Using CRMs for Nonprofits

In the for-profit world, customer relationship management (CRM) systems have become an important tool to help organizations create, manage and build stronger, more meaningful connections with their customers. By consolidating prospect and customer data into a centralized repository that can be updated with almost limitless details about customers, their preferences and company interactions, CRMs provide a holistic view of current and prospective customers while automating tasks and applying advanced reporting and analytics tools to build insights for better decision-making.

Nonprofit organizations may not have customers in the traditional sense, but managing relationships with their key constituents, such as donors, volunteers, beneficiaries and other stakeholders, is equally important. In fact, in the nonprofit world, CRM is also an acronym for constituent relationship management software, which includes capabilities for donor management, fundraising and grant management, to name a few.

Still, broader CRMs like those used by for-profit organizations have become increasingly popular with nonprofits. One reason is that some software vendors have adapted their for-profit CRMs for the nonprofit sector, offering solutions that include constituent management capabilities, as well as sophisticated financial, automation and integration features.

What Is a CRM for Nonprofits?

By incorporating donor management systems or donor databases, a nonprofit CRM system centralizes valuable information about supporters’ interests, engagement histories and past interactions. A nonprofit can then use that information to personalize its outreach efforts, prioritize relationships and deliver tailored messages that resonate with donors. Ultimately, CRMs streamline operations, enhance communication and empower nonprofits to make data-driven decisions that build trust, engage supporters and cultivate a community of passionate advocates.

To deliver on their missions, nonprofits depend on effective relationship-building with donors, volunteers and other contributors who commit their time, money and services to support their causes. Building such a deep level of commitment from constituents, however, requires more than sending an email or making a phone call asking for money or time. It requires a true effort to build personal connections.

Key Takeaways

• Successful nonprofit organizations excel at building strong and lasting relationships with constituents, who donate their time and money to support nonprofit causes.
• CRM software can help nonprofits create and manage meaningful constituent relationships.
• Nonprofit CRMs can also be used to build fundraising campaigns; manage grants, events and marketing activities; automate tasks; and track and analyze data.
• Benefits include a deeper understanding of constituents that leads to more personalized connections, better data organization, and greater program and performance measurement.

Relevance of CRM for Nonprofits

The purpose behind CRM software is similar for nonprofit and for-profit organizations: to host and sort data regarding important contacts for organizational growth. It could be argued, however, that relationships — and therefore CRM software — play a more essential role for nonprofits. That’s because a nonprofit’s value proposition isn’t necessarily tied to specific products or services but rather to its cause. To “sell” that, it must build trust among constituents that it can fulfill its mission — so much so that constituents become willing to give their valuable time and money in return.

Spreadsheets, contact management software, email marketing platforms and social media channels can serve specific relationship-management functions for nonprofits, but such tools lack the comprehensive capabilities of CRM software. For example, one of the main advantages of a CRM is its ability to centralize all relevant data in one location. Instead of scattered spreadsheets and disconnected systems, a CRM provides nonprofits with a unified view of their supporters, volunteers and donors to better track donations, identify “giving” trends and make informed recommendations to build stronger donor relationships.

With a well-organized donor database within a CRM, nonprofits can analyze past giving history and engagement levels to prioritize their efforts, tailor outreach and promotional strategies to match their supporters’ habits and preferences, and measure their effectiveness. The result is more personalized experiences that resonate with constituents and build a more invested base.

How Nonprofits Use CRM

The global market size for CRM systems has grown exponentially in recent years, with no signs of slowing. Grand View Research estimates that the global market for CRM solutions will reach $163.16 billion by 2030 — a 177% increase over $58.82 billion in 2022 and representing a 13.9% compound annual growth rate. Because relationship-building is at the heart of nonprofit success, effective use of a CRM can have a deep and lasting impact across a wide swath of critical nonprofit operations, from donor management to task automation.

• Donor Management

  Research indicates that individual donations to nonprofits account for anywhere from 15% to 50% of a nonprofit’s total revenue (excluding religious nonprofits, which obtain nearly all their revenue from individual donors). There are three core components to nonprofit donor management, all of which can benefit from a CRM.

