CRM

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Customer complaints – not necessarily a bad thing

Staff of not for profit (NFP) organisations appear to fear complaint calls. No one loves them. But, I believe complaint calls are a good thing. Complaints via telephone calls, letters, Emails, and social media give you something to respond to and to action. Wouldn’t you rather receive a complaint than have someone agitated and no tell you. Those are the types of people who tell ten more people about the situation.

Whenever a NFP receives a complaint, the following five steps ought to be done:

  • Ensure the proper personnel are in contact with the complainant.
  • Contact the person making the complaint in a more personal manner than the complaint was received. i.e. If the complaint came in writing, call the person.
  • Attempt to resolve the situation and maintain the engagement of the party. The situation may often times be “turned around” for the benefit of the complainant and the charitable organisation.
  • Document the complaint in your CRM, tracking the type and subject of the complaint for later analysis.
  • Review and analyse complaints on a monthly basis. Improve internal processes to reduce and eliminate complaints accordingly.

A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald highlighted NSW Fair Trading Complaints Register and how the likes of Groupon, Valuebasket.com.au, Grays Online and NRMA were able to address complaints, reduce them, and no longer appear on the list. Whereas Ray White and Anytime Fitness appeared amongst the most complained about business.

The NFP industry lacks a list similar to the NSW Fair Trading Complaints Register. In some cases we are lucky there is no actual complaint list for NFPs. That said, shouldn’t each NFP have a process in place to address complaints, reduce complaints, so we are ensuring a register does not become necessary?

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Stop blaming the CRM

Snip20160315_1Your customer relationship management (CRM) system is often the victim – unfairly blamed because of other poor practices across the charitable organisation. “Salesforce is a mess” or “that data is wrong in The Raiser’s Edge”. CRM searches often cause an organisation to realise a need to improve internal processes and, sometimes, prove the database is not the issue at all – it is the fault of bad data entry, little or no oversight, and, often times, lack of standardisation across the nonprofit organisation.

When a charity acquires a new CRM, it is an opportune time to “fix” your poor data practices. At this stage, your organisation ought to:

  • Cleanse the data prior to a data conversion.
    • Clean up poorly maintained pick lists/drop down tables.
      • Get rid of duplicate table entries.
      • Ensure proper meaning for communications preferences and opt out coding.
    • Cleanse duplicate records.
    • Create split record for spouses.
      • Complete linkages for the spouses.
    • Establish data policies and procedures.
    • Create roles within the organisation specifically to oversee the data and your CRM.
    • Perform address standardisation and address hygiene to capture new addresses for constituents your organisation may have lost.
    • Acquire deceased and other opt out codes for your data set.

When I discuss moving from one CRM to another, I offer the analogy of moving house from one city to another. Most would never pack everything owned and move things as is – only to open the door of the new home and have it look exactly as your old home in the old city. Instead, most would purge items no longer wanted, organise belongings before they are packed, and acquire new items when you move into the new home. Moving a database is the same process. Purge your organisation of unwanted items, organise the data in a systematic manner, and acquire new, meaningful data elements for the new “home”.

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How to increase use of your CRM within your non-profit

Business Customer CRM Management Analysis Service Concept

Imagine you spend a year building out your CRM and taking the solution live. Doing so costs staff time (money), consulting fees (money), energy (money) and morale (money). Now imagine there is little usage of the CRM after Go live. That’s a lot of money spent for little return. As managers, we have a responsibility to provide the best tools and we also have a responsibility to ensure those tools are well utilised. You can buy someone a Mercedes Benz, but if they do not know how to drive it, do not drive it, and do not like to drive it you have wasted your money and effort.

So, what do you do now?

There are four things you must do to turn this around:

  1. Conduct an analysis of use. Use your CRMs internal audit systems to see who is logging in, when they are logging in, how often and for how long. Most CRMs in the market allow administrators to view usage in these terms. Measure and monitor weekly.
  2. Conduct a survey of use. Understand what the users like, what they find clunky, and what they need now. Perhaps you did not consult with the end users when you designed the system? (That was a mistake). Perhaps you have a new team and their requirements and ideas are different than the previous team? (That’s natural). Perhaps your business requirements have grown and your system has not grown with the business? (That’s a good thing).
  3. Create a policy, which states only activities recorded in your CRM count towards performance evaluations. If activity is not recorded in the CRM and, instead, on an Excel sheet or in diaries, the activity did not happen. Your major gifts offices might conduct 10 donor visits in a month. If only one is recorded in the CRM, the major gift officer only conducted one visit.
  4. Implement the “phase II” items you never got to as part of the CRM implementation project. Every project has items that are not a priority at the time, but are placed on a “phase II” bucket list. Well, it is now phase II. It is sort of like the three cardboard boxes you moved house with, did not unpack the week you moved, and are still in your spare bedroom or garage. Unpack them!

