Fundraising is essential to the survival of nonprofits, regardless of whether they are run by volunteers or employ a large workforce. Therefore, it’s important that their fundraising platform they employ is efficient and inexpensive so the funds they raise can reach their constituents. Funraise, is a digital fundraising platform that helps charities raise funds easier.

In Use:

Funraise is a “collection of nonprofit fundraising tools designed to make raising…more effortless.” Using tools such as donation pages, automation, and reporting they have helped nonprofits such as Action Against Hunger, Invisible Children, and The American Lung Association with just a click. 

Understanding that every charity has unique needs, they offer both a free option and an Enterprise subscription that starts at $2,500 per year. While the hefty fee may work for some larger nonprofit organizations - many nonprofits can benefit from the free version. Features in the free version include recurring donations, donation pages and forms, automated emails, and both the donor portal app and the Funraise app. A charity can manage their donations and supporters, while also managing ticketing and events. For $2,500 - nonprofits can add peer-to-peer fundraising, robust reporting, text engagement, and multiple integrations that aren’t available through the free version.

Technology Used:

Funraise leverages technology to build the tools within their software. Included in both the free and Enterprise versions - Funraise offers the Funraise mobile app where charities can collect payments as well as the Donor Portal App where donors can access their donor information and their giving history. If a nonprofit opts for the Enterprise subscription they also get access to Funraise’s API and all of their integrations such as, Salesforce, Hubspot, Mailchimp, Paypal and Zapier.

Ease of Use:

Many nonprofits agree that they like Funraise mainly in part to their easy-to-use dashboard and user experience. Many nonprofits take advantage of the widget button that allows them to collect donations right on their website. 

Recap:

A digital fundraising platform - Funraise has a variety of tools and features that can help charities raise funds. The platform connects such features as donation pages, email automation, and reporting to allow a nonprofit to seamlessly manage donor giving from one platform. 

The software has two different subscriptions. One is free and comes with commendable features such as donation management, subscription management and donation pages. The free version also comes with modest reporting and integration features to get a nonprofit started. The Enterprise subscription which starts at $2,500 per year adds more robust integrations and reporting along with migration services, premium support and text engagement. 

Advantages: 

• Free version with an arsenal of features 
• Donation widget that nonprofits can put on their website to collect donations with just a click 
• Recurring donations 

Disadvantages:

• Minimal reporting capabilities for the free subscription 
• Minimal integrations for the free version 
• Enterprise subscription is too expensive for the average nonprofit

My Opinion:

I’m always supportive of nonprofits that have a free version - and Funraise’s version comes with a lot of different features that can help the average charity get the most out of the fundraising platform. I think it’s unique that they offer both an internal app and an app for their donors to see their giving history within the free version. 

While it would be nice to have more integrations and reporting in the free version - I think the capabilities are robust enough that the average charity can get the most out of the features. I don’t think that a small to medium nonprofit needs to integrate Salesforce into their fundraising platform or needs extensive reporting ability.

Donately, a fundraising software was created to help nonprofits get the most out of their donation pages. By combining the ability to create unique donation pages and customize donation forms – Donately is enabling thousands of nonprofit organizations to “spend less time managing donations” and more time helping their constituents.

In Use:
Donately is simple. It’s a platform that allows charities to “Custom Build the Perfect Donation Experience” by either creating a website from scratch or embedding a donation form on their own website. The webpages and forms are fully customizable and are mobile responsive – meaning the interface looks great whether viewed on a laptop or mobile device. Using the form builder – a charity can pick and choose what information they want to collect. Donately comes with the ability to set up recurring donations and offers different payment methods such as credit card payments, ACH payments or donations through PayPal. Donors can even opt to pay the processing fees – allowing the charity to collect 100% of the donation.

While Donately is mainly known for their form builder and fundraising pages – they also have other options that charities can take advantage of. Charities can optimize the text message tool to directly text their donors; peer-to-peer fundraising to spread awareness about their campaign; and a dashboard that the nonprofit can use to track donations and run reports and analytics.

