Category: Data Integration

The Truth About CRMs in Fundraising: Technology Alone Won’t Drive Donations

In the nonprofit sector, there’s a widespread belief that a powerful Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) system will automatically elevate fundraising outcomes.

 

The idea goes like this: “Get the right CRM, and the donations will follow.”

 

Unfortunately, this view overlooks a critical truth: No technology—no matter how advanced—can replace the need for a clear strategy, human connection, and ongoing effort in fundraising.

 

It’s time to dismantle some of the most common CRM myths and set a new course for fundraising success that centers around planning and strategic use of technology.

 

Common Misconceptions About CRMs in Fundraising

 

Misconception #1: A CRM is the magic solution to fundraising problems.

 

Many organizations think acquiring a new CRM system will automatically solve their fundraising challenges. While CRMs are powerful tools, they are only as effective as the strategy that complements them.

 

A CRM streamlines processes, stores valuable data, and automates specific tasks—but it can’t decide who your donors are or how much they’ll give. Understanding the nuances of your donor base comes from human interaction and a strategic fundraising strategy.

 

In other words, a CRM supports your efforts, but the heart of fundraising still lies in the connections you cultivate and the meaningful conversations you have with potential supporters.

 

A CRM should be viewed as a supporting tool, not a magical fix. Use it to enable better execution of your pre-defined fundraising strategy, not replace the need for one. For example, track interactions, identify patterns, and provide insights.

 

Misconception #2: More data equals better fundraising.

 

Data is undoubtedly crucial in modern fundraising, but gathering vast amounts without a clear plan for analysis and action is a waste of resources. Consider data a collection of raw materials—data is only valuable if you know how to use it.

 

In fundraising, data is most impactful when it’s aligned with clear goals and an understanding of your donor base. For example, predictive analytics help you target high-potential donors, while automation frees up time for deeper engagement. Whereas regularly measuring and refining your approach warrants you’re making data-driven decisions that improve donor relationships and campaign outcomes.

 

Simply having more data doesn’t automatically lead to better insights or more donations.

 

What truly matters is the data quality and how you use it to empower deeper relationships with your supporters. The key is not just accumulating information but using that information to tailor your outreach and engagement. Move beyond generic communications to create tailored experiences that resonate with supporters—using data to segment donors, identify patterns, and personalize outreach.

 

Misconception #3: Predictive analytics highlights exactly who will donate.

 

Predictive analytics and wealth screening tools can provide valuable insights, but they do not hold the power to forecast donor behavior with perfect accuracy. The reality is that human decisions—especially charitable giving—are influenced by various unpredictable factors.

 

A major donor may choose not to give, while a minor donor might become a regular supporter based on a personal connection to your cause. For example, a passionate and regular supporter develops a personal connection to your cause. This connection stems from their experiences or values, and personal engagement like a handwritten note or meaningful conversation that deepens their commitment.

 

Ultimately, fundraising success relies on building relationships with all donors, as smaller contributors can grow into major supporters through meaningful, personalized interactions.

 

Data-driven tools help identify potential donors but should not be relied upon as the sole basis for decisions. There’s no substitute for human connection and a deep understanding of your community.

 

Technology as an Enabler: A More Strategic Approach

 

If technology alone won’t lead to fundraising success, what does?

 

It starts with a well-thought-out strategy. Here’s how you can leverage your CRM effectively:

 

  1. Start with Strategy

 

Before implementing any CRM or technology solution, ask yourself:

  • What are our fundraising goals?
  • How do we define success?
  • What’s our donor engagement process?
  • What metrics will tell us whether we’re on track?

 

Having a clear strategy should always come before selecting and implementing technology. Your CRM is there to support this strategy, not create it.

 

  1. Use Technology to Enhance Your Processes

 

Once you have a strategy, look at your CRM as a tool to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your existing fundraising workflows. Here’s how:

 

  • Streamline workflows: Your CRM should make tracking and nurturing relationships easier and not more complicated.
  • Stay organized: Manage donor data, track communications, and schedule follow-ups.
  • Analyze and inform: Use the CRM’s analytics tools to inform your strategy, not replace it.

 

The CRM should act as an enabler of your process, allowing you to focus on high-impact activities rather than getting bogged down in administrative tasks.

