PastPerfect Museum Software Newsletter- October 2005

1. Sale!! Save & E-mail Reports with PDF Producer- Only 9 Copies Left!

2. Tip of the Month- Fundraising Advice From a Professional!

3. PastPerfect Training Classes in Your Area

4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software

5. California is the first to join the 300 Club!

6. Contact Information

1. Sale!! Save & E-mail Reports with PDF Producer- Only 9 Copies Left! Sorry, Sold Out!

Have you ever wondered how you can save and e-mail reports from PastPerfect? PDF Producer allows any program on your computer to print or send reports and other documents in the form of PDF files. PDF Producer is easy to use and installs itself on your computer as a printer. When you click on the "Print" button of any document (not just from PastPerfect), you are able to select PDF Producer instead of a standard printer, thus getting your documents in a format that is workable for e-mail, posting on a website or printing from a computer that doesn't have PastPerfect. PDF Producer also allows you to watermark and set security parameters for your documents.

Your PastPerfect reports will be viewable even on computers that do not have PastPerfect installed! PDF Producer works with all documents on your computer whether they are from Word, WordPerfect or PastPerfect. It is compatible with only Windows 2000 or Windows XP computers. PDF Producer is available from Pastime Software Company for $19.95, plus $7 shipping. We only have 9 copies left, so call our sales office to order your copy of PDF Producer today!

2. Tip of the Month- Fundraising Advice From a Professional

This month's tip comes from Roberta Falkner, CFRE, who lives in the historic Kansas City area where she has been a fundraiser and involved in nonprofit management for more than 19 years at major Kansas City cultural organizations, social service agencies, a high-tech business incubator, and a philanthropic foundation. She has extensive experience in all aspects of fund development, including donor relations, marketing, direct-mail campaigns, membership acquisition and retention, volunteer recruitment and coordination, prospect research, special events, grant writing, and annual, capital and planned giving campaigns. Roberta's passion is American history, and she currently serves on the Board of the Santa Fe Trail Association.

The following is Roberta's advice on fundraising:
Your organization's donor database is the most important tool you have for maintaining your membership program, fundraising, and public awareness efforts. Your donor database is what allows your organization to stay in business and fulfill its mission, professionally communicate with all your constituents, and successfully market your organization.

Store as much information as you can in your database about your donors/members, so that you can more efficiently and effectively interact with your donors/members, keep the data current, and make certain any sensitive information - for example, the dollar amount a donor has contributed - can only be accessed by authorized staff members.

At minimum, your database should contain: constituents' names, addresses, day and evening phone numbers, e-mail addresses, status (i.e., donor, member, collections donor, volunteer, Board member, etc.), giving histories, and place of business (important if your constituent works for a company that matches gifts). Note memorial/honorary gifts made to this person and from whom, the date s/he contributed an artifact to your museum/historical society and what that item is, source (how did you acquire this member/donor), and membership level, renewal date, and benefits received. Also, be sure and note whether a member/donor is deceased (and the date of death if you have access to that information) so that you can discontinue further mailings.

Together with your donor database, your annual fund is the keystone of all your fundraising and public awareness initiatives. Every nonprofit organization should have a plan for annual giving, even organizations that are membership-driven. An annual fund allows your organization to broaden its support by soliciting new donors and members, cultivating donors and members to increased giving levels, providing operating funds for on-going programs, identifying volunteers and leadership candidates, identifying major gifts and planned giving prospects, and building donor loyalty. Annual fund contributions may be unrestricted - for use at the discretion of the Board - or may be restricted for specific projects.

Having an annual fund campaign is essential to the well-being and future health of your organization. If your organization does not have an established annual fund campaign, NOW is the time to begin. The last three months of the year are an excellent time to raise annual funds. Your donors and members are looking for tax deductions, philanthropic-minded individuals expect to make end-of-year gifts, and as long as your organization is a 501(c)(3), donations made to it are tax deductible.

One of the main reasons people do not donate to a charitable organization is because they are not asked. People want to make financial commitments to the nonprofit organizations they believe in and that resonate with them, but they have to be asked. You will never have a better time than the last three months of the year to do so.

Remember that your annual appeal should start off with a gift from each of your Board members. Ask that their gift is "significant," meaning significant to them. The amount will be different for everyone depending on their ability. The important thing is that every Board member makes a gift, not how much the gift is. You can't go out into the community and ask for donations if your Board members have not given.

How do you create an end-of-year appeal? There are several ways to send out an appeal. One that is becoming increasingly popular is sending out e-mails to your constituents and urging them to pass on the e-mail to others whom they know are interested in your museum's mission. If your memberships renew on December 31, you could include a note in the renewal letters that asks your members to consider a gift beyond their usual renewal dues. Remind them the donation is tax-deductible since they will receive no benefits in exchange for their gift.

The most common method of end-of-year appeals is a letter sent through the postal system. When writing the appeal letter, make the letter personal; do not start the letter with, "Dear Friend." Use the individual's name in the salutation, whether first name or last name with the correct title, e.g., Dear Jane, Dear Mr. and Mrs. Doe.

When writing the copy, imagine you are writing the letter to one individual and not the entire membership or donor base. Make the copy donor-focused, meaning show him or her how their donation helps your organization fulfill its mission. Engage them in the work you are doing by allowing them to be a part of it and making it all possible. An annual report enclosed with your appeal letter allows your donors and prospective donors to see how funds are being used. The annual report can be a simple, one-page document.

