"The Internet is reshaping the way nonprofits are interacting with their audiences, and Blackbaud is putting considerable research and development into making sure our products can help lead their efforts," said Steve MacLaughlin, director of Internet solutions. "Each of these new releases not only brings significant new technology to the nonprofit marketplace, but also demonstrates Blackbaud's commitment to support the more than 4600 customers using our Internet solutions."
The new versions of Blackbaud Sphere and Blackbaud NetCommunity represent Blackbaud's ongoing investment in helping nonprofits reach, engage, and acquire supporters through online channels.
Blackbaud Sphere Enhancements
Blackbaud Sphere®, featuring Friends Asking Friends®, is a comprehensive online solution for email marketing, online event management, website management, and advocacy. Sphere easily integrates with other databases, third-party applications, and The Raiser's Edge®.
Blackbaud's Friends Asking Friends is the first and only event fundraising solution that provides mobile versions of personal fundraising pages, donation forms, and on-screen confirmations. Nonprofit websites built with Friends Asking Friends are able to automatically detect mobile browsers and display information in a format that is easily managed on a wireless device.
"Our online fundraising has continued to grow annually through executing strategies that promote more and continued use of Blackbaud Friends Asking Friends for our Memory Walk campaign," said Lynn DeHoyos, Alzheimer's Association's director of constituent events. "We look forward to leveraging the additions to the platform such as these that trend with modern technology and appeal to our donors."
With the new version of Blackbaud Sphere, nonprofits can more easily use reporting tools to analyze the success of their online efforts, including form and transaction conversions, through integration with Google AnalyticsTM, the leading web analytics service. Nonprofits can now also manage Google AdWordsTM performance from directly within the application, enabling them to track conversion rates and return on investment for their Google® advertisements. "AddThis" social bookmarking capabilities have also been included in the new Blackbaud Sphere release, which enable website visitors to share website content with social networks and social media sites, resulting in greater website traffic and conversions.
Nonprofits can also benchmark their email marketing campaigns by accessing monthly reports, only available in Blackbaud Sphere. Each month, data from more than 2,100 Sphere customers is compiled across 22 standard email marketing metrics, which nonprofits can use as a reference tool to compare their performance to industry benchmarks.
Blackbaud NetCommunity Enhancements
Blackbaud NetCommunity is a comprehensive Internet marketing solution that integrates with The Raiser's Edge and Blackbaud Enterprise CRMTM for website management, online community-building, and email marketing. In addition to many feature enhancements, the new version of Blackbaud NetCommunity has been built on Blackbaud's next-generation Infinity platform, making the solution even more scalable, secure, and flexible. The Infinity SDK provides developers with new options for customization, data access, and extensibility.
In addition, with this release, nonprofits will be able to more easily request for and accept online payments made toward outstanding pledges stored in their fundraising management solution-whether they use The Raiser's Edge or Blackbaud Enterprise CRMTM.
"We're really excited about what this new release offers us in terms of managing online pledge payments," said Stephanie Veatch, The Basilica of Saint Mary's database and technology administrator. "Given the current economic times, people need to have more control over when they make their gifts, and the new enhancements in Blackbaud NetCommunity will enable us to deliver that flexibility while automating the payment application process and saving valuable staff time."
More than 4,600 nonprofit organizations around the world use Blackbaud Internet solutions, including Blackbaud NetCommunity, Blackbaud NetCommunity GrowTM, Blackbaud Sphere, and Blackbaud Sphere® GrowTM for content email, and event management; online fundraising, online community building, and advocacy. For more information about Blackbaud's Internet solutions, visit www.blackbaud.com/internetsolutions.
About Blackbaud
Blackbaud is the leading global provider of software and services designed specifically for nonprofit organizations, enabling them to improve operational efficiency, build strong relationships, and raise more money to support their missions. Approximately 22,000 organizations - including University of Arizona Foundation, American Red Cross, Cancer Research UK, The Taft School, Lincoln Center, In Touch Ministries, Tulsa Community Foundation, Ursinus College, Earthjustice, International Fund for Animal Welfare, and the WGBH Educational Foundation - use one or more Blackbaud products and services for fundraising, constituent relationship management, financial management, website management, direct marketing, education administration, ticketing, business intelligence, prospect research, consulting, and analytics. Since 1981, Blackbaud's sole focus and expertise has been partnering with nonprofits and providing them the solutions they need to make a difference in their local communities and worldwide. Headquartered in the United States, Blackbaud also has operations in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.