 

Creating an Effective Technology Plan

 

To maximize the value of your CRM, you need to create a plan that aligns technology with your goals and processes.

 

  1. Define Your Needs First
  • What are the specific fundraising challenges you’re facing?
  • Which processes can be improved with technology?
  • What do you hope to achieve by using a CRM?
  1. Map the Donor Journey
  • Identify key touchpoints where your donors interact with your organization.
  • Determine how donors prefer to engage (email, phone, events, etc.).
  • Create engagement strategies and measurement metrics for each stage of the donor journey.
  1. Implement with Purpose
  • Begin with core CRM functions that will provide the most immediate value.
  • Train your staff thoroughly on the new system to ensure smooth adoption.
  • Build complexity over time—start simple and scale up as needed.
  • Regularly assess the effectiveness of your CRM and adjust your approach as necessary.

The Human Element: Fundraising is About Relationships

 

While technology plays a pivotal role in enhancing your fundraising efforts, the human element truly drives donations. Technology should support, not replace, the essential relationships that make fundraising successful.

 

Your CRM can enhance the human elements of fundraising by:

 

  • reminding you of essential donor details;
  • tracking past interactions and preferences;
  • scheduling follow-ups to maintain engagement; and
  • identifying trends or opportunities for deeper connections.

 

However, your fundraising team must be the ones to:

 

  • build authentic relationships;
  • share compelling, emotionally resonant stories about your cause;
  • make personal, meaningful asks; and
  • demonstrate appreciation and acknowledge donor impact.

 

Ultimately, it’s not the technology that builds trust with donors—it’s the conversations, the shared vision, and the genuine care your team offers.

 

Moving Forward: A New Mindset for CRM Success

 

Rather than asking, “Which CRM will raise the most money for us?” consider these questions:

 

  • How can technology better support our fundraising strategy?
  • What processes can we streamline or improve with a CRM?
  • How can we use data to make smarter, more informed decisions?
  • Where can automation free up our time for relationship-building activities?

 

Technology, particularly CRMs, is an incredibly valuable tool when used correctly. However, it’s important to remember that it’s just that—a tool. The real work of fundraising lies in strategy, relationship-building, and executing a plan that aligns your team’s efforts with the needs and interests of your donors.

 

A successful fundraising program integrates the human element with the right technology. The most effective organizations use CRMs not as a substitute for good strategy or authentic relationships but as powerful enablers that help them work smarter, not harder.

 

At the end of the day, it’s not the CRM that will raise money—it’s your ability to engage with your supporters in a meaningful and personalized way that engage.

5 Critical Considerations for Successful Data Integration Between Advancement CRMs and Healthcare Systems

Data integration plays a pivotal role in modernizing fundraising efforts within healthcare organizations. However, integrating complex systems like Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) with patient databases, peer-to-peer fundraising platforms, and other related systems can be fraught with challenges. CRM systems are often built on different data architectures, possess distinct operational needs, and are governed by strict regulatory frameworks, particularly in healthcare.

 

Here are five critical considerations that must be addressed early in the process for healthcare organizations looking to streamline their data integration strategy and enhance fundraising outcomes.

 

1. HIPAA Compliance and Organizational Data Policies

 

A primary hurdle in healthcare data integration is ensuring compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). This federal law regulates how patient data is stored, shared, and accessed. Aligning your data integration process with HIPAA guidelines is non-negotiable. Failing to do so can result in legal risks, regulatory fines, and the erosion of donor trust.

 

At the onset of your data integration project, engage with your legal and compliance teams to define the boundaries for using patient data, especially for fundraising purposes. A clear understanding of which patient data can be shared—and how—should be articulated to all stakeholders. Communicate these requirements with your broader organizational data policies to avoid any missteps.

 

Having discussions early on prevents costly delays. In many cases, I’ve seen projects stalled for months due to leadership misalignment on what data can be accessed and how it can be used for fundraising. Addressing these concerns diminishes the risk of hitting a compliance wall once the integration process is underway.

 

2. Understand Differing Data Definitions and Maintenance Approaches

 

Data integration isn’t just about transferring information from one system to another—it’s about guaranteeing the data is aligned, accurate, and actionable across all platforms. However, different systems often have varying definitions of key data points.