  • Donor recruitment: This is the process of finding first-time donors. A CRM provides a centralized database to not only store information about prospects, but also to track interactions and engagement, such as email histories and meeting notes, so that a nonprofit can build personalized communication strategies. A CRM can also identify and segment possible donors based on their degree of interaction and amount of potential donations, as well as track and manage referrals from existing donors, who are indispensable sources of donor cultivation.
  • Donor stewardship: Donor stewardship includes all of the activities a nonprofit undertakes to cultivate relationships with donors after they make their first contributions. It’s this long-term relationship-building aspect of donor management that drives loyalty and continued contributions. Examples include using a CRM to send immediate, automated appreciation letters thanking new donors, organizing donor meetings and regularly surveying donors on matters vital to the mission. CRMs also offer task automation tools to ensure donors receive consistent attention, such as personalized phone calls or handwritten letters.
  • Donor retention: Donor retention is the central by-product of donor stewardship, and it comes in the form of consistent, ongoing donations. Much like the rule of thumb that it costs companies five times more to acquire a new customer than maintain an existing one, recruiting new donors can cost a nonprofit up to twice as much as building on existing donor relationships. A CRM can help a nonprofit fuel donor retention with analytics tools that provide insight into donor behavior and giving patterns. This data can then be used to engage donors at the right time with automated, personalized, proactive appeals using email marketing automation tools, for example.

• Fundraising

  At the heart of any successful fundraising effort is a nonprofit’s ability to predict which donors are most likely to give and in what amounts. CRM systems help nonprofits gain a deep understanding of overall donation patterns, individual donor histories and communication and donation preferences. They also provide tools to automate fundraising campaigns and streamline administrative tasks. For example, a nonprofit can use its CRM to build fundraising pages that can be added to websites, social media feeds and personalized email marketing campaigns.

  CRMs also feature reporting and analytics tools that the nonprofit can use to review historical donations and fundraising initiatives, and categorize donations by campaign, program or other relevant factors. This helps it identify trends, evaluate the success of various fundraising activities and make data-driven decisions. For example, using a CRM, a nonprofit might discover that certain campaigns yield higher donation amounts from a specific donor segment. It can then use this knowledge to allocate resources more effectively by targeting similar campaigns to a particular segment, maximizing its fundraising potential.

  CRMs that integrate with third-party fundraising platforms, online donation portals and payment processors allow nonprofits to seamlessly capture, sync and manage donation data in the CRM. This ensures accurate and up-to-date donation records, reduces manual data entry and streamlines the donation process.

• Volunteer Management

  Donations also come in the form of time and services from volunteers, which are as important to nonprofit success as money donations. Just as a CRM is useful for a nonprofit trying to establish a strong donor base, they also are effective when it comes to finding, managing and retaining a passionate group of volunteers.

  Volunteer management starts with recruitment, where the CRM maintains a comprehensive database of potential volunteers, including their contact information, skills, interests and availability. Search and filtering capabilities within the CRM help the nonprofit quickly identify and contact volunteers who possess the skills it needs for a specific engagement. A CRM can also create and manage volunteer shifts, automatically assigning volunteers to specific tasks and communicating important details, such as event logistics or changes in schedule.

  In addition, a nonprofit can use its CRM to track volunteer contributions and reward efforts. Tracking contributions is also useful if the nonprofit is applying for a grant, to demonstrate volunteer impact, for example. Finally, the CRM can gather insights from volunteers through survey and feedback tools — information that can be used to improve volunteer engagement and overall nonprofit performance.

• Event Management

  Events represent key opportunities for nonprofit fundraising, community engagement and awareness. A CRM can offer specific features that assist in planning, organizing and executing successful nonprofit events. For example, the software can be used to recruit event attendees using targeted email marketing campaigns that personalize messages for different audience segments. A CRM can also be used to send customized event invitations to donors who have contributed a certain amount in the past — a more tailored approach that can increase the likelihood of attendance.

  In addition, a CRM can support attendee tracking and registration, using event registration forms to capture attendee information and manage registrations in a centralized database. A nonprofit can then track and monitor attendee numbers, demographics and preferences, such as dietary requests, to make informed decisions about catering, seating arrangements and other logistics.

