You've got big goals to achieve your mission, but limited resources and not nearly enough time. How do you scale your impact and reach more people when budgets are tight and your small staff is already stretched thin? The answer could be in Blackbaud's suite of software solutions built specifically for nonprofits like yours.

For over 35 years, Blackbaud has been helping nonprofits raise more money and operate more efficiently. They now boast over 45,000 customers, from small shops to major institutions. Their tools handle everything from fundraising and marketing to accounting, with both cloud and on-premise options to suit any budget.

In this review, we'll give you an overview of Blackbaud's nonprofit solutions to help you determine if their products are right for your organization. We'll show you how to streamline your operations, cut costs, expand your donor base, and ultimately do more good with the limited resources you have. The best part? Blackbaud offers a free trial and demo of all their tools so you can experience the benefits firsthand before making any financial commitment.

Blackbaud: A Leader in Nonprofit Software

Blackbaud is a leader in software solutions for nonprofit organizations. For over 40 years, they have provided fundraising, marketing, financial management, and analytics tools to help nonprofits operate efficiently and connect with supporters.

Their premier product is Raiser’s Edge NXT, a complete fundraising and donor management solution. It helps you track gifts, understand your donors, and build meaningful relationships. The interactive dashboards provide data visualization so you can see key metrics and take action.

If you're looking for an easy way to build a professional website and online community, Blackbaud's Luminate Online is a great option. It has CMS and email marketing features as well as social sharing tools to spread your message. You can create fundraising campaigns, sell event tickets, and accept online donations right on the site.

Blackbaud also offers solutions for program management, volunteer management, grants management, and education management. Their products integrate so you can get a 360-degree view of your organization and work more efficiently.

When it comes to analytics, Blackbaud has powerful yet user-friendly tools like Luminate Analytics and Target Analytics. See how your marketing and fundraising campaigns are performing, find opportunities to improve, and make data-driven decisions to better achieve your mission.

With Blackbaud as your technology partner, you'll have innovative, purpose-built solutions to help manage your programs, connect with donors, and gain insight into your work. While the initial investment may seem high, Blackbaud aims to provide a high ROI through increased efficiency, productivity, and revenue. For nonprofits looking to scale their impact, Blackbaud should be at the top of the list.

Blackbaud's Flagship Products for Nonprofits

Blackbaud’s flagship products are robust solutions built specifically for nonprofits. Two of their most popular offerings are:

• Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT is their premier cloud fundraising and donor management software. It helps you track donations, communicate with supporters, and gain insight into your donors’ behavior so you can optimize fundraising campaigns. With an intuitive interface and powerful reporting tools, Raiser’s Edge NXT makes it easy to manage your donor relationships at scale.
• Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT is Blackbaud’s nonprofit accounting solution. It handles core accounting tasks like accounts payable, budgeting, and financial reporting according to nonprofit accounting standards. The software integrates with Raiser’s Edge NXT so you have a single source of truth for your organization’s finances and fundraising data.

For nonprofits looking to level up their online presence, Blackbaud also offers innovative solutions like Blackbaud Luminate Online and Blackbaud TeamRaiser. Luminate Online lets you build a customized website with built-in fundraising and email marketing tools. TeamRaiser, their peer-to-peer fundraising solution, makes it easy for your supporters to create their own fundraising campaigns for your cause.

With over 40 years of experience, Blackbaud knows the unique challenges nonprofits face. Their products are trusted by organizations of all sizes to help achieve their missions as efficiently and effectively as possible. If you’re looking for end-to-end software solutions tailored to the needs of nonprofits, Blackbaud is an ideal partner. Their team is with you every step of the way, providing exceptional service and support.

Case Studies: How Nonprofits Use Blackbaud Solutions

Blackbaud’s nonprofit solutions have helped many organizations achieve their missions. Here are a few case studies that show how:

Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia

The Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia needed a way to manage their operations and better serve people facing hunger. They implemented Blackbaud’s Financial Edge NXT and Raiser’s Edge NXT solutions to gain visibility into their finances and fundraising. Now they have a 360-degree view of their organization and can focus on their goal of providing 50 million meals annually.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

As one of the world’s leading pediatric cancer research organizations, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital relies on donations to support their life-saving work. They use Blackbaud’s Raiser’s Edge NXT and Blackbaud’s TeamRaiser to power their fundraising campaigns. These solutions help St. Jude raise over $2 billion in donations each year to advance research and treatment for children with cancer at no cost to their families.

The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental nonprofit working to tackle climate change, protect lands and waters, and make cities more sustainable. They selected Blackbaud Grantmaking, Online Express, and Financial Edge NXT to gain operational efficiencies, reduce risk, and optimize their grantmaking process. Now The Nature Conservancy can focus their efforts on accomplishing their critical mission to protect the lands and waters on which all life depends.

