Soapbox Engage Blog

Thanking your donors is perhaps the most fundamental best practice that every nonprofit should master. It goes without saying that the individuals who keep your mission moving forward deserve recognition and thanks—but what are you doing to keep them connected to your work weeks, months, or years after their first gift?

Donor stewardship should be an intentional process that takes place across multiple channels. By having an organized plan for staying in touch and keeping your mission on donors’ minds, you’ll see significant long-term benefits for your mission.

Perhaps your organization hasn’t updated its stewardship approach to fit today’s digital landscape—if so, you likely have a few questions. This crash course will introduce you to the essentials of multi-channel stewardship cadences.

Issue 397

Happy Monday, Trailblazers! Yesterday evening, I had the chance to see a local cumbia band perform outdoors at the US National Arboretum— it was a delightful event! I hope you also enjoyed some community time over the weekend.

Speaking of community! Scroll on down for the latest solutions, ideas, and questions from the Trailblazer community!

Don't forget, you can have the goodness of the PUB Crawl delivered into your inbox each Monday morning by subscribing today!

Salesforce is one of the most popular CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems in the world, used by businesses and nonprofits alike to manage their customer relationships and marketing campaigns. To make the most out of Salesforce, nonprofits often rely on the expertise of Salesforce consultants, who are trained professionals that help them implement, customize, and optimize the platform for their specific needs.

As a nonprofit leader, you know how valuable your time is, and what you’d like to devote your energy to. With that in mind, perhaps you’ve reached the conclusion that you’d like to hire a Salesforce Consultant to help manage your Salesforce CRM and maximize your impact.

Issue 145

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! May this week bring you lots of rest and gorgeous spring weather!

Last week, we sent out our monthly Soapbox Engage newsletter. If you haven’t already subscribed, this is a great way to stay up-to-date on our latest product updates, upcoming community events and webinars, and an endless supply of nonprofit tech and fundraising knowledge on our blog. Subscribe here!

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies relating to grants, nonprofit finances, and virtual events!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

Issue 396

Happy Monday, Trailblazers! In DC, we had a weekend of gorgeous, balmy weather, and I’m feeling refreshed and energized for a new week. Wishing you all the same!

Last week, we sent out our monthly Soapbox Engage newsletter. If you haven’t already subscribed, this is a great way to stay up-to-date on our latest product updates, upcoming community events and webinars, and an endless supply of nonprofit tech and fundraising knowledge on our blog. Subscribe here!

Scroll on down for the latest solutions, ideas, and questions from the Trailblazer community!

Don't forget, you can have the goodness of the PUB Crawl delivered into your inbox each Monday morning by subscribing today!

Salesforce, a leading provider of customer relationship management (CRM) solutions, has recently announced that they will be retiring their fundraising solution, Elevate. Elevate provided customers with a modern giving experience, increasing conversion with personalized giving pages.

This decision comes as a surprise to many non-profit organizations and fundraisers who have relied on the platform to manage their donor relationships and fundraising campaigns. In this blog post, we will explore five alternative solutions to Elevate, and how this might be an opportunity to improve your fundraising game!

Issue 144

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! It’s hard to believe May is already here!

I was so pleased to see some of you at the Salesforce Community Happy Hour we hosted at NTC last month. For those who couldn’t make it out to Denver, check out our recap of the event for some fun pictures!

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies relating to benchmarking, event management, and nonprofit rebranding!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

Issue 395

Happy Monday, Trailblazers! Congratulations, you made it to May!

In case you missed the announcement, the Salesforce Social Team has announced a consolidation of all Salesforce.org social channels— meaning an end to the nonprofit/education specific channels. More on that announcement below!

I wanted to take a moment to encourage folks to follow @picnet on Twitter and Soapbox Engage on LinkedIn. In addition to curating the PUB Crawl, we like to stay on top of all things Salesforce and #nptech and share important updates/helpful resources on our social channels. You can even follow hashtags like #PUBCrawlNewsletter and #SalesforceNonprofit on Twitter to get notifications for topical posts!

Scroll on down for the latest solutions, ideas, and questions from the Trailblazer community!

Don't forget, you can have the goodness of the PUB Crawl delivered into your inbox each Monday morning by subscribing today!

Last month, we had the pleasure of hosting a Salesforce Community Happy Hour at the Nonprofit Technology Conference (NTC) alongside some folks from OpenTent! We thought we’d take a moment to reflect on this wonderful community event.

