Donor Management for Small Nonprofits

Many elements make a small nonprofit successful, including volunteers and dedication, but donors are one of the most important aspects of any small nonprofit. Your donors are what make your efforts possible. Because they hold so much value to your nonprofit, it makes sense that you should manage your donors in an organized, streamlined way. Rather than managing every detail of donors and fundraisers with a pen and paper or in a cluttered spreadsheet, consider a donor management system.

Find out why donor management software is one of the most important tools for a small nonprofit to succeed and thrive. 

What Is Donor Software for Small Nonprofits?

Donor management software is essentially a customer relationship management (CRM) system for nonprofit organizations. Donor management and fundraising software provide a centralized platform that allows you to create and maintain valuable donor relationships while planning and managing every aspect of a fundraising strategy. Unlike traditional methods for storing donor data like Excel spreadsheets, donor software is designed for nonprofits like yours, which means the software offers functions that are beneficial and actually useful. 

For example, you can manage and update donor data and records. Create profiles for your donors that include their biographical information, communication preferences, and interaction histories. Cross-reference your donor profiles with donor records to track the who, what, when, and where of each donation you receive. You can even organize donors into lists based on certain criteria to help you more accurately target your supporters. For example, you may segment donors into what types of events they prefer attending so they’re the first to know when these events are announced.

While there are many ways to manage your donors and fundraising efforts, you’ll find that donor management software is necessary for small nonprofit organizations. 

Why Do Small Nonprofits Need Fundraising Software?

Many small nonprofits operate without fundraising software, but they are often limited in what they can do and how fast they will grow. Small nonprofits need fundraising software to continue growing. Every nonprofit is different — from their missions to funding sources — which creates different technology needs. Fundraising and donor management software offers numerous capabilities to help your nonprofit streamline processes and grow significantly. 

Replace Your Spreadsheets

If you’re not already using fundraising software, you’re likely using spreadsheets to track information like donations. Spreadsheets can help manage money and store and organize data. For example, the basic features in Excel can help you track which donors donated at a fundraising event. However, when it comes to managing donors, spreadsheets are often ineffective. 

Spreadsheets are best for small amounts of simple data. When you add significant amounts of data and information, you’ll have an overwhelming amount of rows and columns, making the spreadsheet confusing to look at and read. This method also requires many hours of manual data entry, which can be time-consuming and take away from higher-value projects. Essentially, spreadsheets are not the best places to organize your data, and they are not able to help you build donor relationships or improve your strategies. 

Manage Everything in One Place

Donor management software for small nonprofits gives you a centralized location to store, track, and analyze all your information. From volunteer schedules and donor records to gift receipts and email-open rates, donor management software centralizes your information and makes it easy to access. You and your team can conveniently access the most updated information on every aspect of your organization and fundraising efforts, eliminating any room for confusion.

For example, as you plan your next fundraiser, you can create your guest list, send invitations, organize volunteers, track donations, and send thank you messages all from one place. Donor software makes organization easy to accomplish, helping you manage every aspect of your fundraiser more effectively. 

Track Your Growth

To see your growth, you need to track your growth. Fundraising software can help you accurately track your organization’s growth for better reporting. For example, your software can generate graphs and charts to help you visualize your growth over a period of time. Tracking your growth helps you set and meet fundraising goals to continue increasing your growth. 

Donor management software can generate reports that help you improve your fundraising campaigns, understand trends, and plan better for the future. Tracking helps you identify areas for improvement, which enables you to make the necessary changes to your plan and strategy.

Turn Information Into Insights

Unlike traditional donor management methods, a donor database can help you turn raw data into actionable information. Fundraising software provides valuable insights that you can use to further grow your donations and organization as a whole. For example, you can track which donors interact with your emails, which can help you narrow down the donors that may need to be contacted using other methods of communication. 

Another example includes generating reports of how often each of your donors has donated. These reports can help you identify those who may have lapsed or haven’t made a donation in some time. Using this information, you can tailor your outreach to these donors to encourage them to donate again or invite them to events they’ll find particularly meaningful. Donor management software helps you stay on top of your donors so you retain them and have more repeat donations.

Automate Time-Consuming Tasks

Administrative tasks are essential to the success of your fundraiser and organization, though they tend to be time-consuming. Luckily, fundraising software can automate numerous tasks like sending thank you messages and inputting donations. Rather than hand-writing or typing a thank you note to each donor, a management platform allows you to generate and send thank yous automatically.

For inputting donations, a donor database for small nonprofits allows donors to make online donations. This automatically puts the donation into the system, helping you avoid manual data entry. With donor software, you’ll save valuable time that can be spent raising more money.

Start Using Donor Management Software Today

At GiveSmart, we believe that your donors should be at the center of your fundraising management solution to keep your mission growing. GiveSmart Donor CRM is customizable to meet your organization’s needs, allowing you to easily report, share, and track donations and potential growth. When integrated with our fundraising platform, you’ll have access to numerous user-friendly tools to enhance how you fundraise and manage donors. You and your team can begin growing your organization’s reach, streamlining events, and getting your supporters involved. 

Contact our team for more information about our donor management software and request a demo to see how we can help you grow your organization.