Data Sense

Association Fund Raising Software

I will be making a presentation at THE Foundations Seminar which will take place in Indianapolis at the end of the month.  My topic for attendees, who are primarily fraternity and sorority foundation executives, is “Prospect Tracking for Efficient Fund Raising.” These organzations have special software needs because the product must serve two user groups—those who support the membership and those who raise money. Results of a survey of the foundation executives indicates that most use either Patriot Software, IMIS, or Raiser’s Edge—three very different software products. To prep for the presentation, I’ve been studying each to determine its prospect tracking capabilities. It has been an adventure.

Fund raising software packages are like cars. Some have engines bigger than others, they come in different models, and if your budget allows you can add extras to make the ride more comfy. All of them can move you toward your fund raising goals and even the compact models, if they have user-defined fields, can handle prospect tracking. I drove a Raiser’s Edge for 10 years total and recently became certified to drive Blackbaud’s compact model, eTapestry. The company gave me access to a copy of the database which I have customized with fields for prospect tracking and moves management. It’ll purr like a Pontiac GTO when I’m done with it. The Patriot dealer let me test drive his newest model and I’ll be taking an IMIS for a spin in the next few days.

Here is what I want to leave with you. Don’t give up on your fundraising software. It might not be the lemon you think it is. Learn to drive it, find out what it can do, and with a good map it will take you where you want to go. Oh, you might want to keep it clean and get it tuned now and then. Data Sense can help with that.

Tools For Selecting A Donor Database

Selecting a database is a major decision. You are going to live with your choice for a long time and you are going to expend precious resources. When you purchase a car, you research the different makes and models to find out which will best meet your needs. Then you try to craft the best deal that you can. Doesn’t it make sense to do the same thing when selecting a database? 

Before you go shopping, though, you need to narrow the field.  Look to your strategic plan. Where is your organization going in the next few years?  Do you hold a number of events? Are you planning to expand your annual fund and develop a major gifts program? Do you have a membership component? Will you need to track campaign solicitations?  Make a list and discuss it with others in your organization. You might also talk with other nonprofits at a similar stage of growth.

Check out IdealWare at http://www.idealware.org/.  The organization behind the website is a nonprofit, which “provides candid Consumer-Reports-style reviews and articles about software of interest to nonprofits.”  You will find all kinds of helpful articles, but if you are a small nonprofit with a very limited budget you must check out A Consumers Guide to Low Cost Donor Management Systems. (http://www.idealware.org/low_cost_donor/consumers_low_cost_donor_mgmt.pdf) The authors reviewed 33 systems costing less than $4,200 in the first year, and came up with a top ten list. A matrix very clearly shows the strengths and weaknesses of each of those ten systems. A companion publication, Detailed Reviews of Low Cost Donor Management Systems, (http://www.idealware.org/low_cost_donor/details_low_cost_donor_management.pdf) provides a more in-depth look at the top ten and a few additional systems.

Another great source for guidance in the area of nonprofit technology is TechSoup. (http://www.techsoup.org/index.cfm) Click on the “Learning Center” and then look to the left where you will find topics, including “databases.” The articles on selecting a database are a couple of years old but might be helpful in conjunction with the material cited above.

This is a blog, not a full-blown article so I’ll haul up my pen at this point. But I do want to remind you of one more thing that could save you money.  Many vendors offer a fee to consultant partners whose clients purchase their product. This is because the vendor has expended less marketing and promotion dollars. Since most vendors do this, it doesn’t really benefit the consultant to recommend one product over another. Nonetheless, the consultants I’ve talked with do not keep that fee but ask the vendor to apply it toward discounting the cost of the product. Ask your consultant. If you are not working with a consultant, see if you can negotiate with the vendor to get the same discount.

In an upcoming blog we will look at database screening products. Check back!

What a Mess

We are remodeling our condo. The excitement of making plans, viewing drawings, picking colors, rugs, and furniture has given way to . . . chaos.  Items have been moved from room to room to make way for workers.  The contents of cabinets and furniture going to the kids have been unloaded and piled or boxed away.  Things have been tossed to anywhere we can find space. We can’t find what we need. Drywall dust is everywhere.  We eat out or eat dust. Disorder reigns and disorder does not sit well with someone who has spent her professional career organizing.

Why talk about our condo remodel?  Because the disorder reminds me of what can happen to a database when it is not properly populated, organized, or maintained.  (Those things are usually lacking when no documentation exists and no policy or procedures are in place.) In fairness to non-profits, it can be said that donor database products are sometimes sold as the be-all and end-all to a non-profit’s fund raising challenges.  But a database needs proper care and maintenance and there needs to be a plan in place to keep it organized and useful.
 
In pulling things out of cabinets during the remodel I found some items that I had forgotten about – items that have meaning to me. Because I neglected to put them in the right place in the beginning, they were lost to me. Do you have donors, once important to your organization, who have been neglected because they are lost in the clutter of your database?

I could go on, but you probably get the point.  I look forward to getting our home back in order. It will take time and planning but we’ll get there. You can bring order to your database.  It will take time and planning, but you can get there.