ThankView makes it easier to acknowledge your donors after an event, volunteer activity, or a donation. Throw away your “Thank You” cards, use your stamps on another project, and put your pen back in the cupholder. ThankView is an effortless way to express gratitude to the donors that are supporting your mission.

In Use:

ThankView is a platform where nonprofit organizations can create and send “Thank You” videos to their volunteers. It can be created in minutes; branded with a university’s logo, and emailed or texted.  The software is geared towards charities, colleges, and hospitals to raise funds; thank volunteers; or for marketing purposes. The idea came about when co-founder JD Beebe got married. He didn’t want to write wedding notes but wanted to show his guests how truly appreciative he was that they were able to attend. The platform which has been serving nonprofits for over three years has been widely accepted by universities, charities, and hospitals alike. “The reception has been pretty phenomenal,” Beebe states. 

Not only can customers record videos, but they can choose from a variety of fonts, colors, and “call to action” buttons. The software automatically edits the video and clients can record a personalized introduction video and then cut to a more generic video; saving the customer the time it would take to continuously record the same message again and again.

Subscriptions start at $2,000 a year and increase depending on the customer’s needs. All subscriptions include cloud-based video storage; and the ability to schedule when they want to send out a video. Subscriptions also come with the ability to include a “Call to Action” button.

In today’s society it’s very important that a customer has insight to metrics. ThankView gives the customer the option to track data using a dashboard that can map who opened the video, who clicked on the call action, and other important information.

Technology Used:

ThankView works on all tablets and phones whether it’s a Mac or Android. Integrations include iMovie and Adobe Premiere. The platform is also compatible with CRMs such as Blackbaud and Salesforce.

Ease of Use:

Beebe wanted to ensure that any client could use ThankView without having to read a manual.  To do that he had to make sure that the platform was easy to use. If nonprofits do run into trouble they can speak to their Customer Success Manager who can answer any questions a nonprofit or university might have.

Recap:

ThankView is a software that allows nonprofit organizations, hospitals, and colleges to record “Thank You” videos to send to donors and volunteers. The videos can also include a “Call to Action” button that nonprofits can use for marketing purposes. These videos can not only be branded but personalized with the recipient’s name - adding a personalized touch. ThankView also comes with a robust dashboard that includes the ability to track how many downloads a video received, who shared their video, and who opened it.

Advantages:

• While ThankView will work with corporations, they mainly focus on nonprofit organizations, universities and hospital.
• While $2,000 may seem like a lot of money- it only equals out to be about $166 a month. While the smallest nonprofits may not be able to afford this- many medium to large charities can.
• ThankView videos have an average of 60% open rate
• Ability to create a personalized introduction and then cut to a generic message

Disadvantages:

• Ease of use when it comes to creating and branding the video
• What if the video goes to the donor’s spam box?

My Opinion:

ThankView isn’t your average “Thank You” note. It’s a fun, innovative way to connect with your donors or incoming students while branding and marketing your organization. While many charities use the platform to send out “Thank You” notes – the software can also be used for marketing purposes such as “Call to Action”, a due-date reminder, or a case study that the organization can use for outreach.

My only hesitation with email greeting cards is the chance that it could go to the recipient’s spam. To counter-act this ThankView works with the client to make sure that the list is clean so they can have a minimal amount of emails that bounce back. Because of this the company has seen an average of 60% open-rate.

As a financial management software, Sage Intacct is used by nonprofits from all different industries whether a faith-based organization, educational nonprofit organization or nonprofit health organization. The site boasts that it allows nonprofits the ability to aggregate transactions and real time analytics. For most nonprofits who rely on accounting to manage donations and keep their 501© status- it’s important that they purchase a reliable accounting platform.

In Use:

“Sage Intacct was the first accounting system built in the cloud,”Joan Benson, Director of Nonprofit Industry Marketing at Sage Intacct confirms. While other accounting systems had to figure out how to make the delicate transfer from on-premise software to the cloud; Sage Intacct was created and built for the cloud. Benson points out that trying to move to the cloud presents issues regarding configuration not to mention information can be lost in transition.

Sage Intacct allows nonprofits to manage all their financials in one software. Some of the benefits that comes along with a subscription to Sage Intacct is that charities have access to both accounts payable and receivable; deprecation tracking; inventory management; and 1099 Support. As an AICPA recognized organization, nonprofits can be sure that their fiscal documents are secure.

