Top CRM Softwares for Nonprofits

As someone working for a nonprofit, you know it can be hard to keep track of every donor, supporter, volunteer, beneficiary, and board member. There are many people involved with your organization, especially if you are constantly growing and gaining support. CRM software can certainly come in handy to help keep all your ducks in a row.

What is a CRM and How Is It Useful?

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management, and it works just the way it sounds.  It was created to help you manage your relationships with volunteers and donors, and keep accurate records of everything all in one easy-to-access location. Yep, no more spreadsheets! 

CRM software is essentially a digital address book that houses data like contact information, donation information, how a supporter found your organization, how much they’ve donated, when you last communicated with them, and more.  

Even if you only have 50 people involved with your organization, inputting them into a CRM software and letting it take care of administrative demands can help free up time and keep you organized. Keeping accurate records is crucial to successful data collection and campaign strategy. Without a CRM software in place, you could be missing out on potential opportunities for growth. 

There are several different CRMs that can certainly get the job done, so we’ve rounded up a list of our favorites.

Nonprofit CRM Solutions to Consider

Virtuous

Virtuous is a CRM built exclusively for nonprofit organizations. It works by streamlining donor management and providing data-rich insights so your team can move your mission forward with confidence.

What we like about it:

Virtuous’ CRM tools include donor management, gift and pipeline management, fundraising insights and reports, project management and impact tracking, and so much more. The software allows you to customize your dashboards and run reports for any kind of data you need. They offer data segmentation tools for easy direct marketing and they remove the guesswork by using predictive analytics to identify areas of opportunity. 

Virtuous pride themselves on being more than just a CRM. They hold true to that statement because, in addition to CRM, they also offer: 

• Donor Signals – engagement and website tracking, network mapping, donor scoring, and personalized gift suggestions 
• Marketing Tools – built-in email marketing, SMS functionality, A/B testing, and direct mail segmentation
• Automation – automate emails, SMS, letters, multi-channel communication, task management, and collaboration for your team 
• Giving- embeddable donation forms, streamlined offline gift processing, and smart gift arrays

Neon CRM

Neon CRM, provided by Neon One, is another software designed exclusively for nonprofits organizations. Neon One is a software company that designs platforms that power the future of philanthropy. Between their donor management product, event management product, fundraising management, and operations management products, they’ve already helped organizations raise more than $13 billion on their platforms.

What we like about it:

Neon CRM is built to help you work smarter, not harder. Their claim to fame is that they truly have something for everyone. You can manage donors, campaigns, events, volunteers, and all of your operations in one single software. Their software is so easy to use and truly customizable so you can manage your data and campaigns the way you want. You can stay on top of growth and financial performance with their powerful reporting capabilities that deliver easy-to-read analysis at the click of a button. 

Key Features included in Neon CRM:

• Powerful reporting – Donor timelines, custom reports, performance dashboards
• Time Savers – workflow automation, smart duplication, custom data structures
• Integrations – over 50 software providers are compatible with NeonCRM like Intuit Quickbooks, Mailchimp, Eventbrite, and more

Salesforce

Salesforce is probably the most well-known CRM software on the market. They have tailored their regular product built for companies of various industries to cater to nonprofits. Their product is called the Nonprofit Cloud and they also offer a Nonprofit Success Pack, which they claim is a great place to start if you’re just beginning the journey to digitizing your processes.

What we like about it:

Like the other CRMs we’ve mentioned, Salesforce offers the same benefits of program management- allowing you to connect, organize, and scale your services. They offer marketing and engagement tools, and even fundraising tools to help you drive donations. 

Unique Features: 

Salesforce, being a powerhouse player in the CRM market, is able to offer some great benefits when you choose their product. 

• Resources – free online bank of training modules to help you get the most of your tech
• Success Services – a team of experts to walk you through programs and provide advice 
• Online Communities – The Power of Us Hub is an online community of developers and end-users where you can ask questions, share experiences, and learn from one another. They also have local user groups where you can connect with other nonprofit organizations in your area

Kindful

Last but certainly not least, Kindful is a CRM software designed specifically for nonprofits as well. They have been awarded the “Most Implementable and Easiest To Do Business With,” due to their goal of keeping your mission moving forward with their simple, yet powerful product. 

What we like about it:

As you can tell, CRMs tend to offer very similar features and benefits. Kindful offers fundraising tools, donor management, tracking and reporting, and various integrations. 

Key Features: 

• Unlimited users – every member of your team can log in and use Kindful 
• In-depth fundraising tools – donation page set up, forms, P2P pages, recurring giving, registration forms, and 20+ integrations with fundraising platforms 
• Tracking and Reporting- 13 pre-made report templates for ease of use and saving time 
• Integrations- if you use any other operational software, Kindful most likely has integration with it

Feeling overwhelmed with options? Here’s our best advice on taking the next step.

How to Choose a CRM That’s Right For You

Choosing a CRM is a big decision that should take some time and thorough research. Be sure to consider who and how many people will be using the software because some CRMs do limit the number of logins or charge extra for them. Keep in mind what type of information you need to track, and what types of administrative work you are looking to be relieved of. Of course, the cost of the product is likely the biggest factor so do some research on pricing and what it includes. Lastly, consider the implementation process. Can this software be implemented when you need it? How long will it take to start working and does this company offer onboarding or training? 

Although it’s a big decision, it’s one that is going to save you time, keep you organized, and help you drive your mission’s success forward.

Karen Vela