As the evening sun set over the Denver skyline, a group of nonprofit, education, and technology professionals gathered at our Salesforce community happy hour event, held mere blocks away from the NTC conference.

Issue 143

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers! Here in DC, spring is in full bloom! I hope this time of year has revived you with breezy days and lots of sunshine.

On a different note! Does your nonprofit use Salesforce as your CRM? If so, you should check out our other weekly newsletter, the Pub Crawl! This is a weekly curation of top posts from the Salesforce Nonprofit Trailblazer Community. Product updates, upcoming events, community-driven solutions, questions & ideas galore!

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies relating to matching gifts, P2P fundraising, and major gifts!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

The main purpose of nonprofit branding is to communicate who your organization is and what you stand for. Even though you aren’t selling a product or service—which is how for-profit organizations use their brands—you’re essentially “selling” your impact to encourage engagement among current and prospective supporters.

However, your brand isn’t something you create once and never revisit. As your organization grows and evolves, you may consider rebranding to ensure your visuals and messaging continue to align with your mission and help you achieve your goals.

As a nonprofit professional, you probably dedicate most of your time to running your programs and fundraising. After all, furthering your organization’s mission is why you work hard every day!

When using this operating model, however, nonprofit financial management activities often take a backseat. It’s essential to understand and proactively manage your finances so your organization has the resources to provide services and complete projects. Financial management works side by side with fundraising to allow your organization to fulfill its mission.

Issue 142

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers!

Take a moment to check in with your strategy when asking for donations. Whether you're crafting an email ask, social media post, event invitation, or updating your website's donation page, your wording impacts the outcome. Check out this FREE 15 page guide to learn about five easy ways to boost your wording when asking for donations!

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies relating to campaign messages, public speaking, and volunteer recruitment!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

Donor retention is a critical factor for the success of any nonprofit. After all, securing repeat donations from existing supporters is significantly more cost-effective than constantly pursuing one-time gifts. Yet more often than not, new donors do not give back to the same organization the following year.

This is a significant roadblock for nonprofit fundraisers, and as a result, many teams are constantly on the lookout for innovative ways to retain support over time. One way to address this challenge is through corporate matching gifts.

When building a campaign for your nonprofit, it takes a lot to ensure it is successful. But one of the most important pieces of the campaign is your campaign message.

Your campaign message is the core of your campaign strategy. It is how you communicate with your audience and tie donations to impact. It has to be catchy! A campaign message needs to be something that piques interest and encourages people to be involved.

Issue 141

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers!

Greetings from Denver! I’m here for the Nonprofit Technology Conference, hoping I’ll see some of you this week! Don’t forget to RSVP for the Salesforce Happy Hour hosted by Soapbox Engage and OpenTent.

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies from trusted professionals around the world!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

Issue 140

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers!

I’m counting down the days to the Nonprofit Technology Conference. 2023 has brought a lot of major announcements and changes in the world of #nptech. Let’s chat about them over happy hour— we’ve got a great rooftop location close to the conference with a scenic view of Denver!

Scroll on down for the latest fundraising ideas and strategies from trusted professionals around the world!

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a large topic of discussion lately. You’ve most likely heard people talking about ChatGPT. ChatGPT is an online tool that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to understand and respond to requests entered by its users. It has the ability to generate human-like responses to just about anything asked of it. Which means it’s something you can make use of in your communications, engagement, and fundraising efforts.

This blog will walk you through 8 ways ChatGPT can be a valuable tool in nonprofit fundraising!

Last week, Salesforce announced a new vision for Nonprofit Cloud, the suite of Salesforce nonprofit technology solutions built for the nonprofit sector.

With this announcement, Salesforce noted that the existing industry-specific apps used by thousands of nonprofits will continue to be supported. These include Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP) for fundraising and relationship management and the Program Management Module (PMM) for client and program management, as well as the Power of Us program that donates the first ten licenses free to nonprofits.

Issue 138

Happy Tuesday, Fundraisers!

In a few weeks, I’ll be heading to Denver for the Nonprofit Technology Conference. Along with some wonderful folks over at OpenTent, Soapbox Engage will be hosting a Salesforce Community Happy Hour! Come ask questions about Nonprofit Cloud and NPSP, share your nonprofit dreams and goals, or connect with friends old and new.

If you’re planning to attend NTC, please join me at the Salesforce Community Happy Hour— even if your organization is not currently using Salesforce! RSVP here.

You can receive the Fundraising Weekly newsletter each Tuesday by subscribing today!