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Fundraising Databases Insights

The Engaging Networks Integration Tool for Charity CRM systems

In the dynamic landscape of charity data management, having tools that streamline operations with precision and compliance is now a necessity. Actually Data are thrilled to introduce our bespoke Engaging Networks Integration tool, designed to revolutionise how your charity integrates with your CRM system with your online engagement tools.

Take your first step towards a more efficient, effective approach to digital advocacy, fundraising and engagement by exploring the key features and benefits that make this tool an indispensable asset for your charity.

Key Features

Bespoke Data Transformation

  • Tailored Functionality: Created exclusively for your charity, the tool seamlessly transforms Engaging Networks data into a CRM-friendly format, tailored for your instance of your charity’s CRM system.
  • One-Click Operation: Simplify data imports with a one-click mechanism, eliminating the need for continuous development or third-party intervention.

Enhanced User Experience

  • User-Friendly Interface: Accurately code Engaging Networks pages for a cohesive data integration experience.
  • Empowering your team: Users retain control over the data transformation processes, easily accommodating changes in internal protocols.

Seamless Integration

  • Streamlined Processes: Leverages your CRM’s inbuilt import tools, ensuring a smooth and seamless data integration process.
  • Flexible Data Management: Enables you to continue to adapt data as internal processes and policies change, without requiring additional development.

Robust Data Handling and GDPR Compliance

  • Data Security: Utilizes Microsoft Excel, empowering you to govern data storage and processing, ensuring stringent adherence to GDPR and data handling protocols.
  • Integrates with your Tech Stack: By working through Microsoft Excel, the tool offers a familiar environment for staff to work in, within a program you likely already work with.

Innovative Reporting and Analytics

  • Insightful Analytics: Complemented by Actually Data Analytics, it provides data-driven reports on supporter engagement, offering insights into the efficacy of your online initiatives.
  • Strategic Adjustments: Helps you identify areas that require change, further optimising your charity’s online engagement strategies.

Customisation and Scalability

  • Customised Solutions: Tailored to meet the unique needs of you charity, offering flexibility as you import and report on your activity.
  • Significant Scalability: With a one million row import limit, the tool can accommodate a substantial number of daily transactions, far exceeding most charity’s requirements.

Responsive Customer Support

  • Personalised Support: Enjoy the peace of mind and consistency of interacting with your own Account Manager, who will also be the person who implemented the system for your charity.
  • Minimal Learning Curve: With an easy-to-use interface and training provided as you implement the tool, users will be able to effortlessly generate files and import Engaging Networks data into your charity CRM system straight away.

Benefits

1. Time-Saving

Automate the cumbersome task of data transformation and integration, freeing up your team to focus on core charity data activities or larger strategic projects.

2. Cost-Effective

By reducing the need for third-party developments and continuous adaptations, it serves as a cost-effective solution for data management.

3. Enhancing Data Accuracy

The tool ensures precise data coding and integration, enhancing the accuracy and reliability of your CRM database.

4. Strategic Decision Making

With data-driven reports, the tool aid you as you make informed strategic decisions, helping boost your charity’s online engagement and success rate.

5. GDPR Compliant

By offering control over data storage and processing, it assists charities in adhering to GDPR guidelines.

6. User-Friendly

Designed with a user-friendly interface, it facilitates a hassle-free user experience, requiring minimal user training.

Investment and Support

To foster a seamless transition into a more structured and efficient data management regime, the Engaging Networks Integration Tool is priced as a one-off cost. This investment guarantees a system tailored to your charity’s specific needs, with the potential to significantly streamline your operations.

If  your charity requires further developments or changes, we are here to assist at a standard day rate. Our team is committed to supporting you in enhancing the tool’s functionality to meet your evolving needs.

Case Studies

Here’s a link to a case study for Refuge where we talk about integration to Blackbaud’s The Raiser’s Edge

Here’s a presentation that our CEO, Anthony, delivered at the Engaging Networks conference that talks about the integration work in more detail. Making Sense of your data

Get In touch

If you’re ready to start your CRM Integration journey, why not get in touch for a call to discuss your requirements in more detail.

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General

Blackbaud – The Journey

As a consultant, I talk about Journeys a lot! There’s a curve that I describe during a CRM journey that users go through, it’s proper name is an inverse bell curve. Users are really excited once they buy a system, then they have the challenges of talking through their existing data and their enthusiasm drops a bit. They then enter testing and it drops a bit more, but then they see the potential of the new system and begin to get excited again and finally go live day happens and they are nearly as excited to get started as they were when they purchased a system, well at least, that’s how I hope my projects go when I do them.

