4 Easy Changes to Get the MOST from your Fundraising CRM

Most nonprofits underutilize their CRM or donor/prospect database, but certainly not on purpose. It's incredibly overwhelming to even know about all the features, and unless you have a full-time database manager, good luck keeping all the information current and up to date. Fortunately, cleaning and maximizing your CRM isn't critical to success, and there are a few easy changes that both drive more fundraising revenue and connect you more closely with your donors. If you don't have the bandwidth for a total CRM overhaul, try these easy changes first...

Shift from general marketing ➡️ more targeted digital marketing

Marketing your cause to the masses can often feel like shouting into the void, but marketing your cause to your constituency and those who already know what you do is extremely purposeful. A marketing piece sent to your entire community looks different than one sent to your donor/prospect base. You can always start with a thank-you and end with some info about where your nonprofit is headed, no need to ask for a gift in every message. Donors like to stay informed, and this is an easy way to get a touchpoint with hundreds or thousands of people who ACTUALLY do want to hear from you! Nonprofit emails have one of the highest open rates in country, nearly 5% higher than the national average. If you have their email, they should hear from you all the time, they can always unsubscribe if their interests change.

Shift from collecting contact information ➡️ calling your prospects & donors alike

Phone numbers of those close to your mission are invaluable, but are worth literally nothing if you don't actually use them. We tend to collect this information in all kinds of places (email signups, people who volunteer, people who utilized our service, people who came to an event) and we never actually call the people afterwards. Block maybe thirty minutes twice a week to just go down your CRM alphabetical list of donors or prospects and cold call 5-10 them per week. You'll leave quite a few voicemails, but they can be 5 seconds long and don't have to be requests! Offer information, talk about upcoming events/news, or just let them know you were thinking about them. Being honest, no one likes cold calling. It can be the worst part of our jobs as fundraiser, but if your donors are used to you telling them "thank you!" and "you're great!" they will start looking forward to that next call.

Shift from sending the same email to everyone on your list ➡️ lapsed donor retargeting email campaign

Campaign in this context doesn't mean what we as fundraisers are accustomed to it meaning. This "campaign" refers to a segmented email through your email client (Mailchimp, constant Contact, etc.) for specifically those donors who gave at one time, but have not given again in the last 12 months. This is an easy list to pull from your CRM and email a specific message or series of messages about what new areas of support are available. This can also be one part of your year end appeal as a segmented list. So many nonprofits spend time and money creating the perfect appeal, and the truth is the perfect appeal doesn't exist for both a first time and long time donor. Those messages look different, so use your database to break up the lists and send targeted messages to each.

Shift from automated birthday/anniversary emails ➡️ hand written birthday/anniversary cards

If you collect donors/prospects' birthdays (and if you don't, maybe start now!) you can set up your CRM to notify you when someone has a birthday coming up. Instead of having your CRM send them an email, it's worth the extra 10 minutes to write a short note and and sign a card to mail to everyone on their birthday, or at a minimum, your top donors. No need to ask for money, just a personal touchpoint to keep the relationship moving. I like to have a stack of cards and pre-stamped envelopes ready so it takes me 5 minutes tops to do one. You can also do this with anniversaries if you have them OR "gift anniversaries" celebrating the first time the donor gave. Start small and build over time, but we always try to find excuses to reach out to our donors.

At the end of the day, all we want is to connect with our constituency more often and more meaningfully, so all the above ideas support that endeavor. Your CRM is a powerful tool, and the best way to get the most out of it is to use it to connect with people as often as you can.

Have more questions about how to utilize your fundraising CRM? Feel free to schedule a free call with us!