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The post Nonprofit Times – Create a world inspired by giving. appeared first on Bloomerang.

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Let us know if this scenario sounds familiar: You and your team have decided to invest in a donor management and fundraising software solution. You’re ready to buy, but you’re not sure where to start when it comes to choosing the right software for your nonprofit.

Like most of us, you probably turn to Google to learn more. But instead of feeling empowered to make an informed choice, you feel overwhelmed by all of the options out there.

We’ve been in your chair before, and we know exactly how you feel.

If you’re ready to talk to someone right away, you can go to the provider’s website and request a Demo or demonstration of the product. We recommend this option for nonprofits that already know exactly what they want out of a software solution.

If you’re not there yet, don’t worry! We put together a helpful playbook that you can use to help make an easy donor management software purchase. Keep reading to learn more.

Why a playbook?

Having a document detailing the must-have tools and features that your organization needs provides you not only a good visual and reference point, but also allows you to collaborate internally with your organization to make sure you are all aligned on what you’re hoping to get out of your software.

In this playbook, you’ll detail what you need from the providers. Then you can base what you have covered in your playbook against the information you learn both in the demo and on their website and come to a conclusion on whether or not you want to move forward with their software.

What information should you include in your playbook?

This will vary from nonprofit to nonprofit because it depends on your unique needs. Before you compose your playbook, sit down with your team and see which features or functionalities matter most to them.

As you’ll see below, you can compile those into a comprehensive list that will make it easier to compare different products and their offerings which you can then rank. We’ve included some examples but remember: You should focus on what your nonprofit needs.

You should also come up with a list of questions to ask the providers. For example, you could ask about their customer support options, the processing fees, or the cost of add-on services. Don’t be afraid to include a lot of questions. The more information you have, the better.

Sample Playbook

You can find a guided playbook template below or you can download a free blank version of the template here.

Keep in mind that your playbook should be tailored to address the needs of your organization. You don’t have to use any of the examples below.

SELECTION TEAM:

Add the individuals in your organization who are responsible for the selection and approval of your new donor management software.

TIMELINE:

Detail the timeline in which you will expect final feedback from project leaders and the expected date that the software selection will be made.

CHALLENGES:

Talk to your team to determine what pain points they have with your current fundraising software or, if you’re not currently using any software, what your team needs to fundraise more effectively.

Examples:

• We can’t customize our donation forms.
• Our team doesn’t know how to use the software and would benefit from training.
• We’re using [insert other providers like Mailchimp, QuickBooks, etc.], and we’d like those platforms to integrate with our fundraising software.
• We can’t easily segment our contacts.
• We can’t track volunteering or program participation.
• We aren’t notified when a donor’s credit card is about to expire.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:

When thinking about the features a software provider offers, which ones will address your pain points? Which features do you absolutely have to have? Those are your key requirements.

Examples:

• The solution must track and display a constituent’s giving and engagement history.
• We want donors to be able to log in, see their giving history, and easily update their contact or credit card information.
• We must be able to segment our subscribers based on custom tags and/or engagement history.
• We want to receive notifications and/or have the ability to set up triggered email series for monthly donors whose credit cards are about to expire or have already expired.
• We want to be able to customize our donation forms.

FEATURE & FUNCTIONALITY PLAYBOOK:

After you’ve documented your paint points and key requirements, it’s time to lay this all out in a playbook. This will help you put together a visual comparison of the providers you’re considering.

Below you’ll find several examples of categories. Once you’ve created your own categories, mark how important each is to have:

• Must have
• Nice to have
• Optional

Use this table to track the key functionality of each of the software solutions. Rank the functionality on a scale:

0 – Does Not Offer this functionality
1 – Offers part of this functionality
2 – Fully offers this functionality

Example:

PRICING

The pricing structure for donor management software varies based on the solution. Typically when purchasing donor management software you should expect to budget for a monthly recurring fee as well as a one time onboarding or implementation fee. Let’s break down how this investment is typically calculated.