When it comes to pricing, Donately has a “Free” version (plus a 4% platform fee). Among the features of the “Free” version are; customizable forms and donation pages, recurring donations, and live chat support. If a nonprofit organization wants to take advantage of more advantaged customizations and integrations, they will have to opt for either the Starter or Team version which starts at $19 per month (and 3.5% processing fees).

Ease of Use:
Each version of Donately offers customer support. Watch videos to get started on your first donation form or take advantage of the live chat support for any immediate questions. Charities who purchase the “Teams” version are assigned a dedicated account representative.

Many customers have noted how easy it was to get started with Donately - as well as the ease of tracking and reporting on donations.

Technology Needed:
Donately is a cloud-based fundraising platform with numerous integrations available thanks to their partnership with Zapier, a platform that automates the integration of web applications. With Zapier, a nonprofit can integrate data collected through Donately with many other applications -eliminating the need for manual uploads. Some of the apps included in Donately’s Integration Marketplace are - Salesforce, Google Analytics, Hubspot, QuickBooks and Wordpress. While Zapier is not free, it does offer over 1,000 integrations with platforms like Donately.

Recap:
A fundraising platform – Donately offers nonprofits the ability to create fundraising pages and customize donation forms. Charities can choose what information to collect from donors while giving donors the ability to set up recurring payments and/or pay for the processing fees. Payments can be made by credit card, ACH payments or through PayPal.

Besides custom forms and webpages – nonprofit organizations can take advantage of peer-to-peer fundraising and reporting. On top of that – Donately partners with Zapier – allowing their customers to integrate with over 1,000 different applications.

Advantages:
• Customizable forms with the option to embed the form into a charity’s own website
• Ability to set up recurring payments and have donors cover processing fees
• Free version of the platform
• Integrations with over 1,000 applications through Zapier

Disadvantages:
• Reporting is not robust
• Customers have noted that customer support could be more attentive
• Customers would like more customizable templates for both the forms and fundraising pages

My Opinion:
Donately is a great option for nonprofit organizations who are looking to create a fundraising page or donation form. With all of the integrations that comes with a subscription to Zapier – a nonprofit shouldn’t have any issues integrating Donately with their CRM, email automation tool, or accounting platform.

While the fee for the “Teams” version can be expensive for a smaller charity – the “Free” version comes with enough features that allows a nonprofit to set up a website and start collecting donations with just a 4% processing fee.

The most common feedback from customers have been the lack of robust reporting and the customer support. If a charity is OK with the minimal support and reporting capabilities –Donately is a great option for small-to-medium nonprofits who want to start fundraising with just a few clicks.

If you’re a nonprofit looking to consolidate all of your software into one platform that has everything you need to run a successful charity – Springly, may be the software for you. It’s an all-in-one membership platform that aids nonprofit organizations with tools and features dedicated to accounting, donations, email automation and event management.

In Use:

Springly claims that they can save a nonprofit time on daily management, diversify a nonprofit’s revenue source, and provide 24/7 support. With the Serenity membership of $25 per month for up to 100 users - a charity has access to features that enables them to run their charity without ever having to leave the Springly platform. The software offers prospective users a free demo and a free subscription that allows users to collect payments with no transaction fees and full on-line support.

The website and communications feature enables a charity to create and customize a website; send targeted messages, and report on both website and email analytics.  With the fundraising module, a nonprofit can set up fundraising campaigns and an online store- managing stock and sending invoices with a few clicks.  The accounting feature allows nonprofits to see how much they’ve sold and manage donations. They can do it right on Springly’s dashboard or take advantage of their QuickBooks integration. These features roll into Springly’s CRM platform where a nonprofit can manage both their donors and volunteers.

Furthermore, the event module allows nonprofit organizations to create a registration landing page where registrants can purchase tickets without having to leave the site. The registrant will receive a ticket with a QR code that the nonprofit can scan on the day of the event. Other benefits to the event module include; tracking who has purchased a ticket, payment collection, reporting and analytics, and integration into the CRM module.

