Funding (Grants or private donations): finding new sources of funding.
Money, Money, Money (grant funding and donations) is the bloodline. Without sufficient grant funding, non-profits face the risk of shutting down.
Expanding Services: grow the services offered to help more people in the served community.
A non-profit with more services can effectively deploy its grant funding to serve more people, increasing its impact on the community.
Community Impact: create meaningful changes in the community.
Create a meaningful change in the community.
Volunteer Engagement: get more volunteers and keep them interested in helping the non-profit’s mission to serve more people.
More volunteers means a non-profit has more leverage over its mission to help serve people.
Accurate Impact / Engagement Reports: measure statistics like how many people were impacted by its services.
Measurable data on its impact on the community is paramount for attracting future funding, new grants, and demonstrating the effectiveness of its grant funding.
E.g. knowing how many people engaged with a non-profit’s services.
OneTap benefits
How it’s useful for non-profits
Reports for fundraising: track visitor attendance data for better reports.
When it’s time for fundraising, share accurate engagement metrics.
Government grant applications, donor meetings, fundraising marketing campaigns… let the numbers make your case!
Measure Impact: know how many people your non-profit has impacted.
Run real-time reports to find out how many unique people/members your non-profit has impacted.
Find out what services, events, and programs your members are most interested in!
Check-in process: take attendance effortlessly with less manual labor.
Free up your volunteer’s time for bigger tasks; Set up a self-check-in process for visitors or equip your volunteers with our iPad app. You’ll breeze through the long check-in lines 2x faster than sign-in sheets.
With features like profiles database, name search, profile custom fields (e.g. what they said on the registration form), up-to-date lists, QR codes, QR passes, and a self-check-in kiosk.
Paper-less: ditch your paper sign-in sheets.
From paper chaos to digital lists on your iPad in a few clicks. No more printing, recycling, or reprinting… and the dreadful manual data transfers to Excel are a thing of the past!
Powerful collaboration: keep everyone on the same page.
From management, staff, to volunteers, everyone knows who’s checked in, when, and where. Reduce your communication burden – calls, texts, and passing around paper sheets.
Enhanced image: change the way visitors see your organization.
Create a better experience for your visitors and make them see your brand differently.
With a self-check-in process with your logo, check-in instructions, notes about visitors, remember birthdays, and more!
About NW Community Food
The best way to measure success in the world of non-profits is to quantify how much impact you have on the community. NW Community Food stands as a testament to this commitment by dedicating itself to helping residents of Washington, DC and environs who are facing food insecurity. Launched by Judith Ingram in May 2021, NW Community Food now provides cleaning products, bakery goods, shelf-stable food, and fresh produce to 200-250 families each week. Their success serving those in need rests on an all-volunteer workforce and generous gifts and grants.
Grants are essential for non-profit organizations such as NW Community Food, providing crucial financial backing frequently designated for particular programs or initiatives. These funds provide a bridge between existing resources and the needs of the community on the ground, addressing the expanding needs of the community. Moreover, grants validate an organization’s mission, increasing its credibility and effectiveness by expanding its capacity to attract support from a diverse range of stakeholders.
Common Challenges Faced by Non-Profits
Inflation
Nonprofits are significantly affected by inflation, facing limited funding grants. According to BDO’s annual Nonprofit Standards survey, 92% of these organizations are actively dealing with the impact of inflation on their workforce and operations. With reduced government support, 65% of these nonprofits are increasing wages and salaries to help employees manage the escalating costs. Additionally, 54% strive for operational efficiencies to maintain budgetary balance while serving a larger community.
Revenue Diversification
In addition to balancing budget efficiency and community impact, nonprofits continue to struggle to diversify their revenue sources. Survey data shows that 64% of nonprofits plan to seek support from new donors and grants, acknowledging the pressing need for adequate funding in times of economic uncertainty.
Reserves and Talent Challenges
Recently, nonprofits have encountered challenges regarding declining reserves and retaining talent. The survey underscores a reduction in operating reserves. According to BDO USA, in 2022, organizations were discovered to have reserves exceeding 12 months, yet only a scant 27% met this benchmark, notably down from 38% in 2021. To enhance their savings, nonprofits need to review fixed costs, improve efficiencies, and foster compelling work environments to attract and retain dedicated volunteers aligned with their missions.
