Challenge

Parkinson Association of the Carolinas was looking to ditch Microsoft Access for their first donor database. They wanted a user-friendly donor management system that could do more than just store and report on information.

“We were using Access 2010 as our database and in 2015 started experiencing loss of records after input — sometimes 100 – 200 at a time. That would require entering all the information again. We also wanted a database that could do more than just store information and provide reporting, but mostly was user friendly,” said Ann Marie Obrikat, Executive Director at Parkinson Association of the Carolinas.

Solution

With Bloomerang, Ann Marie and her team has found a donor management system that would simplify their donor acknowledgment efforts. They were originally drawn to “the ability to create their monthly e-newsletter inside Bloomerang, generate thank you letters and generate a better variety of reports and ease in creating them.”

Since implementing Bloomerang, they’ve come to appreciate the time they’ve been able to save on inputting donor data. “It’s less time-consuming to enter a new constituent into Bloomerang than it was in Access – I’d say it’s cut the process in half. Also, we were excited to find out that we could change out our donor credit card processor to Stripe and all the information would go directly to Bloomerang. Instead of us having to get a receipt and then enter everything.”

Results

Since implementing Bloomerang, Parkinson Association of the Carolinas has seen improvements with several fundraising pain points through donor data accessibility and consolidation: “Not losing records, the time it took to enter the constituent information and then donor information for that same person in Access, and pulling constituents into the newsletter instead of manually updating Constant Contact.” Ann Marie and her team have also benefited from improvements to their productivity. “It is taking less time to pull the newsletter together for our Program Director.”

Overall, Bloomerang’s features have benefited the team’s donor retention and gift development processes. “We are still learning all the great ways that Bloomerang can help us with both of these issues.”

It’s amazing what an easy-to-use, donor-centered donor database can do for the growth of an organization such as Parkinson Association of the Carolinas. “It can make a lot of different areas of your database and donor work much easier.”

The post Parkinson Association of the Carolinas appeared first on Bloomerang.

Challenge

Triangle Apartment Association was looking for a donor database with high review ratings that is both user friendly and focused on donor retention. “I’m not a fundraiser and so I relied heavily on website reviews to inform my decision, seeking out options that were user-friendly and geared towards donor retention,” said Dustin Engelken, Government Affairs Director at Triangle Apartment Association.

Solution

With Bloomerang, Dustin and the team at Triangle Apartment Association found a donor management system that would be easy to learn and use. “I love the simplicity of the system and the support that’s provided.”

Bloomerang has also fit nicely into its donor retention and gift development processes. Staying on top of donor outreach is a breeze now. “Before we started using Bloomerang, our fundraising was disorganized, unfocused, and left a ton of money on the table. Now that everything is housed in this system, we can easily access everything we need in one place and better hone our pitch to prospective donors.”

Results

Since implementing Bloomerang, Triangle Apartment Association has seen improvements with several fundraising pain points through data accessibility and consolidation. “Everything is so organized and easy to share now amongst our team. Now our communications, accounting and advocacy teams utilize the same system and seamlessly share information across departments.” Dustin and his team have also benefited from improvements to their productivity and the quality of their constituent communication. “There’s no doubt our productivity has improved. We are reaching and engaging more donors than ever and spending less time doing it.”

Overall, the team at Triangle Apartment Association is very happy with the results they’ve seen through increases to their donor retention rate and dollars raised goals. “Within the first 3 months of the calendar year, we’ve already reached our fundraising goal for the entire year and surpassed our best year on record. Bloomerang was a key piece in achieving that goal helping us to not only retain donors but also to increase their giving.”

It’s amazing what a comprehensive, but still easy-to-use, donor database can do for the growth of an organization such as Triangle Apartment Association. “There is no better donor database for your money. Make the move!”

The post Triangle Apartment Association appeared first on Bloomerang.