I Needed assistance with Configuring Donor Management Software for Our Nonprofit

Technology
1

Hey guys… :wave:

I am reaching out to the community for some guidance regarding donor management software for our nonprofit. We have recently implemented a new platform (we are using Bloomerang :two_hearts:) and are running into some roadblocks when it comes to the setup and configuration.

Our team is relatively small and we do not have an in-house IT specialist so we are relying heavily on the platform’s documentation and the occasional support ticket. However, we are still facing a few challenges:

  1. Data Migration Issues: We have imported our donor data from a previous system (Excel), and some of the fields haven’t mapped correctly. Has anyone had a similar experience, and if so, how did you resolve it?

  2. Custom Fields: We had like to add some custom fields specific to our organization’s reporting needs, but we’re having trouble configuring them. Is this something that requires professional help, or can it be done relatively easily in-house?

  3. Email Integration: We are also looking to integrate our donor platform with our email marketing tool (Mailchimp), and while we’ve followed the instructions, the connection seems to be unstable. Has anyone had success with this type of integration?

I also check this: https://community.mtnonprofit.org/t/legislative-tracking-platforms-engagement-softwarmendix But I have not found any solution. Could anyone guide me about this? Any tips, resources, or advice you could share would be greatly appreciated! We want to ensure our setup is as seamless as possible to manage our donors effectively and track our communications.

Thank you!

Respected community member! :blush:

2 Likes
2

Hi @bewoj20821 ! Just replying to keep this post in the mix. I haven’t used Bloomerang so I don’t have any advice. Hoping another community member can help you out!

3

General recommendation for CRM + integrations is to slowly iterate over time. So get your CRM in a good place (ie. it’s serving your reporting needs, users are comfortable working in the system, confidence in the data is good—which can take a long time) while operating your other platforms separately. When the former is achieved, weigh out the pros/cons of an integration before making it happen. Integrations can be finicky (and when they are they cause troubleshooting, bad data + cleanup). Sometimes a periodic upload is actually less work.

Re: data migrations and custom fields. Those usually require a pretty good level of technical expertise. Certainly can DIY it, but it’ll take some digging/trial and error. A lot of orgs outsource that level of technical skill. There’s tradeoffs to both. The important piece is getting it pretty close to right the first time around… like building a house, it’s more work to renovate later especially if it’s structurally not in the best place.

1 Like