Customer needs drive successful marketing. That axiom works as well for not-for profit organizations as it does for commercial enterprises. Customer Relationship Marketing (CRM) technology can help target your efforts and, ultimately, build loyalty and future value. Click "Full Article" to find out what's involved and how it can help manage your fundraising.
Track and Customize |
When it comes to "one-size-fits-all," the result is usually that it fits the median size and it may be just a little too snug or loose for the rest of us. The same principles apply to marketing:
The standard approach might do the job for a reasonable price, but it may not fit the needs of your organization.
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First Things First |
Before delving into a CRM system, here are a few tips:
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For better donor response, you need to build loyalty -- the feeling a member or donor has about your organization that results in a long relationship with a high future value. That's where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) comes in.
CRM originated as software for integrating and managing customer data. But over time, it has evolved into a philosophy centred on the concept that customer needs and behaviours drive marketing decisions -- rather than an organization's needs and behaviours.
Let's take a look at your data set-up. If your organization follows the typical pattern, you keep information on donors and supporters categorized in databases or on spreadsheets. It may be labeled like this:
Fund-raising
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Membership
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Special events
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Media relations
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Volunteers
But there's generally a lot of overlap within those categories, with people represented in more than one database. Problems can arise when there's a change in the data. For example, let's say Mrs. Jones tells a volunteer coordinator at your organization that she moved and wants to change her address.
Depending on the conscientiousness of the volunteer or the system you have in place -- or both -- the new data may find its way into the "fund-raising" category, but not the "special events" database.
Mrs. Jones is left wondering why she never got the invitation to one of your events, which she looks forward to every year.
CRM software helps prevent such mishaps by aggregating everything you know about donors and supporters. Depending on how powerful the software is, it can:
- Track donor, member, prospect and volunteer records. Manage donations, dues, fees, pledges and other payments.
- Assist in organizing fund-raising campaigns.
- Evaluate the success of campaigns such as membership drives or special fund-raising events.
- Generate mailing lists to use in both email and conventional mailing programs.
- Determine donor or volunteer profiles to help with future campaigns.
So you wind up keeping accurate records of factors including demographics, donations, volunteer activities, complaints, and preferences. And this, in turn, lets you know more about donors so you can segment them according to their needs and behaviours. For example, you could find out which donors regularly contribute large amounts at year-end for tax purposes and those who respond to special appeals. Then, you can tailor marketing efforts.
Generally speaking, CRM systems have been too costly for many not-for-profits. But now, Web-based technology is making is making it more cost-effective.
One of the most important things to understand about CRM is that it involves more than technology. It's about understanding and being responsive to donors, a concept that requires acceptance from everyone in your organization.
