24 Feb Breaking Down The Best Software For Nonprofits In 2021

Integrating the right software into your nonprofit’s processes can help you save both time and money and improve the overall effectiveness of your organization. Of course, it’s not just as simple as choosing any software. You have to pick the one that is right for your nonprofit.

For example, do you need a new CRM or something more targeted at fundraising, like a mobile giving solution? Or, do you need both? Asking yourself what your organization needs is a key part of picking the best software for your nonprofit. So, before we dive into the best nonprofit software to invest in for 2021, let’s first discuss the essential questions to ask yourself before you start your search.

Questions to Ask to Ensure You Choose the Perfect Nonprofit Software

What’s Your Budget?

Calculating how much you can afford to spend on a monthly subscription for your new software is essential to starting your search. Software prices can range from very cost-effective to enterprise-level costs that can be quite an investment. Working with your organization’s accounting or financial team is a good first step to identifying what you can afford.

What Areas of Your Organization Could Use a Boost?

Deciding early on what the key must-have functions you need out of your new software will help point you in the right direction.

For example, some of the key features/categories of software you’ll find include:

• Donor management
• Event management
• Member database
• Social media management
• volunteer management
• And more

Whatever your most urgent needs are, make sure that your software of choice addresses them.

Is Ease of Use a Concern?

Playing around with a trial version of a software is a good way to get a feel for how easy the program is. If many people within your organization are going to be using the software, it’s important that it’s user-friendly and not complicated. This will ensure that you get maximum buy-in from your employees, as well as make sure that you get the most out of your new software.

Is Data Security a Need?

Every organization should have some data security measures in place to help keep their sensitive information secure—such as personally identifiable information from donors. Seeking out a software that is PCI (Payment Card Industry) Level 1 Compliant should be a priority.

Are You Planning on Continued Growth?

If you are planning on expanding your nonprofit’s size and bringing on more employees, donors, and volunteers, you need to find software that is scalable. When speaking with a representative from the software company, make sure to ask them if their software allows for growth.

Once you address those questions, you can start looking for your new software. To get you started, here are the best software for nonprofits in 2021, broken down by monthly-subscription vs. yearly-subscription-based.

Best Monthly-Subscription-Based Nonprofit Software

Bloomerang

Bloomerang is a simple, cloud-based software that incorporates some of the best practices for donor engagement and retention. A modern interface with clean designs makes the software a breeze to use and is very highly-rated. One specific feature that many nonprofits will appreciate is Bloomerang’s social listening hub. The software allows you to connect to your organization’s Twitter account to keep tabs on what folks are saying about your nonprofit online. This allows you to fine-tune your social strategy.

mobileAxept

The best part about integrating a mobileAxept solution into your nonprofit is that you can get three distinct solutions that all integrate together. GiveNow, ReachNow, and ConnectNow are cutting-edge, scalable nonprofit software solutions that will help you connect with your donors and engage them on a medium that they often use—their smartphone. Instead of sending out mass emails that will never get open, send text messages directly to your supporters’ phones with ReachNow. Whether it’s donation initiatives, volunteer opportunities, or just general news about your nonprofit, you can be confident your supporters will see your message. GiveNow allows your supporters to easily donate simply by sending a text, which can help improve your repeat donations. And ConnectNow makes it simple for new supporters to become acquainted with your nonprofit.

To learn more about how mobileAxept can help improve your nonprofit’s process and donor management/engagement, reach out today!

Salsa Engage

Salsa CRM is another reliable solution for nonprofits that are looking to track donations and interactions, create direct mailing fundraising appeals, and create reports based on fundraising. Perhaps their best feature is their ability to be beneficial for varying nonprofits. For example, start-ups that are just getting started, as well as mid-size organizations and global nonprofits, can benefit from using Salsa Engage. This makes them a solid option for organizations that have plans for expansion down the road.

CaseWorthy

CaseWorthy is a software provider that is intent on helping nonprofits coordinate their services and carry out their mission more effectively. They do this through features that allow for capturing and managing donor data to give organizations a better understanding of their fundraising. As you are well aware, fundraising is an essential part of running a successful nonprofit. As with the other software listed so far, CaseWorthy also understands the importance of fundraising and has fine-tuned its solutions to support that area.

Best Yearly-Subscription-Based Nonprofit Software

Hivebrite

Hivebrite is considered an all-in-one community management platform. In particular, this solution helps nonprofits—both big and small—launch, manage, and grow a fully-branded community. Specific features include branded donation pages, process payments, connecting with donors and volunteers, and overall improving community engagement within the nonprofit. Hivebrite is a great choice for nonprofits that thrive on creating a sense of community and keeping volunteers and donors involved.

Donately

Trusted by many organizations to help them scale up their online fundraising, Donately is a software that is worth looking at for nonprofits that want to improve their fundraising capabilities. Some of their key features are custom donation forms that can be easily embedded into websites, automatic donation receipts, and integrations with Zapier. Because different donors prefer different types of payment options, Donately allows donors to pay via ACH/Bank transfers, PayPal, or through credit cards.

Personify360

Our list rounds out with PErsonify360, industry-leading constituent management and engagement platform with flexible features and capabilities. While many of the other options on this list are versatile enough for smaller nonprofits, medium and large organizations are best suited for Personify350. This solution can assist with such tasks as managing business lines, complex transactions, as well as be flexible enough to address other needs within an organization.