  CRMs also offer event task management and collaboration features that nonprofits can use to assign responsibilities to team members and track progress. Team members can use the CRM to collaborate and streamline processes by updating task statuses and sharing documents.

  Finally, the CRM can assist with event fundraising and sponsor management. For example, a nonprofit can use its CRM to create customized sponsorship packages, track sponsorship commitments, record payments received and generate personalized acknowledgment letters.

• Grant Management

  Grants from governments, corporations, private foundations and other sources are a substantial source of revenue for nonprofits that requires meticulous management. Grants from foundations, in particular, are now the second-largest source of revenue for nonprofits (behind individual donations), representing 21% of total giving in 2022, according to the 2023 “Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy.”

  CRMs can help nonprofits manage the grant life cycle in the same way they help manage other constituent relationships. For example, a nonprofit using a CRM might set up automated reminders to follow up with a grantor after a grant has been awarded, nurturing and maintaining that relationship. The CRM can also help with the grant application and approval process, which is commonly detailed and lengthy. A CRM’s centralized database can store and manage grant opportunities, deadlines and application requirements so the nonprofit doesn’t miss submission dates. The CRM can also store proposals, budgets and supporting materials, so team members can access and collaborate on the most up-to-date documents.

  Once a grant is awarded, the CRM can help manage grant accounting by tracking grant terms and conditions, automating time and expense tracking and managing expenses across multiple years. The CRM also gives grantors transparency into the grant life cycle to view program progress and impact.

• Reporting and Analysis

  Nonprofits need to store and manage a lot of data — about donors, volunteers, staff, campaigns, finances and marketing efforts. As nonprofits grow, managing that data with spreadsheets or disconnected systems becomes inefficient and prone to errors. More importantly, such tools make it hard for nonprofits to analyze that data to make informed decisions.

  A CRM, however, keeps that valuable data in one location and adds data analysis capabilities so that nonprofits have greater insights about existing donors and can find patterns to identify potential new donors. Nonprofits can use CRM systems to create ideal donor profiles, for example, based on traits and motivations of existing donors that can then be used to target and acquire new donors with similar profiles. CRM analytics can also help nonprofits identify patterns in lower- and higher-tier giving, so they can segment donors and tailor outreach strategies in ways that are more likely to resonate and engender loyalty.

• Marketing and Communications

  Marketing and communications play a vital role for nonprofits because they help raise awareness, engage stakeholders and drive support for nonprofit missions. Contact management capabilities are core to a CRM, storing and tracking key constituents’ information, such as communication history, preferences and interaction details. This data can be used in multiple ways, such as to categorize and segment contacts and then target messaging and communication strategies to specific audiences. For example, a nonprofit can create personalized appeals to high-value donors or send program-specific updates to supporters interested in a particular cause. This increases the likelihood of engagement and support.

  Nonprofits can also take advantage of automation features in CRM systems. For example, a nonprofit could set up an automated series of welcome emails for new subscribers to its newsletter, introducing the organization, sharing impact stories and inviting further engagement. When combined with the segmenting capabilities described above, nonprofits can truly personalize constituent experiences.

• Constituent Relationship Management

  Constituent relationship management is a term used in nonprofit circles to refer to the process of building lasting relationships with several key stakeholders, including donors, volunteers, grantors and board members. Customer relationship management systems modified for the specialized needs of nonprofit companies can be extremely powerful tools for nonprofit constituent relationship management. In fact, many for-profit CRM systems providers have built constituent management functionality tools for their nonprofit customers, which provides several advantages. Not only can nonprofits leverage specific capabilities for constituent management, such as building constituent profiles, centralizing data and managing communication, but such CRM systems often have more powerful features than niche constituent management systems. They also integrate more seamlessly with accounting and financial management software to automate nonprofit workflows.

• Financial Management

  Financial features within some CRMs help nonprofits manage their finances more efficiently and with less risk of error. For example, a CRM can track sources of revenue in a centralized database, as well as analyze the details, such as donation amounts, frequencies and trends, and glean insights into revenue patterns, such as average donation amounts and donor retention rates. All of this information can then be used to guide the nonprofit’s future fundraising strategies, resource allocation and donor engagement initiatives. Perhaps analysis of donor data reveals that a particular donor segment contributes significantly to the organization’s revenue. The nonprofit can use this information to inform targeted fundraising efforts that maximize support from that segment.

