Diagnostic Tool For Faith-Based Organizations

This free assessment will help you determine how you are doing with your fundraising and communication practices, and where you might focus your improvement efforts. This should take you less than 5 minutes.

After you take this short assessment, your score and some additional information will be emailed to you within 24 hours.

Please answer every question.

Question Title

* 1. Let's get to know you (so we can send you back the results)

NAME

ORGANIZATION

Question Title

* 2. Does your organization have a well-defined story to tell?

A. I don’t know.

B. We don’t have a well-defined story. Our message varies widely across our website and fundraising/marketing materials.

C. We have a well-defined story and this same message is consistently conveyed in our website and fundraising/marketing materials.

D. We have a well-defined story in which we differentiate ourselves from other similar organizations. This unique perspective is woven into our stories in our website and fundraising/marketing materials.

Question Title

* 3. Is your organization branded?

A. I don’t know what that means.

B. Yes, we have a logo.

C. Yes, our branding is consistent and carried throughout our website and fundraising/marketing materials.

D. Yes, our branding is consistent on our website, our fundraising/marketing materials and across all channels. We have a style guide to ensure that all rules for logo usage and recommended fonts and color options are followed in all fundraising/marketing materials.

Question Title

* 4. Do you have a fundraising plan and strategy in place every year?

A. We are so busy we don’t have time to develop a fundraising plan.

B. We follow the same fundraising plan every year.

C. We evaluate our plan annually to develop a strategy for the following year.

D. We evaluate our plan annually to develop a strategy for the next five years. Everyone in our organization shares some responsibility for revenue generation by serving as ambassadors and building relationships with potential donors and constituents. Our goal is to have a Culture of Philanthropy in our organization.

Question Title

* 5. What type of fundraising/marketing materials do you send to potential supporters?

A. We don’t send any print or online fundraising/marketing materials.

B. We create all fundraising/marketing materials with budget in mind. We worry about the overhead expense. We feel low-budget pieces are good enough for our supporters and donors.

C. We strive to have a professional and authentic look for all our fundraising/marketing materials and our website.

D. We strive to have a professional and authentic look to all our fundraising/marketing materials and our website. Both the words and photos work together to tell our story in a unique way. We feel our print and online materials should be well done because they reflect our organization and our mission.

Question Title

* 6. Is your website current?

A. No, that’s a complaint we hear.

B. The Content Management System is very cumbersome and no one here knows how to use it. Updates are done when we can get to them.

C. Yes, we keep the content on our site relevant and current by making updates in our Content Management System on a regular basis.

D. Yes, we make updates in our Content Management System on a regular basis. We have developed and are following a content strategy plan for keeping the content on our site relevant and current.

Question Title

* 7. Is your website easy to navigate?

A. No, that’s a complaint we hear.

B. The navigation on the website follows the structure of our organization.

C. Yes, we have made assumptions on the site navigation based on both internal and eternal interviews and there are quick links on the website.

D. Yes, the website is focused on the needs of the site visitor rather than how the organization is structured. We make informed decisions on the navigation because we perform user testing. We use the results from the user testing to guide changes to the website navigation.

Question Title

* 8. Does your organization accept online donations?

A. No, donors mail checks to us.

B. Yes, we use an online payment system such as PayPal or Stripe.

C. Yes, we have e-Commerce embedded in our website and it is protected by an SSL certificate.

D. Yes, we use the donation functionality from a donor management software tool such as Raiser’s Edge by Blackbaud, Bloomerang, Donor Perfect, or eTapestry.

Question Title

* 9. Does your organization have a donor management software in place?

A. We use other software (like a spreadsheet) to track donor contact information and donations.

B. Yes, we have a donor management software tool but definitely need training on how to use the software. The software is great for printing labels.

C. Yes, we are using a donor management software tool such as Raiser’s Edge by Blackbaud, Bloomerang, Donor Perfect, or eTapestry. We are tracking donations through this software.

D. Yes, we are using a donor management software tool such as Raiser’s Edge by Blackbaud, Bloomerang, Donor Perfect, or eTapestry. We have staff member(s) trained in utilizing all the possible functionalities. All automation tools are set up and running well.

Question Title

* 10. What are your top challenges/pain points? (Check all that are relevant.)

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

CEO/Executive Director/Archbishop/Bishop wearing too many hats and not delegating responsibilities to others

Lack of engagement on Board of Directors/Executive Committee

Development Director and/or staff needs more training

Thinking about short-term goals (instead of long-term goals)

FINANCE

Raising more money with only limited staff and financial resources

Decline in government funding

Worries about programs ending, staff reduction and sites closing if fundraising goals aren’t met or surpassed

Competition for donations: Abundance of other giving opportunities making the field very competitive

DONORS

Building the pipeline of new donors and younger donors

Shrinking donor base because church attendance is diminishing; a large majority of donors are 50 years and older

Maintaining a strong stewardship program and relationship with our donors

Perceived feeling of apathy toward organized religion

Changing demographics in the population and reaching them in ways that are culturally appropriate

RESOURCES

Lacking a donor management software

Lacking the skills to efficiently use our donor management software

Need to be more up-to-date with online donations, especially on mobile devices

Keeping our database up-to-date

MARKETING

Ineffective or insecure website

Lacking effective communication materials

Handling social media

Lack of name recognition

Other (please specify)