Technology Used:

There’s not much technology needed on a charity’s end since Sage Intacct is housed on the cloud. The platform has many different analysis and reporting capabilities – so a nonprofit who is familiar with data visualization tools will find the tool easy to maneuver.

Sage Intacct offers numerous integrations for a seamless process. In the nonprofit sector; Sage Intacct integrates with numerous CRMs and donor registration softwares.

Ease of Use:

With 35% of all of Sage Intacct’s business made up of nonprofit organizations it’s critical that the software is easy to use. Sage Intacct offers customer webinars; on-sight learning, and classes for their customers to learn the software. Sage Intacct conducts an annual conference entitled Advantage that includes training for all users. Advantage 2019 will be taking place in Las Vegas between October 21^st and October 25^th.

Recap:

Sage Intacct is a financial software that runs solely on the cloud. The platform integrates with numerous CRMS and donor management software to make it easy for nonprofits to manage their finances and assets. Among the different capabilities that Sage Intacct helps charities with are; spend management; purchasing; and reporting and analysis.

Advantages:

• AICPA certified
• The software is capable of helping nonprofits with numerous financial issues such as spend management and accounts payable
• Many customers site that Sage Intacct is easy to use and the dashboards are user friendly.
• With 35% of all businesses, nonprofits; Sage Intacct has a good understanding of the types of financial information nonprofits need to excel

Disadvantages:

• According to some customers- tracking capabilities and functionality can be improved
• Other customers site slow customer service as a source of improvement

My Opinion:

I think Sage Intacct is a great option to meet all of your financial and accounting needs. Benson had a very good understanding of the issues that nonprofits face in the financial world.  Along with Sage Intacct, Benson and her team  are trying to implement strategies and tools to help nonprofits succeed. If you are unhappy with your current financial software or are looking to purchase your first one- I would at least speak to a customer service representative and consider watching a free demo.

“[MemberSuite] came into this space with the premise of providing software as a service to the member base organization space and provide new technology,” explained Natalie Cheney, CEO of MemberSuite. While association management software isn’t new (according to Cheney it’s been around since the 90s), MemberSuite is a fresh take on a relatively unchanged industry. MemberSuite was able to disrupt the space by providing cloud-based capabilities that their competition didn’t have.

In Use:

Association management softwares (AMS) are platforms that companies use to manage day-to-day business. Whether for-profit or nonprofit, AMS can benefit all organizations. MemberSuite offers tools and services to benefit all aspects of a nonprofit. Software consist of a robust CRM, an e-marketing tool where users can design and create a variety of emails; and services such as data migration.

Ease of Use:

MemberSuite offers customer service in the form of ready-to-help experts and webinars along with educational assets such as data sheets and infographics. These assets help users familiarize themselves with the products. While some reviews state MemberSuite software is easy to use and intuitive others have found it hard to use and confusing.

Technology Used:

One of the reasons that MemberSuite disrupted the industry is that their product was cloud-based from the beginning. Many of their competitors had to adapt to the cloud space which created numerous growing pains and networking issues. MemberSuite provides nonprofits with numerous capabilities. From donor portals to finance tools and analytics. On the donor-facing platform, donors can renew their membership, pay for a donation, or sign up for a fundraising event allowing members to self-service on everyday activities. “All of these actions are happening 24-7 by clicking on a few buttons, providing capabilities so staff can engage their members,” Cheney states. With these self-service tools, nonprofits can go back to helping their constituents and worry less on the day-to-day responsibilities of running a nonprofit. Cheney refers to industries such as e-commerce and airlines who adopted a similar self-service module. “Consumers are demanding it from nonprofits and it’s expensive. It is up to us to provide that technology,” Cheney said of MemberSuite.

Recap:

MemberSuite is an association management software platform with numerous capabilities to assist nonprofits to manage their business. In fact, CEO Natalie Cheney acknowledged that nonprofits need an AMS but often don’t have much money to spend on one. Most of the nonprofits that purchase MemberSuite are positioned in the middle and upper market with revenue of around $2 million. Cheney noted that other nonprofits that fall into the $1 million range take advantage of MemberSuite through a monthly solution.