Technology Needed:

Springly is available as a cloud-based app, but also has on-prem hardware that is compatible with both Mac, Windows, and Chromebook devices. 

While they noted the QuickBooks integrations on their website – I couldn’t find any other integrations. While that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t have any other integrations – it just wasn’t noted on their website.

Ease of Use:

One point that a majority of Springly customers can agree on is that it’s easy to use. Based on the reviews – it’s clear to see the features that Springly offers are robust – but were created in with ease-of-use in mind. Many reviews noted that Springly saved their users both time and money.

When it comes to customer service – Springly boasts 24/7 support. A user can access help through email, phone, or chat modules. When it comes to training - the nonprofit software offers in-person training, webinars, videos, and documentation that a user can take advantage of.

Recap:

If you’re looking for an all-in-one software for your nonprofit – Springly offers numerous benefits and features aimed at small to medium nonprofits. The easy-to-use feature helps a nonprofit save time and money by having everything they need within the platform. Subscriptions start at $0 (with limited benefits) while their $25 per month subscription includes the capability to collect payments, manage contacts, and customize a website and email template.

Advantages:

• Many users appreciate that the software is easy-to-use
• Saves users both time and money by utilizing the different modules within the software
• Only $25 per month for up to 100 users – enabling small and medium nonprofits to benefit from the platform
• 24/7 support which is great for users who hold events at night or on weekends
• Offers a free demo so you can see the software in action

Disadvantages:

• Limited integrations
• Limited customization
• Some modules are better than others – which can be common in an all-in-one software like Springly

My Opinion:

There are enough glowing reviews to know that Springly is special. And for $25 per month, it’s a steal for small to medium nonprofits.

I would like to see Springly offer more integrations and more customization when it comes to websites and communications – but overall, it is packed with features and tools that nonprofits can utilize to efficiently fundraise and communicate with donors and volunteers.

Tracking donor relationships, managing volunteers, and keeping track of fundraising efforts on excel may work for new charities who are just starting out. As nonprofits grow, they need a robust CRM and fundraising platform that can grow with them.

Merging with DonorPro in 2015, SalsaLabs has two offerings - their original engagement tool, now called Salsa Engage and DonorPro’s software that is now called Salsa CRM. Salsa CRM and Salsa Engage work together to give nonprofits, “SmartEngagement Technology” to “mobilize advocates and change the world.”

In Use:

When selecting the right Salsa product, nonprofits can opt for Sales Engage or combine it with Salsa CRM. Among other integrations, Salsa Engage tightly weaves into Salesforce giving users a seamless bi-directional integration.

Depending on what option a nonprofit organization selects – SalsaLabs offers their clients numerous tools and services to communicate with donors and fundraise starting at $349 per month. Salsa CRM allows nonprofits to create donor profiles and see their donors’ giving history. Their reporting and analytics allow the nonprofit to have insight on whose donating, how much they are donating, and visualize year-over-year comparisons. Users can track the type of donations receives – whether it’s online donations or through a check or credit card. Salsa CRM integrates with QuickBooks to allow nonprofits to easily export data for accounting purposes.

In addition to Salsa CRM, Salsa Engage enables charities to communicate with both donors and volunteers through a wide variety of automated services. This includes easy-to-use, mobile-responsive templates; social media management; push notifications; and a landing page builder. The tool also allows for data and reporting analytics that track email open rates, landing page views, and engagement scores.

Technology Used:

Cloud based, Salsa CRM and Salsa Engage can be accessed wherever their users are – whether they are onsite at a fundraising event or at the office.

SalsaLabs products can also integrate with a number of different platforms such as other CRMs like Salesforce and Blackbaud; volunteer management platform Civic Champs; and Zapier, an online automation tool that lets customers connect with over 2,000 platforms and software.

