Mikel Lindsaar, CEO of StoreConnect, values the nonprofit sector for its vital role in serving communities, addressing societal needs, and championing causes. Just like for-profit eCommerce businesses, nonprofits require essential tools like CRM, CMS, POS, real-time inventory, and more. With limited resources, nonprofits need a unified platform to run efficiently and retain donors. StoreConnect's Customer Commerce™ Health Check is tailored for nonprofits, helping them build lasting donor relationships.
SYDNEY, Oct. 11, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- More nonprofits are appreciating the benefits of using eCommerce sites for online donations. Rather than mailing in a check, donors can use multiple online payment methods, track their contributions, and receive automated receipts. Nonprofits can also generate funds via eCommerce by creating an online store for donations through merchandise or event sales. With 1.8 million charitable organizations across the U.S., competition in the nonprofit sector is deeply felt between public charities, private foundations, fraternal organizations, civic leagues, and small nonprofits.(1) Mikel Lindsaar, CEO and Founder of StoreConnect, states, "Fueled by the imperative to create a positive influence in the world, the entanglements of overseeing numerous plug-ins within the eCommerce sector, what I call 'Plug-in Purgatory,' can impede the altruistic endeavors of many nonprofits." Charitable organizations require innovative solutions that enable nonprofits to fully realize their noble ambitions, free from the time and labor expense restraints associated with plug-ins.
Profit and not-for-profit organizations frequently use plug-ins, a type of app that enhances the utility, serviceability, and custom features of an existing website's content management system and keeps operational processes more efficient and up-to-date. However, managing an excessive number of plug-ins can hinder a website's functionality and performance, leading to loading and compatibility issues that can result in processing bottlenecks and increased security risks. One study discovered that incorporating only six customer-facing apps (plug-ins) can extend load times by five seconds; the average number of plug-ins is 25. If a webpage takes more than six seconds to load, a charitable organization could lose half of its potential donors.(2)
Nonprofits face unique challenges grappling with multiple plug-ins:
- Resource Limitations: Nonprofits frequently operate with limited staff and constrained budgets, making plug-in management expenses a liability they can't easily afford.
- Complexity Complications: The intricacies of handling multiple plug-ins can be overwhelming and pull limited staff away from their core responsibilities that actually contribute to the cause.
- Jeopardizing the Mission: For nonprofit organizations counting on every donor and dollar, diverting money away from those in need toward troubleshooting inefficient processes can have undesirable consequences for the overall mission.
Altruism is alive and well; however, reaching out to new donors and managing existing ones remains beset with challenges, such as insufficient resources, changes in regulation, the complexities of tracking donations, and fractured omnichannel engagement. Prospective donors usually require 7 to 12 "touches" before becoming donors, such as websites, emails, newsletters, direct mail, videos, and social media.(3) Assessing the efficiency, efficacy, and scope of these approaches requires using a platform that integrates multiple channels and provides a detailed evaluation of their tangible results in the fundraising effort.
To retain and acquire new donors, nonprofits need a customized Customer Commerce strategy that builds strong donor relationships with a cost-effective solution that covers CRM, CMS, POS, multi-currency support, API integrations, and omnichannel capabilities.
StoreConnect is the Customer CommerceTM Company and is the only fully integrated eCommerce, point-of-sale, content management system and CRM platform powered by Salesforce. It includes a scalable, feature-rich platform enabling nonprofits to oversee single or recurring monthly donations, memberships, merchandise sales, event reservations, inventory control, and workflow management, along with providing flexible fundraising and donation choices. It strongly emphasizes donor relationships by integrating all content, product, donor, and inventory data into a unified multi-store system that operates seamlessly on mobile devices, the web, and point-of-sale locations. StoreConnect provides all of these features without requiring additional plug-ins, all within a budget aligned with the philanthropic mission of each nonprofit.
"StoreConnect's Health Check tool reveals what keeps donors engaged and what might deter them. It's a one-stop platform designed for nonprofits to build personal, lasting bonds with donors, fostering loyalty and sustaining vital contributions to their cherished causes."
StoreConnect is Time. Well Spent.
About StoreConnect
Mikel Lindsaar is the CEO and Founder of StoreConnect, a Salesforce Partner Innovation Award recipient.‥ Mikel is a serial technology entrepreneur, having successfully built and sold four SaaS companies within the last decade. StoreConnect has one goal: to help small and medium-sized businesses become scalable Customer Companies powered by Salesforce. Clients achieve this daily by breaking free of the shackles of what Mikel calls "Plug-in Purgatory and SaaS Hell." StoreConnect clients don't need multiple SaaS systems connected by plug-ins to manage their online, in-store POS, and in-person Customer Commerce business systems. Many of today's eCommerce solutions are designed to get up and running quickly and inevitably hit a brick wall of scalability and extensibility as companies grow.‥ That's why StoreConnect is built on the world's #1 CRM, so its customers will never need to re-platform, no matter how fast they grow in size, product offerings, or regions. Global growth now has no barriers for any SMB. Being built on Salesforce allows StoreConnect customers to update their websites, funnels, and content in real-time, providing an unparalleled competitive advantage. StoreConnect is Time. Well Spent. Visit https://getStoreConnect.com/.
References:
1. "Trainings in Nonprofit Fundraising, Proposal Writing, Grants." Candid Learning, learning.candid.org/resources/knowledge-base/number-of-nonprofits-in-the-u-s/#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20National%20Center,fraternal%20organizations%20and%20civic%20leagues. Accessed 27 Sept. 2023.
2. "StoreConnect Leads the Way in Resolving 'Plug-in Purgatory' for SMBS at Dreamforce 2023." Yahoo! Finance, Yahoo!, finance.yahoo.com/news/storeconnect-leads-way-resolving-plug-120300604.html. Accessed 26 Sept. 2023.
3. Lakshmi Narayanan Lakshmi is a marketer and writer for the CallHub blog. She uses targeted content to help campaign managers (in advocacy groups, et al. "Unable to Raise Funds? These Fundraising Challenges Are Holding You Back." CallHub, 7 Mar. 2023, callhub.io/blog/fundraising/nonprofit-fundraising-challenges/.
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SOURCE StoreConnect
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