# Factary launches database of donors and supporters

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2009/09/18/factary-launches-database-donors-and-supporters/
- Published: 2009-09-18T16:28:18+01:00
- Author: Finbar Cullen

I have just had a trial of “Phi”, a new product from Factary (www.factary.com). 
It is a database of donors and supporters (trustees, patrons, etc) which currently
contains over 100,000 records. Chris Carnie at Factary tells me that the information
in the database has been collected from websites, accounts and other public domain
sources, and that every record includes a link to the website or document from which
the data comes.

 

You can search the database by a number of fields, and can search by several fields(
e.g. amount and cause, and location). You can download the information into a csv
file. Charities can subscribe for £500 + VAT. Freelancers pay more, with substantial
discounts for introducing charity subscribers.

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I think that this is a very interesting development, and is a resource that could
prove very useful for researchers and fundraisers. I have been working on a similar
project myself for a few years, and have been pipped to the post. However, I have
a few reservations about this product. When I discussed this idea with someone a
few years ago, I groaned when I was told that such a database would need c 1 million
records. I am still nowhere near that, having slightly fewer records than Factary.

 

I am not that keen on the layout, and clicking on the source link doesn’t open a
new page, so don’t wander too far. If you are checking for particular locations 
for the recipient, then check the region, and postcode, and city, if possible, to
be sure to collect all the possible matches. Not all records include a donation 
amount.

 

If you are interested in subscribing, then ask for a trial, or for advice on how
many records there are that meet the criteria that you will be using.

 

Finbar Cullen

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