Robert Weiner

MAY 10, 2013

The following story, posted with permission, was sent to the FUNDSVCS list in response to a question about how to reign in schools and departments at a university that keep their own shadow databases of contacts. The response hit the nail on the head: We started working on folding shadow databases into (Raiser''s Edge, our central database) about 8 years ago. I have a story that we have used quite often: A few years ago, we imported a shadow database into Raiser''s Edge.

Database 140

Database Chicago Mail Phone 140

Connection Cafe

AUGUST 28, 2017

Here are some of the coping strategies I’ve used during a database cleanup : Don’t purge files too soon , but go through them and put the contents in date order and dispose of any obvious duplicates (if needed). Nonprofit Management database clean-up donor database inherited files

Database 210

Database Strategy Files Fundraising 210

Connection Cafe

MARCH 14, 2013

Bad data is bad business, and there’s a cost to it: Inaccurate reporting, … Technology Cleanup data DBA Maintenance Training

Database 279

Database Report Business Train 279

Robert Weiner

DECEMBER 21, 2012

A question was posted to a listserve for nonprofit techies looking for tips on training staff on a new database. The trainer needs to understand the database, present technical concepts clearly and without jargon, teach at the students' level, and be incredibly patient. Train end users on a sample database, not production data. The sample database should be configured with your own codes, menus, security settings, and any customizations.

Database 143

Database Train Training Classroom 143

Robert Weiner

JULY 10, 2012

Here's how I responded: I’ve yet to see a published report that provided a convincing general argument that [insert any nonprofit name here] will raise more money by using [insert database name here]. The cost of fundraisers refusing to use the current database because it’s not user-friendly, so their pipeline and contact history is in their heads, in spreadsheets or paper files, or has to be entered by an assistant (though you can put a cost on the last one).

Database 152

Database ROI Donor System 152

Robert Weiner

JULY 25, 2010

I get a lot of emails like the following from small nonprofits: We desperately need to get a new donor database and most of them are totally unaffordable!! Looking at the Idealware Low Cost Database report , I find that there are so many considerations that it is quite complicated to make a choice. The only way I know of to answer your question is to go through these steps: Write down what you need in a database, in as much detail as you can.

Database 153

Database Donor System Proposal 153

TechImpact

SEPTEMBER 3, 2013

Nonprofits use databases to handle volunteers, donors, staff, and more. For smaller nonprofits, a database may be nothing more than an Excel file. Medium to large nonprofits might have an IT staff and a simple database, designed by the in-house development team.

Database 239

Database System Management Captivate 239

TechImpact

NOVEMBER 26, 2013

Database are extremely useful in simplifying business operations, communication, and workflow for both the for-profit sector and nonprofit sector. Nonprofits and charities use databases to manage donor, volunteer, and B2B profiles and aggregate data. Image courtesy of WiseGeek.

Database 250

Database Tips Files Doc 250

Connection Cafe

JULY 30, 2015

In my last blog I talked about a segment of your audience that could use a bit more love: non-donors, prospects, casual observers—the usual suspects. Call them what you will, but these are the people that expressed interest in your organization and mission and are waiting to hear more.

Database 261

Database Conversation eBook Audience 261

AFP Blog

OCTOBER 23, 2012

Foundation Center - Nonprofit Collaboration Database

Database 116

Database Collaboration Foundation Nonprofit 116

Robert Weiner

NOVEMBER 10, 2011

I'm planning a new workshop on selecting donor databases, focusing on the question, "Why is this so friggin' complicated?" It needs to be easy to get reports from the database, but it also needs to support complex selection criteria.

Database 148

Database Donor Analysis System 148

AFP Blog

MAY 6, 2014

Interesting tool from our friends at the Foundation Center Foundation Center - Nonprofit Collaboration Database : Nonprofit Collaboration Database Search the Nonprofit Collaboration Database to find real-world examples of how nonprofits are working together. Learn more about the database, here

Database 109

Database Collaboration Foundation Model 109

Robert Weiner

MARCH 17, 2013

Donor Databases Nonprofit Management Nonprofit Technology SoftwareA colleague forwarded the following email from a vendor and asked how I think a potential buyer should respond. I've redacted the message to anonymize the vendor: Dear _, I thought you might be interested in a recent analysis of low cost fundraising software, conducted jointly by independent organizations Idealware and N-TEN.

Database 123

Database Rate Donor Report 123

VisionLink

DECEMBER 9, 2010

We are very pleased to announce that we completed a successful and significant upgrade of our core database systems last night. While not as flashy as some of our feature upgrades for users, this is the kind of infrastructure upgrade that sustains VisionLink and our customers over time.

Database 130

Database Script Module Test 130

Robert Weiner

AUGUST 19, 2009

The good folks at Aspiration have been working to put my list of donor databases into a wiki. Along the way the identified some that seem to have disappeared and weren't on my earlier list of defunct donor databases. Giving Database from Willow Mountain Consulting. Tags: Donor Databases Here are the new entries: Association Management System from Micro Solutions. Donation Management System from Cumulus 9. DonorAccess from DonorAccess.

