Nonprofit organizations have a lot of information to manage. Maintaining donor lists, volunteer schedules, capital campaign records, and a multitude of other things are all part of the work needed to achieve their mission in the community. In small, community-based nonprofits, these administrative tasks are often divided among the staff, volunteers, and the Executive Director. Everyone in the organization recognizes that maintaining accurate records is essential in maximizing a nonprofit’s resources. But the time required to manage the records takes time and energy away from the work of carrying out their mission. Utilizing donor management software, also known as fundraising software, is the solution to balancing the work of accurate record-keeping with the work of the organization’s overall mission. Fundraising software is an essential tool for the success and growth of any size nonprofit organization. Fundraising software allows users to keep essential administrative records in one central database and eliminates the inefficiency of dealing with multiple spreadsheets and documents on individual computers. Different styles of fundraising software include web-based (accessed using an internet browser) and installed (installed on your computer network.) To determine whether web-based or installed software is the better choice for you, research the features available, the cost, payment options, and the contracts users are required to enter into to use the program. In your research, read client testimonials, note whether current client organizations are similar to yours, and maybe even contact a current client. This gives you the opportunity to ask about the value of the program from the client’s point of view—-ease of use, flexibility, customer support, personalized training, and overall user experience. Whether you’re considering web-base or installed fundraising software, we want to emphasize the importance of utilizing the software for your nonprofit organization. Top Five Reasons to Use Donor Management Software:
Get Organized — Do you feel overwhelmed with spreadsheets? Do you have different Excel Workbooks with multiple worksheets in each one to track donor names, addresses, gifts contributed, event participation, capital campaign pledges, membership status, volunteer hours, and in-kind donations? Do staff members track different types of information on their own spreadsheets? Well, it’s time to get your records organized into one central program where they can be easily accessed and updated by multiple users. All your donor records can be transferred and consolidated into your donor management software, and you can say good-by to your spreadsheets. Save Valuable Time – By using a centralized management program for your records, you’ll save valuable time which can be dedicated to carrying out your mission. When administrative tasks are centrally managed and under control, you can concentrate more on the help you’re delivering to the community and less on the record-keeping aspect of your organization. Raise More Money – That’s right! When your donor information is organized into a fundraising management program, you’ll have quick access to comprehensive reports and accurate data that will help you make better decisions for your organization. Improve Communications with Donors – Fundraising software gives you the ability to maintain more consistent and more personalized communication with your donors and volunteers. You can easily create email lists and email information to individuals or groups, develop a mailing list and produce mailing labels for a newsletter, automatically generate thank-you letters for donations received, apply volunteer hours worked, and track event or class participation. Run a More Efficient Organization – With donor management software you can manage your record-keeping with maximum efficiency, something we all strive for in business and in our personal lives. The savings in time and money allows us to concentrate our efforts and resources on the things we value most. For a nonprofit organization, that means tapping all our potential resources in order to pursue our mission.
Donor management software is the tool your organization needs in order to grow. And taking the time to choose the software program with features you need, the training and support to get you up and running, and the price that works with your budget will ensure successful data management for your organization.