When you think about technology in business, you probably start thinking about high-end SaaS and Silicon Valley. However, technology is touching all levels of business, including non-profit organizations that rely on donations and funding to function. Non-profits are focused on delivering a positive message to people and helping those in need. The question is, while they’re busy actively helping people - how are they making money? The simple answer is through technology, which has allowed them to reach more potential donors than ever before. Technology such as an electronic volunteer hours log has helped them to manage their internal processes too, and you can learn more about such software here. There are plenty more examples however, and throughout this article we will tell you how non-profits are utilizing technology to benefit people in need.
Donor Management Software
Typical businesses use customer relationship management software (CRMs) to keep track of regular customers and build rapport with them. When it comes to non-profits, there are several donor management software (DMR), which follow the same principles but allow donations to be tracked over time. With this tech, organizations are able to see one-off donors and long-term donors, which will enable them to try and convert one-timers to long-term donors.
One such DRM is Givebutter, a not-for-profit fundraising platform that makes reaching targets and communicating with donors a breeze. All payments are easy to track on the dashboard, and you can easily send out personalized thank you messages to your donors, which makes it great when it comes to MailChimp alternatives. With MailChimp alternatives and non-profit DRMs like these, you won’t have to pay any upfront costs - all you will sacrifice is a maximum of 0.5% of all donations, which will go towards their operating costs.
Automated Marketing
Automated marketing tools are fantastic for sharing media rapidly across all forms of social media platforms and emails. They can help you plan events and spread the word of your non-profit far and wide. Although this may sound like high-brow tech language, you will be surprised at how easy it is to achieve. You can look online for free software to help you, and there is a plethora of eventbrite alternatives for nonprofits which can help you when it comes to event planning and bespoke marketing. Once you’ve automated your marketing, you will improve your efficiency, be able to reach more potential donors, and have more time to focus on your charity. As well as reaching more people with your message, you will save resources because you won’t need as many people on board to create and share content. Instead, you can spend the money placing people in meaningful roles.
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality (VR) tech is most commonly associated with gaming systems, but there have been innovative uses of VR tech by non-profits. For your information, VR tech allows users to become fully submerged in their virtual surroundings through the use of a headset. Now, VR is becoming more widely adopted and affordable, and thanks to smartphones, it can be accessed anywhere.
You may still be asking how this can help your non-profit. Well, there are cases in which organizations have created emotional user experiences through VR. Instead of simply watching a video slideshow full of information, these non-profits have been able to fully submerge potential donors into the lives of the people they are trying to help. They can be shown how people from third-world countries are living and how their donations support them in real-time. Given how immersive VR tech is and how many more donations it can bring in, there’s no denying that VR will be here for the long haul.
Message Simplification
Charitable causes come in all shapes and sizes, and some of them are easier to understand than others. For example, if you’re raising money for the homeless or trying to fund cancer research, people know exactly what they are donating to. However, if you’re raising money for the research of unheard diseases, potential donors might not know what you’re doing. Therefore, technology can be used to spread your message far and break down the story. Organizations can use websites, videos, social media, and blogs to reach potential donors and educate people.
Donations On-Demand
Potential donors don’t want to face any friction when making payments. That is, they don’t want to be faced with lengthy forms. Luckily, non-profits can utilize on-demand payments to alleviate this friction. People can order everything online now with just the click of a button, so why shouldn’t they be able to donate to their favorite courses with just as much ease?
There are several ways to set up on-demand donations, including through the use of online web portals, external services like JustGiving, or dedicated apps. Further, thanks to technologies like PayPal One Touch, Google Pay, and Apple Pay, donors are able to make payments with just the click of a button.
Technology is quickly improving all aspects of life, and non-profits are no exception. With the help of innovative tech, organizations can share their message and reach a much wider audience. When it comes to collecting donations and interacting with donors, technology has made it simple. If you’re not utilizing technology within your non-profit, now is the time to act.