Blackbaud Fundraiser Performance Management vs. Bloomerang CRM

I think there are better charitable relationship management platforms out there. BFPM serves a purpose, but it is an incomplete product for the hefty price tag it comes with. Certain aspects are billed as proprietary, like the MG EVI ratings, but they are inconsistent and often incorrect. BFPM has barely been updated in the decade I have been a user, which leads me to believe that the Blackbaud team is not innovating or devoting resources to enhancing/improving this product. It could stand a refresh to bring the entire product into the year 2022.

Incentivized

I can't speak to Bloomerang's functionality for a very large organization, but for a small-to-midsize non-profit, I don't know what else you'd need! Need to register volunteers, or sell tickets, or generate e- or print communications, or pull donor data? Bloomerang does it. Bloomerang is my third CRM tool in my current organization and it is vastly superior in almost every way to the others that came before.

Incentivized

• User-friendly interface
• Accessible from anywhere
• Multi-level search and query functions
• Streamlined prospect data pages

Incentivized

• Website integration for online donations is awesome! It makes it so much easier to raise money online. We've tripled the amount of money we raise online, mainly because of this and the ability to send emails through the system.
• Emails are tracked directly in a donor's record, so we can see instantly their engagement with our content.
• Integration with DonorSearch is awesome and seems to be improving often.
• They listen to their customers' needs. If enough customers request a feature, they'll get it for us. We feel like the development of this software is always happening and it's a partnership, rather than a transaction.

Incentivized

• "MG EVI" scores are a sham
• Doesn't seamlessly translate over to Banner in certain areas
• Clunky 'new tab' functionality quickly floods entire browser window.

Incentivized

• Some of the searches did not bring up the expected results. It would be good to see the logic be a little more "fuzzy".
• More pre-set reports would be helpful for small organizations who do not understand the logic behind how to get the results they are seeking.
• An ability to just page through donor records would be nice. Sometimes you just want to browse the data to get inspired.

Incentivized

#1 - I am very happy with the product and support so far.
#2 - With significant data migration costs, I wouldn't even consider another option for at least 3 years no matter how much better it might be.

Incentivized

Data and settings are very customizable to fit the needs of our organization. We are able to not only keep track of donations, but also other interactions we may have with a constituent. Support is extremely helpful when issues arise.

Incentivized

Any time i had a problem or question it has been easy to find an answer or tutorial. When I cannot find an answer, it is easy to email or live chat with support and they resolve my problems very quickly.

BFPM has the advantage because it is designed to be user-facing and user-friendly. It is a simple website to learn to use and navigate, but that does not mean it is flawless. It helps me and my colleagues engage with the database in a more straightforward manner, without having to learn and remember various codes and queries.

Incentivized

Salesforce is infinitely customizable, but Bloomerang is pretty straightforward and works out of the box. It is simple enough that folks who are not familiar with the robust features of something like Salesforce can hit the ground running. Even as it is simple it is powerful as far as showing visuals that can help fundraising staff more clearly understand where the organization is and what donors they can next target for upcoming campaigns.

Incentivized

• MG EVI is not the end-all-be-all it was sold as
• Still requires use of Banner for certain info
• Helps streamline data entry by allowing gift officers to enter their own contacts.

Incentivized

• Because my organization has been using Bloomerang for only one year, we haven't yet studied what impact it has had on our ROI. We have, however, noted that we are able to more efficiently and more rapidly communicate with constituents now than we were able to before we had Bloomerang. We can quickly and efficiently generate acknowledgements and tax receipts - and do so - better than we ever did before.

Incentivized