All of the above might be prevented through the original implementation of a CRM. Maybe or maybe not? Nonetheless, when the issue of lack of CRM use surfaces, you must get on top of it. Like any issue unattended, the issue only gets worse. It is at that point you become the issue.

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Ensuring your CRM supplier knows their business is a non-negotiable

Teamwork Team Together Collaboration Diversity People Friends Concept

FundraisingForce works with many nonprofit organisations throughout the year to implement new CRM solutions. One of the things which make or break a CRM implementation is the level of expertise of the staff of your CRM supplier. FundraisingForce call this their bench strength.

Why is CRM staff expertise so critical?

The fact is the product might be amongst the most effective solutions in the market. If the bench strength is weak, your implementation of the solution will be sub-par. Before you purchase any CRM, understand the following:

  • What is make up of the parent company leadership?
    • The make up of the leadership will often times speak volumes about the line staff.
  • What is the financial strength of the parent company?
    • By acquiring the new product, you are entering into a 7-10 year relationship. You want to ensure the parent company will be around for the long-term relationship.
  • Who are the staff who will be assigned to your project?
    • Meet the staff before you agree to the relationship.
  • What is the background of each staff person?
    • How well do they know the nonprofit industry?
      • You likely do not want your organisation to be the nonprofit training ground for the team.
    • How well do the staff know the product they are implementing?
      • While not everyone will have a PhD in the product, you certainly do not want to be product training ground for the team. Ensure someone on the team has at least one year of experience implementing the CRM
    • Understand the succession plan should someone from the team leave the organisation.
      • What transitioning will be done should someone leave the team?
        • There is a high level of turnover on these teams – nearly as much as nonprofit organisations face. Understand the transition plan should someone exit the stage.
      • What sort of on-boarding processes exist?
        • While there are no guarantees your nonprofit will still have the same team across the project, you will want to understand what processes are in place should a transition occur. This on-boarding process should be in place at your organisation and at the CRM parent organisation.

Purchasing a new CRM is the single largest investment for most nonprofit organisations. You are not only purchasing product, but you are purchasing the expertise of the consultants who will implement the CRM. The product part of the decision is 65% of the decision while the consultant aspect is 35%. Organisations spend 90-100% of the time studying product functionality and 0-10% of the time focused on the expertise on the bench. This split needs to closer match the product/consultancy ratio. Spend 35% of the search time studying and interviewing the staff. This will be time well invested.

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Why must CRM searches include requirements gathering?

FundraisingForce receives about one call every seven to ten days from nonprofits asking for assistance to search for a customer relationship management (CRM) system. These nonprofit organisations are typically seeking our expertise to find the best CRM available in the marketplace.

Some charitable organisations want to expedite the process, skip the homework and due diligence to be done, and simply want to have FundraisingForce tell them which CRM to purchase. As a firm, we decline to advise on a purchase until we gather the requirements of the charitable organisation and assist them to match those requirements to the available product in the market.

Why must CRM searches include requirements gathering?

Nonprofit organisations need to understand their own requirements. Your organisation’s requirements might be vastly different than those of another nonprofit organisation. Sure, some requirements will be the same across nonprofit organisations. Nonetheless, your organisation likely has a set of unique requirements which need to be addressed in any CRM solution. It is critical these requirements are understood, from within and by FundraisingForce, before we can take your organisation to market. The market needs to be able to respond to your requirements and state why their product(s) are a match for your organisation. To go to the market without a full understanding of your requirements is a little like looking for a spouse before you know the type of person you are interested in dating.

Many organisations have a difficult time expressing their own requirements. We believe this is because no one has ever taken the time to articulate the business requirements for the organisation and documented those requirements in a clear and cohesive manner.