An implementation fee is used to cover the costs associated in moving your data from your current system or spreadsheet into your new software. The fee can very based on:

• The structure and size of your data
• The current software you’re using
• The cleanliness of your data
• The level of customization you’d like to see in your new donor management software

As your talking with potential software providers be prepared to discuss the state of your donor data. Being able to provide a clear picture of the data will allow your new provider to offer a clear cost estimate associated with migrating your data into your new donor database. In some cases if you’re a brand new nonprofit you may be able to simply start without an implementation fee, but this will vary based on the software you’ve selected.

Monthly maintenance fees for donor management software allows your new software provider the abiility to ensure everything continues to run smoothly. Additionally, this fees is often used to continue to build out the software providing your organization with new features and functionality. The monthly maintenance fee is usually based on a number of key factors which can include:

• Number of contacts stored in the database
• Number of users accessing the software
• Number of emails you send
• Size of file attachments
• Overall size of your organization
• Specific features and functionality
• Levels of support your organization needs

Having this information when you’re talking with potential donor management software providers will make the pricing conversations easier. Because each software provider may price slightly differently this can make it challenging to compare each provider. However, having this larger context on how pricing works can help you maximize the value each provider offers your organization.

NEXT STEPS

Whether you’re a team of one or many an investment in donor management software is one that will ensure the sustainability of your nonrpofit organization’s mission. By using the playbook laid out above to you’re already headed in the right direction. You’ve got this!

The post The Buyer’s Playbook to Donor Management Software appeared first on Bloomerang.

This article originally appeared in Bloomerang. See the original article here.

Your donor database is only as good as the data you put into it. With the year-end giving season upon us, now is the time to prepare for fundraising success in 2023. A clean database should be a high priority as you plan ahead.

As with every other industry today, nonprofits are especially dependent on good data to be successful. And donor data is at the top of the critical care list. The problem that every nonprofit faces, however, is that data degrades, and donor data degrades faster than most. Don’t let poor data keep you from reaching your fundraising goals!

What is poor data really costing you?

• Creates a poor donor experience. Some donors may not mind not being addressed or recognized incorrectly, but some will. Having the correct information, even something as simple as a prefix, can mean the difference between getting a donation and having your appeal thrown out with the offers for meal delivery services. Having data that creates a clear and accurate donor experience can make your donors feel seen and valued.
• Prevents you from launching impactful campaigns. If your data is incomplete or outdated, can you trust that your campaign segments are accurate? Personal touches are important and play a key role in cultivating a one-time gift into a regular donor. Cleaning up donor segments will ensure that your message is getting to the right person at the right time to maximize your campaigns.
• Keeps you from reaching the right audience. Save your organization money and resources by preventing a large pile of returned mail. Twelve percent of all Americans move each year and outdated data won’t reflect that. Bloomerang automatically runs nightly address verification and deceased suppression updates to combat this problem.

Good donor data can mean the difference between having a meaningful interaction with a donor or really missing the mark. We all want the former, but finding the time and expertise to know where to focus can be challenging. Knowing all your options for achieving a healthy database is the first step in creating one.

Should you get a database health check? Here are some things to consider and questions to ask.

• What kind of bandwidth does your team have? Do you have a dedicated database manager or team? Do they have the time to audit and clean your database before 2023 fundraising?
• Database audits and edits can easily be done by experts. Experts can help you focus on what’s most important to have a clean, trustworthy, and updated database to help you meet your goals.
• What’s the real cost to your organization? When you account for staff time and resources, it can often be cheaper to outsource your database health check. You can ensure it’s done correctly while you focus on achieving your mission.

Clean your data up now. Do yourself and your organization a favor and start considering the options you have to get your database in tip top shape for the new year. That way when 2023 rolls around, you can relax because you’ve totally got this data thing under control so you can focus on what you do best.

At the end of the day, clean nonprofit data isn’t easy, but it’s worth it. And Bloomerang can make it easier. Healthy data is powerful data. Bloomerang customers can benefit from a Database Health Check subscription to ensure their organization is getting the most out of their data. Take your fundraising to the next level. Don’t delay – start 2023 on the right foot.

The post What Is Bad Data Really Costing Your Organization? appeared first on Bloomerang.

This article originally appeared in Bloomerang. See the original article here.