You’ve got a social cause, you believe in it, and now you’re running a nonprofit for it. Let us be the first to say that WOW, you’re a bad-ass! We love serving nonprofits and contributing to causes that better aid our communities in one form or another.
One way we enjoy helping amazing CEOs like you is to suggest one particular customer relationship management (CRM) system that can’t be beat for your style of organization: Salesforce.
Why Salesforce?
First of all because of this statistic: over 40,000 nonprofits are using Salesforce as their CRM of choice. Among those numbers and names include the Red Cross and the World Wildlife Fund, two of the biggest nonprofits and household names that are still actively following causes that are for the sake of everyone’s betterment.
Even if your nonprofit is just getting started or it’s growing, you can still get a lot out of Salesforce as your CRM. Given how much there is to do in a single day, you need something that will help streamline all kinds of processes your nonprofit focuses on, such as gathering contacts for fundraising purposes, creating grants and programs, building stronger relationships in and outside of your local community, and organizing the tasks for everyone who’s on board.
You’ve got a lot to do on a daily basis to ensure your social cause resonates and gets out there to the rest of society. Why not use the one system to do it all?
You may be asking yourself this next question, and it’s a valid one!
Is Salesforce Right for MY Nonprofit?
This is a frequently asked question and it’s a very good one! Over the years we’ve found that the larger your nonprofit and the more backed your cause is, the more you’ll get out of Salesforce and its many apps and Cloud features.
The fact that Salesforce does have a Cloud is a great thing worth mentioning. If anything happens to your physical space or tools, such as upgrading the electronics you use the most such as computers, things like data and information are at least backed up and accessible via the Cloud.
Although Salesforce is definitely the top CRM for the Red Cross and the World Wildlife Fund, if your nonprofit has any of the following below, you’re more likely to be overwhelmed instead of boosted by Salesforce:
- A tight budget
- A small team (think 1-3 people instead of 10+)
- A busy schedule
It’s also worth noting that Salesforce, as awesome as it is, is not a fully equipped accounting system. If that’s what your nonprofit is looking for, it’s better to look into other options instead.
And if that really is the case, we suggest starting out with a CRM that caters better to smaller and developing nonprofits and their accounting needs. You can download our comparison guide to CRM here.
And if you do want to move over to Salesforce once your company is large enough, you can gradually make that transition and we’re happy to help with that too.
For now, back to Salesforce!
Pros of Salesforce for Nonprofits
- Salesforce offers 10 user licenses for free to nonprofits, which is a great idea if your organization has a limited budget.
- Salesforce has also created a package specifically for nonprofits (more on that below).
- Your setup can be as simple and straightforward or as robust as you would like.
- It keeps track of the people you work with, and all the work you do with them, as a centralized contact list.
- It can track your donations, grants, memberships, and volunteering efforts and the data as well.
- Salesforce tracks just about any of your other related efforts in canvassing, phone banking, tabling, events, and outcomes and the evaluations of them.
- It streamlines your fundraising processes, all the while balancing the previously mentioned pros!
The Package Worth Considering
The Nonprofit Success Pack (the NPSP, formerly known as Nonprofit Starter Pack) is Salesforce’s top picked package for the sole reason that it’s all about aiding your cause while getting the support you need! Because if you are a nonprofit, you may be eligible to receive features at a discounted rate (and if you’re not sure, it doesn’t hurt to double check before applying here).
By signing up for the NPSP, you can access a multitude of features such as:
- Donation and recurring gift management
- Gift entry plus batch data import capabilities
- Basic inbound grants management
- Preconfigured, customizable reports
A more in-depth list of details for the package can be found here.
Still Not Sure? Let’s Talk
Salesforce is an awesome CRM for nonprofits–we stand by that claim.
That being said, if you’re struggling with the setup or you’re just doing your research before you buy, there are plenty of other CRMs to consider too. And who better to talk to about CRM options than The Systems Queens!
Maybe you already have Salesforce, but you haven’t been able to really use or transition to its nuances and usages right away (and that’s okay, it happens to the best of us). We offer various services for setup and customization that you can ask for assistance with anytime!
It also never hurts to reach us directly if you want to talk more about Salesforce for nonprofits, in case that’s more your jam.
AND, really quick, before you go! Recently, we’ve just developed a Salesforce Retainer package. If you book with a 6-month commitment, you can get a nice discount on your monthly fee. All you need to do to sign up is to contact us.
Book a discovery call with The Systems Queens!
