So, your organization is on the hunt for a new donor management system or constituent relationship management platform (CRM).
You’ve asked around, searched review sites, read up on different providers, and done demos with your top choices, but you haven’t made the final decision.
Choosing donor management software is truly monumental. It’s something you will use every day! A great CRM houses all of your important donor data, facilitates fundraising, helps you build stronger relationships with your supporters, and saves you time.
Can you imagine logging into a system you have to work in every day that you hate? A lot is riding on your decision.
Nonprofits often ask me what provider I recommend. The answer? It depends on you and your needs. So how do you say “I do” to the right CRM?
To help, I’m sharing some feedback from some of my favorite clients and my own experiences working with CRMs at the nonprofit I founded, Girlstart.
But first, here are a few helpful steps to ensure you make the right choice for you.
Steps for Choosing a CRM or Donor Database
Step 1: Take inventory of your technology.
Grab a pen and paper and draw out where your data is stored, where your data is flowing, and whether it flows in one direction or back and forth. Additionally, note where you’ll need your tools to talk to one another. Are there integrations or automations that can save you time?
Step 2: Write your list of “must haves vs. nice to haves.”
You aren’t ready to invest in a solution if you don’t have a clear idea of your non-negotiables versus your just “nice to have” functionalities. Make sure you solicit feedback from all your system's users on this step!
Step 3: Define your budget.
It’s true that Excel, Google Sheets, and some features on Zapier are “free,” but when it comes to your time and efficiency, they may be as free as kittens. Investing in a “future-proof” solution that will grow with you costs money. At a minimum, you may be looking at higher costs for year one when you may be paying for two systems as you transition and for any implementation, partner services and/or training as you pack and unload your metaphorical moving truck of data. The mistake I see the most often in budgeting is people not realizing they may need to pay two separate CRM vendors at the same time during the migration process.
Step 4: Get the right people in the room.
It goes without saying that you need the folks who will be using the system and the decision-makers to give the green light in the room for the demo. Encourage them to come prepared with questions to make the most of everyone's time.
Step 5: Check references.
One of the worst mistakes I have made in my fundraising career was hiring a consultant who came in with an impressive list of former clients that I didn’t take the time to call. She caused so much havoc that we had to do a cease and desist order with an attorney. Take the time to call references, especially organizations similar to you in size, scope, services, and mission.
Step 6: Prepare for change!
I got a new couch after five years and was shocked by how much my 12-year-old twins revolted. Change can be hard. Make time for training and be prepared to show a lot of understanding and support.
Which donor management system do I recommend?
One of the donor management solutions I often recommend is Bloomerang.
With over 23,000 nonprofit clients, stellar reviews, and awards from software review sites like G2, Capterra, GetApp, Trustpilot, and Software Advice, Bloomerang is a very popular choice for lots of nonprofits.
For over 12 years, Bloomerang has been not just an easy and affordable choice in donor management software, but also a trusted source of top-notch training and learning in the nonprofit sector.
One of my favorite things about Bloomerang is how generous they are with sharing high-quality educational content to help make fundraising easier.
Today, their platform boasts a treasure trove of features and tools they’ve added to their CRM, such as:
Volunteer management tools to make it easy for volunteers to sign up and staff to retain these supporters
Membership management tools to boost renewals, communicate with members, and convert them to donors
Fundraising tools like customizable fundraising forms, peer-to-peer fundraising, event management, auction bidding, recurring giving, and payment processing
Marketing solutions to send personalized communications via email and direct mail
Reporting and analytics to segment donors, get detailed donor insights, and build dashboards to demonstrate your impact
Data management tools to ensure you have accurate, up-to-date donor data to fuel decision-making
Mobile app to collect donations and manage donor relationships on the go
Additionally, Bloomerang’s newest partnership with Qgiv gives Bloomerang customers access to custom event pages, ticketing, QR check-in, auction bidding, event marketing, and more.
Finally, another Boomerang feature that helps it stand out is its exclusive Predictive Giving Insights™, which tells your organization a donor’s likelihood of contributing to your nonprofit.
What are some other donor management software providers?
Bloomerang is one of many donor management software providers on the market. A couple of other options I’m familiar with are Raiser’s Edge and DonorPerfect.
Raiser’s Edge NXT
Raiser’s Edge NXT is part of the Blackbaud product suite. I was a Raiser’s Edge customer when I was running Girlstart. I later worked for a fundraising software company, Convio, which was bought out by our competitor, Blackbaud.
My frustrations as a Blackbaud customer at Girlstart were the extremely high costs of training on the platform, how complex and dated the functions and features were, the unfriendly user interface, and the lack of integrations. The ‘sunken’ costs to get up and use the platform were so high that it made it hard to make the financial case to leave. I was one of many buyers stuck in the same boat - we’d spent so much to get it it was hard to make the case to abandon it and invest in something else.
Many of my colleagues at Convio were from the nonprofit sector. This is also very true of Bloomerang employees. That wasn't the case when I worked for Blackbaud. At the time of the Convio acquisition, most of their workforce was in Daniel Island in Charleston, South Carolina, where the primary employers and industries were tourism, Boeing, and healthcare. One bright spot of the acquisition was it gave Blackbaud more employees from nonprofit backgrounds, and several still work there.
