Project News
Donor databases that build fundraising
As mechanics, carpenters, plumbers, or other craftsmen will attest, getting the right tool for the job is a necessary investment. It is no different for fundraisers.
In donor development, an absolutely critical tool is the donor database. And the more high performing the fundraiser is, the more she needs a tool that is customized for her particular needs. Each individual nonprofit has its own way of segmenting donors, tracking contact history, managing mailings, generating reports, and other key functions.
Three nonprofits - Partners in School Innovation, Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, and Mission Hospice - recently turned to CWR for help in this area. CWR recommended the Salesforce platform as the basis of the customization. We believe that Salesforce is in general an excellent choice for nonprofits for several reasons:
- It is free for nonprofits
- Salesforce is a highly sucessful corporation serving the for profit world - it's not going away anytime soon
- Its "cloud computing" model is ideal for smaller organizations that shouldn't maintain its own infrastructure
Perhaps most importantly, Salesforce is a highly flexible solution that can be tailored for nonprofits. We have found that it works best for our clients when paired with add ons designed for nonprofits such as Convio's Common Ground.
All three clients chose the Salesforce platform as their starting point (two of them also added the Common Ground application). From there, CWR implemented the right features for each clients, and added in depth training, customized manuals, and technical support.
One of the advantages to our work with all three clients is our expertise in fundraising strategy, and not just the technical aspects of donor database. In fact, CWR had in previous projects analyzed the three organizations' fundraising operations and made recommendations for improvement. As a result, the design of their database was seamlessly integrated with their strategy.
If you're looking to upgrade your database tool, we recommend that you pursue it with a firm that can grasp the full picture of your donor development situation. Make sure you end up with just the right tool.
For even more on this subject, read this article by our donor database expert.