A: Sometimes nonprofits ask us why they should use a fundraising program instead of QuickBooks. There are several ways to approach this question, but the bottom line is that, while QuickBooks is a very good accounting program, it simply was not designed for fundraising.

One of the most important activities that you can accomplish with fundraising software is to select certain names from your list of donors who have something in common and send them a targeted message. For example, you can sort by the fact that they all attended a certain event, or responded to a certain newsletter appeal. When you communicate to donors based on their previous interests, they respond more readily, and feel more connected. This type of communication can keep costs down, increase the response to your mailing, and also increase your donors' sense of connection to your organization. Targeted mailings are accomplished by using Queries to segment your mailing list, using codes which you have predefined in your donor management software, but cannot be tracked in QuickBooks.

Codes, which allow you to query, allow you to categorize your donors, for instance by function (board member, staff), or by interest, or by first contact, or any other aspect that is vital to your organization. This is useful not only for queries and targeted mailings, but also for analytical reports, and special communications. Coding is a central tool in donor management software and is not available in QuickBooks.

Beyond queries and coding; there are many different techniques for fundraising which are supported by donor management software. Among these are pledges, in-memory gifts, and memberships. QuickBooks was never intended to handle the fundraising side of these activities. For instance, with pledge giving, you need the ability to generate reminder letters and overdue letters. With in-memory gifts, you need to be able to list names of both donors and honorees for newsletters, thank you letters, and publicity; none of which can be accomplished in QuickBooks.

In addition, fundraising software is used to give you access to statistics that can give you a comprehensive overview of your fundraising activities. You may want to know how many new donors you've gained over the last few years; or to see how much is coming in by zip code, gender, or donor type so that you can solicit your most enthusiastic supporters.

If all you need to do with your donations is keep track of them and send out thank you letters, or if you send the same letter to your entire mailing list, then QuickBooks may work. However, this is seldom the case, and is almost never the case for an organization that depends on fundraising for its operating costs. Fundraising is a competitive activity, growing more so all the time, and successful fundraising requires additional ability to address specific donor interests within your overall list.

We hope this helps you understand the role that fundraising software plays. Now that you know the difference between accounting software and donor management software, why should you choose FundRaiser?