SOFTWARE: re: AppealMaster takover by Blackbaud

Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 13:20:28 +1000
From: Robyn Allcock

Rebecca

I don’t have any knowledge on local prices, etc – but, as a matter of
principle – beware the data conversion! Whichever system you choose, make
sure it will cover your longterm needs, even if that means paying for
something which is more sophisticated than you need in the short term – the
pain of the changeover isn’t something most people would like to go through
twice. It SHOULD be easy, but it never seems to work out that way!

Robyn Allcock

PRO POPULI PTY LTD
Fundraising and Recruitment Specialists
16 Neville Street
Oatley NSW 2223
AUSTRALIA
Phone +61 2 9594 4814
VISIT PRO POPULI’S WEBSITE AT http://www.propopuli.net

Date: Wed, 14 Aug 2002 06:20:07 EDT
From: John Rodd

On the Blackbaud take-over of AppealMaster (or was it a sell out?):-

I am afraid that Blackbaud has done this before in other countries. In
Australia they snuffed out a good competitor and it serves to show that with
their wealth they can reduce the competitive advantage afforded to charities
when there is a choice of software.

Inevitably prices will go up, and up and innovation will be stifled
(Blackbaud is very slow to innovate) ….. and charities and their causes
will suffer for it. Blackbaud sells Raiser’s Edge in the UK for about the
same number of US dollars it charges over there. Is this profiteering? Once
again rip off Britain suffers.

There is nothing charities can do about this ‘big business crushes the
opposition’ approach, but we don’t have to let Blackbaud off easily and I
hope the Scottish AppealMaster users are blunt with them. I think also Paul
Steadman of AppealMaster should tell us why he did this? Many of us thought
he was one of the good guys. Who’s next? Fisk Brett?

John Rodd
Rodd Associates
Database Marketing Consultant
for charities and nonprofit organisations
London (UK) & Toronto (Canada)

Tel UK: +44 (0)20 8742 1131

Fax UK: +44 (0)20 8994 1884
Mobile worldwide: +44 (0)77 12 00 3232
E mail worldwide: [email]johnrodd@aol.com[/email]
Tel Canada: (001) 416 690 8801 ext. 247

Date: 14 Aug 2002 12:08:48 +0100
From: Sean Bonnington

I have noted the reaction to the AppealMaster acquisition. As an
AppealMaster user myself for some time now, my initial reaction was
disappointment but I have since contacted New Generation directly, and
having done that I feel assured that support for AppealMaster will continue
for a number of years yet.

From my conversation, it would seem that for those of us wishing to take
advantage of the option to move to The Raisers Edge now, we can do so at a
much smaller cost than you have speculated. I suggest you contact New
Generation directly to discuss your concerns, it certainly eased my concerns.

Sean Bonnington
Director of Development
St. Mark’s Hospital Foundation

[email]sean.bonnington@nwlh.nhs.uk[/email]

020 8235 4042

Date: Wed, 14 Aug 2002 13:11:55 +0100
From: Jonathan Evans

> —–Original Message—–
> From: Melissa Watson [mailto:melissa@londonplay.org.uk]

> Raiser’s Edge is a very expensive piece of software both in the short term
> and long term when considering the service charge, hardware capability –
> upgrades etc, and is questionably unsuitable for small organisations.

But, in my experience, it’s undoubtedly a worthwhile investment. Cutting
costs on a database is the ultimate idiocy for any charity dependent upon
broad-base support.

There *are* options other than Raiser’s Edge, but few combine its depth of
features with ease of operation, allied to generally excellent support.
There may be IT specialists who’ll take issue with this, but having seen the
near-catastrophic impact on one particular charity of a database package
championed by one of the “leading lights” in the field, I’m afraid I’m not
readily convinced by their arguments.

I certainly have reservations about aspects of Blackbaud’s operations, but I
would unhesitatingly recommend Raiser’s Edge as a database – especially to a
medium-sized organisation lacking dedicated IT personnel.

JONATHAN
———————————–
Jonathan M C Evans
Direct Marketing Officer

The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths
Artillery House
11-19 Artillery Row
LONDON
SW1P 1RT

Tel: 0870 787 0711

Website: http://www.sids.org.uk/fsid

Here at JA Computer Solutions Ltd, we have successfully converted Appeal Master customers to our Fundraising database CHARITease. One such successful conversion was Godophin School in Salisbury.

There were a typical development office with a complex donation makeup.

This transfer has now been in place for approximately one year with no problems.

For any one converting from an AM database, bear in mind the data conversion, as different clients used different fields for different uses, no program can convert automatically. Each conversion needs to be analysed and correctly managed.

Whilst a program can be generated to extract the information from the database, remember that the quality of the data is key. If for instance, you stopped using one field two years ago and started using another for the same purpose, both fields will need to be converted.

For further information relating to our services, visit http://www.jacsolutions.co.uk or call 01285 720150.

Hi,

At ESiT, we have a lot of experience of working with AppealMaster users and converting them to our thankQ charity management solution.

If you are reviewing your current system, please feel free to contact me on 01509 235544 to find out more about the latest version of thankQ, thankQ3, which has only just been launched. Alternatively, check out our website at http://www.esit.co.uk for more details, including case studies and testimonials. I look forward to hearing from you and discussing how we can help.

Tim