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Make Fund Raising Easier
Updated May 05, 2023

Make Fund Raising Easier

Nancy Ross Cullen | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with GiveSmart

We use it at events for fundraising purposes. GiveSmart makes it easy to reach more people and therfor raise more money.
  • GiveSmart is user friendly for our school and our community.
  • GiveSmart allows us to reach more people.
  • GiveSmart's reporting is easy to access and understand.
  • We recently had issues with the GiveSmart site going down during an event.
  • I would like to receive an email notification when payments are sent to us.
  • Being able to check in two people (ex: couple) at once would be helpful
  • Our fundraising has increased when we use GiveSmart.
  • The reports are easy to understand, which helps us see how we are doing at any time.
Previously we used a different online auction company. The level of service was terrible so we shopped out options. We signed on with GiveSmart 6 years ago. The improvement in the level of service has been great.

While I like some of the features of other platforms, I think that GiveSmart is the most user friendly for guests and staff.
GiveSmart's platform is user friendly overall. We have had a few times when the platform has been down, or extremely slow, which negatively impacted our event and frustrated our users.

Our guests like GiveSmart. Being able to bid on their phones, prevents them from getting up from their table to c heck a bid during the program.
The staff at GiveSmart is great to work with. The assistance they provide in getting our events set up is valuable. They are responsive to calls and emails. When we have had in person events, the Event manager and staff have always been amazing!
We have personalized the home page to mirror our organization. We have listed special parts of our event and provided links to the LIVE portion the last 2 years, making it easier for guests to access it. I like that we are able to highlight our sponsors on different pages of the event (ex: silent auction page).
We have hired staff through LIFE Event Staffing, and they have been amazing to work with!
We rent equipment from Fello. They are easy to work with and great with communication.

Do you think GiveSmart delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with GiveSmart's feature set?

Yes

Did GiveSmart live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of GiveSmart go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy GiveSmart again?

Yes

Google Backup and SYNC (discontinued), Blackbaud Online Express
GiveSmart is fantastic for non-profits to run events, both in person and virtually. You are able to reach more people with texts and emails, which are super easy to send. The online options allows you to reach more people.
We are able to utilize the GiveSmart platform for more than one event each year.

Using GiveSmart

6 - Development, Finance
15 - Tech savvy,
  • Ticketing
  • Online Auctions
  • Out reach to donors
  • We have started to use it for more events
  • Ticketing for a community event
  • Additional fundraising
  • Additional events
  • Smaller events with a targeted audience versus full community events
GiveSmart is a user friendly platform to use. While the level of service has decreased since the pandemic, we are hopeful that it will get better. We have used GiveSmart long enough that we are pretty self sufficient. We have started to utilize the platform for more events.

Evaluating GiveSmart and Competitors

Yes - Auction Harmony. We had a bed experience with staff from Auction Harmony. We decided to switch auction companies. The staff and service is what sold us on GiveSmart.
  • Product Features
  • Product Usability
  • Product Reputation
When we first switched, it was based on service. GiveSmart's onsite staff was excellent! They were knowledgeable, helpful and genuinely seemed to care about our organization.
I have used Hand Bid and a couple of other platforms. There are things that I like about them and some I don't like. GiveSmart should add the option to check in a husband and wife together, This would make the check in process go faster. GiveSmart also should make it easier to rent equipment. They should send out the information and explain why it is important for an organization to utilize iPads and swipers at registration.

GiveSmart Implementation

I was not a part of the initial implementation.
  • Third-party professional services
We originally hired staff from GiveSmart. Staffing was them farmed out one agency. It was not a good experience. Since then, we have utilized LIFE Event Staffing and they are fantastic!
  • I was not part of the implementation process

GiveSmart Support

ProsCons
Quick Resolution
Good followup
Knowledgeable team
Problems get solved
Kept well informed
No escalation required
Support understands my problem
Support cares about my success
None
No. We have done enough events that we can manage them ourselves. We also have a previous GiveSmart person on staff.
We had issues during an event and the support team responded immediately and solved our problem without our guests even knowing we had an issue.

Using GiveSmart

ProsCons
Like to use
Relatively simple
Easy to use
Well integrated
Consistent
Quick to learn
Convenient
Feel confident using
Familiar
None
  • Check in
  • Bidding
  • Paying for items at check out
  • Scanning of credit cards on a phone
  • It is silly that you aren't able to check in spouses together. Other platforms allow this
  • Unnecessary duplicate profiles
Yes - Fairly well.