[RESEARCH REPORT] Maximise Your Impact by Discovering the Full Potential of CRM for Nonprofits

Do you want a platform that helps nurture relationships, track fundraising activities, deliver smarter marketing campaigns, streamline event planning, and measure the impact of your programs? Of course, you do! A recent nonprofit survey conducted in the UK by Charity Digital in partnership with Salesforce.org revealed that many nonprofits are not maximising their investment in CRM (constituent relationship management) solutions. 

Although 58% of nonprofits know a CRM platform can be used to help manage relationships, many other valuable capabilities are passing them by. For example, only 6% of nonprofits believe that CRM platforms can simplify volunteer management and just 8% are leveraging the business intelligence and reporting capabilities. 

To help nonprofits maximise the potential of CRM, this blog will give you a rapid tour of one of the most capability-rich platforms on the market.

A platform for change 

Salesforce for nonprofits is the one integrated platform that can underpin all of your core operations. It integrates easily with other systems, frees you up from worrying about server space or security, and scales as your organisation and mission evolve. 

In addition to helping you manage constituents – from volunteers and donors to beneficiaries and partners – it provides an integrated platform for all of your data. This creates a 360-degree view of your organisation, which will unlock new insights that will enable you to make data-driven decisions. 

Salesforce dashboards and reports features are easy to use and can be configured to pull just about any figures you can think of. Whether you want to understand the impact of a single campaign or a global program, Salesforce can provide the answers – and help you share the results with your constituents too. You can even take your reporting and forecasting to the next level with Einstein Analytics. 

Building stronger connections 

Marketing automation and personalisation makes connecting with constituents more relevant and timely. It will help you build stronger and richer relationships with donors and cement your reputation as an organisation that really cares about their community  – and delivers on its mission. For example, sending personalised emails to donors to show how their generosity impacted a specific individual, community, or project. 

Need some inspirations to understand how other nonprofits are using Salesforce to drive their mission? You can read about some of our trailblazing nonprofits here.

How we are making CRM more cost-effective 

CRM can support nonprofits big and small. Unsurprisingly, 100% of supermajor nonprofits (with annual incomes of more than £100m per annum) use a CRM platform – but that drops to 55% for medium-sized organisations, 31% for small nonprofits and 11% for micro organisations. 

82% of nonprofits with a CRM platform say it saves them time and increase their income. For medium to super-major organisations, this rises to 88%.

So why are some nonprofits not making the most of CRM? Many cited budget as the main reason for this but it’s more affordable than you think. At Salesforce.org we give all qualifying nonprofits their first 10 subscriptions to Salesforce Lightning Enterprise Edition plus NPSP (Nonprofit success pack) free through the Power of Us program. And with 79% of nonprofits saying CRM is a cost-effective investment, it’s definitely worth taking a free trial of NPSP. 

Helping nonprofits achieve their goals 

Implementing new technology can be daunting for any organisation, especially if they have limited internal IT resources. For 16% of nonprofits, these implementation concerns are so great that they turn their backs on CRM completely or choose to stick with their existing solutions even if that’s spreadsheets? But CRM and complexity don’t always go hand in hand: 74% of nonprofit team members think their CRM platform is easy to use. 

We have tonnes of resources to help your CRM vision become a reality. We provide free and fun training via our online learning platform, Trailhead, while our renowned community of nonprofit Trailblazers on the Power of Us Hub are happy to share tips, best practices, and sector-specific apps they’ve developed or made available on the Salesforce App Exchange. Plus we offer premier success plans. 

CRM is a one-way ticket to becoming a truly connected nonprofit, with even the smallest teams benefiting from better visibility and richer insights. Whether your ambition is to expand your reach or increase your impact, Salesforce.org, our community and partners can support you every step of the way as your mission continues to grow. 

Want to get all the insights from the report and learn more about the value of CRM for Nonprofits?  

download report