Beyond Excel: The great charity CRM vs spreadsheet debate

Don't get me wrong - spreadsheets are a powerful tool. Most charities begin with Excel because it makes perfect sense to. They're accessible, straightforward and handle basic data management really well. They’re also (mostly) in people’s comfort zones to use. But there's usually a tipping point when spreadsheets just aren’t enough anymore, and the CRM vs spreadsheets debate begins.

The hidden costs of spreadsheets

When we talk about CRM vs spreadsheets, the conversation often starts with cost. "But Excel is free!" I hear you cry. Well, not quite. While the software itself might not cost anything, or much, upfront, there are costs hidden beyond the spreadsheet surface:

Time drain: This always comes up when discussing CRM vs Excel. How many hours does your team spend updating multiple spreadsheets, copying data between them and trying to remember which version is the "real" one? At an average charity salary, those hours add up quickly.

Human error: One misplaced postcode space in a spreadsheet can throw off your entire Gift Aid submission. Unlike a CRM, spreadsheets won't catch these mistakes or warn you about duplicate entries.

Scalability challenges: Your charity might be managing 100 donors today, but what happens when you hit 500? Or 1,000? Spreadsheets become slower, more prone to corruption and harder to share effectively among team members.

Data security shudders: This is a big one for building a business case for CRM vs Excel. Spreadsheets live on individual computers, get emailed around and offer minimal security features. Compliance becomes a genuine headache when you can't track who accessed what data and when.

When evaluating CRM vs Excel, it's important to look beyond the surface. Yes, implementing a CRM takes initial investment and learning, but the benefits compound over time.

The features first-time CRM users swear by

Speaking to charities who've weighed up CRM vs spreadsheets, there are certain features that consistently get mentioned as game-changers. These aren't the flashy advanced features either; they're the practical, everyday tools that save the most time and stress.

Automation that lightens the load

Remember those late Friday evenings spent manually sending thank-you emails? Because I certainly do! A proper charity CRM can automatically acknowledge donations, send birthday greetings and save you a good helping of time. This isn't just about saving time though; it's about ensuring consistent, professional communication with your supporters.

Explore automation

One-click Gift Aid management

This is always a winner in the great CRM vs spreadsheet debate, especially for charities with small teams. Remember the Gift Aid submissions that took you hours? CRMs with HMRC integration – like Donorfy - handle this automatically, capturing eligible donations as they come in and submitting claims electronically. 

Explore income processing & Gift Aid

Data integrity you can trust

Charity CRM systems are designed to maintain data integrity across your entire donor management process. They can prevent duplicate entries, validate information as it's entered and create audit trails for every change. This means you can track exactly when Mrs. Smith donated, who added that new corporate contact, or when a donor's preferences changed. When your trustees come knocking, you can have confidence in your data.

Explore donor management

Insights that drive growth

Here's where the business case for CRM vs Excel becomes compelling: proper analytics. Instead of spending hours creating pivot tables to answer basic questions like "How much did we raise last quarter?", you get instant dashboards. Real-time insights into donation trends, donor retention rates and campaign performance become available at the click of a button.

Explore reporting & analytics

When I worked in charity fundraising and marketing, I felt firsthand how the right CRM system transformed the way we worked. There are plenty of success stories, and here’s a great example of a charity that’s seen big benefits from braving the switch:

Youth Talk's £20,000 breakthrough

Youth Talk, a mental health charity in St Albans, perfectly illustrates the transformation possible when moving beyond spreadsheets. Before implementing Donorfy, they hadn't submitted a Gift Aid claim in over two years, with all eligible donations simply falling through the cracks of paper-based processes.

After implementation, they made a claim for £10,000 off the bat, and the automated Gift Aid integration now provides them with a reliable stream of regular income. Overall, through improved data management and reporting capabilities, they raised an extra £20,000 in less than a year. As Emily, their Fundraising Assistant, puts it:

"Donorfy has helped us streamline fundraising data a lot more, track our income better, and budget and forecast better."

Read the full story

Switchboard LGBTQ is another charity that made the move from spreadsheets and hasn’t looked back. Here, Fundraising Manager Bob gives an overview of the difference it’s made to the team:

CRM vs spreadsheet: common concerns

Change is scary, especially when you're already stretched thin and don’t want to “break what already sort of works.”  The team here regularly talk to charities, and here are three concerns that crop up:

"We just don't have the budget"

You might be surprised at how cost-effective a CRM really can be. Donorfy pricing, for example, scales with your charity and there’s a starter package specifically designed for small charities. When you factor in the time saved and additional income generated, the ROI often appears quickly.

"We don't have the technical expertise"

Step away from the computer science course - you honestly don’t need it. Modern charity CRMs have evolved to be user-friendly, with extensive training resources and support communities. Taking a free trial is a reassuring place to start, and most providers offer these. You’ll find you can navigate around a CRM in no time at all.

Start your free trial of Donorfy

"Our data is too messy"

The truth is, most charities start with scattered, scary data. Yet, we've never once come across a charity that hasn’t ultimately made it work (and felt a huge sense of relief after). Good CRM implementations include great support, too. Improving your data quality is always going to be worthwhile, and so is getting a CRM, so it’s a long-term win.

When considering CRM vs spreadsheets, it’s good to think beyond today's needs, especially when considering your business case for CRM vs Excel. Your charity needs to be positioned for growth, and it helps to have systems that can scale with you.

Integration opportunities

Modern CRM systems integrate with online giving platforms, email marketing tools and accounting software. This creates a tech stack that eliminates duplicate data entry and provides a complete view of your supporters.

Compliance and security

With data protection regulations always lurking, having proper systems in place for your data isn't just helpful - it's essential. CRM systems are designed with compliance in mind. For example, Donorfy has a dedicated preference centre that covers everything you need to be on the right side of GDPR, including supporting legitimate interest as a lawful basis for processing data (which is great for the new Data Use and Access Bill).

Single source of truth

When your entire team can access the same, up-to-date information, collaboration improves dramatically. No more wondering if someone else already called that major donor or whether the address you have is current. Everything everyone needs is in one, accessible place.

Excel spreadsheets have undoubtedly served us all well, especially in the early days of charity fundraising. But what do you do when they’re becoming a limitation, rather than a solution? First, you ask the age-old CRM vs Excel question – which tool is best going forward?

And it’s an important question. The business case for CRM vs Excel isn't just about features and functionality - it's about freeing your team to focus more on what really matters: your mission.

Your future self (and your Friday evenings) will thank you for considering the switch. When you're working hard to make a difference in the world, you don’t just need tools that work as hard as you do, you deserve them.

Here at Access, we have multiple nonprofit CRM solutions - including Donorfy charity CRM - tailored to different needs. If you’d love to talk all things charity tech, including how you can move beyond the spreadsheet shuffle, we’d love to hear from you.