Along with integrations, SalsaLabs offers a variety of consulting and digital agencies that provides additional services to get the most out of Salsa Labs products. Agencies in the SalsaLabs network include Media Cause, a digital marketing and communications agency; Courtland Consulting which provides system integrations; and Bear Brand Consulting that specializes in data management. 

Ease-of-Use:

Throughout the years I’ve learned that CRMs are not intuitively easy-to-use. Good CRMs are powerful and robust and almost always have a learning curve. Salsa CRM is no exception. To ensure their users are getting the most out of their products SalsaLabs offers tutorials, and a customer service support center that is available by phone Monday through Friday from 8a-8p ET.

Recap:

A CRM and engagement tool, Salsa Labs provides their clients with “SmartEngagement Technology”. Their technology allows nonprofits to track donor retention rates, manage donations, and fundraise all within the same platform.

Advantages:

• The CRM allows users to group donors and track donors’ giving history to get a better understanding of who is giving to their nonprofit
• Customer support is attentive, and nonprofits get a “Salsa Coach” in case users have questions or need help utilizing a certain tool
• Numerous automation tools make it easy for nonprofits to create emails, send push notifications, and create online donation pages with the ability to add personal touches.
• All email and landing page templates are mobile-responsive, so they look great on any device

Disadvantages:

• Users feel the UX design is clunky and can be hard to navigate
• Users see the potential in the CRM, but feels it needs some work when it comes to navigating the platform
• Offer many tools and services – but none of them work particularly well
• Expensive – pricing starts at $349 per month 

My Opinion:

I’d like to see Salsa Labs update their technology making it more user-friendly and intuitive. It’s by no-means the worst CRM out there – but I do think that nonprofits can get more “bang-for-their-buck” using other CRMs.

I do appreciate that Salsa Labs has a great customer support team and automation capabilities to make it easy for charities to communicate with their donors.

The risk of fraud has been rising in almost every industry over the recent years. While the risk can be damaging to every organization, for nonprofits, scams can affect service delivery significantly. They can hit the reputation of a charity leading to devastating consequences. Because of these undesirable effects, nonprofits must be aware of the rising trend of phishing emails that result in massive breaches. Hackers have increased their targeting of nonprofits over the recent years due to their vulnerability resulting from their small sizes and lack of adequate infrastructure to protect against potential attacks.

The cost of fraud in nonprofits

A recent survey on global fraud by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) found that a typical organization loses up to 5 percent of its annual revenue to fraud. Although fraud in nonprofits results in lesser costs than in for-profits, there is an increase in attacks targeting nonprofits. Apart from the immediate loss of funds, there are greater possible losses to these organizations in terms of reputation and infrastructure damage. Since most nonprofits depend on donors and grantors, damage to reputation can affect the relationship with these entities. For nonprofits, losing donors is one of the most damaging factors, leading to the loss of funds that could have been used to fund various causes. Furthermore, scams that target nonprofits often get negative media coverage, leading to mistrust among potential donors.

Vulnerability of nonprofits to fraud

Nonprofits can be attractive targets to hackers and fraudsters. One key aspect that makes them a soft target to malicious individuals is that most of these nonprofits are small, and executives passionate about their cause and missions always trust others who have the same interest or pretend to have the same interest. Moreover, some executives may know more about other fields but may understand little about internal controls and financial issues. Additionally, nonprofits largely have limited resources and talent that could help in internal controls. This makes them vulnerable to employees who could know the company's lack of controls and take advantage of the weaknesses to commit fraud.

The distribution of nonprofits' grants, scholarships, awards, and other financial aid to external agencies or individual recipients also makes them vulnerable. It makes it possible for funds to be misappropriated if there is a lack of adequate control or oversight mechanisms.

Implementing controls

The risk control mechanisms in nonprofits are solely the work of management. As such, management should never be complacent and never assume that auditors will identify fraud if they occur. Although auditing is a good step toward flagging fraud, by the time annual auditing is done, it is usually too late to prevent the organization from fraud and reputational damage. Sadly, most board members in nonprofits do not think the way fraudsters do. This makes it hard to develop the right control mechanisms to address fraud.