 

For example, an Advancement CRM may define “constituent” in one way, while a peer-to-peer fundraising platform might define it differently based on its data management practices. This could impact a seemingly simple element like a mailing address, storing it differently across systems, leading to discrepancies and data integrity issues down the line.

 

Instead, alloy time to thoroughly investigate and compare the data structures, definitions, and maintenance practices in every system you’re integrating. Look for areas where the systems may conflict and identify potential issues that could emerge during data transfers. Engaging technical experts and business users from various departments resolves these discrepancies before they impact the data integration process.

 

3. Determine Your Single Source of Truth

 

In any data integration project, it is important to decide which system will be the Single Source of Truth (SSOT) for each piece of data. For example, will your Advancement CRM serve as the primary record keeper for all constituent biographical information, or will certain data elements, like email addresses or phone numbers, be managed elsewhere (e.g., on your peer-to-peer fundraising platform)?

 

Establishing a clear SSOT is a fundamental aspect of data governance that prevents confusion and ensures data consistency. Failure to determine your SSOT can lead to conflicting records across systems, eroding trust in your data. As you design your integration strategy, work closely with stakeholders from all relevant departments to confirm consensus on where and how each data element will be managed.

 

4. Plan for Both Initial and Ongoing Data Synchronization

 

Data integration is not a one-time task—it requires continuous synchronization to verify all systems remain up to date. An initial data sync is necessary to align all systems, but developing a plan for ongoing updates is equally essential. This can involve periodic batch syncing, real-time updates for specific key data fields, or a combination.

 

For example, if you’re syncing biographical information, will you need real-time updates to validate any changes in your Advancement CRM reflect immediately across all systems? What about handling conflicts when records don’t match between platforms or managing deleted records that need to be removed from multiple systems?

 

Successful ongoing synchronization is critical to delivering the long-term success of your data integration strategy. Thinking through these scenarios in advance and documenting clear processes for handling them saves time and frustration.

 

5. Allocate Time for Comprehensive Testing

 

Testing is the cornerstone of a successful data integration project. Even the best-laid integration designs can encounter major issues post-launch without a solid testing plan. Testing should go beyond basic validation of data field mappings and synchronization and involve testing the broader business processes that depend on the integrated data.

 

Skipping this critical step can result in data discrepancies, poor user experiences, and potentially costly rework after Go-Live. Confirming the integration works smoothly in a controlled testing environment sets your organization up for success when scaling the solution.

 

Develop a detailed test plan for various scenarios, from standard to edge cases. Involve stakeholders from all impacted departments—whether fundraising, IT, or compliance—to check that the integration meets their needs and functions as expected. Allow sufficient time to complete multiple testing cycles, during which issues can be identified, corrected, and re-tested.

 

At the heart of a successful data integration strategy is alignment—not just with your technology solutions but your leadership and organizational priorities. Streamline the data integration process and create a more robust and effective fundraising infrastructure by thinking through these considerations, engaging with relevant stakeholders, and building consensus across your teams.

 

In healthcare fundraising, a well-executed data integration strategy unlocks new opportunities for donor engagement, drives operational efficiencies, and ultimately empowers your organization to achieve its fundraising goals. Make these considerations a priority from the outset, and your future self—and your organization—will thank you.

Maximizing Impact for Advancement Operations with Limited Resources and Budget

Advancement operations—fundraising, alumni engagement, and donor relations—are crucial to an institution’s success. However, many institutions face the challenge of limited resources and budgets when it comes to Advancement. 

 

The key to success lies in strategic planning, adaptability, and a relentless focus on your institution’s mission. With the right approach and a dedicated team, you can achieve remarkable results and advance your institution’s goals even in resource-constrained environments.

 

Here are our top five suggestions to employ strategic approaches that maximize Advancement’s ability to thrive with limited resources and budgets. 

Data-Driven Decision-Making

Investing in donor management software streamlines data collection and analysis, helping you make informed decisions. Data is your most valuable asset, especially when resources are scarce. You can leverage data analytics to identify your most promising donor prospects, understand their giving behaviors, and tailor your engagement strategies accordingly. 

 

Data enables you to send segmented messages. Segmentation allows you to deliver personalized messages and appeals suited to donor desires. By sending targeted communications, you increase the likelihood of donors responding positively. 