  CRMs can also record and categorize nonprofit expenses, as well as allow nonprofits to create and monitor budgets, track budgeted amounts versus actual spending and generate simple financial reports. But for most nonprofits, the benefits of using a CRM to help with financial management are best realized when the CRM is integrated with accounting software or financial management tools, allowing for seamless data transfer and synchronization. Integration also reduces manual data entry, minimizes the chances of errors and improves efficiency.

• Social Listening

  Many CRMs offer integration with an organization’s social media channels to create what’s often called “social CRM.” This type of social integration is imperative for nonprofits with supporters who — much like consumers in the for-profit world — prefer to interact using their favorite social channels. Integrating a CRM with social channels, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, helps nonprofits get a better sense of how their audiences feel about their causes and organizations.

  Integration also enables nonprofits to track and analyze social media engagement. For example, nonprofits can use a CRM to monitor social media mentions; track engagement metrics, such as likes, shares and comments; and gain insights into the effectiveness of their social media campaigns. This can add crucial depth to a nonprofit’s understanding of its audience’s interests, while also helping identify trends and refine social media marketing strategies.

• Website Integration

  From event registration pages, to volunteer sign-up forms, to newsletter subscription forms, nonprofits depend on their own websites to engage with constituents and capture essential data. They sometimes build these pages themselves, use third-party marketing automation tools to build and host them or use third-party-hosted online giving platforms and donation portals, such as GoFundMe. Integrating web pages or hosting tools with a CRM enables data about website interactions to be captured, automatically and seamlessly, in the CRM’s centralized database. Not only does this eliminate manual data entry, reduce errors and ensure up-to-date constituent records, but it can also trigger time-saving, automated tasks. In addition, website data, such as previous interactions, interests or donation history, can be used to personalize the donor experience, including personalized web content, recommendations or targeted appeals.

  CRM tracking and analytics tools can also track website metrics, such as page views, click-through rates and conversion rates, to help nonprofits better understand website performance, user behavior and the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. This data can also help nonprofits optimize their websites to maximize donations, for example.

• Task Automation

  Automation is a hallmark feature of most CRM systems, which can automate everything from capturing data about constituents to lead follow-up, calendar scheduling, responses to contact forms and more. The resulting reduction in manual tasks saves critical time, reduces errors and allows nonprofit staff to focus on more strategic and impactful activities.

  Automated email communication can be particularly helpful for nonprofits, which can create email templates and set up automated email campaigns triggered by specific events or actions. Welcome emails, for example, can be automatically triggered when a new prospect or subscriber is added to the database. That’s a good idea because, according to GetResponse, the average open rate for welcome emails is nearly seven out of 10.

  CRMs can also automate multistep processes and workflows by assigning tasks, sending notifications and tracking progress on projects. For example, a nonprofit could use a CRM to automate workflows for volunteer onboarding: When a new volunteer applies via a website form, the CRM can be set up to automatically assign tasks to various team members, such as background checks, training and scheduling, backed by automated notifications and reminders to ensure a smooth and efficient process. The same automation features can be applied to event management tasks, such as registration confirmation, reminders and post-event follow-ups.

  Integrations can extend CRM’s automation features to other software. For example, a nonprofit could automatically sync donor data from its CRM with its accounting software to automatically update donation records, bypassing the need for manual data entry.

Benefits of Nonprofits Using CRM

Centralizing data about constituents, programs, finances and performance in a single system opens the door to a wide range of benefits for nonprofits. Not only does it reduce data errors and build greater organizational knowledge, but it also paves the way to creating more personal connections with constituents. Here are the top benefits of using a nonprofit CRM.

• Find Data Faster

  Whenever data is stored in a centralized database, such as a CRM, data access becomes faster and more efficient. Faster access is central to improving productivity and making timely, more informed decisions. With robust search capabilities, a CRM can quickly locate specific information, such as all contacts who engaged with a particular campaign — a task that could take hours when a person has to manually sift through multiple systems and spreadsheets.

