When it comes to planned giving, relationships are everything. The more you understand a supporter’s history of engagement, their volunteer hours, the events they attend, and the causes they show up for, the more naturally you can invite them to build a legacy with your organization.
The right volunteer management software can help nonprofits connect the dots between service and philanthropy, turning engagement into long-term generosity. This guide explores what to look for when evaluating volunteer management platforms and compares several top options that make this integration easier.
Why Volunteer Management Matters in Planned Giving
Planned gifts often come from people who have already given their time long before they give their estate. Consistent volunteer engagement is one of the strongest indicators of lifetime giving, yet many organizations overlook this connection because volunteer and donor management are often siloed.
Volunteer management software helps bridge that gap by giving your team clearer insight into volunteer engagement. Even if your donor and volunteer systems are separate, having accurate records of hours served, roles filled, and events attended provides meaningful context that can be shared with your development team. These insights help staff understand a supporter’s history with your mission and make it easier to personalize stewardship.
That visibility helps your development staff identify loyal supporters earlier, deepen stewardship, and build genuine relationships that can lead to lasting gifts.
Key Features to Look For
As you explore volunteer management software, look for tools that do more than track attendance or hours. The right system helps you strengthen relationships and align volunteer engagement with long-term giving goals.
Volunteer Engagement Insights That Support Planned Giving
While some platforms offer fully unified volunteer and donor databases, many nonprofits use a mix of systems. The key is choosing volunteer software that helps you collect accurate and meaningful engagement data that can be shared with your development team when needed.
Look for tools that make it simple to export volunteer history, hours, roles, and notes so your staff can incorporate those insights into donor stewardship work. If your organization uses a CRM that supports integrations, consider platforms that offer optional connections to systems like Salesforce, Bloomerang, or Virtuous. These integrations are helpful, but they are not required to build strong volunteer recognition and planned giving pathways.
Engagement Scoring and Prospect Identification
Not every volunteer will become a planned-giving prospect, but patterns in engagement often point to those who might. Platforms that include engagement scoring or connect with prospect research tools like DonorSearch or WealthEngine can help your team identify highly invested supporters before they are on your radar for a legacy conversation.
Customizable Supporter Profiles
Every volunteer story is unique. A flexible system should allow you to add custom data points such as skills, interests, family connections, or personal motivations. These details make your outreach more meaningful and your stewardship more personal.
Segmentation and Personalized Communication
Targeted communication builds trust. Your software should let you segment volunteers based on engagement level, donation history, or area of interest so you can send personalized messages rather than broad updates. Even small touches, like a personal thank-you note or a customized event invitation, can build stronger bonds over time.
Automation and Reminders
Automation helps your team manage the details of relationship building. For example, when a volunteer reaches a milestone number of hours, your system can trigger a reminder to send a thank-you or share an impact story. Consistent, thoughtful outreach reinforces connection and helps your volunteers feel seen and valued.
Impact Reporting
When you can clearly show volunteers the results of their service, you strengthen their emotional connection to your mission. Look for software that makes reporting intuitive and visual so it is easy to share progress and demonstrate outcomes. Showing impact helps volunteers see the tangible difference they make, which supports long-term loyalty and giving.
Top Volunteer Management Platforms for Planned-Giving-Focused Nonprofits
These leading platforms all help nonprofits link volunteer engagement with long-term giving strategies while supporting easy data management and relationship development.
Bloomerang Volunteer
Bloomerang Volunteer integrates directly with its CRM, allowing nonprofits to track giving and volunteer history side by side. Its focus on donor retention and engagement scoring makes it well suited for organizations that want to turn active volunteers into loyal donors and long-term supporters.
Virtuous CRM (with VOMO Integration)
Virtuous combines fundraising automation and relationship management in one responsive CRM. When paired with its VOMO volunteer management integration, the system delivers a complete picture of supporter engagement. Virtuous is ideal for organizations that rely on personalized, data-informed outreach to grow long-term donor relationships.
Salesforce for Nonprofits (with Volunteers for Salesforce)
Salesforce remains one of the most flexible and scalable CRM ecosystems available. With the Volunteers for Salesforce app, nonprofits can manage volunteer hours, track participation, and integrate that data into donor records. This combination provides a powerful, 360-degree view of supporter engagement, though it often requires more configuration and staff capacity than smaller systems.
VolunteerHub
VolunteerHub offers strong segmentation, scheduling, and reporting tools that make it easier to connect volunteer engagement with fundraising goals. Its integrations with CRMs like Salesforce and Blackbaud provide a unified view of data that supports both donor cultivation and volunteer coordination.
Civic Champs
Civic Champs focuses on ease of use, adoption, and accuracy, qualities that are especially valuable for planned-giving-minded organizations. Its flexible design makes volunteer check-ins simple through tools like GPS-based geofencing on its mobile app or via a kiosk that can be launched from any device. This intuitive interface encourages consistent use across teams. Plus its integrations with Little Green Light, Raiser’s Edge, and other CRMs help development teams better engage both donors and volunteers.
For small and medium sized nonprofits, Civic Champs is our recommended option when simplicity and accuracy are top priorities. Its mobile app and kiosk keep data entry effortless, which helps ensure that the information your team collects is both reliable and complete. With cleaner data, staff can confidently analyze volunteer engagement and connect those insights to donor cultivation efforts. The platform also offers clear, easy to use reporting that helps nonprofits visualize volunteer impact and strengthen stewardship without adding administrative burden.
How to Evaluate What Is Right for Your Organization
Every nonprofit’s needs are different. The best tool for you depends on your size, your technology stack, and how your team uses data.
If your organization already uses a CRM, look for a volunteer management platform that integrates directly rather than adding another separate system. If your priority is boosting engagement and retention, choose software that your volunteers and staff will actually enjoy using.
For nonprofits that are beginning to align volunteer engagement with planned giving, start simple. Select a platform that captures accurate data, produces clear insights, and helps you nurture relationships with confidence. Tools like Civic Champs can provide an easy starting point for collecting the kind of volunteer information that supports long-term giving strategies.
Remember, technology is most effective when it fits naturally into your existing workflows. A system that your team finds intuitive will lead to better adoption, cleaner data, and more actionable insights.
Conclusion
Planned giving begins with trust, and trust grows through engagement. Every volunteer hour is more than time donated; it is a sign of commitment to your mission and an opportunity to build a lifelong relationship.
By choosing volunteer management software that helps you capture accurate volunteer engagement data and share it with your development team when needed, you make it easier to identify loyal supporters, nurture them over time, and celebrate the impact they create.
Whether you use a comprehensive system like Salesforce or Virtuous, or a purpose-built platform like Civic Champs, the goal remains the same: connect people to purpose, track their contributions, and build a legacy of giving that lasts for generations.