Don't spend a lot of money on collateral materials - annual reports or brochures - that you enclose with your appeal letter. Some people will look at these materials and think that if you have the money to create such expensive pieces, you probably don't need their money or are not using funds wisely. Try to get the printing, graphic design, or any other costly element of creating these collateral pieces donated if you want to use them, and be sure to discreetly indicate somewhere in the appeal package that these collateral pieces did not cost your organization a great deal of money. For example, in the appeal letter you might state, "I hope the enclosed brochure one of our members generously provided for us will help you see how our outreach programs are making a difference."

Always include a P.S. in your appeal letter that restates your request or some other pertinent bit of information regarding your appeal. Most direct marketers indicate the P.S. is the first thing the reader takes notice of and reads. Have the Executive Director and/or Board President sign the appeal letters. If possible, have your Executive Director, Board members, and other volunteers hand write notes on the letters to people they know personally.

Enclose a return envelope with your appeal letter and some type of response card where donors indicate the amount they are donating, the method of payment and credit card information, the name(s) by which they wish to be acknowledged, mailing address, daytime phone number (especially important if payment is made with a credit card and you need to contact them for some reason), e-mail address, whether it is a memorial/honorary gift and in whose name, the name and address of the person who should be notified of the memorial/honorary gift, and whether the gift is intended for general purposes or for a specific purpose.

It is imperative you immediately send an acknowledgement letter thanking the donor for the generous gift. I can't stress enough how important it is to thank the donor for their gift and to do it in a timely manner. My goal is to send out an acknowledgement letter no later than two business days after receiving the gift, which is the same rule I follow when returning membership packets after receiving membership dues. I always include a P.S. in my acknowledgement letters that indicates how the donor will be acknowledged in the next newsletter, and if this is not how they wish to be acknowledged, or if they wish to remain anonymous, to please call my office so I can change my records accordingly. This gives the donor the opportunity to correct you if you've misspelled their name or if they don't want their names published.

Once your appeal is completed, analyze the results. This will help you plan next year's end-of-year annual appeal. Remember to record all the information in your database.

Roberta Falkner
www.va-assist.com
913 / 236-7359
rsfalkner@gmail.com

3. PastPerfect Regional Training Classes are Coming to Your Area!

Training classes for PastPerfect Software are still being offered in 2005! To find out more information about the scheduled training classes below, or to inquire about possibly scheduling a session in your area, please contact our Training Coordinator, Amy Dunn, by phone at 610-304-0973 or by e-mail at training@museumsoftware.com.

***CANCELLED*** St. Louis, MO ***CANCELLED***
Hosted by the Maryville University Library at its Southwest St. Louis Campus (Fenton)
Was scheduled on these dates: October 18 - October 21

Richmond, VA
Hosted by the Division of Recreation & Parks- Henrico
October 25 - October 28

Las Vegas, NV
Hosted by the Atomic Testing Museum
November 14 - November 17

Also, be sure to check out our website at www.museumsoftware.com/training.htm for additional training dates and other information!

4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software!

Did you know updates are available from our website for your PastPerfect Museum Software versions 4.0 and 3.5? These free updates are released every month or so and are available for download by going to this page on our website: www.museumsoftware.com/software_updates.htm . If you would rather receive a free update CD, please contact our Support Office toll-free, at 800-562-6080.

PastPerfect Version 4- New Update Available 4.0C1!
The new update now available for PastPerfect version 4 is 4.0C1. New features found in this update include:
* Add "Yes to All" and "No to All" commands on mailing log entry screen when printing multiple letters
* Option to CC- Carbon Copy option when sending an email from the Contacts Screen
* Option to include firstname and lastname on Volunteer hours reports
* Add Current Memberships to Fixed Lists
* Add exhibit labels 1 - 4 to Excel Export
* Add field "Include in Web" in bottom of each catalog screen
* Allow multiple entries from the Authority File in the Home Location field
* Allow URL's up to 150 characters when setting up Links to websites
* Contacts fields Deceased and Deceased Date available for Report Maker
* MWeb Interface
* Right click on Fixed Membership Lists & it displays details

PastPerfect Version 3.5- NewUpdate Available 3.5B8!
The new update now available for PastPerfect version 3.0 or 3.5 is 3.5B8. New features found in this update include:
* Ability to include phone numbers in the Volunteer Hours detail report
* Add "Returned to Donor" as a deaccession disposal method term
* Alphabetize list of Report Maker reports
* Increase length of "Institution" field on outgoing loans to 50 characters
* Function Keys available in Browse
* Show CD backup date on backup reminder screen

If you have suggestions for new features or fields you would like to see in PastPerfect version 4, please e-mail your ideas to suggestions@museumsoftware.com. We are eager to hear your comments and learn ways that PastPerfect can better serve our users.

5. California is the first to join the 300 Club!

Recently, the state of California became the first of the United States to have over 300 institutions using PastPerfect Museum Software. California hosts a wide variety of sites ranging from natural history and art museums, to aircraft carriers and local historical societies. Each of these institutions has a unique and valuable story to tell through its public programming, exhibits, collection policies, and ultimately, its mission. By creating one software package for collections and contact management, we at Pastime Software Company hope to make telling this story a little easier for our users in California and around the world. Congratulations to our California users!

Pastime Software Company is proud to serve each and every one of our users by providing a collections and contact management software program that remains one of the most comprehensive and popular museum software packages in the world. Thanks to all of you for using PastPerfect!

To view a partial list of our users in California and around the world, click on this link: http://www.museumsoftware.com/client_list.htm

6. Contact Information

Address: 300 North Pottstown Pike
Suite 200
Exton, PA 19341

Website: www.MuseumSoftware.com

Sales & Product Info: 800-562-6080 or sales@museumsoftware.com

Support: 800-562-6080 or support@museumsoftware.com

Training: 610-304-0973 or training@museumsoftware.com

Data Conversions: 800-562-6080 or conversions@museumsoftware.com