The best strategy to develop the right is to assess the board's skills and capabilities before deciding where professional help is needed. An effective and empowered audit committee should be formed with complete independence. The committee should be allowed to hire outside counsel. Effective controls should be established by combining internal and cultural controls at the core of the anti-fraud program. Common tools such as security and access control mechanisms like dual authority, audits, monetary authorization limits, inspections and transaction monitoring will play a key role in enhancing fraud management. The right tone should be established right from the top by promoting a culture of integrity and ethics to embolden honest staff and stop possible fraud cases. On top of this, a clear reporting process for suspicious behaviour should be developed.

Technology infrastructure has become an essential part of how nonprofits operate in today's world. From optimizing service delivery to improving collaboration and driving member engagement, technology can help organizations achieve their mission and positively impact more people. In this article, we will explore how nonprofits can leverage technology infrastructure to achieve their goals.

1. Optimizing Service Delivery

Technology can help nonprofits streamline their service delivery process and reach more people in need. For example, organizations can use web-based applications to gather and track information about clients, schedule appointments, and manage their caseloads. This can help organizations better understand the needs of their clients and deliver services more efficiently.

2. Improving Collaboration

Technology can also help nonprofits improve collaboration among staff and volunteers. For example, project management tools can help organizations assign tasks, track progress, and communicate with team members. This can help ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals and that projects are completed on time.

3. Fostering Fundraising

Technology can also be a powerful tool for fundraising. For example, organizations can use social media to reach a wider audience and engage potential donors. Online fundraising platforms can also make it easier for organizations to accept donations and track their fundraising progress.

4. Driving Member Engagement

Technology can help nonprofits engage with their members and keep them informed about the organization's activities. For example, organizations can use email newsletters, social media, and other online platforms to communicate with their members and keep them up to date.

5. Expanding Outreach & Engaging Stakeholders

Technology can also help organizations expand their outreach and engage with stakeholders. For example, organizations can use social media to reach a wider audience and share their message with a larger group of people. Additionally, organizations can use technology to host webinars, workshops, and other online events to engage with stakeholders and build relationships.

6. Reducing IT Staffing Expenses

Using technology can also help organizations reduce their IT staffing expenses. For example, organizations can use cloud-based solutions to store and access data, which can reduce the need for in-house IT staff. Additionally, organizations can use automation tools to streamline tasks and reduce the need for manual labor.

7. Eliminating Time-Consuming Processes

Technology can also help organizations eliminate time-consuming processes and focus on their core mission. For example, organizations can use automation tools to handle repetitive tasks, such as data entry, freeing staff to focus on more important work.

8. Improve interaction with donors

Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram can be great for nonprofits to connect with donors and share updates about their work. Organizations can use social media to post photos, videos, and updates about their projects and engage with donors in real-time. On the other hand, email newsletters can be a great way for organizations to keep donors informed about their work and encourage them to get involved. Organizations can use email newsletters to share updates, success stories, and upcoming events and encourage donors to take action.

Online fundraising platforms like GoFundMe, Kickstarter, and Indiegogo can also be a great way for organizations to raise funds and engage with donors. They can allow organizations to create fundraising campaigns and share them with their network of supporters, who can then make donations and share the campaign with their own networks.

9. Improving Clarity in Communications

Finally, technology can help organizations improve clarity in their communications. For example, video conferencing tools can help teams communicate more effectively, especially remotely. This can help ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goals.

In conclusion, technology infrastructure can be a powerful tool for nonprofits to achieve their goals and make a greater impact. From optimizing service delivery to improving collaboration and driving member engagement, there are many ways that organizations can leverage technology to achieve their mission. By embracing technology, nonprofits can be more efficient, effective, and better able to serve their communities.

