Nonprofits are lucky to have so many software vendors willing to donate or discount their products. If your organization uses Salesforce, one of the best tools out there is DemandTools by CRMFusion.

DemandTools is a data quality and data cleansing tool that is free for any 501c3 nonprofit organization to use. Did we mention it’s totally awesome? DemandTools can handle just about any data management task you might have, including:

• Importing a spreadsheet of data
• Updating existing records based on criteria you define with no spreadsheet required
• Locating duplicate records
• Merging duplicate records in bulk
• Directly editing records in bulk
• Reassigning record ownership, deleting records, and converting massive amounts of leads

How do I acquire DemandTools?

The process of acquiring DemandTools is pretty straightforward. All you need to do is download the software and begin a five-day trial. Afterward, you need to send them your 501c3 letter and request the donated license. Learn more about CRMFusion’s Not for Profit program.

Please keep in mind that page tech support is not included with the donation. However, DemandTools is well documented and just about any qualified Salesforce consultant is familiar with it.

Explore the Tools

Each feature of DemandTools is called a module and they have names like MassEffect, MassImpact, and Single Table Dedupe. The best way to learn about each of these is to visit the CRMFusion website and watch a short demo video for each.

Who should use DemandTools?

DemandTools is a good fit for just about any organization using Salesforce but it is a powerful tool and should only be used by the right staff person or administrator. While it’s possible to edit and delete records in your database in bulk without outside consultation, we recommend only a trained system administrator use DemandTools to ensure large scale mistakes aren’t accidentally made.

The user interface takes some getting used to as it can be rather austere. For example, you’re going to see mostly text on the screen instead of a lot of flashy click-and-drag options. The interface of each module is a little different as well, so switching from MassImpact to MassEffect requires a bit of reorientation.

But at the end of the day, you’ll get the most out of DemandTools if you use it regularly.

If you have questions about DemandTools, would like to schedule some hands-on training, or would like to receive coaching if you’ve already been using it, please send 501 Commons a message and we will be glad to lend a helping hand!