Nonprofit Technology Resource Guide

The Top 10 Technology Needs and Answers

The following information is a basic guide for nonprofit organizations to understand what powerful and FREE or very low cost resources are available to help navigate the challenging technology maze. Whether we like or not, technology is impacting and changing the world. We hope this guide will help you conquer and leverage the resources available to you. All of the following resources are available to eligible 501c (3) organizations.

1. Deep Discounts and Major Savings on Software:

TechSoup facilitates and distributes discounted hardware and software to nonprofits via a Web-based platform. Nearly free software, try to plan ahead as some software can only be purchased once a year. Savings of 70-90% are very common for the titles available. Check out their website at http://techsoup.org/get-product-donations.

Browse hundreds of software and hardware products donated by leading technology companies like Microsoft, Cisco, Adobe, Intuit, and Symantec -- all donated or deeply discounted. For example, eligible nonprofits can save up to 96% on the latest, most popular solutions such as:

Microsoft Hosted E-mail – Free

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2013 - $25

QuickBooks 2015 - $25-99

Windows 8.1 - $12

Microsoft Open License Charity Software Program provides for a 25-90% discount on a wide variety of commonly used titles, such as Microsoft Office. There are no limits or restrictions. These solutions are facilitated by about 20 authorized distributors across the country.

One that is easy to deal with and has great support is http://ccbtechnology.com/about/

To learn more visit http://www.microsoft.com/about/corporatecitizenship/en-us/nonprofits/.

Google Apps offers a free suite of applications that are very similar to Microsoft Office including word processing, spreadsheets, shared documents and calendars. This is a hosted solution where you don’t have to maintain internal servers. One thing to keep in mind when using Google Apps is they own the right to use your content anyway they see fit. If not set up correctly, confidential information may be unnecessarily at risk. To learn more about this offering go to www.google.com/nonprofits.

Adobe and Symantec also have Charity software programs to avoid higher retail pricing, visit their websites respectively at http://www.adobe.com/volume-licensing/non-profit.html

and www.techsoup.org/symantec.

Gifts in Kind offers nonprofit organizations access to product donations and special pricing provided by leading companies in partnership with Gifts In Kind International. You can visit their website at http://about.good360.org/

Idealware provides candid Consumer-Reports-style reviews and articles about software of interest to nonprofits, centralized into their website at www.idealware.org.

Nonprofit Open Source Initiative facilitates and encourages the use of open source software in the nonprofit sector. To get a better understanding of how they can help you, visit them at http://www.nosi.net/

2. Discounted Hardware: (computers, laptops, servers, etc.)

Tech Soup one of the nation’s oldest and largest nonprofit technology assistance agencies. TechSoup.org has a number of high quality (Cisco) new network hardware and access to refurbished computers and sometimes even servers. – http://www.techsoup.org/computers-and-electronics

NPower Greater DC and Dell have partnered to bring Dell's award-winning technology, service and support to nonprofit organizations at significant savings.
Click here to go to this Dell Premier purchasing page.

Printers – there are free high quality color laser printers https://www.freecolorprinters.xerox.com available if you agree to buy your consumables (ink cartridges or laser toners) from the manufacturer. Since these are necessary anyway, it does allow you to acquire in-house printing capability that could save you lots of money on outside printing

3. Online Fundraising Options (e-philanthropy):

Network for Good is a nonprofit organization dedicated to using the web to help people get more involved in their communities - from donating money to getting involved with issues they care about as volunteers. To take advantage of their offerings, www1.networkforgood.org.

First Giving, a leader in providing online fundraising tools to fundraisers and nonprofits, helps thousands of individuals raise millions of dollars for US nonprofit organizations. Check out their website at www.firstgiving.com.

Paypal offers special rates and is competitive when specifying upon setup that you are a nonprofit. Unfortunately, some NPO’s are paying full corporate rates and costing 2-5% more in online donations. Go to the nonprofit section of Paypal’s website.

Greater Giving is a solution provider to nonprofits that offers innovative technology in your fundraising efforts. They offer tools for mobile bidding, auctions, check-in/out, and online fundraising. To learn more about how they might benefit your organization, go to their website at www.greatergiving.com.

MemberClicks is better suited for membership based organizations. This solution provides online registration, limited membership management and the ability to raise funds online for transparency to your members. For more information visit them at www.memberclicks.com.

4. Online Resources:

Service Space is an all-volunteer run organization that has projects ranging from an “acts of kindness” portal to web solutions. Visit their service programs at www.servicespace.org.

Idealist is a clearing house for members to post and find volunteers, interns, jobs and organizations in the nonprofit sector. For more information go to www.idealist.org.

The Non Profit Matrix is an online directory and guide to Application Service Providers (ASPs) and portals offering web-based services for nonprofits. Go to www.nonprofitmatrix.com for more information.