As a nonprofit organization, finding the resources you need to effectively run your organization and achieve your mission can be challenging. From fundraising tools to marketing resources, there are many options available to help you succeed. This article will explore some of the top resources available for nonprofit organizations.

1. Givebutter

Givebutter is a fundraising platform that helps nonprofits raise money online through campaigns, events, and recurring donations. With Givebutter, you can easily create a customizable donation page, process payments, and track your fundraising progress.

2. Fundraise Up

Fundraise Up is a fundraising tool that can help your nonprofit organizations increase donations by offering a seamless giving experience for donors. It includes features such as automatic recurring donations, personalized thank-you emails, and a mobile-optimized donation page. These features are critical for fundraising efforts and, eventually success of your nonprofit

3. CanvaPro

Canva is a graphic design platform that offers a variety of templates and tools to help you create professional-quality marketing materials. The Pro version includes even more features, such as the ability to upload your own fonts and logos, access to over 60 million stock images, and more.

4. Linktree

This platform allows you to create a customizable landing page with links to your various online profiles and resources. This is a great tool for nonprofits looking to centralize their online presence and make it easy for followers to access all their content in one place.

5. Hootsuite

Hootsuite is a social media management tool that allows you to schedule and publish content, track your performance, and engage with your audience across multiple platforms. It is a useful resource for nonprofits looking to streamline their social media efforts and better connect with their followers.

6. Grammarly

Grammarly is a writing assistant that helps you improve your grammar, spelling, and punctuation. It is a useful resource for nonprofits looking to ensure their written communications are clear and error-free.

7. Trello

Trello is a project management tool that allows you to organize and prioritize your tasks and projects using boards and lists. It can be a great resource for your nonprofits if you are looking to stay organized and on top of their to-do lists.

8. MailChimp

MailChimp is an email-marketing platform that allows you to create and send newsletters, promotional emails, and other types of communications to your followers. This is a useful resource if your nonprofit is looking to stay in touch with your supporters and promote your events and campaigns.

9. Yoast SEO

This is another critical tool that can be helpful in running a nonprofit. Yoast SEO is a plugin for WordPress that helps you optimize your website for search engines. It includes features such as keyword optimization, meta tags, and sitemaps, which can help your website rank higher in search results.

10. Google Ad Grants for Nonprofits

Google Ad Grants is a program that provides eligible nonprofit organizations with free advertising on Google Ads. It is a great resource for nonprofits looking to reach a wider audience and promote their causes.

11. Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free tool that allows you to track and analyze the traffic on your website. It provides valuable insights into your website's performance and can help you identify opportunities for improvement.

12. CharityHowTo

CharityHowTo is a resource for nonprofit professionals that provides webinars, online courses, and other training materials on various topics, including fundraising, marketing, and grant writing.

13. Nonprofit Library

The Nonprofit Library is a collection of resources for nonprofit professionals, including articles, templates, and tools. It covers a wide range of topics, including fundraising, grant writing, and marketing.

In conclusion, as a nonprofit organization, it is important to have the right tools to ensure your operations are successful and enhance your productivity. As you prepare to run the operations of your charity in the coming year, consider any of the above tools for efficiency and success.  

We don’t have a Magic 8 Ball to predict the direction of our economy in 2023. As they plan for the new year, nonprofit organizations should prioritize cultivating donor relationships, as recurring donors give 42% more per year than one-time donors.

Strategies do exist for attracting new donors — even during an economic downturn. Organizations can launch branded campaigns, incorporate donation tiers or offer a recurring donation option, leverage social media and simplify the donation process. But while acquiring new donors is valuable, nurturing existing donor relationships should take priority in this climate, making donor retention strategies more important now than ever.

Fundraising events help nonprofits grow and maintain those relationships. Organizations that “go dark” or cut back on fundraising events during uncertain economic times — or fail to maximize their fundraising capacity with poorly executed events —- will struggle to survive and thrive. Nonprofits must invest in technology to streamline processes, conserve resources and support the fundraising teams.