Advantages:

• All-in-one software that includes finance, event registration, and donor management software
• Customer support and educational tools to help charities comprehend the software
• Monthly services and yearly subscriptions are available to meet nonprofits needs
• Dedicated in providing nonprofit with the technology they need to run their organization

Disadvantages:

• Too expensive for small nonprofits
• Users state that it’s not user friendly and the interface could use a facelift.
• Reporting capabilities could be more robust

My Opinion:

Often when I review a software that is used by both for-profit and nonprofit organizations, nonprofits are just an afterthought. That was not the case when I talked the CEO of MemberSuite, Natalie Cheney. She was dedicated in creating a software that had the capabilities that nonprofits need to run their organizations. While it may be too expensive for small nonprofits, medium to large charities can benefit immensely from the numerous different tools and products that MemberSuite offers.

Personify is a software suite that is compact with tools and products that enable nonprofits to manage their donors and grow their organization.  Through their various products, charities can connect with their donors and grow their reach. For This review will be focusing solely on Personify360- a robust constituent management software for nonprofits and charities.

In  Use:

With Personify360, charities can manage their constituents, drive revenue, and expand their reach.  With backend dashboards and reporting capabilities, nonprofits can track metrics that can help them with future campaigns.

Nonprofit organizations can take advantage of Personify360’s four key features.  Nonprofits can see their constituent information using the Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) tool; get strategic consulting services and support through eBusiness; browser-based client through PersonifyGO; and analyze statistics and map trends through their Analytics feature.

Ease of Use:

It does take some time to familiarize yourself with the software. It has been described by some users on Capterra as clunky and not so user-friendly. Other reviews have had no problem maneuvering around the platform. It may essentially come down to how techy savvy one is.

Technology Used:

Charities can roll their needs into one sophisticated platform. Need to get in touch with constituents? Need to analyze constituents’ wants and needs? Having trouble understanding how to manage your constituents effectively? Personify360 can get a nonprofit organization on the right track to solving issues that arise when managing a nonprofit.

Recap

According to Personify360, a nonprofit’s first focus should be on their constituents. With their products and solutions they hope to enable a charity by giving them access to technology that will help their organization thrive.

Advantages:

• Free demo to see if the platform is right for your organization
• All-in-one tool that lets your streamline your organization- you don’t have to constantly switch between software to manage donors, constituents, and run reports
• Analytics capability to track metrics and statistics

Disadvantages:

• Platform has been described as clunky and not user friendly

My Opinion:

I think nonprofits will like the fact that the software is all in one. It’s time consuming to have to constantly switch from one software to another. With Personify360 they can manage their constituents, track metrics, and get advice using the same software. Personify offers a free demo, so I would encourage any charity who is interested in growing their reach among their community to give the demo a try.  My only hesitation is that it’s been described as hard to use and clunky. It appears that it will take some time to get use to the software. A nonprofit has to make sure they have time set aside to learn the tool in order to get the most out of it.

Philanthropic giving is constantly on the rise and a big reason behind that is the carefully thought out strategies applied by nonprofits in order to raise funds for the various causes they support.

The world has already gone mobile. Accessibility, convenience and higher levels of engagement are a few reasons that drive the growth in popularity of mobile phones in all walks of life and fundraising is no exception to it.

According to the 2018 global trends in giving report, 74 percent of all donors are inspired by digital communications to embark on their donation journey. The importance of technology on non-profit fundraising thus cannot be undermined.

Rise in altruism and moral righteousness fuel the quest to make this world a better place. Mobility solutions simply make it a frictionless experience.

Mobile and other digital channels are constantly revamping how the donors engage with nonprofit organization which exemplifies the need for innovation and novel application of technology within this niche.  Here is a list of ways nonprofits can incorporate mobility solutions in their fundraising strategy

1. Online donation

Online fundraising is one of the most popular ways for nonprofits to raise money. All you need is a connection to the internet and you are ready to give. The most common method of online donation is via the nonprofit’s website or online donation page.

While online donations via websites has been around for quite some time now, the rise in mobility has necessitated mobile responsive website for a seamless user experience.

In 2018, more than half of all nonprofit website traffic came from tablets and mobile devices. Well designed websites that follow the principles of responsive design and employ UX/UI best practices boost the donor trust, improve accessibility and result in a better user experience which increases the chances of recurring donations.

