Volunteers bring passion and energy to nonprofits – they provide vital support for program delivery and fundraising events. Volunteers serve as your community ambassadors. Today’s volunteers are also likely tomorrow’s donors. 

Whether your nonprofit is working with a few volunteers or a few thousand volunteers, digital technologies are allowing nonprofits of every size to power up volunteer engagement.

These technologies help improve volunteer:

• Recruiting 
• Screening, onboarding, and training
• Scheduling, attendance tracking, and activity reporting
• Ongoing support

Salesforce & Volunteers: Designing Your Best-in-Class Solution

Salesforce for nonprofits is a best-in-class digital platform for managing volunteers. 

What makes Salesforce so powerful? Flexibility and power.

The flexibility allows nonprofits to create the right-fit volunteer solution. Volunteer management for soup kitchens, literacy programs, volunteer tax preparation, or hospice care can look very different. This is particularly true when looking across every touchpoint your organization might have with your volunteers.  

The power of Salesforce is twofold.  

First, Salesforce allows nonprofits to streamline volunteer management. This includes automations that send updates, reminders, and thank-yous through email or text. Other automations include verifying that a volunteer has completed orientation training or notifying them that an annual certification needs to be updated.  

Second, it’s easy to synchronize volunteer data into the Salesforce Constituent Relations Management (CRM) system. In the CRM, you can get a full view of your volunteers and your relationships with them, including their role as donors, fundraisers, advocates, and even clients. With this information, you can build your relationships in ways that are deeper and more meaningful.   

Defining Your Volunteer Management Needs

There are many digital applications for volunteer management that you can utilize with Salesforce. The real trick is choosing the one that will best fit your organization’s needs.

To get the most out of your volunteer management solution and choose the right one for your organization, you and your team should start by asking core questions:

• What’s wrong with the current solution? Does it take too much staff time to manage? Do volunteers find it easy to use? Are you getting the information your team needs to manage volunteer engagement? Are you onboarding enough volunteers?
• What are your goals for your volunteer program? Are you looking to increase the number of volunteers? In current locations? In new locations? Do you need more data to improve volunteer effectiveness and impact? Is there a need to step up volunteer communications? 

By answering these questions, you’ll be able to define the features needed to meet the full scope of your volunteer program as it stands today. You’ll also be in a better position to choose the digital solution that will meet your future needs.

Now that you’ve determined your volunteer management needs, it’s time to find a solution that will best address those requirements.

Two Ways to Create Your Volunteer Solution in Salesforce

You can pursue two different approaches for developing a volunteer management solution for Salesforce.

The first approach uses Salesforce applications, including Volunteer for Salesforce (V4S). V4S can also be improved using other Salesforce applications. The second approach uses applications built by another company that integrates with Salesforce. 

1. Volunteer for Salesforce (V4S)

Volunteer for Salesforce (V4S) is a robust, free solution that integrates seamlessly with your existing Salesforce environment. Whether you’re using Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP) or Nonprofit Cloud (NPC), V4S can be tailored to fit your organization’s needs.

V4S offers various functionalities, including:

• Volunteer Personal Sites: Allows volunteers to update their information, record hours, and sign up for shifts.
• Individual and Group Tracking: Manage both individual volunteers and volunteer groups effectively.
• Salesforce Sites: Display open volunteer positions on your website
• Email reminders: Send automated upcoming shifts and automated thank-you emails
• Out-of-the-Box Reports and Dashboards: Get instant insights into your volunteer program’s performance.

While the setup process requires some technical know-how, the benefits can outweigh the initial investment of time and resources. The lightweight data model ensures that V4S integrates smoothly with your current Salesforce instance.

V4S can also be the foundation to build a Volunteer Kiosk that allows on-site volunteer check-ins. This feature streamlines the process of logging volunteer hours and activities, making it easier for both volunteers and staff to track engagement.

V4S does come with some drawbacks. For instance, it has not received major updates since 2022, and some of its features appear outdated. Additionally, customization of forms and the user interface requires knowledge of CSS, and there is a need to convert workflow rules to flows to optimize the system.

Despite these limitations, V4S remains a popular choice for volunteer management due to its comprehensive features and the support provided by Salesforce through documentation, community groups, and learning paths on Trailhead.

Onboarding Process via Salesforce Program Management

If you require enhanced onboarding for your volunteers, consider using the free Salesforce Program Management Applications with V4S. Program management allows you to create a structured path for volunteer onboarding, guiding your volunteer managers through each stage of the process. This may include document signing, background checks, training, and more.

Communication and Engagement with Volunteers

Your volunteers want to be informed. They appreciate recognition. They like easy and fast ways to get questions answered. Salesforce is designed to deliver all this to your support activities, including your volunteer program.    

2. Salesforce Volunteer Applications for Large Scale Or Complex Needs

Larger nonprofits like Make-a-Wish Foundation and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America have more complex volunteer management requirements. If your organization has complex volunteer management needs, a more sophisticated application may be required. You can find Salesforce-approved solutions on the Salesforce AppExchange. Two leading apps are Hands-on-Connect and Golden Volunteers. 

Summary

Investing in a comprehensive volunteer management solution is crucial for nonprofits to manage their volunteer workforce efficiently and effectively. Whether using a free tool like Volunteers for Salesforce or opting for a third-party solution, nonprofits need to consider their unique needs and the specific requirements of their volunteer programs. 

The key is to create a structured and supportive environment where volunteers feel valued and empowered to contribute to the organization’s mission. By doing so, nonprofits can build a loyal and engaged volunteer base that drives meaningful impact.

The iMission team can help your nonprofit define, design, implement and manage the volunteer solution that is right for your organization. Schedule a free consultation with one of our Salesforce Consultants today.