Friends Don't Let Friends Use Excel to Manage Fundraising Campaigns August 19, 2009

Every day the GiftWorks team helps nonprofits struggling with the inadequacies of using Excel to manage their fundraising efforts. 

You can imagine the scenario:  One spreadsheet for annual fund donations, another for the gala event attendees, one more for golf outing sponsorships, and yet another for volunteers.  What if one person supported all of the above?  Would you ever be able to realize the richness of her contributions?  Would you be able to identify giving, attendance and volunteer trends and act on them?  Would anyone ever be able to find and decipher your spreadsheets if you were no longer there?   

Robert Weiner has written an excellent article for Idealware on resisting the temptation to use Excel to manage donor data.  Please check it out and pass it along.  Your friends will thank you!

Comments

This is where I am now. I have 6 Excel lists and am trying to figure out how to import into Giftworks. Any help greatly appreciated.

Hi Eileen,
GiftWorks offers some great ways to get your questions answered.

First, read the importing guide on our website here: http://www.missionresearch.com/giftworks/guides/.

Second, we offer a free importing webinar every week. You can sign up here: http://www.missionresearch.com/giftworks/helpcenter/freeonlinetour.html.

Third, you can email your specific questions to our very knowledgeable customer support team at support@missionresearch.com.

Hope this helps!