Are Apps And Integrations Really That Important?

In this post, we’re focusing on apps and integrations and why your donor management platform should support the ones you use. If you’re on the hunt for a new donor management platform, this is information you should keep top of mind.

What Are Apps & Integrations?

First, what are apps and integrations?

They’re an important option to look for when purchasing your donor management platform. The primary software gets to focus on what it does best, while the apps and integrations allow the user to “plug in” specialized tools needed to accomplish specific tasks or functions that the primary software either doesn’t do or couldn’t do as well.

To put it more simply: Your primary software is your donor management platform (like Kindful, for example). The other specialized tools you’d “plug in” would be things like Mailchimp, QuickBooks, Stripe, etc. They’re the solutions to certain problems you have, like email marketing or payment processing.

Why It Matters for Your Nonprofit

Are they really that important?

As we talked about in this recent post, it’s important to have all of your data connected and organized in one place.

Let’s say you’re looking at a donor management platform that doesn’t support certain apps and integrations you use. That’s a very big deal. In order for your donor management platform to work for you, it has to support the tools you’re using today. If your donor management platform doesn’t integrate with the solutions you’re already using, it might not be the tool for you.

How To Get Started

Now what?

We recommend making a list of all the tools you currently use and the ones you’re thinking about using in the near future. Once you have that information on hand, evaluate your donor management platform options with that in mind.

Remember, your donor management platform is there to make your job easier, not harder. Look at the ones that support the tools you use, and you’ll be one step closer to finding the one that best supports your mission.

Finally, we’d love to talk with you about your fundraising goals and the tools you use. If you want a dedicated team member to show you around Bloomerang and how we can help you carry out your mission, you can schedule a demo here.