Do nonprofit organizations really need to invest in a CRM software to maintain contact data, given the hurdles, pivoting, and re-prioritization that COVID has brought about? 

Yes, in fact Salesforce’s CRM for Nonprofits — Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud — is currently being utilized by organizations like the Healthier Kids Foundation, the Canadian Cancer Society, the ADL (adl.org), and the Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.

Whether you want to improve how you use your current CRM or you’re looking for a new one, a CRM can help you strengthen and grow important relationships and opportunities that support your goal. Even if you deal with donors, volunteers, or other givers, they should be considered clients. In the past, most patrons and supporters used personalized messages in all areas of their lives, both at work and at home.

Donors nowadays demand more than simply an ATM replacement; they want personalized, efficient communication. A CRM can assist NGOs and nonprofits in making communication with their audiences more relevant and long-lasting. The more you know about your donor, the more value you’ll be able to obtain.

What exactly is a CRM for nonprofits?

A CRM is a software application that centralizes data management to improve the customer experience, contentment, engagement, and service by bringing all communication with customers across all channels into one location. They were created with sales, marketing, and customer service in mind. CRMs, on the other hand, are increasingly able to interface with all parts of an organization’s operations and business in order to manage relationships and projects among team members, suppliers, partners, and contributors.

CRM software will assist businesses in tracking, collecting, and managing critical information about donors, volunteers, employees, and projects. NGOs and nonprofits will be able to build more trusting and engaging relationships with people who interact with them in a real way.

If you’re a nonprofit or non-governmental organization (NGO), here are a few reasons to utilize a CRM:

Automation of processes

Automate everything that can be automated. This is the rule that will help you save time when it comes to managing tasks and your daily routine. General emails, sending marketing and follow-up emails, calls, lead and fundraising tracking, and so on are all examples of key automation actions.

With process automation, your prospect receives an email or other message at the right time, including information about their personal history with your company. Meanwhile, all you have to do is gather all of the information you’ll need to organize your next action or follow-up.

All data is saved in a single location

The CRM organization will aid in the collection of all data in one location. It plans activities and fundraising operations based on the entire picture, which will be saturated with data and competing options. You will have limitless access to all data.

From any device in any area of the world, you can get access to the necessary contacts and the most recent updates.

Organize events

You may plan events that span many sessions, days, and places using the CRM. Due to the functionality of your program, you simply create and manage your event or meet-up. 

Many CRMs allow you to manage events, add participants, and extend your upkeep by creating a personal calendar or speaker’s profile, as well as check-ins and payments utilizing a built-in QR scanner. You will also receive reports in the form of graphs detailing the progress of your event.

Make future arrangements

Without an in-depth examination of supporter information, value, and profitability, the identification of bottlenecks in the company’s business processes, and analysis of the fundraising system, it is impossible to raise the organization’s profitability. CRM can provide statistical data and do a lot of data analysis, which is important for making important company decisions.

Your audience’s activities are tracked and recorded

A CRM gives you a holistic perspective of your target audience’s habits by assessing their actions, such as the events they’ve attended or the most recent volunteer activity they signed up for. This information will help you figure out how to build relationships with your different groups of people.

Save time sending emails

When it comes to composing emails and ensuring they are sent to the appropriate person at the right time, the CRM for nonprofits can save you a lot of time. The CRM includes templates and, thanks to a clever scheduler, allows you to select a delivery time. The difference between a low and a high open rate can be as simple as sending the right email at the right time.

The CRM will assist you in keeping track of your open rates and improving them. You can also send automatic reminders or follow-up emails using the CRM’s automation tools. There’s no need for you to keep track of when and to whom you send what — the CRM does it for you and ensures that donations receive the right email at the right time.

Separate the different types of contacts

List segmentation is a difficult operation, especially when the data is old, erroneous, or in a different format. A CRM ensures that you have high-quality data and that you can simply categorize your lists according to the parameters you’ve established. The contacts can then be segmented and tagged by constituent type, interest area, and geographic location, and then exported to your outreach efforts.

Again, the time that can be saved by automating processes and sending contacts to the right content and outreach channels is very important, especially when it comes to getting people to interact or ask for help.

Information will be centralized

Excel spreadsheets are used by a large number of NGOs to store and manage contact information. The problem is that storing data in multiple spreadsheets, each controlled by a different person, might result in missing or obsolete data, making historical data monitoring practically impossible — not to mention time and resource-intensive.

A CRM enables NGOs to store all of this information in one well-organized location that can be readily managed by multiple team members over time. While it is an added cost, the savings it generates make it worthwhile.

Internal communication is improved

The company’s work is inefficient, and significant business operations fail due to a lack of communication between personnel and departments. As a result, the company’s profitability suffers.

The CRM system makes it easier for everyone involved in the process to communicate and share information.

Manage your fundraising efforts as well as your donor database

One of the most important features of CRM is the ability to track how much you’ve spent on membership dues, gifts, events, and other expenses. You’ll be able to see all of your contributions and cash flows with this tool. If your nonprofit or NGO communicates with more than a hundred people on a regular basis, it’s time to consolidate your spreadsheets into a single database.

How do you select the best customer relationship management for your non-profit?

There are a lot of CRMs out there, and knowing the advantages and disadvantages of each one will help you pick the ideal one. The following are the most important things to think about as you look at the CRM industry landscape:

Your budget

The pricing of most CRMs varies depending on the number of users and contacts. If you’re not sure where to allocate your budget, look at these considerations below to get a sense of what your CRM investment will entail:

Your priorities and requirements

What are your objectives? Is it for the purpose of better segmenting contacts? How can you improve your reporting? Have more complete contact information? Determining which features are must-haves, nice-to-haves, and not needed at all can be done by defining your varied demands.

Users from within your company

What members of your team require access? Do you have people on your team who are technically and analytically savvy? Is your group less technically savvy?

What your team can bring to the table in terms of technical expertise and customer relationships can help you decide whether you need a complex, bespoke solution or a more straightforward, out-of-the-box one.

Your current tools’ availability

Looking at your digital environment from a distance, which of your existing tools and platforms must be compatible with your CRM? The CRM you choose should be compatible with your website CMS. However, you may also want it to link to your email marketing platform, social media accounts, and timesheet management system, to mention a few.

There are numerous tools designed specifically for such groups. Most of them are paid, while others are unpaid. All you have to do now is pick the one that best fits your needs and take your business to the next level.

Conclusion

A customer relationship management system will assist your company in remaining organized and efficient. Nonprofit organizations are advantageously positioned to offer leadership and direction in solving some of the major difficulties communities and industries are facing as the globe tries to figure out how to get through this global pandemic. 

The finest CRM for your organization’s needs will do just that, guiding you down the proper path to achieve your objectives, professionalize your approach, and optimize your influence.

Martin Gessner

Martin Gessner is the Founder of Focus on Force.

He has spent over 10 years working in various Salesforce roles including business analyst, project manager, consultant and solutions architect. Along the way he has earned twelve certifications, published "The Salesforce Career Playbook", and helps Salesforce professionals learn more about Salesforce, develop their career and prepare for certifications.