  Configurable dashboards are another perk, displaying relevant data in a customized and visually organized way. For example, a dashboard containing real-time donation amounts, recent donor activities and upcoming events can provide stakeholders with an immediate snapshot of fundraising progress and engagement levels.

  Integrating a CRM with external systems can also improve data access. For example, integrating CRMs with accounting software enables the nonprofit to access and analyze financial data alongside donor records, gaining insights into donation patterns or donor contribution levels.

• Measure Program Effectiveness

  Nonprofits must carefully measure the impact of their initiatives, even while programs are underway, to improve outcomes and course-correct, if necessary, demonstrate accountability to stakeholders and make informed decisions about future programs. CRM systems offer specific features that assist nonprofits in collecting, analyzing and reporting data related to program effectiveness, such as program participant demographics, attendance and post-program survey responses. A nonprofits can then use its CRM to create custom reports with key program metrics, trends and impact measurements.

  Some CRMs also allow nonprofits to set program goals within the system, define key performance indicators (KPIs) and track progress over time. For example, a nonprofit running an education program may decide to set a goal to increase participants’ literacy rates by a certain percentage. The CRM can then track pre- and post-program literacy assessments via integration with a third-party survey tool to measure the program’s effectiveness in achieving its goals.

• More Comprehensive Donor Relationships

  Building more comprehensive donor relationships means going beyond a transactional relationship to develop a deeper understanding of donors’ interests, preferences and motivations. This is a fundamental component of donor stewardship and retention, often involving personalized engagement efforts that strike a chord with donors’ values and build more meaningful, lasting connections.

  CRMs facilitate more comprehensive donor relationships by serving as a centralized repository from which a nonprofit can add and update donor information, such as contact details, giving history, engagement activities and preferences. The repository updates with every new donor interaction, such as an email engagement or event attendance. Each new piece of information provides another mechanism for nonprofits to segment donors. The result is the nonprofit’s ability to target and personalize communication based on an ever-increasing pool of data that makes it more likely to forge a greater connection.

• Better Organized Data

  No one wants to use a library where books are randomly placed on poorly labeled shelves. It’s impossible to find what you need, much less build any real understanding of a subject. On the other hand, a well-organized library makes it difficult not to learn.

  Such is the case with nonprofit data, which, when organized properly, can form the foundation of effective planning, streamlined operations and more meaningful engagement with constituents. By consolidating a wealth of constituent and program data into a single database, CRM systems eliminate the legacy pain of disconnected spreadsheets and systems, while building a holistic view of nonprofit data. Better organized data also helps nonprofits quickly find specific information using the CRM’s advanced search and filtering capabilities.

  In addition, CRMs make it possible for nonprofits to customize data fields, so they can organize data based on requirements unique to their operations. Data can also be categorized and tagged in the CRM to align with specific data points, such as giving levels, event attendance or specific interests. This makes it easier for nonprofits to differentiate donor segments and create targeted communications.

• More Effective Supporter Relationship Management

  In much the same way that a CRM system can help nonprofits build stronger donor relationships, it can also improve long-term relationships with other supporters, particularly volunteers. By storing volunteer details, such as skills, availability, number of hours volunteered, training received, preferences and interests, a nonprofit can use its CRM to build a more holistic view of each volunteer’s engagement with the organization. Volunteer data can be segmented to tailor recruitment and communication strategies, as well as to assign volunteers to projects best-suited to their skills. CRM automation tools can also make volunteer communication more efficient and personalized with automated welcome emails, orientation reminders and achievement recognition.

  What’s more, CRM reporting and analytics capabilities can measure volunteer engagement, track volunteer hours and evaluate the impact of volunteer contributions. This data-driven approach helps nonprofits make informed decisions, refine volunteer engagement strategies and recognize the valuable contributions of their volunteers.

• More Successful Fundraising

  CRM systems may offer features that help nonprofits plan, execute and track fundraising campaigns. For example, CRMs allow nonprofits to segment donors by specific criteria, such as giving history, donation frequency or specific interests, and then tailor fundraising appeals and stewardship efforts to each segment. This level of personalization can engage donors more effectively and increase the likelihood of giving. The CRM can also set campaign goals, create campaign timelines and assign tasks.