DonorPerfect
Another system I am familiar with, mostly because of my client who uses it, is DonorPerfect. One of my client’s favorite things about DonorPerfect is how easy it is for him to see all his metrics at a glance. His favorite one to track is of course retention, a feature that Bloomerang has at the forefront of its platform.
DonorPerfect is a donor management platform that allows nonprofits to create donor profiles, report on essential metrics, leverage email marketing, track goals through dashboards, collect donations, and thank donors for their contributions.
My client who uses DonorPerfect has over 7,000 donors and a strong major gift portfolio. While he loves the dashboard and metrics, he uses several other tools to create donation forms, manage his portfolio, stay on top of his donor engagement levels, and deliver thoughtful, timely stewardship.
How do they compare cost-wise?
Starting at just $125 per month, Bloomerang is robust and affordable. When I was at Girlstart, we paid something astronomical for Raiser’s Edge—I think $8,000 or $9,000 a month plus thousands of dollars for training for an onsite person we had to fly to Austin, Texas to train us.
This should have been a huge red flag to me. If implementing your new CRM requires a full week of custom training with a private trainer to learn how to run a simple report or manage a donor portfolio, you should pause on that CRM.
You want a CRM with award-winning customer support. But more than that, you want a solution that gives you plenty of free education such as guides and templates, webinars, and even a training program, like Bloomerang’s “Bloomerang Academy,” at no additional cost.
Pricing for Raiser’s Edge NXT starts at $4,000 per year for 1,000 records, and that doesn’t include the cost of other add-on modules like event, prospect, or volunteer tracking modules—or the training you’ll need to learn how to use NXT.
Both Raiser’s Edge NXT and DonorPerfect require prospective customers to talk to sales or request pricing. I like Bloomerang’s transparency about their pricing and how they let prospects watch on-demand recorded demos that don't include a heavy sales pitch.
What do my clients say about Bloomerang?
My client, Lauren Isbell, who is the Executive Director of Nevus Outreach says:
“I love the list of first-time donor calls right on my dashboard and the year-over-year revenue tracker. I also love the new Groups function!”
My client, Laurie McConnell, Director of Community & Systems at Pacific Wild, is a long-time Bloomerang customer. She uses the donor retention graph, tasks, and like Lauren, is getting good use out of Groups.
Laurie shared with me that, “The duplicate records notifications are really helpful and often indicate changes in a constituent's life, a good point for stewardship…Support at Bloomerang is also very good—they are available very quickly and for any user in the organization with a login, so support doesn't bottleneck with one person in the organization.”
My client, Cameka Crawford, the Executive Director of The Richardson ISD Foundation, is a huge fan of Bloomerang. She first used it when she brought it to a public school foundation she worked for and was excited to have it when she moved to her current role.
Cameka says, “With Bloomerang, I get a complete picture of each of my donors in an easy-to-understand format, and that helps me plan for customized interactions with the people who support our mission. I also like that it makes it easy for my board members to be involved in engaging with and thanking donors.”
What about integrations?
Bloomerang is a lightweight donor management software. As opposed to older, clunkier platforms like Raiser’s Edge NXT, Bloomerang offers simple integrations.
Bloomerang integrations fall into three separate categories:
Built-in. By signing on as a Bloomerang customer, you automatically receive two built-in integrations: DonorSearch and TrueGivers. While the DonorSearch integration allows you to learn more about donors’ giving potential, the TrueGivers integration updates your Bloomerang database nightly with current address, birth year, and wealth information.
Premier. Bloomerang also has direct integrations with many other software solutions. While the Qgiv integration is the most powerful as it unlocks a world of fundraising tools, Bloomerang also connects with QuickBooks, Constant Contact, FundraiseUp, Mailchimp, Handbid, and Gratavid.
Zapier. Zapier enables Bloomerang to offer over 5,000 additional integrations, such as Slack, Google Analytics, Gmail, Salesforce, PayPal, Canva, Zoom, Stripe, Shopify, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Like Bloomerang, Raiser’s Edge NXT integrates with DonorSearch, Qgiv, FundraiseUp, Mailchimp, Salesforce, Shopify, Gmail, and LinkedIn. However, these integrations have some limitations. For example, the FundraiseUp integration has no manual sync option, no failed donation sync option, and delayed notification payment methods.
DonorPerfect also has some overlapping integrations with Bloomerang, connecting with platforms like Constant Contact, DonorSearch, Qgiv, and QuickBooks. However, Bloomerang’s unique relationship with DonorSearch allows you to access this integration automatically, and their partnership with Qgiv means that the provider’s fundraising tools work seamlessly with Bloomerang’s donor management system.
What platform is best for you?
Choosing a CRM is a complex task no one should rush through. Take your time to follow the six steps I’ve laid out:
Step 1: Take inventory of your technology.
Step 2: Write your list of “must haves vs. nice to haves.”
Step 3: Define your budget.
Step 4: Get the right people in the room.
Step 5: Check references.
Step 6: Prepare for change!
If you’re interested in exploring Bloomerang’s nonprofit software, head over to their website and schedule a demo with their team or watch a recorded one.