Database 100

Database Donor Kintera Wiki 100

Robert Weiner

FEBRUARY 24, 2012

I've been enjoying the discussion in the Chronicle of Philanthropy's LinkedIn group in response to the question, " What's a good, affordable donor database program for a small non profit? " (you'll probably need to join the group to read the responses). Advancement Services Donor Databases Fundraising Nonprofit Technology

Database 123

Database Donor Linkedin Map 123

Connection Cafe

MARCH 10, 2014

If you haven’t already, take a look at my Spring Cleaning Your Database article from this time last year. Take the time to check your database backups and review your disaster recovery plans. Other thoughts on optimizing your database?

Database 201

Database System Data Review 201

AFP Blog

MAY 4, 2015

When does a small nonprofit need a database? CoolData blog : "When should an organization acquire some kind of database system or CRM? Any organization, no matter how small, has to track activity and record information for operational purposes. This may be especially true for nonprofits that need to report on the impact they’re having in the community. I usually think in terms of tracking donors, but nonprofits may have an additional need to track clients and services." 'via

Database 140

Database Track System Active 140

Idealware

SEPTEMBER 10, 2015

Databases are the technology that nonprofits love to hate. Some people wish their database had more options, some wish it were simpler, and some just wish they could get the same results from a query twice in a row. If you’re unsure about your current database, you aren’t alone.

Database 58

Database Data North Carolina Benchmark 58

AFP Blog

FEBRUARY 18, 2014

Charity Commission to join national fraud database : The Charity Commission is to become a member of Cifas, the national fraud database, so it can develop a risk fraud profile of the charity sector and provide a means of checking trustees for linkage to fraud and rights to remain in the UK.

Database 116

Database National Charity Proposal 116

Robert Weiner

JANUARY 13, 2009

The flip side to my list of donor databases would be a list of systems that no longer exist. Tags: Donor Databases Fundraising Advancement Services This does not mean that these systems are no longer in use, just that they’re no longer being sold or supported (I recently met someone who still uses FundMaster, which hasn’t been sold since at least 1999). This probably isn’t as useful a list, but it’s short so here goes: SYSTEM. VENDOR. Alchemy.

Database 100

Database Donor System Associations 100

Everyaction

JULY 16, 2018

Though database technology may not be anyone's first thought related the the human services field, experienced staff of these organizations know just how important these tools are, allowing them to work more efficiently, saving time and money, and maximizing the impact of their work at every level.

Database 52

Database Service Effective Organization 52

NonProfit Hub

JULY 12, 2017

To make it easy for you to navigate this article, we’ve broken our discussion into three helpful sections: Donor Databases for Small Nonprofits. Donor Databases for Medium-Sized Nonprofits. Donor Databases for Large Nonprofits. Donor Databases for Small Nonprofits.

Database 77

Database Donor Retention Contact 77

NonProfit Hub

JUNE 27, 2015

I get asked the question often, “What should we look for in donor database tools?” All good donor database tools worth your time and money will include: 1. I believe there are three crucial elements that you need. A dashboard. This allows you to see how things are going at a glance.

Database 80

Database Tools Donor Measure 80

Robert Weiner

AUGUST 26, 2009

The good folks at Asipration have taken my list of donor databases and put it into the Social Source Commons wiki. What's more, they added descriptions, logos, and links to the vendors' sites. Very cool! You can go directly to the list at [link] or preview it below

Database 113

Database Donor Wiki Site 113

Everyaction

JULY 9, 2018

Here are a few examples of how different departments can save time and increase their impact by using a unified database. For nonprofits doing political advocacy and social justice work, having solid data management practices can sometimes be an afterthought.

Database 57

Database Volunteer History Donor 57

Connection Cafe

MARCH 2, 2011

At the end of last year, I spent a good deal of time analyzing our database (yes, my inner geek is showing) and asking the big questions: where do I need to make an investment? The reason marketers start here is the same reason a nonprofit should – making a connection to the real people in your database. Author: Jennifer Atkins.

Database 190

Database People Sample Interaction 190

NonProfit Hub

APRIL 11, 2014

We see this happen often within donor databases and nonprofit CRMs. A clutter-free and efficient migration of data into your new database is a great start, but all of that hard work will be for naught if that environment is not kept intact going forward.

Database 81

Database Donor Data Guidelines 81

AFP Blog

MARCH 23, 2016

The One: 5 Benefits of Committing to a Single, Centralized Database - Target Marketing : 'via Blog this

Database 100

Database Benefit Marketing 100

Everyaction

JUNE 18, 2018

Shopping for a donor database is a complicated process, which is made even more difficult when it is hard to find information about a software's compatibility with your organization's unique mission and needs. That's why we've put together a collection of guides to the process of evaluating and selecting database tools, customized for several types of organizations that we commonly work with.

