Generative AI is capable of producing a wide range of outputs, from texts and images to videos. However, the quality of the results largely depends on you. Here’s what you should keep in mind when writing prompts.
Do you want to introduce marketing automation in your NGO but don’t know how? We will help you with the first journeys, providing both know-how and technology.
Non-profits are constantly balancing effective impact with efficient use of donations. Every euro should ideally support the mission rather than administrative overhead, correct? While this expectation, faced by all non-profits, should be reconsidered, it results in generally scarce resources. Therefore, it’s crucial to save resources wherever possible. Digitalization and automation can help save time and, consequently, money.
Routine vs. Innovation
When tedious routine tasks are automated, you can focus on what really matters.
It’s quite likely that in your non-profit organization, there’s a belief that you could focus on much more important areas if everyday routine tasks didn’t consume all the available time. For example, you could prepare fundraising campaigns more precisely and effectively, invest more time in donor care, or devise strategies to reach new audiences – if it weren’t for tasks like daily manual data maintenance, manually processing recurring donations, or similar responsibilities that need to be handled.
If all these routine tasks were eliminated, employees could plan innovative fundraising approaches and new projects, fully harnessing their potential. Instead, they spend their working hours researching incorrect addresses or consolidating data from various sources.
Lack of focus impedes optimization
Another problem in many non-profits is that daily work is characterized by a lack of focus. Too many projects are implemented simultaneously, and there are too many or unclear priorities. This results in little time remaining to introspect and identify inefficient workflows. Instead, organizations continue working with inefficient structures that have grown over time, adding complexity and inefficiency when expanded as needed.
Due to employee overload, improvised workflows often arise because there’s no time for researching and implementing more efficient solutions.
Investing resources to save resources
The solution to these issues lies in something that may initially seem contradictory: investing in resource savings. This means that non-profits may need to allocate more resources in the short to medium term to achieve long-term savings and growth.
To correctly identify individual optimization potential, it requires time and the collaboration of the entire organization. Existing workflows and routines must be understood, reviewed, and defined: Where can time and money be saved? Which solutions can simplify or automate processes?
This approach allows problem areas to be identified and targeted solutions to be found. Many tasks can be fully automated, while others can be simplified through digitalization.
1. Payment Processing
Scenario: Direct debits (SEPA) remain a highly popular payment method for both one-time and recurring donations. Donors authorize SEPA direct debits via an online form. The organization then manually prepares and sends a SEPA pre-notification and handles the collection on the desired date. For monthly donations, this collection process is typically repeated manually each month.
Solution: The organization can implement an automatic, SEPA-compliant direct debit system (e.g., Wikando Direct Debit). This automates the pre-notification process and ensures each donation is automatically collected on time into the organization’s account. This eliminates the need for manual effort.
2. Database Imports
Scenario: The organization has its own donation form on the website. Regularly, donation data needs to be exported and transferred into a locally installed database either manually or through Excel. Depending on the payment method, additional tasks may be required, such as sending thank-you emails manually and promptly. The data in the database is only current immediately after import, which complicates reporting.
Solution: The organization uses a fundraising platform that provides both an online donation form and a browser-based CRM. This setup automatically integrates donations into the CRM, making all data accessible to staff in real-time from anywhere. Additionally, data remains up-to-date at all times. A personalized thank-you email is automatically sent after each donation, eliminating manual effort.
Having more free time allows for the development of more innovative ideas.
3. Offline & Online Donation Integration
Scenario:
Multi-channel fundraising means donations come through various channels. Some, such as bank transfer donations, go directly into the account. From there, they need to be manually transferred into the database or CRM. This regular task is time-consuming and prone to errors.
Solution:
The non-profit integrates its donation account directly with its CRM. This allows for automatic data imports that require only a few clicks for verification. Donations are automatically assigned to the correct contact whenever possible, minimizing duplicate entries. This can be achieved, for example, through the Bank Sync feature of FundraisingBox.
4. Data Silos & Centralized Data
Scenario:
The organization uses various work programs, including a digital fundraising platform, its own CRM, project management tools, and the bank account. Each program contains data, and any change must be manually updated across multiple or all programs to ensure data synchronization and accuracy. When different departments use different programs, data chaos can ensue.
Solution:
Programs can be connected like puzzle pieces via APIs (interfaces).
Programs can be connected through interfaces. This allows data to synchronize automatically and remain up-to-date across all platforms. No manual effort is required, and statistics and reports can be generated using centralized, accurate data.
If donors in Germany want to deduct their donation from taxes, they need a donation receipt. Therefore, someone in the organization must fill out the donation receipt template with the correct data and manually send it. The more donors an organization has, the more complex and time-consuming this process becomes.
Solution:
Platforms like FundraisingBox exist where donation receipts can be automatically generated and sent. Both individual and batch receipts are possible. These can be created with just a few clicks for individual donors or entire donor segments. They can then either be printed for postal delivery or securely sent via email automatically.
6. Donation Service & Inquiries
Scenario:
Donor Max Generous wants to change his donation from semi-annual to monthly deduction – he sends this request via email to the organization. Now, an employee needs to update the deduction schedule in the banking program and update the database entry. Afterward, they must confirm the change to Mr. Generous via email, realizing that their colleague in the home office has already responded to him.
Lösung:
Solution:
In a browser-based CRM with integrated task management, all employees know who needs to do what and when. Whenever an email arrives in the shared inbox, a task is automatically created that can be assigned to a specific employee. This enables seamless teamwork even when team members are geographically dispersed. Predefined responses and templates can be used to save time.
Changing the donation deduction schedule can be easily managed within the same system and will be automatically processed as requested during the next billing cycle.
7. Data Quality
Scenario:
The organization is planning its next direct mail campaign and wants to address all online donors as well. However, many letters are returned unopened because the addresses are incorrect. This not only generates avoidable costs but also requires manual reprocessing: someone has to research the correct address and update it in the CRM or database. If the donor’s address cannot be clearly identified, they are lost to the mailing program.
The same issue can occur with IBANs: sometimes donors make typos. An incorrect IBAN can then lead to bank chargeback fees, and the donation cannot be processed.
Solution:
Digital fundraising platforms like FundraisingBox offer external services to address this problem. For example, the “Address Lab” checks the accuracy of the address during entry and displays an error if it is incorrect. This allows the donor to correct the input. Similarly, the “IBAN Calculator” works in the same way. This ensures that data from online forms is always correct and can be used for further fundraising activities.
Digitization & Automation Save Resources
These examples illustrate that many time-consuming processes can be eliminated. The time (and therefore money) saved can be invested by the organization in its projects or further growth. Platforms like FundraisingBox already offer many opportunities to facilitate the daily work of non-profits.