  Once a campaign is running, CRMs can record and track donor interactions, which builds richer profiles of donor preferences, interests and giving patterns that nonprofits can use to tailor future fundraising strategies. Analytics and reporting capabilities within CRMs monitor progress against fundraising targets and KPIs, analyze donor behavior and identify trends.

Nonprofit CRM Features and Modules

Not all CRMs have exactly the same features, so it’s important that nonprofits assess their needs and then ensure the systems under evaluation have at least the following set of core capabilities. Scalability, automation and the ability to add functional modules as needs grow are also important characteristics.

• Fundraising

  Many CRMs come with built-in fundraising capabilities or can be integrated with standalone fundraising solutions to manage and track donor information, create targeted campaigns, process donations and analyze fundraising performance in a single platform. CRM fundraising features include tracking and managing donation data; campaign planning, executing and tracking; donor relationship management; donor segmentation; reporting and analytics on fundraising performance; and integration with third-party donor platforms to build efficiencies and streamline data capture.

• Email Automation

  Email automation campaigns are one of the most effective strategies for email marketing (behind subscriber segmentation and message personalization), according to HubSpot. Email automation features in a CRM — including personalization — make the process of building strong relationships with nonprofit constituents more efficient. The opportunities are plentiful: welcome messages for new donors or newsletter subscribers, automated acknowledgments for new donations, automated event reminders and even birthday emails for key constituents.

  Additionally, many CRMs have powerful “drip campaign” capabilities that involve sending a series of prescheduled, automated emails to a targeted group of donors or supporters over a specified period. Subsequent emails are typically triggered by specific interactions, such as a donor downloading a document. Drip campaigns help nonprofits nurture relationships and gauge interest levels from donors and prospects. They can also be used to re-engage inactive donors.

• List Segmentation

  The ability to segment nonprofit constituents by a wide variety of customizable categories and tags in a CRM ultimately drives greater personalization for nonprofits. Once constituents are segmented by donor preferences, interests or past interactions, for example, nonprofits can send targeted, personalized messages to each segment, which enhances the relevance and effectiveness of email communications and fosters stronger connections with supporters. In addition, nonprofits should also look for the ability to create multiple layers of nested or hierarchical segments for even deeper segmentation, as well as dynamic segmentation that moves constituents from one segment to another based on real-time data changes in a constituent’s profile.

• Donor Management

  CRMs can play a large role in meeting the challenges of donor relationship management. Related features should include donor profiling to store comprehensive donor details, such as donation history, communication preferences, interests, engagement levels and any other data points important for understanding and engaging with donors. Additional information about donor interactions, such as emails, phone calls, meetings and online interactions, are also important for nonprofits to have on hand.

• Tracking and Reporting

  A CRM’s tracking and reporting capabilities can influence almost every aspect of a nonprofit’s operations. The more comprehensive a CRM’s reporting and analytics capabilities, the more informed a nonprofit can be when it makes decisions about future strategies. Tracking and reporting are also crucial for two more reasons: so that nonprofits can easily share updates on performance to assure donors and other stakeholders that their contributions are being used effectively, and to remain in compliance with regulations. For example, CRMs should have capabilities to help nonprofits comply with accounting standards from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).

  Reporting and analytics help measure overall fundraising performance. For example, nonprofit CRMs should have the ability to generate reports on donor retention rates, giving trends, campaign performance, volunteer impact and other key metrics. When it comes to marketing, CRMs should be able to analyze email campaign performance, including open rates and click-through rates. Nonprofit CRMs should also generate reports on the size and composition of marketing list segments and track segment performance to measure the effectiveness of segmented campaigns.

• Integrations

  CRM integration with other core software systems provides a slew of benefits. First and foremost, CRM integrations can create a holistic view of constituents, which drives personalized communication and targeted campaigns that increase engagement. More comprehensive constituent information also informs data-driven decision-making based on more complete views of donor behavior, campaign effectiveness, volunteer engagement and financial performance. And by enabling seamless data exchange among systems, integration maintains data accuracy across the organization by eliminating the chance of data entry errors and duplication, which in turn enhances overall efficiency.

  For example, nonprofits often use specialized accounting software; integrating it with a CRM synchronizes financial data to ensure accuracy and consistency and streamlines financial management processes. Integration with an online donation platform further smooths those processes by capturing and syncing donation data directly into the CRM.