Database 49

Database Guide Evaluation Software 49

Robert Weiner

SEPTEMBER 16, 2009

Over the past few years I've been compiling what turned out to be a huge list of donor databases. The entries came from a variety of other lists and from customer satisfaction surveys done by Campbell Research, NTEN, and Idealware. Once I posted the list I started getting requests to add links to vendor websites, tags, and comments. Now the good folks at Aspiration have taken my list and put it into the Social Source Commons wiki. read more.

Database 100

Database Donor Wiki Survey 100

Donor Search

NOVEMBER 5, 2015

The strongest indicator of future giving is past giving. Curious how we know? We know past giving’s role in predicting future giving because we have back tested our predictive models against $5 billion in known giving. That $5 billion came from 2 million donors to 400 fundraising organizations. Look at these statistics: A donor who… About DonorSearch Data and Statistics DonorSearch Products Education

Database 50

Database Model Test Giving 50

NonProfit Hub

FEBRUARY 27, 2014

Unfortunately, the day-to-day work of managing fundraising efforts often falls to one person who is the sole user of the donor database or CRM software. Here are three reasons why everyone in your organization should have their hands in the donor database regularly: 1.

Database 91

Database Donor Gift Journal 91

Robert Weiner

JANUARY 11, 2009

I thought it might be useful to compile a list of all of the commercial donor databases I’m aware of. This list came from my head, my bookmarks, and lists compiled by NTEN and Idealware for their donor management software surveys (and I’m not certain all of these are actually donor databases). Feel free to let me know what I missed, which systems no longer exist, and which aren’t really donor databases. Giving Database. Organizers Database (ODB).

Database 100

Database Donor Oracle System 100

AFP Blog

MARCH 26, 2015

Five tips to spring-clean your database - Information, research and resources for fundraisers and their leaders : "What about your database? Dirty data be gone! When was the last time you conducted some spring cleaning on your donor data so that data pulls, analysis and reporting didn’t require extra manual manipulation?

Database 145

Database Research Resource Mail 145

NonProfit Hub

AUGUST 25, 2015

Any fundraiser who has ever used a donor database knows what a nightmare it can be if their nonprofit’s donor data is messy, inconsistent, inaccessible or nonexistent. But a donor database doesn’t just go bad on its own, and no system is immune from neglect or over-indulgence.

Database 108

Database Donor Data eBook 108

Frogloop

NOVEMBER 6, 2012

This is why the database you use is really vital to enabling you to effectively appeal to your various segments. Your database could be a goldmine of data just waiting to be put to the test. Also consider what historical and transactional information you need to bring over from Common Ground to your new database. Evaluating your current data and determining key criteria for a new database will help you ask the right “data” questions when you are shopping around.

Database 80

Database Donation Donor Evaluation 80

Donor Search

JUNE 7, 2016

Fundraising is all about donors. That seems obvious. And yet, for the longest time executives at charities and the fundraising profession didn’t have basic information about some of the most obvious and fundamental aspects of fundraising. How well do we retain donors?

Analysis 52

Analysis Database Donor Charity 52

Donor Search

JANUARY 20, 2018

We knew that we wanted to include a matching gift database in our platform, but we also knew that we had to be absolutely sure that we chose the right provider before creating an integration. At DonorSearch, we take our technical integration partners very seriously. Like every other product decision we’ve made, we wanted to… About DonorSearch Nonprofit Software

Database 40

Database Integration Gift Platform 40

Wild Apricot Blog

JUNE 19, 2015

Database expert and consultant, Wes Trochlil, gives us a quick run-down of his top 5 database management tips and speaks about his upcoming Wild Apricot Free Expert Webinar. database management

Database 56

Database Consultant Effective Free 56

John Haydon

JUNE 16, 2016

I’m no database expert, and I’m not going to claim to be one. The post Data Deduping Tips for a Tidy Database appeared first on John Haydon. Big data actually sort of makes my head hurt.

Database 57

Database Data Tips Project 57

AFP Blog

JUNE 21, 2013

New database will show how charity money is spent | Philanthropy Impact : The database will consist of information from the annual returns sent to the Charity Commission from charities in England and Wales. It will give headline income and expenditure and show how charities with an income of over 500,000 allocate their revenue across fundraising and governance, charitable activities and reserves.

Database 130

Database Money Headline Impact 130

AFP Blog

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

One fundraising database breaks down silos and benefits every department : Page 1 of 2 : FundRaising Success : The natural conclusion then is that one database for the whole organization — that crucially meets the specific needs of each department — is the best way to go. And in the case of the fundraisers that responded to the recent Lehman surveyOpens in a new window of fundraising databases, that’s where most people are.

Database 133

Database Benefit Fundraising Software 133