2. Leverage mobile applications

Mobile apps take accessibility a notch up while simultaneously boosting donor engagement. Donating funds for a cause is a personal choice and mobile apps take personalization to another level through access to features like push notifications.

Here are the two ways you can leverage mobile apps for successful funding

1. Sign up with existing apps: You can register your nonprofit on apps like Google’s One Today and you get instant access to their vast donor base. Receiving funding is fast, hassle-free with no transaction fees in most cases. The downside is that your nonprofit has to stand out from the other competing ones to capture donor’s attention. Since you are registered on a third party application, you have no access to the native app features.

1. Build your own mobile app: While this is certainly the more cost-intensive option, it also gives you considerable freedom over app design and development. The process behind creating an app has the potential to expand your reach to a wider audience and promote engagement. Depending on your requirements, you can choose a drag and drop app builder or hire a custom app development company to design and develop your app.

Mobile apps can integrate multiple payment options while saving the basic user information so that the donors do not have to enter their personal information repeatedly, leading to a frictionless experience.

With mobile apps, you can also send out notifications to the donors in case of any fundraiser or related events like charity auctions or walkathons being organized leading to higher turnout and engagement.

Storytelling is an important part of fundraising and mobile apps and websites allow you to excel at that. You can also send out personalized push notifications intermittently to the consistent donors to promote recurrent donations.

3. Text-to-donate fundraising

Pledge texting is an innovative method of fundraising for nonprofits. The nonprofits have a designated mobile number which the donor needs to send a text message that contains a predetermined keyword. As a reply, a link to the nonprofit’s mobile responsive donation page is sent over. The donor just needs to fill up the details in the online form and proceed towards making the donation.

A number of different payment options including credit card and other digital wallets can be made available to the donors. There are a number of text-to-give providers that can facilitate this form of mobile fundraising.

Fundraising through text messaging is easy, fast and comes with a low learning curve. The only thing that has to be ensured is that a clear transmission of information about the steps that the donor needs to take in order to complete the process has to be given. The keyword has to be memorable and the information required to be input by the donor in the donation form should be minimal in order to make the experience hassle-free.

Safeguarding the personal information of the donors is the responsibility of the nonprofit. The design of the mobile responsive webpage also needs to follow the UX/UI design principles so that it invokes the feeling of trust.

Rahul Varshneya is the co-founder and President of Arkenea and Benchpoint. Rahul has been featured as a business technology thought leader in numerous media channels such as Bloomberg TV, Forbes, HuffPost, Inc, among others.

Nonprofit and faith-based giving is set to explode thanks to the rapid adoption of digital payment technology. Driven by the need to meet donors wherever they are, omnichannel donations--those derived from a multitude of online, mobile and social media platforms--are becoming increasingly important to the success of any organization’s giving strategy.

According to the Blackbaud Institute’s 2018 Charitable Giving Report, online giving has grown 17 percent since 2016. Nonprofits raised $2.7 billion through online fundraising in 2018, accounting for nearly 10 percent of the $31.9 billion raised. Faith-based organizations, in particular, saw the highest rate of growth in online giving in 2018.

Looking ahead in 2019, a few things are clear: a strategy that allows online giving will help nonprofit and charitable organizations meet their goals, the ability to meet donors anywhere they prefer to give will be critical in driving donations and activating new donors, and faith-based organizations will continue to increase their technology adoption to support tech-savvy members.

A rise in mobile donations from social platforms

In the last year, mobile giving grew by 24 percent. To welcome younger, digitally native members, nonprofit and faith-based organizations are meeting their new members where they’re most comfortable -- on their phones.

Mobile devices comprise the bulk of Internet traffic and as social platforms like Instagram experiment with new features to make charitable giving easier, building a mobile-first donation strategy that takes advantage of trends in social media will become integral to the success of an organization’s mission. Whether you’re looking to engage with new donors who are passionate about the environment or expanding your congregation to attract millennials, the common thread is the ubiquity of mobile and social media use.

Omnichannel donation capabilities will carry the day

Today, your local scouting troop can process credit card transactions on the spot. It’s just as easy for houses of worship and other nonprofit organizations to streamline their giving processes, too.