Understanding yourselves before finding the CRM partner is the first step in a successful CRM marriage.

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Nonprofit technology transitions face many risks

Risks exist in every project and may be managed through a coordinated effort. Nonprofit CRM projects are no exception and can contain a multitude of risks. Mitigating risks is paramount as part of any CRM project. I recently was asked to surface the top reasons Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) project fail. I came up with hundreds of reasons, but I narrowed them to a list of 10 “theme” areas.

Investing in a new CRM solution is exactly that – a large investment of funding and of time. It may be the single largest investment for a non profit organisation. Imagine investing a lot of money and energy into a CRM project and the outcome is not what you had hoped to achieve. Or, imagine the project fails. It’s a terrible shame when CRM projects go off the rail. And, they do not need to. Solid management on the part of the charitable organisation and the supplier ensures a successful outcome.

Why do CRM projects fail?

  1. Purchasing the new toy. Implementing technology for the sake of something new. People within your organisation may believe your non profit organisation has to have brand name solution X because it is the newest technology or because the CRM parent company has a convincing and aggressive marketing campaign.
    • Big deal. You did not buy an iPad the minute the device hit the market, right? Instead you took time to understand the product and to let others test the product before you adopted it. Do the same with any CRM solution and the associated supplier.
  2. Senior level engagement team members are not engaged.
    • Project sponsors are critical to any CRM project. Project sponsors are the project “owners” and ought to sit at the highest level of your organisational hierarchy. These should be the individuals who control the purse strings and the strategic direction of the organisation. Project sponsors are not project managers. They are part of the steering committee, are well informed, and have oversight at the 36,000 foot level.
  3. Timing is everything. Is your non profit ready for a new CRM? Is this the right time to change something as large as the CRM? Is the entire organisation ready to make a change.
    • Change management is not only about bringing people from point A to point Z, but it is also about understanding whether your organisation has an appetite for change at the outside of the project.
  4. A lack of strategic direction.
    • Ensure you agree on the strategic goals for the CRM. For example, is your mandate to find a CRM to fit the entire organisation or simply the fundraising department?
  5. Business understanding. Understanding your business and the requirements of your departments begins well before the implementation of any CRM.
    • Requirements gathering start well before deciding the “right” solution for the charity. In fact, requirements gathering happen at step one. Always understand your business before even going out to market to examine solutions to fit. I call this the homework stage. Do your homework and you will pass the exam. Learning requirements after signing to purchase a CRM or during the implementation is too late.
  6. Organisation-wide means organisation wide.
    • There are plenty of CRM solutions in the market focusing on fundraising operations. There are not many with an organisation-wide focus. Sure, you can create workarounds and try to put a square peg in a round hole. But, you want to find a solution, which may be used by your services arm just as easy as it may be used by fundraising. Creating one source of truth, organisation-wide, ought to be a goal at the outset.
  7. Lack of process change.
    • Documenting your AS IS business processes at the outset becomes a necessary exercise for your orgnaisation and for any supplier to ensure you understand how business occurs in your existing CRM and so you understand the potential for change. Thereafter, keeping an eye on the AS IS processes, or the origination, helps you understand the TO BE state, or the destination.
  8. Budgeting for human capital. Do you have the right people in the right positions budgeted for the right amount of time for the course of the project?
    • You likely need to supplement existing staff so you may continue business as usual and accomplish the CRM project at the same time. Plan for staff absences, staff departures, and other issues to come along the way. This is a long project and things happen over the course of 6-12+ months.
  9. Product does not meet requirements.
    • No product is perfect, even though a supplier’s sales team might lead you to believe their product could power the next space shuttle. Hopefully you performed due diligence in searching for a product and you are entering the relationship knowing the products benefits and deficiencies. Why didn’t you know this before you got married to the supplier? Think of this as dating. We date people for a reason – to get to know them and to determine if they are the “right fit”. If we marry the person, we know their strengths and weaknesses prior to marriage (and they know ours!). Likewise, you should know the supplier’s gaps and the product’s gaps prior to signing any agreement. There will be surprises, which surface in the implementation. Lessen the surprises by doing your homework in advance.
  10. Scope creep/waste. There is a risk when no one is keeping an eye on the finances.
    • Your supplier will likely have a bank of hours to spend on the project. You need a project manager who will monitor the spend and ensure your dollars are spent on the tasks which matter most and which gain you the outcome you desire.