Find and invest in the right tools

As budgets shrink and boards call to reduce spending, organizations must consider what fundraising tools will help maximize donor relationships and deliver the best ROI.

The more fundraising technologies evolve, the more nonprofits find themselves building connections with donors across multiple tools — hosting virtual fundraisers on one platform, physical fundraisers on another, and payments on yet another.

But shuffling between multiple platforms makes it difficult to stay organized and virtually impossible for organizations’ leadership to gain a full picture of how their donors interact with the organization.

To create a seamless donor experience, nonprofits should look to consolidate platforms — maximizing the opportunity to collect and compare data to engage donors and cultivate loyalty.

An all-in-one platform integrated with your CRM provides a single source of truth for a broad data-informed fundraising strategy, enabling you to:

• Create more accurate segments.
• Re-engage lapsed donors.
• Target donors more effectively with personalized messages.

Nonprofits can leverage their CRM data to maximize the effectiveness of various engagement strategies they already use.

Personalized thank-you emails. Always send a “thank you” immediately after receiving a donation. While an obvious aspect of a donor retention strategy, it’s surprising how often it’s forgotten. Donors expect the usual auto-receipt. Level up your communications by creating customized follow-up messages.

Post-fundraiser surveys. Instead of wondering what motivates your donors to give, ask. Donor surveys provide useful insights for improving retention strategies and enabling nonprofits to identify communication gaps.

Social media connections. Using popular platforms such as Facebook and Linkedin helps to engage a wider audience in your mission. Create posts highlighting major donor contributions and share photos from fundraising events.

Automate processes 

Communication is key to nurturing donor relationships. 53% of donors cite poor communication as the reason they stop supporting organizations. Many factors contribute to poor communication, but tools exist to help nonprofits build effective communication strategies.

Automation tools helps nonprofits facilitate better communication flows to increase donor engagement and retention. An automated communication software built into your CRM captures and uses your donors’ preferred communication channels, such as email or SMS, increasing engagement.

Automation technology reduces the likelihood of errors, frees staff to address more critical thinking tasks and saves time, empowering fundraising teams to plan more effective fundraisers and maximize fundraising capacity at each event.

Whether the economy is on fire — or not — nonprofits must choose the right tools to cultivate their donor relationships. By investing in an all-in-one platform and automating processes, nonprofit teams can develop fundraising strategies that bolster donor relationships to increase contributions used to support the communities they serve.

Matthew Frank, a Denver resident and music enthusiast, has one goal in mind: to empower organizations with apps that delight and ‘just work’. After years working for nonprofits and in higher education, Matthew became frustrated with the many disconnected legacy services that dominated those industries and fell backwards into the world of SaaS technology. This led him to the Salesforce ecosystem where he has worked for multiple award-winning ISV partners in both the US and UK in service to NGOs & EDUs around the world.

You can now say “Alexa make a donation to_____” and have Alexa use your Amazon pay account to make a donation up to $5,000.  Currently, this program is only available to select charities that have been invited by Amazon. However, it is likely that this program will be a hit with both donors and nonprofits, so it is something that you should have on your radar for the upcoming year. 

Another high tech trend to watch for 2020 is the rise in giving via a blockchain platform. A blockchain platform is  a public ledger relying on globally distributed historical transactions to prevent tampering and fraud. 

Blockchain was designed to offer a higher level of transparency for transactions. Many donors wish to know that their donations are going directly to the charity that they have selected for the express purpose of funding a certain project. A blockchain giving platform can give them that piece of mind. 

BitGive’s GiveTrack is an example of one such platform. BitGive shares detailed real time information about the financial and project status of the charities that they work with that are accepting donations via GiveTrack.

Global Giving is a crowdfunding platform designed to help small nonprofits raise awareness and money. Global Giving is also a nonprofit, which means it understands what nonprofits need to run a successful fundraising campaign. 

Global Giving also understands that small nonprofits don’t have a large budget, so there is no application fee to join the  Global Giving platform. There is no monthly subscription fee, however Global Givings has a 3% transaction fee along with a sliding scale support fee of 5-12% of collected donations. 

