Non-Profits Should Embrace Tech. Here’s How They Can.
The payoff is worth the challenge.
Even as a global pandemic has forced organizations to adopt technology, businesses and nonprofits face a different calculus in determining how tech can heighten their effectiveness. While using tech to strategically maintain margins may seem like a completely different priority than feeding or educating underserved communities, the underlying objective remains the same: Creating/maximizing value. Assessing impact is an ongoing challenge for nonprofits. You see the potential of mobile technology — smartphones and tablets could be crucial tools to collect data on individual projects, which can deliver actionable insights for impact and service delivery. But maybe you’re constrained by limited budgets, or you’re uncertain or unconvinced of how tech can fit into a larger strategy, or you have to consider how it will impact staff and organizational culture. These are all valid concerns, but nonprofits that don’t invest in necessary technology will see an ever-widening performance gap between their outcomes and organizations that have effectively adopted tech.
Technology allows nonprofits to automate processes like sending donations receipts or monitoring event attendance, which allows your staff to work more effectively and focus on your core mission. Technology enables nonprofits to engage donors in creative ways: You can display impact in real-time, share campaign progress, and compel supporters to act. Technology helps nonprofits put their data to work, whether you want to better understand the impact of your programs or you want to convert one-time donors to recurring donors. Technology improves communication and outreach; for example, an email marketing program can help segment your audience and target the right message to the right person. Technology makes project management more effective, helping different departments better align on organizational objectives and how to get there. Technology enables nonprofits to raise more money, because a solution that simplifies donating, fundraising, sharing your cause, and attending events will engage more people who believe in your cause.
If you understand how and why tech can help your nonprofit, then the only remaining hurdle is finding a way to implement it in your organization. Here are a few steps:
- Map your needs to a strategic plan. Figure out how tech aligns with all your strategic goals and articulate how it will deliver an ROI.
- Focus on the science of fundraising. Successful organizations find a way to weave data into a story — it is the proof of point for all the good they do.
- Build a culture of wellness. Make it clear to your staff that tech will enrich their job. Or focus on what Beth Kanter, author of The Happy Healthy Nonprofit calls the Three P’s: “Planning (look ahead), People (put a statute of limitations in place), Priorities (how you prioritize your time), and being Present (avoid techno-ference).”
- Think outside the box. In advertising, they follow a slogan, “Instead of force-feeding the consumer, give them what they’re already eating.” Tech is wide and varied, so figure out what your constituents are already using and meet them there.
- Tell your story. Social channels and different platforms can give you the power to not just tell your brand story, but also can empower the diverse voices that make up your organization — donors, volunteers, and the communities you serve.
- Find what works for you and your supporters. The amount of tech out there can be overwhelming, and you could be tempted to be everything to everyone. Focus on 2–3 ways you can engage with your supporters and perfect that.
Fortunately, there are plenty of affordable products and services available to nonprofits. We’ve seen firsthand how technology has helped nonprofits scale their initiatives and improve their outcomes. The opportunity is there, it’s only a matter of charting a destination.