Putting in place the technology to accept donations through many channels--text-to-give, Instagram Stories, mobile payment tools and more--will certainly be one of the top technology priorities for nonprofit and faith-based organizations this year. When you’re able to reach your community and enable giving at any time and place, and even enable community members to set up easy recurring payments, that’s when you’re going to see real changes to your giving platform and experience growth.

The challenge to date has been that most organizations have needed to cobble together payments capabilities from different vendors because employees often lacked the technical skills needed to deal with each payment platform: online giving here, mobile donations there, text-to-pay from somewhere else entirely. Now, newer integrated payment capabilities have made it easier for employees who don’t have a technology background to work with it, lower the barrier to entry.

Faith-based giving will explode

Faith-based organizations are still a few years behind most other nonprofits in terms of enabling digital giving, but we’re seeing that begin to change. Newer congregation members and preachers and staff who are comfortable with technology basics are helping the sector rapidly catch up to its peers.

As noted, last year faith-based organizations saw the greatest increase in online giving compared to other nonprofit organizations and charities. As these organizations begin to use more mobile- and social-first strategies, more members will be able to tithe and donate with the click of a button.

By focusing on making giving as easy as possible and connecting with new donors wherever they are, nonprofit organizations can use technology to increase charitable giving and maximize their missions’ impact.

This year marks the 10-year anniversary of the Chicago Benchmarking Collaborative (CBC), a partnership of seven well-established education and human services agencies that have committed to working together to implement data-informed program improvements. In honor of this milestone, the CBC has published a how-to guide to help other nonprofits increase their mission impact through collaboration.  

Over the last decade, foundations, government organizations, and sophisticated donors have demanded increased accountability for dollars invested in programs. Those of us doing the work have also learned that data-driven program evaluation produces greater impact. The CBC’s newly published guide, which is titled Increasing Mission Impact through Collaborative Learning, offers advice on how to leverage collaborative effort to increase the impact of evaluation. It is also intended to be useful to funders aiming to standardize data collection from grantees or convene grantees to share data in peer learning forums.  

While the CBC continues to refine its practices, the experiences and successes over the last 10 years have illustrated that effective collaboration is dependent on a few key factors. Among the most important is strong leadership committed to nurturing trust and data-driven work culture. A strong, consistent project facilitator ensures communication, workflow, and the productivity of the partnership. And it’s paramount to build a staff with the technical knowledge and skills to use available technology and reporting systems.  

The CBC guide breaks down the collaborative process into four crucial stages:  

1. Establish Shared Visions and Goals: Collaboration is time intensive. To make sure all partners get out what they put in, it is important to create shared goals and language. Not every potential partner we invited into the CBC decidedto join and that was okay. We carefully selected partners with shared visions and goals to keep the CBC moving forward, and it was equally imperative that they could fully commit to collaboration.  

2. Build Capacity for Data Use and Collaborative Learning: This stage is about making sure all the right systems and staff are in place to ensure that the shared goals and visions established in stage one areFor the CBC, this stage included identifying a project facilitator and a project team with defined roles. We also utilized external consultants to help identify what to measure, how to measure it, and how to finance collaborative program evaluation.  

3. Use Data and Improve Collaborative Practice:If you’ve worked in a nonprofit, you’ve probably been required to load tons of data into systems, but how often was that data made to work for you? The goal here is to make data a tool rather than a weight. In addition to improving reporting systems at individual organizations, staff began meeting across sites to review regular data reports, identify practices that were improving student outcomes, and create professional development strategies for target growth areas. 

4. Sustain and Institutionalize Systems: At this stage, the collaborative is up and running, your systems are in place, and you want to keep them alive and fresh to create sustained impact. This includes continuing to build trust among partners, developing strategic goals for the future, and creating training systems to onboard new staff. It may also mean developing processes to onboard new partners.
    

The publication of the how-to guide was made possible by a grant from Boeing Global Engagement, which recognized the CBC’s effective approach to collaborative learning and funded the guide to help other organizations replicate this successful model to increase their own impact. For more information on the stages outlined above including practical examples and key questions to ask, please visit www.christopherhouse.org/cbc/. 

Traci Stanley ensures that Christopher House continues to increase its capacity to have a positive impact on low-income children and their families. Traci currently oversees Christopher House’s evaluation efforts including implementation and maintenance of an agency-wide database system to track outcome information for all programs to help ensure participants receive the highest quality services. Traci is also leading a collaboration of six social service agencies engaged in a project to improve measured evaluation and program quality. 

