Donor Relationship Management

One fundraising database for the whole organization — that crucially meets the specific needs of each department — is the best way to go.

There are 11 fundraising "commandments" I've discovered over the years. Following are the first four; I'll follow with the rest over the next two weeks.

On the face of it, CRM solutions in the cloud are the same as any on-premise solution, except they are hosted in a data center. But true cloud solutions can provide technology, economic and business benefits over the traditional on-premise solutions. The combination of these benefits is driving people to cloud-based solutions, and we will see them all over the next few months. But first, what is the technology case for cloud?

StratusLIVE, makers of StratusLIVE for Fundraisers, the leading Microsoft Dynamics® CRM-based Constituent Engagement and Fundraising Suite, has announced general availability of its new 2011 version. The latest version is powered by the recently released CRM/xRM platform from Microsoft: Dynamics® CRM 2011.

Sage North America announced it has entered into an exclusive referral relationship with Cambridge, Mass.-based ACCESS International to provide its Sage Rainbow customers with a migration path to ACCESS’ ENTERPRISE^®CRM software and services. Sage Rainbow is Sage’s fundraising management and development software for nonprofits, mostly United Way organizations. ACCESS is a leading software and service provider to United Way.

The Association of Fundraising Professionals launched an online survey tool that allows fundraisers to assess their individual ethical performance and strengthen ethical practice. The AFP Ethics Assessment Inventory™ (EAI) allows association members to examine the alignment between their personal ethical performance, that of the organizations in which they work and their peers within AFP. Ultimately, this will help assure that a fundraiser is treating donors with utmost respect and care, building and fostering strong relationships and maximizing the effectiveness of donations.

Donors constantly talk to us. One important way they communicate is by what they support (or don’t respond to). They also talk to us through their letters, e-mails, phone calls and face-to-face comments. While there’s plenty of talking going on, it’s critical that we learn to listen and interpret their messages.

Blackbaud announced that the American Bible Society (ABS) has selected Blackbaud CRM to improve its supporters’ experience, from direct marketing to online engagement.

The mission of ABS, a 195-year old organization, is to share God’s word with people around the world in a language and format that they can understand so they can enjoy the benefits of transformation that comes from God.

The talk at last month's Bridge to Integrated Marketing and Fundraising Conference was all about donor engagement — the making of personal, finely cultivated relationships that are as satisfying for donors as they are for the organizations they support.

There are many ways to justify having a social presence as a nonprofit (and not too many good reasons not to have one by now). But how do you measure its value to your nonprofit?