CiviCRM is a popular open-source CRM solution. Organization leaders from the nonprofit, NGO, and civic sectors all take advantage of its flexible platform and build on the support from other experts in the industry. Currently, it is used by more than 11,000 nonprofits.
Because of its modular system, CiviCRM is fully customizable. As soon as you download its code, you have immediate access to CiviCRM core features like donor data collection, email capabilities, and engagement tracking. From there, you can expand its system with components (CiviCRM features you can turn on or off) and extensions (features and unique tools created by experts in the CiviCRM community) to meet your organization’s needs.
CiviCRM is also FREE to download! We at iATS Payments by Deluxe® have written about CiviCRM before, exploring the basic features and top ways you can use the system to your nonprofit’s advantage. While that article is a useful general overview of the CRM, we wanted to dive deeper into the exact ways you can expand your CiviCRM system.
This guide will walk you through the following top CiviCRM extensions:
- iATS Payments - Best CiviCRM Extension
- Summary Fields - Donor Profiles
- Profile Conditionals - Personalized Donation and Event Registration Forms
- Extended Reports - Data Analysis
- CiviMobile - Mobile App
- Mosaico CiviCRM Integration - Email Template Builder
- Semper IT - CiviCRM Consulting Service
- Cividesk - CiviCRM Consulting Service
You can use the table of contents above to click through to the extension you’re most interested in, but we recommend you start with us from the top for a more comprehensive overview. Let’s dive in.
iATS Payments: Best CiviCRM Extension
CiviCRM Extension Overview
Every fundraising leader needs a payment processor to collect online gifts— and iATS Payments is the only one dedicated to the nonprofit sector. On top of that, any CiviCRM user can freely take advantage of it!
Currently, over 1,000 CiviCRM users are using iATS payments to collect gifts and protect their donor’s data.
Top Features of this CiviCRM Extension
The iATS Payments CiviCRM Extension provides three separate payment processors that you can pick and choose to install. These include the standard credit card payment processor, ACH/EFT payment processor, and a credit card SWIPE processor that adds the ability to swipe credit cards.
Here are some of our favorite features:
- Level 1 PCI Certification that helps keeps donors safe
- Advanced fraud protection and security tools
- Recurring transactions and tokenization
Other Great CiviCRM Extensions for Your Nonprofit
Summary Fields: CiviCRM Extension for Donor profiles
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension
Summary Fields is a popular CiviCRM extension that helps fundraising leaders like you better manage and organize your donors. All the data in your CRM system can be used by Summary Fields to create comprehensive donor profiles, helping you better visualize your supporter base and gain valuable insights.
Summary Fields gives you the capabilities to:
- Search for major donors, recent donors, or lapsed donors
- Show a quick and easy-to-comprehend synopsis of a donor’s history
- Screen for a number of fields, including “Total Lifetime Contributions” and “Number of Events Attended”
- Build relationships with your supporters
Profile Conditionals : CiviCRM Extension for Personalized Donation and Event Registration Forms
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension
Profile Conditionals is a handy CiviCRM extension that can expand the abilities of site administrators. When you install Profile Conditionals, you can configure in-page changes to fields and other page elements in response to user actions. For instance, if a person registering for an event marks that they’re a past donor in a field, the form might change to adapt to that answer and add additional questions about past gift size, etc.
Use Profile Conditionals to trigger actions such as:
- Showing or hiding field elements
- Adding or relocating page elements
- Making fields required or optional
Extended Reports: CiviCRM Extension for Data Analysis
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension
One of the best parts of a capable CRM system is all the data you have access to. Extended Reports is a CiviCRM extension that helps you organize and analyze that data to apply it and strengthen your strategy. You can do this by turning your valuable information into comprehensive and informative reports.
Acting as an extended report framework, you can now:
- Add report templates like an “Event Overview report” or “Activities report”
- Use those templates to learn more about your own fundraising data
CiviMobile : CiviCRM Extension for Mobile App
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension
CiviMobile is an extension that allows CiviCRM users to take its capabilities to mobile devices. Access your regular CiviCRM platform while on the go and manage important events or campaigns in real-time.
With CiviMobile, you can:
- Keep CiviCRM data organized and always accessible
- Instantly view key data like event registrations or check-in data
- Create an app wholly branded to your organization
Mosaico: CiviCRM Extension for Email Template Builder
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension
When emailing your donors and supporters, it’s important that your content is relayed in an easily digestible way, inspires readers to take action, and is personalized to the individual. Mosaico is a CiviCRM extension that helps optimize your email marketing strategy with its email template builder!
With Mosaico, you can:
- Design and code an email that works on every device and with all major email clients
- Use and customize trusted templates to make them your own
- Drag & drop images and other media for easy uploading
Semper IT : CiviCRM Consultant
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension Consultant
Though not quite a CiviCRM extension, Semper IT is a CiviCRM consultant that can help your nonprofit with custom coding and even training for your staff. It’s great if your organization is based in Canada, as that’s where its services are hosted.
Semper IT can help you with:
- 24/7 support
- Data migration services
- Issue diagnoses, bug hunting, and other fixes in the CiviCRM Core/extensions
Cividesk : CiviCRM Consultant
Overview of this CiviCRM Extension Consultant
Cividesk is another group of experts that can help you better manage and choose your CiviCRM extensions. As soon as you download CiviCRM, Cividesk can help set up your system, download the necessary extensions, and ensure all tools are up to date. Basically, they provide a customized infrastructure for daily operations that fits your exact needs.
Here’s how Cividesk can help your nonprofit:
- Fully implement CiviCRM, including installation, personalized configuration, data migration, website integration, and more
- Train staff members and users on how to use CiviCRM for their role at your organization
- Consistent support with a monthly subscription model
Additional Resources
Want to further your research on how to improve your fundraising efforts and optimize your system? Feel free to explore these additional resources:
- CiviCRM Donations: What You Need to Know. Check out our more foundational piece on CiviCRM here! You’ll review the basics of the system as well as some best practices on how to use it to your nonprofit’s advantage.
- Nonprofit Payment Processing Buyers Guide. Looking to update your currency payment processing system? With all the different tools available, it can be hard to choose. Peruse our list of top options in this comprehensive buyers guide.
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