Keeping your eye on this top list and others will ensure you have a successful outcome with your CRM project. These are your responsibility, not the responsibility of the suppliers in the market. As non profit managers we should own them.

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Best practice moment – Bobby Goldsmith Foundation

Does your non profit organisation have a solid process in place to encourage supporters to update their contact details? Is the process multi-channel?

Snip20160131_13I received an email from Bobby Goldsmith Foundation on Friday and I was pleased to have the opportunity to update my details. The piece is best practice and I want to share it with you.

When creating opportunities for supporters to update their contact details, the following are essential components:

  • Create a process to allow for online/Email, phone, and post responses.
  • Ensure online responses land in your constituent relationship management (CRM) system to eliminate the need for rekeying of information.
  • Always allow for the donor to give an additional donation. If you do not, you’ve missed an opportunity.
    • Donors often times will realise they failed to keep you posted of their movements and realise they are not current in their support of your organisation.
  • Ask for more information than you currently hold on the supporter. Lack a person’s mobile or home numbers? Lack their email address?
    • Remember, this is about enhancing their contact record as much as it is editing their record. Show the lack of information on their form.

It’s the time of the year when all charities should be reviewing, strengthening, and, in some cases, developing internal processes. Take a moment and look at your contact details update process.

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What’s the first action when donors receive annual reports?

Office folders stacked in the form of steps. 2011-2019 year. The three-dimensional illustration

What is the first thing donors do when they receive your nonprofit organisations’ annual report? What is the first action donors take when they look over a donor wall or a recognition list in a program book?

They look for their own name!

What is the next thing they do?

See if their name is spelled correctly and printed the way they wish to be addressed.

Thereafter, what does the donor do?

The donor ensures his/her name appears in the correct giving category.

And, what is the final act of this donor?

He/she looks to see who gave more or an equivalent amount of money.

I received the Impact of Giving report from The Australian National University (ANU) this week. It’s a beautiful donor care or stewardship publication. I realised the first thing we do is flip to the donor listings and we are conditioned to look ourselves up in a similar fashion to the way people used to in church bulletins in years past. We are only human. We all do the above things and we have been conditioned to do these things by charities issuing annual reports, recognition lists, and donor walls.

Donor recognition lists can go so wrong. Nightmares for donor relations staff, include:

  • Forgotten names.
  • Wrong names.
  • Incorrectly spelled names.
  • Listing one spouse, but not the other.
  • Listing a spouse against the donor’s wishes.
  • Listing the wrong spouse.
  • Listing a deceased spouse.
  • Listing a spouse after a divorce occurs.
  • Listing a former spouse years after the divorce.
  • Using the incorrect format for someone’s name – Mr Stephen Mally rather than a preferred name, Mr Steve Mally.
  • Listing a gift, which was meant to be anonymous.
  • Listing an incorrect amount or excluding certain gift types, which results in the “incorrect amount” in the donor’s mind.
  • Placing a name in the in memory of listing when, in fact, the person is alive.

Did any of the above bring back any bad memories for you or send you into a rash? Establishing a proper donor recognition program within your customer relationship management (CRM) system is critical for ease in producing the donor recognition listing.

My name was in the ANU report, was correctly listed and…it was the first thing I checked in the report!

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New Year’s Resolution – one stewardship contact a week

Hand writing "Thank You!" on white sheet of paper.

Donor care or stewardship calls, notes, or Emails are amongst the easiest contacts to complete. So simple, yet we often get bogged down in our day to day activity and we forget how easy it is to simply call someone, write a quick note, or Email.

  • Thinking of you.
  • Thank you for your support.
  • Your financial support changed the lives of the people we serve.
  • I hope you have a terrific week!
  • Happy Birthday!
  • Congratulations!

Whatever the occasion, or simply to let someone know you are thinking of them, take a moment and reach out to one person today – a donor, volunteer, prospective donor or volunteer, a client, or a colleague.

Make it your New Year’s resolution to reach out to one person a week simply to check in with them. Remember to document this contact in your customer relationship management (CRM) system or database just the way you would a meeting or other move.

Remember, your contact with donors and volunteers should not just be about funding or a need for a shift to be filled. Take time to let someone know they mean something to your nonprofit or charitable organisation.

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