Organizations of all sizes rely on donations to provide essential services, acquire equipment, and improve treatments. Nonprofits face the unique difficulty of gathering information from a wide range of sources, including communities, employees, volunteers, and donors.
Technology helps nonprofits gain a deeper understanding of their constituents, including their background, location, interests, demographics, and more. By utilizing analytics, organizations can uncover new connections and insights that can aid in understanding giving patterns. To help your nonprofit thrive, consider implementing these five essential software tools:
A Mobile-Friendly Modern Interface
In order to effectively engage with a diverse range of donors, including corporations, community members, and volunteers, it is crucial for your nonprofit to have a centralized donor system that seamlessly connects all aspects of your organization.
In today's fast-paced world, donors are constantly faced with requests for their time and attention. As a nonprofit organization, it is crucial to use the right tools to engage with donors in a way that resonates with them. By understanding their preferences and providing them with a seamless giving experience, you can inspire them to support your mission and make a difference in the world.
Key features to look for in a software technology solution are:
- Single sign on- With a single sign-on a user only has to enter their login credentials (username, password, etc.) one time on a single page to access all of their applications.
- Easy to use- look for a solution that is easy to use and employees can learn it intuitively, with minimum support or pick a solution that will provide setup and implementation support.
- Mobile-friendly- Make sure your solution is mobile friendly so that your staff can work from anywhere.
“The software we used previously was dated and lacking in mobile capabilities. With StratusLIVE, we will have a modern and better record of keeping for our donor data. Everyone on our team will have one record home for every interaction we have with current and future donors and can access the information no matter where they are.”
– Lynn Happel, Senior Vice President, Information Technology & Data Support, Autism Speaks
Data Security
Ensuring the security and protection of sensitive data is crucial for the success of your fundraising and donor engagement platform, providing you and your team with peace of mind.
MedStar Health, one of the largest healthcare providers serving Baltimore, DC, and Northern Virginia, selected StratusLIVE to replace their legacy Blackbaud disparate systems including Omatic and Luminate Online with the StratusLIVE purpose-built full product suite. One of their key concerns was data security.
When selecting, make sure the solution you choose employs redundancy at multiple levels to ensure recoverability regardless of the situation for your data.
Workplace Giving
To cater to the diverse needs of organizations and employees, it's crucial to provide a range of giving options, including payroll deduction, paid time off, credit card, and PayPal or other money transfer services. Corporate philanthropy programs like workplace giving, matching gifts, volunteering, and disaster response also allow employees to choose the program that aligns with their interests. Providing these options is essential for seamless and effective donor engagement.
Branded campaigns allow your corporate partners to reap the benefits of your Corporate Social Responsibility endeavors, such as strengthening employee connections and enhancing brand reputation. Check out StratusLIVE's workplace giving solutions to learn more.
Event and Volunteer Capabilities
Events and volunteers play a vital role in the nonprofit sector and your organization should have the ability to automate and support them seamlessly. It is also important to enhance their engagement and participation levels, which can help convert them into donors.
Key features should include:
- The ability to recruit volunteers via your nonprofit’s website
- Ability to onboard volunteers through automated messaging
- Self service capabilities to allow volunteers to update their information
- Flexible dashboards to visualize event sign-ups and registrations
With StratusLIVE Volunteer Now, your organization can easily set up and manage events, including venues and logistics, session schedules, on-site registrations, and the roles and responsibilities of assigned staff and volunteers. Read more here.
Real-Time Reports
Nonprofits often struggle to gather and consolidate data from various sources, leading to fragmented views of their donors. However, innovative technologies such as data philanthropy, predictive analytics, and machine learning are helping nonprofits measure impact and extend their reach. By utilizing these tools, organizations can gain a comprehensive understanding of their donors and create more effective fundraising campaigns. Real-time reporting provides detailed insights into an organization's finances and helps assess its progress towards achieving goals. With the help of these cutting-edge technologies, nonprofits can drive change and increase their impact.
- Provide a detailed overview of the organization’s finances
- Determine which fundraising campaigns are most effective
- Assess how well an organization is meeting its goals
- Empower staff members to focus on activities that drive results
Whether we like it or not, the world is changing quickly, and technological advancements will have an impact on philanthropy. If your organization is interested in an upgraded technology experience, but doesn’t know where to begin, StratusLIVE can help!
StratusLIVE, an industry leader of Software for Social Good, empowers organizations to drive change and increase impact. Through its Nonprofit Industry Cloud Solution, enterprise nonprofits access CRM Fundraising and Engagement, Mission Delivery through Programs and Partners, a comprehensive Online Giving Suite, an Online CSR solution for Corporate Engagement, and a personalized application for donors.