 

Data helps you uncover trends and opportunities, enabling you to understand where they’ll have the most significant impact and allocate resources effectively.

Relationship Building and Stewardship

Institutions often far short when it comes to building solid, long-lasting relationships with donors. Yet, this can be one of the most cost-effective ways to secure support. Strong relationships can increase giving and referrals, making the most of your limited resources. 

 

Regularly engage with donors through personalized communications, acknowledge their contributions and update them on the impact of their gifts. Implement a donor recognition program to express gratitude and foster loyalty. 

Volunteer Engagement

Volunteers can extend your reach, enhance engagement efforts, and reduce operational costs. Their involvement can contribute to fundraising and strengthen the sense of community and connection within your institution.

 

Leverage your alums and supporters as volunteers. Implement a robust volunteer management system to match volunteers with suitable roles and ensure they feel appreciated. Encourage them to participate in fundraising campaigns, organize events, or mentor students. 

Collaborative Partnerships

Collaboration is key when Advancement resources are scarce. Collaborative efforts can reduce costs, pool resources, and expand your reach. Seek partnerships with other departments within your institution, external organizations, and businesses with a similar or complementary mission. 

 

For example, partner with academic departments to create fundraising campaigns that align with their programs or collaborate with local businesses for sponsorships or in-kind donations for events. 

 

By collaborating with internal and external partners, you achieve more significant results with fewer resources.

Digital Fundraising and Marketing

Digital tools offer cost-effective opportunities for fundraising and engagement. Invest in online fundraising platforms that offer streamlined donation processes, security, and data tracking. Maximize your online presence through social media, email marketing, and a user-friendly website. 

 

Consider hosting virtual events, webinars, and crowdfunding campaigns to expand your fundraising capabilities without the overhead of physical events. Remember to create compelling campaigns that resonate with your audience and make donating easy. 

 

Limited resources and budgets may present challenges for advancement operations, but they also offer opportunities for creativity and efficiency. By employing these five strategies, you can maximize your impact without breaking your budget.

Data Integration Strategy, A Must for CRM Advancement Implementation

 

Data integration efforts with an advancement Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) implementation often accompany adding additional tasks to your project. But this approach often confuses and wastes time and effort because resources are moving in opposing directions. 

 

This is why a data integration strategy is a must for CRM advancement implementation. Your data integration strategy requires advanced planning and discussion. Here’s what to consider. 

Platform 

First, decide on the platform for your data integration. This is especially important in today’s cloud-based atmosphere. The old method of point-to-point integration (extracting specific data types from one system and transporting it to another) is no longer viable. 

 

Your institution must choose a platform to facilitate your exchange of data between one system and another. Popular data integration platforms include: 

  • Workato: A low-code/no-code platform enabling business and IT teams to build integrations at five times the speed of typical integration platforms.
  • Informatica: Often used by larger institutions, Informatica transforms data from binary to the extraordinary with their Intelligent Data Management Cloud™ (IDMC).
  • Jitterbit: Another low-code integration platform that connects systems and processes, including your SaaS, on-premises applications, and cloud applications, in days versus months.

 

An integration platform is a new paradigm. A data integration platform eliminates the need to support platforms individually and enables knowledge transfer more seamlessly.

Standards

After deciding on your data integration platform, establish data quality and integration standards. Your standards identify what systems hold the most accurate information for data types. 

 

  • A single system of record or master for points of data
  • Hierarchy system that holds the most accurate system for data 

 

Both possibilities should be discussed and decided upon upfront.

 

The second element of your standards to establish is practice and exception handling. Building a data integration solution for your advancement CRM is a necessity—things will go wrong, and errors will occur. Data quality standards for exception handling indicate:

 

  • Who will be notified when exceptions occur; and 
  • Who will be responsible for handling this in a timely manner? 

 

Guidelines 

Finally, you’ll need to identify guidelines for data integration. Your data integration guidelines should not be created from scratch each time you want to move data from your advancement CRM platform to another system. 

 

To achieve this, include a technical lead or architect who’s responsible for being the “guide.” This guide orchestrates repeatable components to build data integration procedures—helping you create a solution for today and beyond.