These are just a few examples of how Blackbaud solutions are helping nonprofits achieve remarkable outcomes. Whether you need to strengthen your operations, fundraise more effectively, optimize your programs, or gain data-driven insights, Blackbaud likely has a solution to help your organization fulfill its purpose. The opportunities to make a bigger impact are endless with the right technology and strategy in place.

Pricing and Support for Blackbaud Products

Blackbaud’s products are tailored to organizations of all sizes, from small nonprofits just getting started to large institutions and foundations. Pricing varies based on the specific solutions you need and the number of users or size of your database. In general, you can expect to pay between $5,000 to $500,000 or more per year for Blackbaud’s services, depending on which products you choose.

• The Education Management, Enrollment Management, and Student Information solutions typically start around $25,000 per year for small schools and $100,000 or more for large universities.
• The Financial Management solutions including Financial Edge NXT generally range from $5,000 to $50,000 per year depending on the number of users and modules.
• The Fundraising and Donor Management solutions like Raiser’s Edge NXT and Blackbaud CRM start around $10,000 for small organizations and $100,000 or more for large nonprofits with many donors and complex needs.
• The Grantmaking, Outcomes, and Impact solutions such as Grantmaking and Outcomes Manager are usually $25,000 per year and up.

Blackbaud is dedicated to providing high-quality support and customer service for all of their products. They offer phone support, video tutorials, in-product help, and an online knowledge base with articles and how-to guides. For an additional cost, you can purchase premium support plans that provide faster response times, dedicated support contacts, and custom consulting services.

Blackbaud also hosts an annual conference called bbcon, with opportunities for training, networking, and learning about the latest product updates. They frequently release new features, patches, and versions to ensure their software remains up-to-date and secure. Overall, Blackbaud aims to be a trusted partner for nonprofits, not just another tech vendor. Their solutions and support are designed to help organizations increase efficiency, improve fundraising and program outcomes, and make a bigger impact.

Our Review: Is Blackbaud Right for Your Nonprofit?

So, is Blackbaud the right choice for your nonprofit? That depends on your organization’s needs and budget. Here are some factors to consider:

Robust Solutions

Blackbaud offers specialized solutions for every type of nonprofit—arts and cultural organizations, K-12 schools, higher education institutions, healthcare organizations, faith communities, and more. Their products help nonprofits with fundraising, marketing, program management, analytics, and finance. If you need an end-to-end solution for your organization, Blackbaud likely has what you need.

Cost

While Blackbaud does provide valuable services, their solutions are not cheap. Pricing varies significantly based on which products you need and the size of your organization. Be prepared for potentially high upfront costs as well as ongoing subscription and service fees. For smaller nonprofits or those on tight budgets, the cost may be prohibitive. It’s a good idea to get quotes for different solutions to determine what you can afford.

Ease of Use

Blackbaud’s solutions aim to simplify tasks for nonprofit professionals through intuitive interfaces and streamlined workflows. However, some users do report a learning curve with the various products. Blackbaud provides onboarding, training programs, and ongoing support to help you get the most out of their solutions. But if your organization lacks technical expertise or struggles with change management, the transition to Blackbaud’s platform could prove challenging.

Community Support

Because Blackbaud specializes in nonprofit solutions, they have built a loyal community of clients and partners. Blackbaud hosts an annual conference, offers online resources and networking, and provides opportunities for clients to connect on best practices. For nonprofits looking to collaborate and stay on the cutting edge, this built-in community could be a great benefit.

In summary, Blackbaud provides sophisticated, purpose-built solutions for nonprofits. But their services may not suit every budget or organization. Evaluate your needs and priorities to determine if partnering with Blackbaud will genuinely help further your mission. For the right nonprofit, Blackbaud can be an invaluable ally. For others, simpler and more affordable options may be better alternatives.

Conclusion

So there you have it, a rundown of Blackbaud’s major solutions for nonprofits. Whether you’re looking to improve fundraising, connect with supporters, optimize your website, or gain valuable insights into your data, Blackbaud likely has a service that can help take your organization to the next level. Their comprehensive yet user-friendly tools have enabled thousands of nonprofits to increase their impact and better achieve their missions. While their services aren’t the cheapest, many organizations find the investment well worth it. If you’re ready to see what Blackbaud can do for your nonprofit, take their solutions for a test drive. You just might become their next success story.

About ForGranted: ForGranted Media specializes in all facets of emerging technological advancements, finance, fundraising and marketing for your nonprofit. Our sole mission is to provide with resources to become a stronger organization!