Maximizing Non-Profit Potential Through OneTap Integration
Moreover, having user-friendly tools like an attendance tracker is crucial. A simple attendance system encourages volunteers to engage more effectively in their service. When volunteers find administrative tasks hassle-free, they will likely invest more time and effort in meaningful activities, contributing positively to the non-profit’s goals.
Improving Service and Efficiency at NW Community Food
Attendance tracking is critical to NW Community Food. Traditionally, volunteers armed with pen, paper, and clipboard checked guests in on Sunday afternoons. That attendance list was later used by another volunteer to update an Excel spreadsheet. However, this method was inconvenient since it required manual input and data transfer to Excel. This process consumed valuable time that could have been used more effectively.
Though Kathy Hudson usually takes charge of the produce counter during her volunteer shift on Sunday afternoons, she is occasionally responsible for checking in guests. Noting how cumbersome and inefficient the paper-and-pen process was, Kathy set out to find a tool to solve these problems and make the work easier.
Challenges while Manually Managing Attendance Records
Manual Data Entry: Volunteers had to manually record attendance information by hand, using printed sheets.
Time Inefficiency: Manually inputting data into Excel consumed valuable volunteer time that could have been better spent on other important tasks.
Risk of Errors: The manual transcription and re-entering of data to Google Sheets increased the likelihood of errors, posing a threat to data accuracy and organizational integrity.
Lack of Organization: Extensive reprocessing of attendance records resulted in disorganization and a lack of streamlined data management.
Empowering Change: Kathy Hudson’s Innovation with Attendance Tracker
Recognizing this challenge as an opportunity for change, Kathy Hudson sought a transformative solution. Besides simplifying the registration process by getting rid of printed sheets, she hoped to improve efficiency and accuracy in recording community needs and services. During her search for solutions, while browsing on Google, Kathy discovered a simple and easy way to track attendance with OneTap.
A tedious data entry process and transcription errors are no longer a problem. With OneTap, volunteers now effortlessly and swiftly record attendance, and generate precise reports in real time. This tech-forward approach not only saves time but ensures accurate and actionable data, empowering NW Community Food to make a more profound impact within the community by demonstrating the results and reach of its work week after week.
Key Benefits of an Attendance Tracker App
Enhanced Efficiency: 80-90% Accuracy
Compared to Google Sheets, attendance tracking apps significantly improve accuracy compared to manual registers, minimizing human errors in data entry and reducing instances of duplicate or missing records.
Time Savings: Streamlined Processes
Check-in tracking apps streamline the attendance process on Google Sheets, saving volunteers’ time and administrators’ time.
Real-time Remote Access: Anytime, Anywhere
With the ability to log attendance remotely via an internet connection, these apps provide real-time monitoring and access from different locations to multiple volunteer staff.
Detailed Reporting and Analysis: Insights at Your Fingertips
Attendance tracking apps offer robust reporting and data analysis tools, providing comprehensive insights into attendance patterns and visitor data, making them a more efficient choice compared to using Google Sheets
Cost Reduction: Long-term Savings
By automating processes and reducing paperwork, these apps can lead to significant cost savings over time, diminishing the need for physical storage and administrative overhead.
NW Community Food’s evolution represents innovation in community service. By integrating OneTap, the organization improved volunteer operations. Better reports help leaders make better decisions. Information about who’s showing up and attendance data like frequency and engagement can also help grant proposals be more substantial, demonstrating the good work they’re doing and increasing their chances of funding. NW Community Food’s commitment to progress through innovative solutions is a testament to its unwavering dedication to serving the community efficiently and effectively.
By automating tasks and cutting down on paperwork, these apps can save a lot of money in the long run, reducing the need for physical storage and administrative work.
NW Community Food’s growth shows innovation in community service. By adopting OneTap the organization changed the volunteers’ work and improved the guests’ experience. Guests appreciate the speed of checkin and non-English speakers appreciate being able to simply type in their name.
OneTap gives better reports, helping leaders make smarter choices. Knowing who attends and tracking attendance data, like how often and how engaged they are, can strengthen grant proposals. This demonstrates the great work they’re doing and increases their chances of getting funding. NW Community Food’s dedication to finding new solutions proves its commitment to serving the community efficiently and effectively.
“Beautifully fast and easy. Because it was finding a name and tapping it.”
Kahy Hudson- Volunteer at NW Community Food
Enhance your organization’s efficiency and guest experiences effortlessly. Explore our customized plans today to witness OneTap transformative power in revolutionizing your community outreach and organizational efficiency.
A big thank you to Kathy Hudson from NW Community Food for sharing their amazing story with us.