Now onto the Blackbaud journey, before I go any further, I should state that I have worked with Blackbaud Europe over my time as a consultant and I’ve used Raiser’s Edge since even before I started in the sector in 2005. I am definitely not in the inner circle of what’s happening at Blackbaud so this post is probably not going to tell you anything that you don’t already know if you are on the inside.

Blackbaud have done some things since “The data leak” that I’ve found very disheartening to customers. First there was the charges for using gifts, whilst this was a modest charge, I didn’t understand why if you stored financial information in a system you had to pay extra. Then they announced and will soon remove the Crystal Reports functionality. This is an external tool that Blackbaud provided that allowed you to create your own custom reports and surface that within your Blackbaud product. Finally, there is the removal of the Microsoft Office integration with Raiser’s Edge, I’m not sure if this affects their plethora of other products but this is a massive change for charities. The announcement for this change was just before Christmas, some of the busiest times in the sector across the world not just here in the UK.

Blackbaud are citing a security risk, which again, bearing in mind “The data leak” I can understand that they need to do something, but removing what I think is key functionality of a CRM – normally one of the top 5 requirements of any CRM is being able to write to a supporter, with no replacement other than using microsoft word outside of the system feels short sighted.

Bill Connors, one of the god fathers of Raiser’s Edge, wrote what I thought was a very measured post and more importantly really helpful: https://billconnors.com/msinhosting/ about the challenge that this provides to their clients, it’s definitely worth a read if you’re not sure what you need to do and with just a month left, I’d try and start planning and doing now!

As I look to the future, I’m one of those people who is still deeply frustrated with Blackbaud’s Raiser’s Edge product, there’s still key things missing from the web view like Volunteering and Membership, some of the stuff in web view is challenging to add or amend eg: Organisation Type (Org2) and as mentioned there are beginning to be some gaps in what users need or expect from a CRM system so it’s getting harder to promote the virtues of RE.

That said, they do have an API which may help in some of these limitations and their strategic business partnership with Microsoft is not going anywhere soon as far as I can tell. So we invested time looking at the API for creating a suite of reports using Power BI and the RE API.

The other thing that they will allow you to do is download a full SQL backup of your data once a month for free. Again this is useful and we’ve used The full backup for training and a deeper reporting suite

More about the reporting suites that we’ve been building in a future post

So finally, as I move forward with CRM systems, all I can suggest is like, Bill Connors has said, don’t throw the baby out with the bath water, the Microsoft thing might be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, It was definitely something that I was annoyed by for a while! Take a strategic long term view of what’s best for your organisation and more importantly what’s best for your supporters.

A new CRM system is not a cheap process to go through and not just in terms of costs. If you do decide that now is the right time, there are other posts on this blog that I’ve written that may help you along your journey.

Categories
Fundraising Databases Training

Why CRM systems fail!!

Following on from my previous post about how to healthcheck a CRM system, I wanted to share with you why I think people either love or hate their CRM systems. In most cases its not because one system is better than the other, though there are some systems that don’t fit the not for profit market, it is because users have either bought into the system and can see the benefits or they can’t.

I tell this story a lot but it is one of my most vivid memories of when I started working in the sector. I remember a member of staff, who in the run up to the London Marathon was struggling under the burden of paper that was printed out and then manually entered into the CRM system. It was taking about 3 out of the 5 days in the week to process this data. Now, this wasn’t because the CRM system was rubbish or even that the person didn’t know better, but more because the person who was spending their day wrapped up in paper wasn’t aware of the different things that their CRM system could do.

It was a lack of training.

Categories
Fundraising Databases JustGiving

Blackbaud and JustGiving Integration

Blackbaud have launched their new Integration suite which starts with integration with the online giving platform JustGiving.

The integration sees Blackbaud venture into working in partnership with other providers and developing solutions to help charities with their back office processes.

Categories
Fundraising Databases

Blackbaud Europe names new MD

Jerome Moisan has been appointed as the new managing director of Blackbaud Europe, charged with leading the company’s growth across the continent.

The French national joins Blackbaud from Travelport where he has been employed for nine years and is currently managing director of operations in UK, Ireland and France.

via Blackbaud Europe names new MD – Civil Society – Fundraising – News – providing news and in-depth coverage of charities, voluntary organisations and not-for-profits.