Do
You Have A Flat Tire On Your Mercedes?
Has your organization invested in a
“Mercedes” constituent relational management (CRM) database such as Blackbaud’s
Raiser’s Edge® but find that you are still having difficulty getting it 100%
operational? Are you having challenges with producing accurate reports and
analytics in which your organization can have confidence? Are you preparing
for a major campaign yet lack a database implementation plan? That Mercedes
may look great, but the tires are flat and you’re not going anywhere!
One
of the most important aspects of successfully managing, tracking and reporting
your fundraising initiatives is a reliable database coding and methodology
system. Due to staff changes, organizational restructuring, inadequately-trained
staff members and/or simply a lack of resources, the database often suffers
with numerous inefficiencies as time goes on. The more inefficiencies, the
greater the potential for leaving philanthropic dollars on the table. Are
you tracking your philanthropic dollars as well as you could? Here are the
top five categories in which database inefficiencies reside:
- Security Levels – The database security controls
should be clearly identified and defined for each database user and/or user
group. Is your organization protecting the integrity of its database?
- NCOA – It is strongly advised that nonprofits process their
database through the USPS’s NCOA (National Change of Address) system at
least twice a year. Is your database in compliance with the USPS standardization?
- Campaign, Fund and Appeal Codes – To run successful campaigns
your fundraising initiatives and goals must be both clearly defined and
incorporated into your database. Are you able to manage all aspects of
your fundraising efforts in your database?
- Incomplete Data – Incomplete biographical and
addressee information can be costly and time consuming to correct. Are
you able to successful produce mailings and/or reports without manipulating
the data?
- Best Business Practices – It is critical to integrate
the appropriate best business practices, such as biographical and address
standardization, into your database structure and methodologies. Can you
demonstrate that you do?
You might want to consider a database
analysis and operations assessment to address your information management
challenges. A database analysis consists of an in-depth evaluation of the
organization’s database coding structures, security levels, query and reporting
methodologies as well as an examination of module utilization, best business
practices and overall fundraising management methodologies. At the conclusion
of such an evaluation, the consultant should provide a comprehensive report
of the findings and make specific recommendations to help your organization
meet the industry standards of database management and reporting.
If you think it’s time for a “tune
up” of your system, we’ll be happy to help you determine
what you need and create an action plan that is both focused
and affordable. For more on database services, click
here.