CRM Integration

This section outlines the essential integration requirements between the digital giving platform and the organization’s primary Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) system. Seamless and reliable integration is critical to ensuring real-time data flow, maintaining a unified donor record, reducing manual work, and enabling personalized engagement. 

The platform must integrate directly with the organization’s CRM (e.g., Salesforce Nonprofit Success Pack [NPSP] or Nonprofit Cloud), using real-time or near real-time synchronization to push and pull relevant data as needed.

In our experience, this is the most overlooked section for requirements and the biggest source of issues as well. Do not cheap out with your focus and time here!

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🔄 Bi-Directional, Real-Time Integration

The platform must:

• Offer robust, real-time or near real-time, bi-directional data sync with the CRM
  
  
• Support pushing data to the CRM (e.g., donations, donor activity) and pulling from it (e.g., constituent preferences)
  
  
• Ensure automated sync processes that eliminate manual entry and reduce errors
  
  
• Minimize latency between donor actions and CRM updates
  
  

“We need donation and engagement data to show up in Salesforce within minutes, so our donor services team can respond while the moment is still warm.”

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🗂️ Field and Object Mapping

The platform must:

• Support comprehensive field and object mapping, including custom objects
  
  
• Map standard entities such as contacts, accounts, donations, recurring gifts, campaigns, designations, tributes, and events
  
  
• Enable mapping for custom fields relevant to the organization’s fundraising workflows
  
  

❌ Error Handling and Deduplication

The platform must:

• Provide clear error handling for failed sync attempts with retry logic
  
  
• Integrate with or support CRM-based deduplication workflows
  
  
• Support merge/purge functionality with rules based on location or record types
  
  
• Include controls to schedule or undo merges, and flag records that should not be merged
  
  

🧩 Data Visibility in CRM Interface

The platform must:

• Ensure that donor platform activity (transactions, messages, tokens, etc.) is visible in the CRM UI
  
  
• Make payment tokens accessible in Salesforce to assist with telephone donations and support
  
  
• Use direct field mappings or Lightning components to expose platform data
  
  

🔧 Salesforce-Specific Requirements (If Applicable)

If Salesforce NPSP or Nonprofit Cloud is used:

• The platform must integrate using Salesforce APIs, Webhooks, or native tools
  
  
• Sync all relevant standard and custom NPSP/NPC objects
  
  
• Ensure minimal sync latency
  
  
• Demonstrate deep Salesforce expertise, including:
  
  
  
  • Familiarity with the Salesforce REST API
    
    
  • Integration with Experience Cloud and NPSP structure
    
    
  • Ability to log integration activity and provide failure alerts
    
    
• Support syncing of marketing preferences and email engagement data (opens, clicks) into Salesforce
  

Here’s how it could look using a table format for the functional requirements, with columns for the requirement description, priority level, and vendor response: