VOA affiliates join together for a smart
approach to fundraising technology.

With chartered affiliates across the country, Volunteers of America responds
to the needs of at-risk youth, the elderly, those returning from prison,
homeless individuals, people with disabilities, and those recovering from
addiction. While each affiliate operates under its own board of directors,
all benefit from the support and guidance of VOA’s national office outside
Washington, D.C., including its development team, which led affiliates to
embrace a shared solution for fundraising and relationship management.
“We are really trying to make sure we are providing the affiliates with the
best resources we possibly can, and that’s why we really pushed to bring
in Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT®,” said VOA Vice President of Development
Stephanie Paauwe.

The VOA’s collective shift to adopt Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT required
buy-in, training, and some patience as everyone learned new ways of
doing things. But the benefits—including shared costs and an expanded
fundraising toolbox that provides valuable donor insights—already appear
to be paying off.

Sharing the Journey with Help Along the Way

The ability of each affiliate to keep its data separate and secure in the midst
of this shared journey was a critical factor as well. “That was something we
investigated fully before recommending Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT,” said
VOA Database Administrator Sean Pflueger.

With the strength of their expertise and vetting, the national development
team offered its recommendations to the affiliates, which decided
individually whether to take part in the larger change. “You don’t get your
very own house,” VOA Direct Marketing Director Karen Rawson explained
to them, “but you do get an amazing condo in a multiple-unit building, and
we’re all in the same building.”

Altogether, 17 affiliates opted to leave behind the legacy CRM solution the
national office had provided, and nine more affiliates joined with them,
including some that were already using Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT but
without all the modules and support they would enjoy through
the national office.

Affiliates also had the benefit of Blackbaud University, which provided
instructors for two in-person training events arranged by Pflueger. The
first involved a group of “super users” who helped serve as testers and
guides. The second event folded in representatives from all affiliates that
were making the change. “It was broad-ranging, and it brought affiliates
together,” Pflueger said.

Blackbaud University continues to provide onboarding and additional
resources for a growing number of more than 150 VOA users through a
subscription covered by the national office. And because of Blackbaud
Raiser’s Edge NXT’s popularity with other social good organizations, new
hires are apt to arrive with prior experience using the solution.

With greater user independence backed up by Blackbaud University,
Pflueger now spends less time on basic training and support, and has
more time on higher-level strategic efforts. That includes his participation
in Blackbaud’s early adopter program for leveraging the connector
between Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT and the Microsoft Power Platform,
which should build in even more value and efficiency for affiliates in
their fundraising.

Positioned for the Future

VOA’s switch to Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT occurred in September 2019, and
with the solution well established at affiliates by the following spring, those
offices could respond more effectively to the challenges of COVID-19.
That included shifting from in-person to virtual events with Blackbaud Peer-toPeer Fundraising™, powered by Just Giving®—a no-cost option that integrates
easily with other Blackbaud solutions and can be used in combination with
Blackbaud Marketplace partners such as Event.Gives. “When we had to pivot
on like a dime, that was a really important factor that helped keep the affiliates
moving,” Paauwe said.

Meanwhile, affiliates are seeing success leveraging Blackbaud’s data
intelligence capabilities, which has helped them respond to COVID-19. One
source of early success has been Loyalty Insights, which combines proprietary
giving data with VOA’s own data to segment donors by loyalty level, allowing
VOA to better gauge donor commitment and optimize direct response
solicitation and cultivation strategy. A collaborative of affiliates that actively
uses the tool has seen double-digit fundraising growth since adopting
Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT. “Those affiliates that don’t have a development
team are fascinated by it,” said Rawson, who assists them, “and those that do
have a development team are fired up by it.”