Grassroots.org offers free web hosting and volunteer-based web services for nonprofits.

Basecamp is a relatively low cost option for file sharing and managing projects between the organization, its board members and volunteers. To learn more about its capability, visit their website at www.basecamp.com.

5. Board, Strategy and Training Development:

BoardSource is a membership organization that works exclusively with nonprofit boards and their leaders to help implement good governance practices. For more information visit their website at www.boardsource.org.

Non Profit Help Desk provides a variety of affordable services specifically designed to address the multiple challenges faced by nonprofits. Services include areas in Executive Coaching, Diversity, Financial Management, Leadership, Human Resources, and Business Continuity Planning. Visit them at www.nten.org.

6. Donor Database Solutions:

Salesforce Foundation provides up to 10 user licenses for free for those nonprofits that will actively engage with their solution. Their core solution is a donor database that can be customized and connected to other applications. It is an end to end solution built to connect the NPO partners, supporters, employees to deliver better programs. To learn more about this program go to www.salesforcefoundation.org/nonprofit. Some very limited support is provided, but can be delayed.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM – has a custom solution for nonprofits that they offer for $10/user/month versus the corporate pricing of $65/user/month. http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/crm-customer-center/non-profit-pricing.aspx

This option does provide for support. It also is a donor database that can be customized and connected to other applications. Reporting is one of the strongest features of Microsoft Dynamics.

Seamless integration with Excel makes it easy to slice and dice data with pivot tables, and the dashboards offered by Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online allow you to drill deep into your data and see it visualized in custom charts and graphs. Regular pricing is $65 per user per month, but qualified nonprofit organizations can get Microsoft Dynamics CRM for just $9.99 per user per month. There is also a 30-day free trial so your organization can determine if it is the right fit before committing.

7. Technology Advice or Assistance:

Alliance for Nonprofit Management is a national best practices resource for nonprofit organization management and provides a searchable listing of specialized consultants. Go to www.allianceonline.org for more information.

8. Grant Resources:

The Foundation Center is an online authority on philanthropy dedicated to helping the community strengthen the nonprofit sector by targeting requests for funding. Visit their offerings at www.thefoundationcenter.org

Grant Station is a grant resource that has a comprehensive database of private grant makers, daily updates on federal grant announcements, and links to government grant makers in your state. For more information go to www.grantstation.com.

Technology Grant News provides education grant listings and best practices 4 times a year. This publication educates the reader about the latest technology grants and funding available, with profiles of winning projects and directions in technology development. Their website is www.technologygrantnews.com.

Tech Foundation provides grant information, IT seminars, discount software and other resources aimed at bridging the digital divide for nonprofits. You can visit their website for more information by going to their website at www.techfoundation.org.

Idonate is an innovative group that unlocks non-cash wealth and assets of your existing donors by letting them donate items such as cars, jewelry and turns their donation into cash donations for your organization. Over 90% of the assets your donors have are non-cash and to be able to accept these can have a huge impact on your ability to fundraise. To learn more about their programs go to www.idonate.com.

American Association of Grant Professionals is a national nonprofit membership association. It builds and supports an international community of grant professionals committed to serving the greater public good by practicing the highest ethical and professional standards. For more information go to www.grantprofessionals.org.

9. Building Website Presence:

Google Adwords is an online advertising option that allows you to set the expense of a Pay Per Click campaign to build awareness of the offerings you provide. When you conduct a Google search, there are two types of results: search results provided on the left and paid results provided on the right. The search results on the right are there because of Adwords that advertisers have paid for. For example when you search for "world poverty" on Google, text ads related to world poverty appear on the right hand side. When you click on one of the ads, you are brought to the website being advertised. To get free Adwords, apply for a Google Grant. Create your next Google Adword campaign.

Google Grants increase awareness of your organization, get more volunteers and even generate new online donations, you need Internet users that are interested in the services and people you help. They need to easily find you. In this program, Google provides FREE online advertising by letting you choose keywords that will drive visitors to your site. To learn more about this opportunity go to www.google.com/grants. Items to note:

There is no reporting

There is no set duration or expiration date for these grants

There is no need to reapply over time

You only have to follow their published guidelines

Their average grant is $10,000/month

They pay up to $1.00 per Adword

They only have one person reviewing these applications so it can take up to 6 months

They want to know how their grants advance your mission

10. Technology Planning and I.T. Assessment:

NPower Network mobilizes the technology community and provides opportunities to build tech skills for the nonprofit to achieve their potential. Visit their website at www.npower.org.

Telos Orphan Partners is an all volunteer 501c3 organization (www.teloscares.org) that wants to help every orphan in the world find a good home using technology. Believe it or not, technology is an accelerator in building capacity, increased fundraising, and certainly reducing administrative expenses.

We would be happy to speak with you about your organization’s needs and whether the solution we have built could help you advance your mission.