Prior to her current role, Ms. Stanley previously served as Associate Director and, earlier, Director of Youth Development Services at Christopher House. Through her leadership, tutoring and adult literacy programs expanded to other sites and new program initiatives were launched including mentoring, family literacy, an apprenticeship program, and a college and career preparation program for youth. She increased quality of services by developing evaluation tools and systems to measure and monitor service delivery and improvements in participant status. Ms. Stanley has been with Christopher House since 2000. She is a graduate of DePaul University. 

For decades, nonprofit organizations have offered solutions to many problems that exist in our society. From disasters which have affected the living conditions of people in different areas to attempting to raise the living standards in the community, the donations made by nonprofits have made a huge impact on society. Nonpartisanship has become a cornerstone of nonprofits that has strengthened the trust of these organizations by the public allowing charitable and philanthropic communities to continue to grow. Federal tax law has protected charitable organizations, foundations, and religious congregations from political interference, political consultants, and operatives who may use them for financial gain and other activities.

Despite the importance of nonprofits to society, they appear to be facing headwinds from all directions. The major challenge now is from the threats that the constitutional provision specifically the Johnson Amendment, is facing from legislation and bills that are aimed at weakening the protection of nonprofits in law. From President Trump himself alongside other leaders such as the Chairman of the House Ways Committee and the House Majority Whip, it has become clear that Johnson Amendment may be dented significantly in the near future.  While politicians believe that repealing this legislation is for the purpose of enhancing tax compliance, it may introduce partisanship to nonprofits, therefore, damaging the credibility of these organizations and donations they receive. 

If the Johnson Amendment repeal succeeds, nonprofits may qualify for tax-deductible donations so that they can participate in electoral processes while donors will be protected from disclosure. Such an action will not only hinder transparency in these institutions which is a key element for nonprofits but will also create room for politicians while the executives of these foundations such as the board members, CEOs and even the employees may be pressurized by politicians to endorse specific political parties or even support them financially. This means that resources which could be used for good cause may be channeled to political activities. Furthermore, the successful amendment of the existing legislation may lead to the creation of fictitious and sham organizations which can be used by politicians to divert charity money to political activities.

While it may appear that political players are interested in increasing tax bracket to fund government projects, the reality is that it may open up room for nonprofits which include religious institutions, charity organizations, and foundations to engage in election-related activities such as endorsing candidates at state or federal level. Nonpartisanship is the only principle which ensures accountability of the nonprofits and strengthens the trust that the public and charitable community has had for a long time. In the end, this will trickle down to the community in general who will benefit from the donations as it has before.

Ensuring nonpartisanship, however, requires a collective effort between different players in the nonprofits as well as political and civil society. All these players should oppose any amendment of the existing laws to open a floodgate for politicians to use charities for their personal gain. If anything, the Johnson Amendment should be made stronger to lock out any attempt of interference by political class while transparency should be enhanced. This will protect the integrity and independence of nonprofits and foundations as it will shield the community from partisan politicking. As such, the charitable organizations can be a safe haven where people who have the intention of helping others can come together and provide solutions to challenges which are encountered at a community level without bias or partisanship.

If you're like most people you use your smartphone for practically everything, but is going smartphone only an option for a nonprofit organization?

There are several reasons why you might chose to keep your landline. First, and foremost  is call quality with a landline you are almost certain to have good call quality. While with a cellphone there is a chance that your location has areas where calls can drop or not come through at all.

Also, depending on your location there maybe safety reasons why you need a landline, such as fire alarm, elevator phones or security systems.

With a landline or another unified system such as voice over internet protocol (voip) you can set-up a incoming message, voicemail messaging and directory service that is cohesive and onbrand. You can also easily transfer calls from extensions, and retrieve messages. However, if each employee has a cellphone there will not be a cohesive feel to their voicemail messages. Plus, it can be harder to forward messages from employee to employee.

Next, cost is a consideration depending on the type of cell phone packages you select and the number of employees it can be expensive to outfit each employee with a phone. Plus, you most likely will have to assign an employee to manage the cellphones i.e. issuing new phones, collecting phones from outgoing staff, repair/replacing for the inevitable lost or destroyed phone.

Plus, fundraising calls can contain sensitive financial information, that is perhaps best discussed in a quiet office, not the local coffee house.

