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Challenge

Flint Public Library was looking for cloud-based, user-friendly and robust donor management software to grow their budding development program. They wanted a solution that could grow with them and help them launch a capital campaign. “When we were researching donor databases, we were looking for several things: primary among them was cloud based capability as we have staff members working in different locations. We were also looking for a user-friendly interface and a robust report building platform. Since our development program is relatively new, and we were also aware that we would be launching a capital campaign, we also wanted something that could grow with us,” said Cassie Mead, Development Assistant at Flint Public Library.

Solution

Cassie quickly found that Bloomerang’s intuitive platform could meet their needs. “The intuitive user interface on the platform was appealing, particularly as we have a broad range of technical capability within our staff. The visual appearance of the database is easy to navigate.” The DonorSearch integration also excited Cassie and the team as they were searching for tools that could help with donor cultivation, prospect research and reporting. “The DonorSearch integration tool was a feature we were also very excited about. We’ve come to appreciate the robust reporting, even more than we had originally anticipated.”

Bloomerang’s feature-set and smooth implementation process was exactly what Flint Public Library needed during a hectic and challenging time to help them ramp up their development efforts. “Overall, moving to Bloomerang has given us more flexibility and capacity to grow our development program. Converting donor databases while launching a capital campaign, with a pandemic thrown in for good measure, could have been a recipe for disaster. With Bloomerang, we were able to adapt and move forward with little to no pause in our forward momentum.”

Results

Since implementing Bloomerang, Flint Public Library was able to launch their capital campaign “almost simultaneously with the conversion to Bloomerang with relatively few bumps from the database standpoint – and no known data loss. A less successful conversion would have been a disaster at such a critical point.” Cassie and the team have also found that the reporting functionality has been instrumental in increasing their donor retention rate. “Again, the reporting tool has been instrumental in our donor retention. We have been able to develop YoY reports much easier and with a larger capability than our previous database (which was limited to 4 time periods). We can run data from throughout our history and on nearly any criterion. The soft-crediting capability was a must for us, and works well.”

Not only have they seen improvements with reporting and fundraising, but Cassie and the team at Flint Public Library have also benefited from having more insights into how their organization is functioning. “Key metrics are much easier to track within Bloomerang than with our previous database. This means we are able to provide key decision makers with a more robust picture of the metrics they need to make strategic plans to grow our development program. The dashboards on Bloomerang’s home screen may be helpful for some groups, once customized to the specific metrics they want tracked.”

All in all, it’s amazing what an insightful, intuitive, and donor-focused database can do for the growth of an organization such as Flint Public Library. “It is much easier to track new donors and report on individual campaigns and appeals than with our previous database.”

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Challenge

Walden School was looking for easy-to-use donor management software that could replace Raiser’s Edge. They needed a solution that was more robust for cultivating and stewarding their donors. “My school has been using the base package of Raiser’s Edge for about 15 years. We needed something that produced more accurate reports and provided us better donor cultivation and stewardship opportunities,” said Ely Heard, Assistant Director of Development at Walden School.

Solution

After being impressed with a Bloomerang demo at a previous organization, Ely was excited to actually have buying decision this time around. She has come to appreciate how easy Bloomerang is to use, the integrations available, and how easy it now is to steward their donors. “I appreciate the ease of use, the focus on donor stewardship and the collaboration with TrueGivers and DonorSearch.”

Ely and her team were happy to turn their eyes to Bloomerang as a donor database solution that could improve their donor and constituent experience while also saving them time and money. “So far, switching to Bloomerang has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my time at my school. Not only are we saving money each year, our constituents are getting a better experience from our school.”

Results

Since implementing Bloomerang, Walden School has alleviated several fundraising pain points in regards to reporting and stewardship tracking. “I have found customizing reports to be so much easier in Bloomerang. We also found Wealth Screening to be much easier and stewardship tracking to be more accessible.”

The team at Walden School has also seen improvements with their gift development processes, which has directly impacted the quality of their constituent communications. “Before Bloomerang we were lucky to send out donation acknowledgement letters in a timely manner. Now we’re able to easily send birthday letters to all constituents, my head of school is easily completing tasks I send her, and I can create giving by class reports.”

In that same vein, the ability to easily add personal touches, segment their donors, and have peace of mind that their donor data is correct and continually updated has increased their development team’s productivity and the results of their communication efforts. “I am able to track exactly how many interactions I’m having with our constituents on a day-to-day basis. I’m getting up-to-date address changes on a nightly basis and my constituent’s birthdays are accessible. I’m able to assign tasks to my head of school and director of development to keep them in the loop of constituents’ life changes and large gifts.”

All in all, it’s amazing what an easy-to-use, donor-focused database can do for the growth of an organization such as Walden School. “I love Bloomerang!”

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