1. Home
  2. Nonprofit CRM Software
  3. Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT Reviews
  4. User Review of Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT
Raiser's Edge NXT - All Grown Up
March 10, 2017

Raiser's Edge NXT - All Grown Up

Graham Getty | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Raiser's Edge NXT

We participated in the Client Technology Preview program for Raiser's Edge NXT. Blackbaud took a copy of our Raiser's Edge 7 database and converted it for use as Raiser's Edge NXT. Everyone at our organization had the chance to login (gift processors, database managers, alumni, events, and front-line fundraisers) and see how our database would be presented in the NXT environment. Everyone loved the ease of access, mobile responsiveness, removal of user license limits, removal of the need to be on a Windows machine, but it really shined for front-line fundraisers. We had already implemented an action-driven Prospect Management system on our own with custom crystal reports, exports, analytics, and tracking, but Raiser's Edge NXT had all of that baked-in, and ready to go. With just a few slight tweaks to our existing workflow, it was clear how the software we previously had to tweak and customize would now drive our process. No more server to update, no more windows-specific machine limitations, no more custom crystal reports - Raiser's Edge NXT was delivering what we needed "out of the box".
  • Ease of use.
  • Truly mobile responsive.
  • Best of both worlds - you get the magical deliciousness of true, cloud-based CRM software and (when you switch back to traditional database still available via Citrix) you still have all the power for your key data-heavy positions and tasks (gift processors, custom report writers, annual report, mailings, pledge reminders).
  • No more servers to replace/update, backups to verify, windows machines to keep up-to-date and virus-free.
  • For data-heavy users and processes (data entry, gift processing, thank you letters, reports), you now must use Citrix for the traditional database view and those paper-based processes and tasks are made more clunky than when you have traditional Raiser's Edge installed on premise.
  • You can't fully customize the interface. You can move data tiles around but can't build completely custom views.
  • Built-in analytics are great but I think you need to be able to have more control and create your own KPIs and measures that are relevant just to your own organization.
  • Not sure if you can request a .BAK file of your RE database for restoration and testing on a local machine once your RE database has been converted to NXT.
  • Operational Efficiency
  • Increased revenue from new donors
  • Increased revenue from existing donors
  • Reduced IT expenditure due to cloud deployment
As soon as we can switch to Raiser's Edge NXT full-time, we will. Despite all the features, really the most compelling part of the experience is that with traditional Raiser's Edge your users really need the Raiser's Edge Essentials I and II training classes (5 days), with Raiser's Edge NXT, your users (especially front-line fundraisers) only need a login - it's really that intuitive.
We have quite a few Blackbaud Solutions (Research Point, Financial Edge, Education Edge, Target Analytics custom ratings, K12 ON Platform, Smart Tuition, Blackbaud NetCommunity). We are looking forward to the day when the product names don't matter. You just login to Blackbaud and they all work. Google Maps, Google Drive, Gmail - they all just work together. I can't wait until Blackbaud's offerings are as robust and work seamlessly together for the nonprofit space - whether you are a donor or a non-profit employee. I think Raiser's Edge NXT and the microservices that it runs in a truly web-based format are leading to that end.
I've worked with Salesforce, Veracross, EveryAction, Nationbuilder, Evertrue and other products and each has its own strengths. What no one else currently offers is the "best of both worlds" scenario that exists with Raiser's Edge NXT. On the one hand you have fast, responsive web-based solutions with built in analytics that get you up and running right away. However, you can also still access the software in the traditional database view via a virtual Windows machine in the Citrix environment for data-intensive tasks, and the 20 years of built-in reports and solutions that have been built for Raiser's Edge. I don't know of any other solution that offers both the web and traditional software interface options.
If you're a small shop with limited staff and resources, you should definitely consider Raiser's Edge NXT. The pricing structure is a subscription model and largely based on the number of records. This means you can get all the bells and whistles cheaper than a large shop. If you have lots of custom Crystal Reports, have integrations, custom solutions via RE:Open, plugins, and services that you rely on from other vendors that are not (yet?) available in RE NXT, you should probably stay where you are. Essentially, Raiser's Edge NXT provides a sophisticated fundraising experience directly from the software for shops that don't already have one, and for folks that already have solutions in place, Raiser's Edge NXT enables all the well-structured data you rely on to be truly accessible via the web on any device.