 

For example, you want to move revenue or gift information from the advancement CRM system into the financial system because that’s where the closing of the books is completed. So you built your entire data integration solution to work for that sole purpose. But this creates missed opportunities to instruct similar data points for future integrations—like exchanging data with your new email marketing platform. 

 

A better approach would be to architect a data integration strategy with common standards and methodologies that can be repeated. Here’s how to do that.

 

  • Establish a unique identifier. If a unique identifier isn’t available, combine data components to make each record unique. Use data components that are tightly secure but somewhat centralized in who can update them—otherwise, this requires frequent auditing. 
  • Find the most reliable data point. This data point should identify a matching record between the two systems. You should not create a matching point each time you want to implement a new data integration between two systems. 
  • Match records. No matter what integration you’re doing, you must match the record between one system and another to avoid inconsistencies. For example, if the advancement CRM uniquely identifies funds, the finance system must also know how to identify the fund. Otherwise, when you transfer data, the new system won’t know what to do. Additionally, suppose you move information from your advancement CRM into your email marketing system, but both systems don’t recognize this information. In that case, you risk contacting the wrong constituent, i.e., John Doe vs. Jonathon Doe. 

 

Building a data integration solution for today and beyond requires architecting and establishing repeatable solutions. 

Paradigm Shift for Integrating Advancement CRM Platforms with Other Applications

 

Off-the-shelf Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) solutions aren’t the only approaches to address an organization’s data management needs. Many organizations choose to personalize their constituent database, increasing their supportability, stable environment, and standardization.

 

One way to customize your CRM platform is to implement integrations. The old way of doing this required the implementation of multiple integration platforms. Every time information needed to be exchanged from one application to another, a single solution was added. This might have included information that would be helpful to trade between the two systems, or it could be going in one direction.

 

For example, every advancement CRM system must post revenue to a financial system. It’s not good enough that you’re collecting donations and have an accounting of it in an advancement CRM platform. The actual system of record for any financials is the financial system for the institution. But that system needs to accept the donations from a financial system and collect information from a student management system because the two systems need to be reconciled. The way this was historically achieved was by integrating multiple platforms.

 

Paradigm Shift

Today, solutions or additional software help to establish an actual integration network. The network acts as a broker of information moving it from one place to another.

 

Specifically, if you wanted to move donation information from your advancement CRM system to your finance system, but you also wanted employee information to be shared, the old paradigm acted as a one-off integration point and would require two integrations.

 

However, the new paradigm creates an integration platform that serves as the “hub” and identifies where information can go from one system to another. The benefit of an integration hub is that you can create one standard for exchanging information.

 

Additionally, you don’t have to become an expert on the various platforms with an integration hub. In the old paradigm, expert knowledge would typically be left up to the programmer, and they would likely create the integration in their style. In this scenario, there would be nuances in each integration. It would be harder to support if it broke because you would have to investigate each integration individually.

 

But with an integration platform in the new paradigm, you eliminate the need to support platforms individually. And the knowledge you need to support an integration platform is more transferable.

 

Integration Platforms

An organization that wants to get more out of its CRM platform should consider an integration platform.

 

Here are some integration platforms to consider.

 

Workato

 

Workato is a low-code/no-code platform enabling business and IT teams to build integrations at five times the speed of typical integration platforms. This is achieved through accelerators like pre-built connectors for 1000+ SaaS, on-prem databases, ERP, and more; 500,000+ ready-to-use recipes for common business processes shared by 70,000+ community members. A fully cloud-native architecture built for scale and speed significantly reduces operational footprint and overall costs. Workato helps:

 

  • empower more teams in your organization to create integrations easily and quickly with a visually intuitive experience;
  • connect to the cloud, on-prem databases, ERP, legacy applications, and more;
  • sync data at any speed—real-time, scheduled, or batch—and any volume from a single transaction to billions of rows; and
  • build on a cloud platform that auto-scales eliminating the complexities of infrastructure provisioning and capacity planning.

 

Find out more here: https://www.workato.com.

 

Jitterbit

 

Jitterbit is another low-code integration platform that connects systems and processes, including your SaaS, on-premises applications, and cloud applications in days versus months. This integration platform helps you reuse trusted applications and extend them easily via APIs to create innovative new solutions with artificial intelligence.

