Keys to success with The Raiser’s Edge donor database
To reach, engage, and serve your community, including your members, you need to be as adept at relationship building and fundraising as your research programs are at science, or your legislative programs are at advocacy.
To meet these objectives, RightTrack Solutions helps you with consulting, training and outsource services.
Understanding the best ways to support your processes and goals
- Addressing immediate needs in your fiscal year, such as upcoming events.
- Discussing how you operate today, and what changes you need to make, i.e. processes. You may need to make them consistent across many locations.
- Selecting the right database solution based on your situation, needs and goals - such as having local information roll up centrally for reporting and analysis.
- Migrating databases, whether from Access, Excel or a donor database.
- Consulting on how a new system will interoperate with existing databases.
- Knowing when and how to use optional modules, such as the Volunteer module. Volunteers may be a significant part of your environmental mission.
- Deciding on how the organization will set up tables and use features consistently. This may be a challenge given current diverse practices vs. desired ones.
- Writing or updating policies and procedures (included in RightTrack Solutions training program).
- Training, consulting and assistance – both initial and ongoing.
Setting up the constituent database
- Coding constituents – As discussed above: Board, Staff, Researchers, Members, Volunteers, Friends – individual and organizational.
- Segmenting constituents, based on levels of giving, or other factors that you determine.
Getting the most of of your development programs
- Stewarding
constituents - over the long term - such as community donors and members.
- Cultivating
constituents, especially keeping in touch with those who donated.
- Setting
up campaigns, funds and appeals.
- Leading
Capital Campaigns, such as a new research center.
- Growing
the Annual Fund to sustain operations - costs are rising for field operations
and for talented staff.
- Establishing
or growing a major gifts program.
- Sending
out packages to constituents - for appeals, such as an end-of-year appeal.
- Managing
events - these may be educational in nature, and provide great development
opportunities by building affinity with the community.
- Recognition,
such as different levels of donors, or dedication of environmental equipment.
- Setting
up a Recurring Gift Program, so that Staff can give monthly.
- Supporting
Matching Gifts. Many employers are environmentally minded.
- Entering
and acknowledging pledges and gifts in a timely manner.
- Supporting
naming opportunities, such as a new education facility.
- Offering
online giving, through any of various secure web portals.
- Managing
gifts of property, such as stocks or real estate.
- Accepting
Gifts in Kind.
- Acknowledging
donor gifts with timely Thank You's.
- Encouraging
Planned Giving, such as Life Insurance or Bequests.
- Supporting
donors who sponsor a researcher, equipment of visitors.
Monitoring and reporting
What regions are gifts coming from?
How many donors participated in which programs before becoming donors?
What level of giving have we seen from Board members in the past five years?
Monitoring progress through dashboards - check the status of the Annual Fund - Unrestricted, and the Restricted Fund, and the Capital Campaign, at a glance.
Exporting data for analysis and sharing - to finance and other departments.
Reporting such as giving by constituent segment, or for the Annual Report.
Integrating The Raiser’s Edge with other systems
- Integrating with The Financial Edge.
- Integrating
with other systems and databases.