CRM and Website Support

Dear Affiliate Groups,

I am happy to say that the migration to Raiser’s Edge has been successfully completed!  Our contract with SilkStart ended last Wednesday, July 31 and we are now eager to begin this new chapter with Raiser’s Edge.  

Every record that was in SilkStart has been brought into Raiser’s Edge.  The final task is for Raiser’s Edge to code all of the records with the correct Affiliate Group constituent codes so the records show in your membership lists in Raiser’s Edge NXT.  Over the next couple of days you will see your membership count positively reflect what was in SilkStart.  We have also indicated which of these records was listed in SilkStart as an Active/Inactive member or a contact – this will show on each record.

I will admit, there has been a lot to digest as we made our way through the various stages of the migration, and I don’t blame anyone for feeling confused or frustrated.  However, now that we are on the other side of this migration, I am confident we have the right tools and people in place to make this an exciting new adventure for all of us.  For those of you whose heads are still spinning from all the moving parts, I would like to bring us back to the basics to ensure we are all starting on the same page.

The old system: SilkStart, our previous platform, combined a database management system into a website.  A user would visit your website and be given an ability to login to see events, make donations, and visit a membership directory.  The admin would edit their website and manage their membership in the same place.

The new system: NPCA has evolved from our previous system which had a number of limitations to arguably the best options for website management (WordPress) and membership management (Raiser’s Edge).  The main difference with this system is that users will no longer log into your website as they did before.  Likewise, you will not log into WordPress to access your database – this is now done on Raiser’s Edge.  

WordPress is a content management system that allows users to create and manage websites without needing to know how to code. It’s designed to be easy to use, with a simple interface that makes it suitable for people who are more comfortable with word processors than coding.  Any group who had a website on SilkStart was given the option to migrate to WordPress with the help of FatLab. 

You will use WordPress to update your website.  That’s about it.

FatLab, our web developer partner, has successfully migrated every website that was requested of them and they remain on-hand for any further web support that is needed.  They have also put together an affordable plan to help Affiliate Groups create websites now that the migration from SilkStart is complete.

Raiser’s Edge is the database management (CRM – customer relationship management) software that we are using.  Raiser’s Edge is a product of the company BlackBaud, and it is considered to be one of the (if not the) best database software for nonprofit management.

You will use Raiser’s Edge to do the following:

1. View your membership and your members’ records.
2. Send email to your members.
3. Create Forms for membership, events, and donations.
4. Conduct donor wealth screenings* (this comes at an additional cost)

NPCA creates and manages all the users in Raiser’s Edge.  Once a group opts into Raiser’s Edge, our team will create a user account for your group and get you set up.  This is a smooth and straightforward process.  We have also created a few training tutorials to easily get you started with Raiser’s Edge – those can be found here: https://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/crm-migration/.

BlackBaud Merchant Services (BBMS) is another product that is available to Groups who have migrated to Raiser’s Edge.  By opting into BBMS your group will be able to receive donations directly into your bank account.  BBMS is separate from Raiser’s Edge and therefore it has its own process to register.  We should mention that they have strict requirements due to financial regulations, though NPCA will help walk you through this process if you are interested in BBMS.

How do Raiser’s Edge and WordPress work together?

• Raiser’s Edge is where your group can create forms where users can join as members, register for events, or make donations to a specific cause.  All of the information gathered in these forms will be housed in Raiser’s Edge.  Your group admins can log into Raiser’s Edge to see all of their members’ information in one place.Once you create these forms you have two options on how to promote them:

1. Embed them into your website: Raiser’s Edge provides you the HTML code that can easily be copied and pasted into your website.
2. Send the URL: The URL can be promoted on your website or social media.  By clicking on the link, users will be directed to your form.

• Raiser’s Edge is also your communications platform, allowing you to send and track engagement with your members.  You can use these channels to link to your website as you wish.

• Raiser’s Edge has an open API meaning that there are a variety of 3rd party plug-ins and apps that use Raiser’s Edge’s engine to create a whole host of tools, features, and widgets.  NPCA is exploring a lot of these and will introduce them when they make sense and when resources are available.  We encourage you to explore this library and to make recommendations on any ideas you have.  You can find the Marketplace by going to: https://app.blackbaud.com/marketplace.  Though you may have to be logged into your Raiser’s Edge account to access this.

Thank you for your patience and resilience to get us all to this point.  We are excited to support you along the way and look forward to seeing how these new tools help us engage our members and leave an even bigger impact than before.

• Choose not to migrate –  Please contact Carla Brown; cbrown@peacecorpsconnect.org
• Chose to migrate – Please contact Carla Brown; cbrown@peacecorpsconnect.org
• Questions on Raiser’s Edge – Please contact Travis Mathews; tmatthews@peacecorpsconnect.org
• Questions on WordPress  – Please contact Fatlab website support here: WordPress Website Support (Fatlab)
• Questions on SilkStart  – Please contact Silkstart directly