A CiviCRM Rebirth

Restoring the Foundations Ministry (RTF) is an integrated approach to biblical healing, with over 200 teams around the globe providing training and personal ministry to churches and people seeking help. The mission of the organization is to offer “hope for healing, freedom from life’s deepest struggles, and renewed purpose for living.” Making the switch to CiviCRM has allowed RTF to go from using spreadsheets, multiple bulk mailing programs and other fragmented processes to rolling all of this into the same centralized program that has also been integrated with their website. CiviCRM has been instrumental in improving their efficiency with performing daily tasks that are crucial to furthering their organization’s mission. Cividesk recently spoke with Jaque, Office Manager, to learn more about their experiences transitioning to and using CiviCRM. 

How were you managing your data before CiviCRM?
RTF staff used Excel spreadsheets for tracking their memberships and events, MailChimp and Vertical Response for their emailing campaigns. Yet, it was difficult to keep track of the membership data on spreadsheets. When data was needed to report on renewals and current membership financials, it had to be manually assembled by searching through spreadsheets. This needed to be consolidated into one centralized process. 

Could you describe a challenge you faced that CiviCRM helped resolve?
One challenge we are still facing is some resistance from colleagues who prefer to continue using the old system of Excel spreadsheets. Bringing a new database to the organization has been a struggle. Despite this challenge, having the data in a centralized place is a huge benefit that everyone appreciates, especially now that the organization has recently implemented a new WordPress website integrated with CiviCRM.

Why did you choose CiviCRM and the service provider Cividesk?
CiviCRM came highly recommended to RTF and furthermore it could be integrated with their WordPress website. The ability to have expert support available to help with any questions, challenges and customization within a reasonable budget was also important.

What are some of the main features you use in CiviCRM?
With membership managed in CiviCRM, website visitors can sign up as new members and existing members can renew their memberships after receiving renewal reminders sent out automatically by the CRM.

After receiving training by Cividesk on Mosaico we are no longer using MailChimp for their emailing communication and now manage all their emailing campaigns with CiviCRM. With the use of the Mosaico extension, they can send out very nice, professional and responsive newsletters to their members.

A substantial improvement Jaque noted is the ease of segmenting contacts to reach out to different groups. For example, RTF work with many trainers and recently Jaque created an online form to gather information from the trainers to gauge their interest in continuing working in the training program. She emails the group a link to the online form asking questions about their interest level. Jaque explained how this is a big improvement over the old system, being able to email trainers individually and then searching through the trainers’ responses.

Another key functionality is the possibility to generate reports on membership and supporters including financial reports. Before CiviCRM, it was time consuming to find this information but now it is easy to locate with a search or using one of the report templates. These reports can be emailed automatically to staff members who need this information. Instead of creating an email she can create a report and email the report to staff members who need this information. Jaque added:“I don’t need to spend time searching through old emails to find the information I need, since “it’s right there”.