This post summarises the key steps you should take to implement a CRM in your not for profit organisation, this is aimed at smaller charities who are getting started with CRM.

First, lets take it back a few steps…

Do you even need a CRM system?

You really need to consider if it is worthwhile for your charity to invest in a CRM system. Yes, they are wonderful things to have but they come at a cost. So think wisely if you can maintain what you currently have using spreadsheets without the cost implications.

If you think you do need one, read forth. If you do not, there are lots of other tools which can get you on the right track.

1. Evaluate the resources you have available

CRM’s are not free.

Yes, there are some which offer trials or a very low cost entry levels. But you will need to invest anything from £150 per month for your CRM, and that is just the nuts and bolts. If you want to add on extra features it quickly racks up.

2. Work out your requirements

Ask yourself, and your team (if you have one), some questions which might guide who you choose. These questions can include;

• What payment providers do we use/want to use?
• What donation platforms do we use/want to use?
• Do we need forms so our supporters can enter data?
• Do we use an email marketing platform at the moment?
• How many people need to be able to use the system?
• Do we have a lot of data to bring into the new system?
• What kind of training do we want to have? Or can we use self-guided learning?
• How confident are we with technology, is there someone in the organisation who can lead on this?

3. Look at the market leaders

Reputation: Charity Digital have great surveys which analyse what real charities think of CRM’s they are using. This is a great place to start.

Technology: Who integrates best with the technology you are currently using. We have compiled a basic comparison of which CRM’s link ‘out of the box’ with other technologies. Take a look here.

This is a post which summarises data migration, what that means and how to get started. It also covers where you might have data you did not think about.

So you are moving your data from one place to another (migration) but what do you need to do?

Places to look for data.

I am not just talking names and addresses, you are going to want to bring together

as much as possible in terms of transactions. Where do you collect data from source? You may not have considered all of these but there will be data there which you can bring to your new system.

• Spreadsheets; with data you have inputted
• Forms; have you asked beneficiaries, donors or anyone else to input their data?
• Payment portals; Just Giving, Enthuse, Stewardship, CAF, MuchLoved etc.
• Fundraising Platforms; Crowdfunder, Big Give, GoFundMe,
• Check your emails; has someone sent you a list of payments,
• Bank Feed; you want to be sure your income matches what is in your new system, so gather up all of that data

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

This post summarises some of the top charity CRM systems and their compatibility with other systems which you might be using. We highlight what is ‘out of the box’ and what you have to pay extra for;

To define, this list summarises integrations, which means they work directly with each other and do not require any uploading of data. They will seamlessly fit with your CRM – ‘Auto Magically’

These are based on the ‘entry level’ packages with the CRM. Without any add-ons per month

CRM System by chickadie136