The 24/7 aspect of cellphones could also be an issue for your organization, do you expect your employees to answer their company issued cell phones even on off hours? If work/life balance is an important cornerstone to your organization, you will need to institute a policy on phone use during standard non-business hours.

Analytics are important to fundraising. Knowing how your donors like to give, in addition to when they give can help your organization keep your fundraising efforts on target.

CRM software like VirtuousCRM help your organization dive quickly and easily into your donor giving history, to make intelligence fundraising calls.

VirtuousCRM also alerts you to a potential donor lapse so you can prevent that from happening.

VirtuousCRM incorporates information from all three of your marketing channels, so you know exactly how your social media, email marketing and direct mail campaigns are working, which can help you tailor your next communication with your donors.

The software also lets you log each interaction with your donor and ensures that you timely and personalized follow ups.

The Virtuous app helps you complete your fundraising tasks even if you not in the office. You can use the app to find nearby donors, log notes and view donor to do items.

Along with helping you with your donor retention VirtuousCRM has additional features that allow you to take donations and control the flow of your marketing campaigns across all channels.

VirtuousCRM is a subscription based service and has tier pricing depending on the number of contacts you have and what additional modules you need. The most basic plan starts at $195/mo.

A ton of personal data flows through a nonprofit organization every day, from donor payment information to volunteers names, address and phone numbers.

Of course, your organization takes steps to protect that data: firewalls, 2 factor authentication, separation of duties and passwords, but criminals always seem to be one step ahead.

Even organizations with tight security can find themselves victims of a data breach. These breaches can take the form of malware, extortion, stolen identities or crashed servers.

The cost to recover from such a catastrophe can range in the tens of thousands of dollars along with the damage to your reputation.

Most standard insurance policies cover regular events, such as natural disaster or employee theft they don’t cover cyber crime events. There are policies that exclusively cover cyber crime.

Such policies can help offset the cost of data recovery, legal expenses, notification expenses and other cost incurred to recover from the data breach. The policy could even help you cover the expense of a marketing campaign to assure your donors that you’ve taken care of the breach.

There are several insurance companies that specialize not only in cyber liability insurance, but understand the unique needs of nonprofit organizations.

Small nonprofits usually have a smaller budget to spend on technology. So what are the ‘must have’ items?

The first is a good computer (or computers). Whether it is a laptop or a desktop, the computer is the heart of your organization.

Is your staff going to be working in the field or telecommuting? Then laptops are the way to go. If a majority of your work is done in the office then a standard desktop will suit all your needs.

Consider the size of the memory. If your organization does a lot of graphics work or needs to store a large amount of data locally you will need to invest in a computer with a large amount of memory.

If your organization has an exceptionally tight budget you can consider investing in refurbished computers. TechSoup is one source for refurbished computer equipment.

Next is a printer. Even if your organization is striving to be paperless there will always be certain items that must be printed.

Take a moment to consider exactly what you will be printing. A small desktop unit that prints both color and black and white is perfect for printing acknowledgement letters and other small print jobs, but if you are doing in house brochures or other marketing materials consider a larger unit.

It is no longer necessary to have a stand alone fax machine as most small desktop printers come equipped with scanner and fax capabilities.

Another hardware consideration is cellphones, your organization might choose to provide smartphones to your employees if they are out in the field or if they will be expected to deal with confidential information regularly via their smartphone.

Oklahoma Gas & Electric is making good use of its out dated tech equipment reports, the Oklahoman.  They donated about 160 desktop and laptop computers to two dozen local nonprofits.

Read the article on The Oklahoman

According to My Tech Decision, Nonprofit artificial intelligence group WattTime, funded by Google.org, will report real time air pollution data to communities.

Read the article on My Tech Decision

Amazon is working on ways to end homelessness, reports Bloomberg. The company donated $5 million to Plymouth Housing in Seattle and $3 million to the Arlington Community Foundation. They will also match employee donations to nonprofits working on homelessness, up to $5 million until the end of  September.

Read the article on Bloomberg

All Raise, a nonprofit startup that focuses on accelerating success of female founders and funders will partner with Tech Crunch during their Tech Crunch Disrupt SF to give female entrepreneurs a chance to interact with other startup leaders.

Read the article on Tech Crunch