Members and Donors and Contacts, Oh My!
Alliance for Biking & Walking Mutual Aid CallWednesday, February 12, 2014
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I you’re ed up with keeping all your donations in spreadsheets, using outdated sofware to track volunteer hours, or trying to integrate multiple contact databases into a in a brand new system, it could be time or a good Constituent Relationship Management (CRM). On this webinar, Alliance staff and leaders rom the bik-ing & walking movement offered some advice or organizations looking to get their first CRM or replace their current system.
Recap: Overview of CRMs
Levels of constituent management:
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Excel Spreadsheets (currently used by 70% o webinar participants)
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Contact management database (will manage contacts and let you have one-to-many relationships with organizations and contacts)
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Donor management system: will track everything in a contact management database, plus donations; will associate donations with either individuals or organizations
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CRM: will provide a comprehensive (360°) view view o every instance when a constituent interacts with your organization: volunteers, donors, members, petition signers, e-mail subscribers, event attendees, etc.
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500-1000 contacts is a good threshold to consider moving to a ull CRM
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Fees or implementation will range rom $5,000 to $20,000, depending on the complexity o your needs, the system you use, and the consultant you work with
Popular CRM systems:
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Salesorce (plus apps)
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CiviCRM
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Salsa
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NationBuilder
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Wild Apricot
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eapestry
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Convio
Panelists
Megan OdettAlliance for Biking & Walking Eric RogersBikeWalkKCKevin WhitedINDYCOG
 
Members and Donors and Contacts, Oh My!
Alliance for Biking & Walking Mutual Aid CallWednesday, February 12, 2014
2
Salesforce:
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Pros:
Flexible, ree and open source (8 users or ewer), robust app exchange or better reporting / unctions, includes many bike / ped orgs, national community o users and enthusiasts. Runs on Apex and VisualForce.
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Cons:
Costs time and / or money to set up. Originally created or or-profit sales, but not as robust dedicated donor management or undraising database without add-ons.
CiviCRM:
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Pros:
Standalone, web-based, open source system. Runs on MySQL, php. Donations, petitions, reporting, mass emailing, volunteer management unctions. Modular and flexible system. One that balances power, complexity. Can integrate with 3 web platorms (Word Press, Joomla, Drupal) and sync with several mass mail programs, including Constant Contact and MailChimp. Can use tags to track very granular inormation about contacts.
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Cons:
Requires lots o I capacity – in house or with a consultant. Beyond the capabilities o a volunteer with ongoing support and maintenance. Does not yet have a lot o social media integration (like Nation Builder pulling Facebook and witter accounts). No dedicated support unless you are working with a consultant.
Pros and Cons of wo CRMs
Be clear about your needs:
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For example, INDYCOG hired an intern to research CRMs. At the end o their process, they knew that their ideal CRM would track data on contacts, organizations, donations, volunteer history, events, political districts, and telephone conversations
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Settled originally on Salsa. Promised lots o things rom Salsa – several interviews. Implementation process went slowly and poorly, then INDYCOG ound out 4 months into the implementation process that Salsa has no native unction or renewing annual memberships
Ask for help:
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INDYCOG was able to get volunteer help by putting the word out to their social media ollowers that they were looking or assistance with their CRM.
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Tere are many nonprofit tech consultants who specialize in designing, implementing and maintaining CRM systems. Popular systems, such as CiviCRM and Salesorce, will have many consultants available.
Shopping for a CRM: Tings to Consider
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