Looking Beyond the Flashy Features
When moving to a CRM system, it's easy to get caught up in all the exciting features it offers. Automatic reminders for donor calls, event follow-up emails that send themselves, or generating all your mailing materials with just a click—these are the flashy benefits that often sell organizations on implementing a CRM for their nonprofit.
These features are valuable, no doubt. But in my years of implementing CRM systems, I've found that many organizations overlook what I consider the true killer feature: the humble report.
"Reporting is so powerful because it is the culmination of all the connected data points you have put into your system, accessible in a user-friendly, interactive environment."
At first glance, reporting doesn't seem special. After all, you can create basic reports in Excel or Google Sheets. So what makes CRM reporting such a game-changer for nonprofits and government organizations?
The Magic of Connected Data
The true power of a CRM lies in how it connects your data. Unlike a spreadsheet where information exists in isolation, a CRM creates relationships between different types of data. This connected nature transforms simple record-keeping into a web of insights that can drive strategic decisions.
Let's look at what becomes possible with CRM reporting:
Donor Management Beyond the Basics
Want to know which donors have given for four years in a row but haven't yet made their gift for the current year? A CRM report can pull this list in seconds, helping you target your outreach to these valuable supporters.
Program Effectiveness at a Glance
Need to understand how many hours of service your organization has provided to constituents in each location you serve? A simple report can break this down by program, location, demographic group, or any other data point you track.
Fundraising Strategy Optimization
Curious about which type of fundraising approach yields the highest average gift? Create a report comparing average donation size by solicitation method, and you'll have actionable insights to guide your next campaign.
From Data Points to Meaningful Connections
The real transformation happens when you stop thinking about individual records and start seeing the connections between them. Your CRM takes the data you're used to and makes it relational.
When you enter information about:
- A donor's gift
- An event they attended
- Their volunteer hours
- Their personal connections to other supporters
You're not just recording facts—you're weaving an intricate web that can reveal crucial insights about your organization's network and impact.
The report is where all these pieces come together. It's the basic building block of analytics, allowing you to surface patterns and opportunities that would remain hidden in disconnected spreadsheets.
The Foundation for Advanced Analytics
You might eventually want complex visuals and dashboards to bring to board meetings or display on your public website. These are valuable tools, but it's important to remember that at the heart of these fancy visual representations is the humble report—a table that shows how record A is linked to record B and B to C.
Think of reports as the foundation upon which all your analytics are built. If you're considering Salesforce as your CRM solution, we'll dive deeper into reporting and analytics tools in future posts. But regardless of which platform you choose, understanding the value of connected data will help you maximize your return on investment.
What Data Should You Actually Track?
Understanding that reporting is a key feature helps explain why clean data is so crucial, as I stressed in an earlier post. But it also provides guidance on what data you should prioritize collecting in the first place.
When looking at a contact record page, you might see fields that seem unimportant at first glance. For example, there's often a place to store personal relationships between contacts. It might seem like a waste of time to enter that John Doe is close friends with Mike. After all, if you're focused on tracking how much John volunteers each month, why would his friendship with Mike matter?
The answer becomes clear when you start thinking in terms of connected data and reporting. If you want to value both direct AND indirect contributions to your mission, these relationships become vitally important.
Discovering Hidden MVPs in Your Network
With proper relationship tracking, your reports might reveal that while Mike donates a modest amount each year, he has indirectly:
- Brought in 50 volunteer hours through friends he's recruited
- Facilitated several corporate matching gifts
- Introduced three new recurring donors to your organization
If you were only looking at direct donation amounts, you might not prioritize Mike in your stewardship efforts. But a relationship-aware report shows his true value to your organization.
Start Simple, Think Connected
If you're just beginning your CRM journey, here's my advice:
- Focus on basic reporting first rather than complex features
- Think about the questions you need answered before deciding what data to collect
- Look for connections between different types of data in your organization
- Start with clean, consistent data entry practices from day one
- Build reports that highlight relationships between records, not just isolated details
Remember that every field you populate in your CRM is a potential dimension for future reports. The time you invest in thoughtful data entry today will pay dividends when you need to extract insights tomorrow.
"If you just look at a record page, it may seem like a waste of time to enter these connections. But if you start from wanting to value ALL supporter contributions—direct AND indirect—this data becomes crucial to identifying your true MVPs."
Next Steps: Audit Your Reporting Needs
Before diving into a CRM implementation (or to improve your existing one), take time to document the key questions you need your system to answer:
- What metrics do your funders require you to report on?
- Which supporters need special attention each month?
- How do you measure program effectiveness?
- What data do you need for strategic planning?
- Which relationships in your network are most valuable to track?
By starting with these questions, you'll build a CRM foundation that serves your real needs rather than getting distracted by flashy features you may never use.
