By Julia Schroeder
Marketing & Nonprofit Account Coordinator
Big Buzz Idea Group
A common thread in fundraising today looks at how to weave supporters through a donor experience that knits together strong and impactful relationships. Nonprofit organizations rely on donors who care about the cause and give consistently. Each donor is one strand of the whole piece that upholds an organization’s mission.
Fundraising can be one of the most cumbersome components of running a nonprofit. Keeping an accurate record of donations, sending timely acknowledgments, and running reports are only some of what needs managing.
One of the biggest challenges within fundraising is keeping track of donors. This may be easier to manage with a spreadsheet when there is a small pool of donors. But as an organization grows and there is more to track, it can prove beneficial to implement donor database software.
Donor database software helps you create systems to manage the challenges of fundraising with large amounts of data.
What are the options?
Donor database software keeps a library of donors with their contact information and gift-giving history, among other features. The donor database can be housed in an Excel spreadsheet or one of the platforms listed below.
Some of the most popular options for donor database software:
We recommend conducting an analysis to determine the best option for your nonprofit organization.
What are the benefits?
Whether a prospective donor or a longtime supporter, donors want to know that their gifts are making a difference. Sending progress reports and sharing the organization’s successes are important elements of a positive donor experience.
- Ease and effectiveness: With more effective donor management, you can save time while keeping an accurate record.
- Track donor data: Keep all the data in one place and pull reports, spot trends, and much more. Most donor database software is cloud-based, making it easy for all team members to access the data.
- Optimization: The software can be optimized by segmenting donors, creating prioritization, automating gift acknowledgements, and other features depending on the platform.
The overarching benefit of donor database software is to streamline the donor experience.
What are the drawbacks?
A donor database may not be the best option for all nonprofits so before investing, it is important to consider the following:
- Cost: Depending on the platform, it can be costly for an organization. Leaders need to consider the budget and cost/benefit analysis before deciding to invest in software.
- Learning curve: Whenever an organization implements new software, there is a learning curve. It takes time to get everything set up depending on how donors were being managed before (messy spreadsheets, disorganized info, etc.).
- Time: It can take an undeterminable amount of time to train and troubleshoot with the system. Once you grasp how the platform can be best used for your organization, there may be new leadership who will want to try alternative donor management options.
Deciding to invest in donor database software can depend on several factors. With or without systems to manage a growing donor database, it can be a lot to keep up with if not managed properly.
If you are interested in learning more about our donor management services, please contact the hive here.
Sources:
https://kindful.com/blog/benefits-of-a-donor-management-platform/
https://www.501c3.org/5-reasons-why-you-need-a-donor-management-platform/
https://www.linkedin.com/advice/1/how-do-you-create-maintain-donor-database-supports
https://www.givesmart.com/blog/why-you-should-have-both-fundraising-and-donor-management-software/
