Modern fundraising is all about using the right tools to simplify what’s complex, automate what’s repetitive, and give your team room to do what they do best: build relationships and drive giving.
This guide breaks down the seven software categories that help modern nonprofits simplify complexity, automate execution, and free up fundraisers to do what they do best: build relationships and raise more.
These are the proven tools that top fundraising teams use to operate with clarity, speed, and confidence.
If you’re still piecing things together, this list can help you get clarity on what a smart, scalable stack really looks like.
1. Donor CRM to Keep Every Relationship Organized
A CRM helps you remember what matters: who gave, how they gave, and how to deepen the relationship over time.
Instead of manually digging through spreadsheets or swapping between platforms, a strong CRM puts everything you need in one place. Nonprofit CRMs let you track giving history, communication preferences, engagement activity, and notes. They keep your team aligned, your data clean, and your outreach intentional.
Nonprofit CRM solutions like Salesforce, Bloomerang, DonorPerfect, Virtuous, Neon One, and Raiser’s Edge NXT help fundraising teams stay organized, strategic, and proactive.
2. Email Marketing to Leverage Your Highest-ROI Channel
Email still delivers the highest ROI of any channel. And the right email marketing platform makes it easier to execute consistently.
Modern fundraising email tools let you segment audiences, personalize messaging, and schedule sends based on behavior, not just your calendar. Whether you’re sending a first-time thank you or reactivating lapsed donors, email software lets you communicate clearly and consistently with your givers.
Platforms like Mailchimp, Hubspot, ActiveCampaign, and Kit help teams do more with less manual effort, while improving results.
3. Donation Platforms to Make Giving Seamless
When donors are ready to give, nothing should get in their way. They want giving to be fast, easy, and intuitive. And a nonprofit donation platform allows generosity to flow.
Modern nonprofit donation tools are built for speed, clarity, and flexibility. They let you create mobile-friendly forms, offer recurring options, and tailor asks by campaign or audience. The results are higher conversion rates and more confident giving.
Solutions like iDonate, RaiseDonors, Anedot, and FundraiseUp make it easy to capture generosity the moment it strikes.
4. Analytics and Reporting to Know What’s Working and Why
Fundraising strategy should be guided by data, not instinct.
Analytics tools give you visibility into the performance of your campaigns, channels, and donor behavior. They help you spot trends, optimize strategies, and report back with clarity.
Platforms like Google Analytics, Looker Studio, and Power BI support data-informed decisions that sharpen strategy for smarter growth.
5. Marketing Automation to Build Campaigns That Run Themselves
Marketing automation takes what your team does best: timely, relevant communication, and makes it scalable.
With a nonprofit marketing automation tool, you can trigger emails based on donor behavior, set up drip campaigns that nurture interest, and ensure no opportunity slips through the cracks. It’s like adding an extra team member that never forgets to follow up.
Tools like HubSpot, Marketo, Pardot, and ActiveCampaign help nonprofit teams create journeys that are consistent, thoughtful, and built to convert. You don’t have to rely on manual execution anymore!
6. Forms and Lead Capture to Start the Journey with a Simple Action
Not every supporter is ready to give right away. But they might sign up, RSVP, or download a resource.
Lead capture forms help you capture that interest and feed it into your broader strategy. Whether it’s an event registration or an advocacy form, the right tool makes it easy to collect and organize contact info so you can nurture your potential donors and follow up with purpose.
Solutions like Gravity Forms, Unbounce, and Leadpages help fundraisers turn one-time interactions into active momentum.
7. Donor Intelligence and Segmentation to Focus Where It Matters Most
Not all donors are the same, and your outreach strategy shouldn’t be either.
Donor intelligence tools help you prioritize the right people with the right message at the right time.
Fundraising intelligence tools help you understand who’s most likely to give, how to tailor your message, and where to focus your energy. With smart segmentation, you can match the right message to the right moment, increasing response rates and strengthening relationships.
Tools like Looker, Tableau, or even spreadsheet-based models help surface patterns. And systems like Avid take it a step further, connecting your donor data with live engagement, so your segmentation isn’t just smarter, it’s automatic.
Avid, The Fundraising Intelligence System That Makes It All Work
You’ve now seen what a strong fundraising stack looks like: purposeful tools solving real problems. But even the best tools can fall short when they’re working in isolation.
That’s the difference between having a stack of tools, and having a system.
Think about your current stack.
Does your CRM trigger timely emails based on donor behavior? Does your donation form feed into your segmentation strategy? Do you know which campaigns are working (and why) in real time?
Most teams are stuck managing data across tools instead of using it to drive action. That’s where Avid comes in. We call it the Fundraising Agency in the Cloud.
What is Avid?
Avid is a fundraising intelligence system that helps you get more out of the fundraising tools you already use.
While many platforms collect and visualize data, Avid does something different: it connects the dots across your stack (CRM, email platform, donation tools), aggregates donor activity, and delivers insights your team can act on, automatically.
Instead of just showing you dashboards, Avid uses AI to tell you what matters. It updates your segments in real time, triggers campaigns based on behavior, and keeps every tool in sync, so you’re not just tracking engagement, you’re acting on it.
The best part is that Avid doesn’t replace your stack, it makes it smarter.
Want to see how Avid can help you turn your stack into a system that actually works? → Book a demo here.
