Spectrum Sailing

Spectrum Sailing is a nonprofit organization that provides maritime education, programming, and outreach for autistic individuals. Their mission is to offer free camps nationwide that provides opportunities for skill development, social interaction, and confidence building.

Challenge

Scott Herman, founder of Spectrum Sailing was looking for a CRM that was easy-to-use, not just for himself but for his donors as well. He wanted to move away from manually tracking donations in spreadsheets and to a donor management software that would support the growth of his organization. As the sole operator of the organization, Scott needed a system that would save him time but also a company that would support him throughout the learning process.

Scott explained why he began searching for a donor CRM, stating, “for us to take that next step as an organization and to go from this proof of concept to a real standalone, solid nonprofit, we needed to integrate with a CRM platform that would take us through that process and the steps of being a professional nonprofit.”

Solution

As Scott was searching for a CRM to help his nonprofit, Bloomerang was the one that stood out to him. He found Bloomerang to be budget-friendly and capable of accommodating the long-term growth of Spectrum Sailing.

The ease-of-use and professional look of Bloomerang were things that impressed Scott, but what really stood out to him was the team behind Bloomerang and the support he has received.

“With Bloomerang, so far, every step of the way there’s been someone there to help us through the transition and help us in that learning curve.”

It was important to Scott to learn the platform because he wanted it to be a tool that he’d use to its full potential. When he learned of Bloomerang’s coaching sessions, he found a cost-effective way to learn from a team of professionals. “That was more of an investment than it was a cost. Because without it, I probably wouldn’t use the tool.”

Results

Since implementing Bloomerang at the beginning of 2023, Scott and Spectrum Sailing have successfully resolved the issues they faced prior to using Bloomerang. Scott has been able to save time in his day and have all his donations automatically updated to Bloomerang. “Now it’s all done by itself and even tells me on my dashboard who has donated and who to reach out to. That’s a basic piece but it’s life-changing for me just from a time standpoint.”

Scott is enthusiastic about continuing to utilize the coaching sessions to further enhance his platform knowledge. These sessions have not only addressed his concerns but have also revealed better ways to utilize the product and features he was previously unaware of.

Scott explained that using Bloomerang has felt like having another team member, and as a one-person nonprofit that was important to him. “I really feel like we have a partner now. And now I have a professional team of fundraisers and communicators that are really there to help me along the way.”

“I would recommend moving forward with Bloomerang,” Scott stated when asked if he had any advice for similar nonprofits. “The staff here is completely committed to your success and I think that is extremely important in a small organization.”

Scott also shared this about his experience,

“I feel like I have a team in Bloomerang that’s there behind me and there to help me. You’re basically not only buying the CRM, but you’re buying a team to come on board with you and help you be successful.”