The Virtuous Difference
- 50% decrease in direct mail spending
- $13 raised for every $1 spent on direct mail
- 75% growth in the number of monthly donors
Top challenges Victory Mission needed to address:
- Centralize data in a single, comprehensive CRM, giving the team full control over its fundraising
- Improve donor segmentation and use data for more strategic messaging
- Automate time-consuming manual tasks like donor outreach, data analysis, and reporting
A Disjointed, Costly CRM That Limited Fundraising Potential
Victory Mission’s work of helping individuals overcome poverty and rebuild their lives demanded nonprofit CRM software that could keep up. But instead of supporting its growth, the previous system created more obstacles than solutions. Without advanced reporting, the team struggled to identify the right donors, making every campaign feel like a “shot in the dark.” Plus, the lack of automation forced staff to manually track donor communications, pulling time away from building relationships and strategic fundraising.
“Our [prior] CRM was very baseline, bare bones. But when it came to looking at any kind of data and allowing it to tell a story, it was really quite cumbersome to do that. We felt like we were taking a shot in the dark.” — Mindy McDonald, Director of Advancement and Marketing at Victory Mission
On top of that, the outdated system made it hard to access basic donor insights. Without a clear view of engagement and giving trends, the team relied on manual workarounds for reporting, donor segmentation, and outreach, taking time and energy away from really connecting with its supporter base.
These challenges were especially frustrating for Victory Mission’s direct mail program, which made up 80% of its fundraising. Having to outsource direct mail efforts, the team had little say in who received mail, how often, or what messaging was sent. Without control over its messaging, strategy, and data, tracking engagement and building lasting donor connections proved to be challenging and costly.
It became abundantly clear that Victory Mission needed a modern CRM that would bring direct mail in-house, make donor engagement more strategic, and cut down on time-consuming manual work.
Fundraising Smarter With More Responsive, Scalable CRM Software
Victory Mission chose Virtuous for its flexibility, growth potential, and ability to simplify donor engagement—giving the team more time to focus on connections instead of tedious admin work. With CRM donor management software built for relationships, the team could shift from reactive fundraising to a more responsive, donor-centered approach.
With powerful querying tools, Victory Mission could quickly filter and analyze donor data to see who responded to direct mail, who gave regularly, and who needed re-engagement. Plus, easy-to-use reporting and insights made it simple to segment donors based on giving behavior and engagement history, allowing the team to send the right message to the right person at the right time.
“The query tool is such a flexible tool. Often somebody asks you about a certain piece of data, where before that would have felt so intimidating. Now with Virtuous, [we can find it in] a matter of minutes.” — Mindy McDonald, Director of Advancement and Marketing at Victory Mission
Automating routine tasks like welcome emails, thank-you notes, and follow-ups ensured donors felt seen and appreciated, while staff had more time to invest in personalized outreach efforts.
Bringing direct mail and donor communications in-house gave Victory Mission full control over its messaging, reduced costs, and helped the team make every fundraising opportunity more targeted.
“We’ve established some really helpful processes as a team. It really matters who you’re talking to and how you’re talking to them, and Virtuous allows us to have kind of a magnifying glass on what and when that needs to be.” — Mindy McDonald, Director of Advancement and Marketing at Victory Mission
Smarter Spending, Reduced Costs, and More Meaningful Donor Relationships
With Virtuous, Victory Mission improved its outreach strategy, targeting its most engaged donors and nurturing those relationships. As a result, its direct mail raised $13 for every $1 spent (an increase of 1,200%)—proving that a modern CRM can optimize output without sacrificing revenue.
Marketing automation has made it easier for the team to connect with donors in a more personal way. What was once a time-consuming process now happens automatically, ensuring outreach is timely, consistent, and meaningful. This thoughtful approach led to a 75% increase in the number of monthly donors.
“Over the past couple years, I’ve seen that number of monthly donors increase by like 75%, which really we didn’t have a strong recurring donor backing previously.” — Mindy McDonald, Director of Advancement and Marketing at Victory Mission
On the operations side, automation took over manual tasks like data entry and reporting, so the team could focus on talking to donors instead of managing spreadsheets. With more time for one-on-one conversations, Victory Mission built relationships that lifted donor retention.
“Before [Virtuous]… we would spend too much time on the mechanics. Now we get to spend so much more time in the relationship. That’s been really, really meaningful for our team.” — Mindy McDonald, Director of Advancement and Marketing at Victory Mission
With real-time CRM analytics and donor segmentation, Victory Mission also gained a clearer picture of donor behavior. For example, the team saw that some donors had moved out of the area and, instead of sending them event invitations they couldn’t use, the organization sent personalized event recaps. Small changes like this made donors feel seen and appreciated, leading to stronger relationships and confidence in the mission.
Find out how your organization can also better allocate resources, unlock greater generosity, and achieve better fundraising results with a smarter, more responsive CRM—schedule your demo today.
