The digital systems of a growing nonprofit should be geared toward expansion. Constituent relationship management software, data integration software and dedicated solutions for handling the tasks and processes of organizational operations go a long way toward promoting and supporting growth. Whether an organization uses Raiser’s Edge or Salesforce for donor management, these are the most crucial digital tools and nonprofit software.
Why CRMs Are A Must
Growing groups should keep track of all donor information. CRM software databases store and organize contact, donation and other relevant information about constituents. Many organizations use Raiser’s Edge NXT, the Salesforce Nonprofit Success Pack or other CRMs developed for nonprofits. The outdated alternative of paper records tends to prove less efficient and reliable as an organization expands its supporter base.
CRMs are designed to process and store numerous donor records. These systems make it possible for trained nonprofit staff and volunteers to search and segment records more efficiently. An organization should consider the pros and cons of the leading CRMs when deciding which software is the best choice for an organization. For instance, RE has the capacity to process donations, but has more limited functionality when it comes to tracking engagement and working alongside third-party software than Salesforce NPSP.
The Perks Of Data Integration Software
Once an organization licenses a CRM, integration software may also be necessary to manage imports or exports from this database to external software or other systems. The need for nonprofit database management grows with an organization, but implementing best practices early on in an association’s expansion effort can pay dividends over the entire lifecycle of an organization.
Data integration software designed for nonprofits has additional features that can be useful for organizations focused on growth. Omatic Cloud features data health and deduplication utilities to improve the quality of records across platforms. This software also enables organizations to share improved data across the software or systems that are in use.
Engagement and Outreach Tools
An organization needs effective solutions for engagement and outreach in order to grow. While RE and NPSP have some engagement features built in, many organizations prefer to use third-party resources for email or social media outreach. The demographics of the constituency of an organization may determine which types of tools are most likely to lead to expansion.
Stakeholders should come to realize that maintaining high-quality data in a CRM that is used in engagement and outreach is a cycle. Engagement and outreach culminate in new leads or updated information about current or past supporters that can then be used to update contact or constituent records to allow for more effective engagement and outreach efforts with the ultimate outcome of more funds raised.
These are some of the most important areas of a nonprofit digital strategy. While it is important to factor in the current size of a constituency, planning for growth involves selecting a CRM that supports current operations and has room for growth, identifying useful engagement and outreach resources based on the current size of an organization and using data integration software to connect systems.