 

With the help of Jitterbit, you can accelerate innovation, deliver richer customer experiences, and take immediate advantage of new business opportunities.

 

Find out more here: https://www.jitterbit.com/.

 

Informatica

 

Informatica is most used for larger institutions. Informatica helps you transform data from binary to the extraordinary with their Intelligent Data Management Cloud™ (IDMC).

 

Powered by CLAIRE®, their AI engine, Informatica helps you manage, govern, and unify your data on a single platform. With Informatica, your data is ready to deliver outcomes of unprecedented brilliance at a scale never imagined.

 

Find out more here: https://www.informatica.com/products/cloud-data-integration.html.

 

If you haven’t transitioned to an integration platform already, consider looking toward it in the future to increase your supportability, stable environment, and standardization.

DonorSearch and Affinaquest Partnership: Here’s What Your Organization Needs to Know

 

Technology has leveled the fundraising playing field for organizations of all sizes—in many cases across the globe. Long ago, fundraising meant a letter in the mail with a return slip and the long wait that followed. Fundraising (not that long ago) required in-person visits and long lead times.

 

Today, it’s so much more.

 

Donors can contribute with just a few taps on their phones and amplify their impact with peer-to-peer fundraising platforms that integrate seamlessly with social media accounts. This means more up-to-date data is available to help fundraisers achieve ambitious goals.

 

Platforms are available to assist with constituent relationship management (CRM), data mining, and more. But often, especially in smaller teams, using multiple programs isn’t feasible, physically or financially. So, in June 2021, DonorSearch and Affinaquest announced a partnership to combine the best of both platforms. Here’s what your organization needs to know.

 

DonorSearch verses Affinaquest

 

Affinaquest is an Advancement CRM software powered by the Salesforce platform. Affinaquest is a leading provider of advancement software and services to educational institutions.

 

DonorSearch is known for its data research, data mining, and is leveraged by the advancement space to gain information about its prospects. Founded in 2007 and built upon years of experience in philanthropy. The purpose of DonorSearch is centered around helping more organizations identify, expand, predict, and connect with suitable donors.

 

By identifying suitable donors, expanding your donor list, and using intelligent technology to predict giving behavior, you can connect with the eligible donors at the right time.

 

DonorSearch provides any publicly available information about donors, including:

 

  • wealth;
  • assets;
  • publicly announced affiliations;
  • boards they belong to; and
  • companies they own.

 

The Partnership Benefit

 

DonorSearch and Affinaquest have come together to create a solution. This partnership combines the power of the Affinaquest platform with DonorSearch’s donor intelligence, launching DonorQuest powered by DonorSearch, a game-changing new approach to prospect research and managing major gift portfolios.

 

This partnership increases efficiency for data mining. Previously, organizations were required to research DonorSearch and put data back into their CRM platform. But because of the partnership, the data integration is now automated—offering customers a new level of innovative service in support of their essential missions.

 

According to a recent press release[1], features and benefits of DonorQuest powered by DonorSearch include:

 

  • Initial batch review of up to 20,000 prospects across all major giving portfolios.
  • Detailed profiles with over 65 different data points stored inside the CRM record.
  • Automated refresh of screening results for major gift portfolios every week with push notifications of significant wealth changes or new donations found.
  • Real-time relationship mapping in the Affinaquest platform based on known nonprofit board affiliations.
  • Optional full database screening or DonorSearch ProspectView Subscriptions are connected directly to the CRM.

 

What Remains the Same

 

The partnership between DonorSearch and Affinaquest increases efficiency and ease of use for donor relations. Still, there is no “easy button” for data and prospect research. Here’s what remains the same.

 

  • Matching accuracy is still important and just as tedious as before.
  • If you have limited information about your constituents, then the reliability of finding data or the right person hasn’t changed—that unknown remains the same.
  • Data mining of public information for DonorSearch doesn’t change the process of the research team’s performance.
  • The prospect management team must still have a strategy for the data you’ve acquired to make it actionable.

 

Getting the correct data into the hands of Development Officers will always remain the most crucial task—enabling them to qualify (or gauge) the interest of individuals and follow-up on a prospect. The partnership between DonorSearch and Affinaquest is a great tool, but don’t lose sight of your overall goals.

 

[1] https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/donorsearch-and-affinaquest-partnership-301305449.html