Which of the following software products would you recommend for nonprofits: DonorSnap Donor Management, Little Green Light Donor Management or TrailBlazer Nonprofit Manager? I’m doing a poll on this subject and would love thoughts on which of these products gives you the most bang for your buck. Thanks!
This is a really difficult question to answer! Nonprofits do such a variety of things, and they have a wide scope of needs. This means that what works for some nonprofits would be a horrible fit for others. I actually run a company – Fresh Vine – that makes nonprofit membership software. So I’ll share a few things I’ve learned in talking with a lot of nonprofits.
I’d encourage you to avoid the swiss army knives of software. These solutions are great on paper (checking off every single box) but difficult to implement organizationally. This problem gets compounded since it’ll be brilliant for some tasks, and lacking for others. Those in charge of the lacking areas often struggle to get additional resources to fund proper tools. They often get told the current software ‘already does that’.
Instead look for tools that are focused on what it is you need to have done. We built Fresh Vine to help nonprofits track, and grow the engagement of their membership. So we don’t do a lot of things other platforms do, because we choose to be great at what we focus on.
Once you know the focused areas of software you need you can dive in to find tools to help you master those functions. A list of functions might include: accounting, membership, website/cms, online payments provider, social media, donor management, facility management, background checks, event ticketing/registration, point of sales, and more.
The most difficult thing to do when building anything (a nonprofit, or membership software) is to say no. Saying no to someone who will give you money, because it would dilute or distract you from your mission.
Best of luck! Let us know if you have any questions.
