Top 6 Questions to Consider when Choosing a Fundraising Platform

Today’s non-profit leadership teams are faced with the decision making authority for

technology platforms used to grow these organizations. To that end, often there are technical considerations that need to be addressed outside of the sales cycle. We all know sales teams will highlight the benefits of their individual platform that support their sales strategy. What’s important for charity senior leadership is to ensure they have clear requirements and know the right questions to ask. Here are the top 10 questions you may want to ask for your non-profit:

1.     What is the problem we are trying to solve? A lot of times we go with the shiny new thing instead of considering what is the actual problem this technology will solve? Adding new technology just because there is budget is not ideal. The ability to fully flush out the exact problem statement is key to your selection of the right technology.

2.     What are the requirements needed to make us successful? What specific requirements do we need to solve this problem? Is there multiple layers of requirements? Have all stakeholders been interviewed to review the requirements? Make sure to document all requirements and sometimes it is helpful to place weights on the various requirements. Some prefer to have some requirements that are non-negotiable and others that could be nice-to-haves.

3.     What is our budget to solve this problem? Sometimes we need to weigh in on how this technology will solve our problem and grow the charity. For example, if we can use technology instead of hiring a bunch of headcount, how will this impact our bottom line? Would it save money? Will this new technology make us more money?

4.     Will we need outside help to implement the new technology? So many times, companies have bought the salesperson’s wonderful pitch about how easy this new technology will be to implement only to get 90 days in and realize this is a disaster. Hiring professionals to support you in getting set up and integrated with internal systems is key to a successful launch.

5.     How will we train our internal teams to use the new software? This seems very basic however, many platforms actually require someone in-house or a consultant available to support ongoing training and support. Remember, software does not run by itself. As good as fundraising automation is, it still takes brains behind the computer to code the logic.

6.     How will it integrate with our other systems? Think about how you will use this data, this system and will it need to be integrated with your other systems? If so, what systems and who will perform the integration. Make sure and iron out these details before signing the agreement. It will ensure a faster road to optimizing the software for use.

Remember, choosing the right software begins with a clearly defined problem statement and a list of flushed out requirements. Make sure and ask these very basic questions at a minimum to support you in making the best decision for your software. And, don’t be afraid to question the sales team members selling you the software. Ask for explanations and demonstrations of how the software solves your particular problem. Make sure you know the details. Use critical thinking and be clear about how this fills your requirements checklist. Go out there and have fun exploring new tech. #tothenewtechrevolution

P.S. If you need support with technology decisions, implementations or integrations, feel free to reach out to our team at Get your FREE Consult now.