delete an entire field or just one option from a multiple-choice list.
Warning: Deleting a field removes that data for everyone in your database.
Commonly Used Custom Profile Fields
Here is a list of commonly used fields that may be helpful to think through when creating new Profile Fields:
- Status
- Marriage Date
- Married At
- Married By
- Baptism Date
- Baptized By
- Profession of Faith Date
- Background Check Date
- Deceased Date
- Transfer In Date
- Reason Joined Church
- Transfer Out Date
- Reason Left Church
- Membership Date
- Spiritual Gifts
- Skills (e.g. electrical, plumbing, etc)
- Title (e.g. Mr., Mrs., etc)
- Allergies (can be stored simply for reference or printed on check-in nametags)
- Secondary Address
- Personality
- Occupation
- Eligible to serve in Children's Ministry
- Should Not Serve
- Membership Category
- Membership Stopped Date
- Membership Stopped Reason
- Membership Details
- Include in Church Directory (could also be handled by filtering by membership status)