When you meet someone new for the first time, you’re starting at square one. Gradually, you learn about details such as their occupation, interests, and hobbies, so the next time you see each other, you can ask questions like, “How are you liking the new responsibilities at your job?” or “How did that marathon go?” By building on each interaction, you create a relationship. The same applies to your nonprofit and its donors.
Maintaining a clean and accurate donor database ensures that your nonprofit always has the context it needs to engage its donors, craft appeals that resonate with them, and nurture long-lasting support for your mission. Rather than treating your donors as strangers, you can lean into their interests and preferences, making them feel like true partners in your impact.
In this guide, we’ll discuss five essential techniques to keep your database clean for accurate data analytics, stronger decision-making, and improved donor relationship-building.
1. Choose comprehensive donor database software.
Even the cleanest, most well-organized spreadsheets can only do so much for your nonprofit. By investing in a comprehensive donor database solution, such as Salesforce, you can unlock features that allow you to:
- Build detailed, custom donor profiles. Keep track of each donor’s engagement with your nonprofit by storing information related to their giving, demographics, communication preferences, and any additional details you might need. For example, a nonprofit dedicated to rescuing and re-homing stray cats might want to record the birthdays of adopted pets and use the opportunity to reach out to their owners each year.
- Assign tasks and create reminders for users. It takes a team effort to maintain and use your donor database. Choose a solution that makes it easy to assign tasks and automate reminders to individual users, so everyone knows exactly what they need to do and when they need to have it done.
- Set up integrations with your other platforms. Your nonprofit might use other software for purposes such as accounting or email marketing. Regardless of the specific solutions you have, your donor database should be able to connect to them easily so you can access all the data you need in one place.
If it’s time for your organization to search for a new database solution, Fundly recommends reading online reviews and asking for recommendations from your peers to narrow down your options. No two nonprofits are exactly alike, but hearing about the experiences of a variety of other nonprofits can help you ensure that whatever database you select aligns with your specific goals.
2. Set user permissions for staff and volunteers.
You’ve likely heard of the phrase, “too many cooks in the kitchen.” When applied to your nonprofit’s donor database management, this means that having too many users making changes can result in a less efficient and orderly system. By implementing user permissions, you can provide the appropriate level of access to each individual based on their role and responsibilities.
Some of the main benefits of user permissions include:
- Protecting sensitive donor information. Depending on your nonprofit’s area of work, your database could include details such as bank account numbers, social security numbers, home addresses, or medical records. By setting user permissions, you can ensure that only users who need to access this information can see it.
- Preventing accidental data changes. The more people making updates to your database, the higher the chances of errors or deletions. Restricting database modification to only necessary users minimizes accidental changes made by staff or volunteers who aren’t as familiar with navigating the system.
- Improving traceability of changes. If your team ever runs into any questions about a recent update in your database, having clear controls in place makes it easy to identify who to go to for troubleshooting or clarification on why the change was made.
Cybersecurity should be a major priority for all types of organizations, from nonprofits to businesses to educational institutions. Taking measures such as setting appropriate user permissions can go a long way toward protecting your donors—and your relationships with them.
3. Segment your donor database.
As your nonprofit expands, so will the data you collect on your donors. Donor segmentation is key to breaking down your database into manageable, logical pieces that your team can work with. After all, your donors all have their own interests, motivations, and connections to your cause. To engage with them as individuals, rather than generic members of your community, categorize your donors by characteristics such as:

- Type of donor. Are they a first-time, recurring, or major donor? Have they provided your nonprofit with in-kind donations or an event sponsorship? Do they make stock gifts or contribute through a donor-advised fund (DAF)?
- Communication preferences. Based on generation or personal experience, donors may prefer to hear from your nonprofit via one communication channel over another. Note whether they want monthly email newsletters, weekly text message updates, or more one-on-one social media interactions.
- Interests. Do many of your donors love animals? If so, you might decide to host a yoga with pets fundraiser and invite all of these individuals to attend. Note any personal and charitable interests that are relevant to your nonprofit, such as reading, sustainability, or getting active.
Based on the segments in your database, you can craft automated messages that resonate with each donor, whether they’re new to your cause or a frequent event attendee.
4. Audit your database regularly.
Over time, your donors will change their addresses, phone numbers, and involvement with your nonprofit. Staying on top of these changes is crucial to the continuing success of your marketing and engagement efforts—ensuring that your direct mail appeals reach the right addresses and you don’t end up asking a donor who’s already in your recurring giving program to join.
Conduct regular database audits to:
- Remove inaccurate or duplicated information.
- Correct outdated records.
- Update user permissions as needed.
If you identify any gaps in your database during your audit, consider filling them in with services such as email appends, which pull from third-party sources to augment your donor data and provide the most up-to-date information.
5. Provide training to users.
Not everyone on your team will start with the same level of technical expertise and experience when it comes to using your donor database. Whether they’re a staff member or volunteer, you can set all users up for success by:
- Including basic database walkthroughs during the onboarding process.
- Sharing short video tutorials and troubleshooting FAQs.
- Designating a “go-to” team member to reach out to for technical support.
Keep everyone on the same page to maintain your database smoothly and efficiently. According to 360MatchPro’s list of data hygiene best practices, you should also create and communicate data entry standards to keep all your records consistent. For example, you might train users to enter phone numbers as (123) 456-7890 instead of 123-456-7890.
Your nonprofit’s donor database can yield a treasure trove of insights to boost progress toward your fundraising goals, from unlocking major gift prospects to turning your loyal volunteers into donors. By keeping all your donor information clean, accurate, and organized, you can make more strategic decisions and better convey your impact to your stakeholders—thereby increasing the support you receive in the long run.
Missy Singh
Fundly
Missy Singh is the Director of Operations, Client Services & Sales at Fundly. She has been working there since 2011 when she started as a Customer Experience and Implementation Manager. As an integrated platform for social impact, Fundly serves as an industry leader in crowdfunding and peer-to-peer fundraising. In 2015 Fundly combined with NonProfitEasy to offer enterprise-level technology that addresses nonprofit needs with features such as a CRM, volunteer management, membership management, and event registration.