Why Nonprofits Should Use a CRM

You probably have a lot on your plate if you're a nonprofit.

You're working to make the world a better place, but have to do it in a sustainable way.  That means keeping a pulse on the donations coming in and how you use them to support your cause.

That's where a CRM comes in to help!

If you're unfamiliar with CRMs or how they can help your nonprofit, let’s break it down for you.

What is a CRM?

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management and it's an all-in-one system for managing all of your data related to [potential] donors, supporters, volunteers, and even event attendees.

A CRM helps you keep track of potential donors, donations, who has volunteered their time, when they did it, how much they donated/volunteered, how often they donate/volunteer, and potentially why they donated/volunteered in the first place.

This data is incredibly useful when talking about your organization's mission with potential donors or even current donors who may have stopped giving recently… you'll be able to remind them about what inspired them to give in the first place!

Keep reading for additional ways nonprofits can benefit from using a CRM!

Improved Donor Management

A CRM system helps nonprofits efficiently manage donor information and track their interactions, enabling them to offer personalized experiences and build strong relationships with the people who support their cause.

When it comes to your nonprofit, think personalization. 

Without a CRM, how else are you going to mark who is your donor vs. who is a prospective donor vs. who is a volunteer? 

Don't you want to send different messaging to all of them?

Increased Fundraising Efficiency

A CRM system provides nonprofits with tools to manage fundraising campaigns, track donations, and measure their impact all in reporting dashboards.

Most CRMs have integrations with donation platforms that seamlessly help you store data.

Dijy has done careful vetting of donation platforms, ask us about our favorite & why! 

Better Data Management

A CRM system helps to store, organize, and manage donor and supporter data in one central location, making it easier to access and communicate with them.

A CRM like HubSpot has an email marketing component that allows you to send emails right to your donor base. All these emails are tracked and you're able to see things like open rate, click rate, who viewed the email, and even if they read it or skimmed through it.

Enhanced Collaboration

A CRM system facilitates communication and collaboration between teams, allowing nonprofits to work together more effectively and efficiently.

Forget the idea that CRMs are only made for sales and development teams.

Times have changed and your development team needs to be in sync with your marketing team and donor management team.

A CRM allows you to assign tasks and communicate in a centralized place to stay on top of your to-dos!

Improved Donor Insights

A CRM system provides nonprofits with insights into donor behavior and preferences, enabling them to make data-driven decisions and improve their fundraising strategies.

Without a CRM, how are you able to distinguish the donors who donated over 6 months ago? Wouldn't you want to send a reminder email of what you've been up to and encourage another donation?

There's so much you can do with donor behavior and ways you can personalize your outreach.

But first, you need to have the data ready to be used!

Increased Productivity

By automating manual tasks and streamlining everyday processes, a CRM system helps nonprofits to be more productive and save time.

Are you catching yourself sending the same "thank you" emails every day? Tapping your team on the shoulder to remind them to do something they're supposed to be already doing?

What if you can add automation into your lives to make this easier?

The best part about a CRM is allowing it to work for you!

To Sum it Up

A CRM system can help nonprofits increase their impact by better understanding and engaging with their donors and supporters and streamlining processes.

Dijy has worked with numerous nonprofits to get them on a customized CRM to help increase and track their donations!