The site offers a host of training and support options for nonprofits that join the platform. There are webinars, training libraries, workshops, one on one phone consultations or site visits.  The platform has tools like gamification and incentives to increase donations. 

The platform offers all the standard fundraising campaign tools, including metrics, donor engagement, social media integration. What it also offers is opportunities to partner with large companies for matching grants, or specific giving programs with the company.

know your audience in order to determine if live streaming is right for your nonprofit. The people you want to engage through a live stream have to be savvy enough to access your video feed so that they aren’t overwhelmed or frustrated by the experience. Beyond this point, your decision should come down to value—both to the viewer and to your organization.

If your organization is exploring adding a livestream to your next event there are a few things that you should consider. First, is your event the type of event that makes for a good livestream. 

The purpose of the livestream is to generate enthusiasm and excitement from those who are unable to attend in person. The event you are live streaming has to be visually interesting enough to keep your online viewer engaged. The most successful live streams are based on events that have an element of excitement to them. Is your event a fashion show? Will there be cute animals?--you can never go wrong livestreaming cute animals.  Also, if your event includes a celebrity guest that you know people who were unable to attend in person would love to see, 

After determining if your event is right for a livestream, it’s time to consider if your intended audience is right for a livestream. If your audience is comfortable using Twitch, YouTube or social media, if you chose to livestream via Facebook than live streaming is a good idea. If your audience is not comfortable with those platforms it doesn’t mean that you can’t do a livestream it just means that you may not get a huge return from the event. 

Next, it’s time to plan your livestream events content. Think of your live stream as the modern equivalent to a charity telethon-except instead of broadcasting on TV your using the internet. A telethon doesn’t consist of a single still shot of the action and neither should your livestream. 

Create a content script. If your are doing a fashion show consider doing interviews with the models or designers (or stores that donated the fashion). Have a host roving the audience,anything to spice up the broadcast. Remember you want to keep the excitement going. 

Many livestream apps allow your organization to collect donations directly from the livestream platform, so make sure your call to action is clear. 

EveryAction wants to be everything to every nonprofit. This cloud based platform offers fundraising, advocacy, organizing and digital all in one package. 

For fundraising, you can use the platform to create a simple donation page for your website. You can also use the platform to track major gifts, pledges and other donations. And, you can run an online auction with it as well. 

Get all your advocacy done with social matching and listening which lets you monitor and track influential supporters and it has an advocacy module that makes it easy for you to turn your advocates into donors. 

Organize your supporters with the built in tools to manage your volunteers and coordinate your canvassing or phone bank events. 

The digital portion lets you build multi channel ad campaigns. The platform includes data visualization tools so you can make use of all the various data sets that your organization accumulates. 

Nonprofits can make the most out the remaining giving days in the year, reports The Nonprofit Times. 

You’ve survived Giving Tuesday – and hopefully come out of it with a nice boost of donation revenue for your nonprofit.

Read article on The Nonprofit Times

New Story, a nonprofit that focuses on using tech to build affordable housing, plans on having 50 new homes erected a Mexico community by the end of 2020. 

A giant 3D printer built two houses in an impoverished, rural part of Mexico last week, breaking ground on what will be the first 3D-printed neighborhood in the world.

Read article on Fox 2 Now

According to the Biz Tech Magazine, integrated giving is one of several technology trends that will impact nonprofits in 2020. 

Nonprofits have a lot on their plates. Charitable giving took a hit last year, declining for the first time since the Great Recession, forcing organizations to do more with less.

Read article on Biz Tech Magazine

Mobile friendly devices help contribute to the success of #GivingTuesday, reports Biz Tech Magazine.  

Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday are all behind us, but the long Thanksgiving weekend isn’t over yet. Many will be digging deep into their pockets again today, but not for themselves—this time, it’s for Giving Tuesday. 

Read article on BizTech Magazine