• Support

  One of the most important features of a nonprofit CRM solution isn’t actually a software feature. It’s upfront and ongoing vendor support, starting with onboarding and training. This can take the form of webinars, training materials and customized sessions to give staff the skills and direction they need to get the most out of the nonprofit’s CRM investment. In addition, vendor support may be necessary to customize the CRM to the nonprofit’s unique requirements, such as workflows, data structures and reporting needs, and for migrating existing data from multiple systems into the CRM.

  Leveraging the experience of a CRM vendor can go a long way toward preventing data loss or corruption, as well. Many CRM vendors have extensive experience managing integrations with third-party systems, which can also help nonprofits realize the full potential of their CRMs. And once the CRM is up and running, staff may need to rely on timely technical assistance from time to time. It’s important to understand the CRM vendor’s support services before committing to a purchase — some vendors include it in their pricing, while others charge extra. Finally, nonprofits should be sure to understand their vendors’ software update process, which addresses bug fixes and introduces new features that improve performance.

Ditch the Outdated Spreadsheets and Switch to NetSuite for Nonprofits

NetSuite is in a unique position to offer nonprofits a solution that not only includes powerful CRM capabilities but also adds a number of support tools to help build greater impact for their causes. NetSuite’s dedicated cloud-based nonprofit software leverages its deep expertise in constituent relationship management, financial and spend management, marketing, segmentation, fund and grant accounting, automated FASB reporting and more to create an all-in-one platform for nonprofits. For example, NetSuite’s robust accounting and fund management capabilities help nonprofits efficiently manage grants, track restricted funds, generate accurate financial reports and streamline budgeting and expense management processes. These capabilities are particularly important in providing transparency, accountability and compliance with regulators, donors and other stakeholders.

NetSuite’s nonprofit solutions go beyond CRM and financial management to include modules for fundraising, marketing, project management and analytics. For example, nonprofits can leverage NetSuite’s SuiteCommerce platform to create online donation portals and launch fundraising campaigns. As part of NetSuite’s Social Impact program, nonprofits receive discounts on software, as well as access to two nonprofit communities — one that shares best practices for growth and another that offers volunteer services from NetSuite employees.

Ultimately, a nonprofit CRM is like having a matchmaker and a relationship counselor all in one solution. Without a CRM, nonprofits will likely find it difficult to find donors and volunteers who match their needs and, when they do, they may struggle to make a lasting impression. But with the help of a CRM, nonprofits can identify and connect with like-minded supporters and build meaningful long-term relationships on a foundation of shared goals and values.

How to Use Nonprofit CRM FAQs

How do nonprofits use CRM?

Nonprofits can use customer relationship management (CRM) software in multiple ways, including managing constituent relationships, building fundraising campaigns, managing events, applying for and managing grants, managing marketing and communications activities, automating tasks, and tracking and analyzing performance data.

Do nonprofits need a CRM?

It’s possible for nonprofits to manage constituent relationships with spreadsheets and various individual software tools for donor, volunteer and grant management. As nonprofits grow, however, disparate solutions often lead to redundant data entry, which can lead to errors, duplication and inconsistency. This approach also separates information about constituents, programs and performance into data silos, which make it difficult for nonprofits to get a clear picture of operations to make well-informed decisions. Customer relationship management (CRM) systems combine all this in a single system, making it more powerful and easier to manage.

What is the best CRM for small nonprofits?

Choosing the best customer relationship management (CRM) solution comes down to the individual needs of each nonprofit. In general, small nonprofits should look for CRM systems that combine as many components as possible into a single solution, including constituent relationship management, financial management, spend management, fund and grant accounting, reporting and analytics, and program efficiency tracking. In addition, cloud-based CRM systems make sense for small nonprofits because they don’t require extensive IT staff to implement and manage.

How do you use a CRM system effectively?

Effectively using a customer relationship management (CRM) system starts with proper training from a CRM vendor. The ability to adapt the CRM to suit unique workflows, processes and data requirements — CRM vendors can help with this process — as well as integrate the system with other business software, such as accounting software or marketing solutions, are also paramount for seamless data flow.