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On July 13, Belmar Consulting Group, in partnership with Salesforce, hosted Blackbaud to Salesforce, Eh? — a practical webinar that walked nearly 100 nonprofit leaders through what it really takes to move from Blackbaud/Raiser’s Edge to Salesforce. The session was hosted by Sterrin Bird (Salesforce Nonprofit Advisor) with candid insights from Karl Feltmate (Senior Manager, Stewardship & Donor Retention, The Mustard Seed) and Frank Lombardo (VP, IT & Digital Ecosystems, CNIB).
Below are the most useful, no-fluff takeaways for any nonprofit planning a Blackbaud to Salesforce migration.
Why nonprofits switch from Blackbaud to Salesforce
Future-proofing & cloud scale.
CNIB looked at peer organisations, where they were heading, and matched that with a broader digital push to the cloud. Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud offered the flexibility to evolve programs, channels, and data needs without constant rebuilds.
Security & support that passes board scrutiny.
Teams highlighted Salesforce MFA as a strong control against phishing and account takeovers, plus responsive support when changes or fixes were needed. That combination helped de-risk the move with leadership.
Built for nonprofits, not bolted on.
Through the Power of Us Program (P10), eligible nonprofits receive 10 free licenses and meaningful discounts. The panel called out:
- Reporting you can own (no waiting in a queue for basic dashboards).
- Open integrations to connect fundraising, programs, marketing, and finance.
- A single constituent view that finally pulls volunteers, donors, and participants into one profile. As Karl noted, seeing a holistic picture of a 30,000-plus volunteer base changed engagement.
Training that sticks.
Free Trailhead modules and a huge admin community helped teams learn fast and maintain momentum after go-live.
How to migrate without pausing daily work
Create a focused task force.
Don’t add a full CRM redesign to someone’s day job. The Mustard Seed brought in a Salesforce-savvy analyst who drove change for years after launch. If hiring isn’t possible, appoint an internal change champion who loves process, is curious about technology, and can unblock decisions.
Run a phased rollout.
Avoid a “big bang.” Start with core use cases (e.g., donations, gift processing, stewardship journeys), then layer in volunteer management, grants, events, or program services. Small, visible wins build trust.
Keep operations flowing.
- Map critical tasks (acknowledgements, recurring gifts, receipts) and mirror them in a sandbox early.
- Set up temporary bridges (simple exports/imports or middleware) so teams aren’t double-entering data for long.
- Schedule cutover around low-volume periods if you can.
How to know you’re ready
Invest in the organisation, not just the tools.
As Frank put it, there’s rarely a “perfect time.” Nonprofits often prioritise donors and clients over internal systems until things break. Treat the move as a strategic investment — like booking a holiday for future you — so the mission can scale.
Retire museum-piece processes.
If you’re still following workflows that made sense when filing cabinets ruled, it’s time to review. A migration is your chance to simplify, standardise, and remove steps that add no value. Don’t rebuild old pain in a new platform.
Look for these green lights.
- Leadership buy-in and a named executive sponsor
- A cross-functional data owner who can make calls on standards and duplicates
- Agreeing on must-have use cases for Day 1 vs. “nice to have later”
A practical migration game plan
- Discovery workshops
Document goals (raise more money, improve stewardship, unify programs), current pain points, and success metrics. - Data audit & standards
Clean duplicates, define household/org rules, lock naming conventions, and agree what not to migrate. - Solution design
Map Blackbaud/Raiser’s Edge entities to Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud objects. Align fundraising, marketing, programs, and volunteer needs to a single data model. - Build & integrations
Configure out-of-the-box first, then add only the custom fields and flows you need. Connect accounting, email, events, and online giving tools. - Migrate in waves
Start with a sample, test with power users, fix, then move larger batches. - UAT with real scenarios
Have gift processors, fundraisers, and program leads test daily tasks end-to-end. - Training & enablement
Use Trailhead for baseline skills, then run live clinics focused on your actual processes. - Go-live & hypercare
Staff a “floor support” channel for the first 2–4 weeks. Track issues and close the loop quickly. - Post-launch optimisation
Add dashboards, stewardship journeys, and automation once stability is solid.
Results you can expect
- Faster reporting: fundraisers and leaders get near-real-time dashboards instead of waiting days.
- Better stewardship: a unified record ties volunteer hours, campaign responses, and donor history together.
- Quicker changes: admins ship tweaks without long development cycles.
- Security comfort: MFA and profiles/permissions make audits easier.
Quick checklist
- Executive sponsor named
- Change champion or analyst allocated
- Top 3 Day-1 use cases agreed
- Data standards set (households, orgs, dedupe rules)
- Minimal viable integrations planned
- Pilot users identified and trained
- Cutover plan with rollback steps
- Two-week hypercare window staffed
FAQs
Why move from Blackbaud to Salesforce?
Flexibility, nonprofit pricing (Power of Us), stronger integrations, built-in security (including MFA), and reporting that your own team can manage.
How do we avoid downtime?
Use a phased rollout, temporary data bridges, and a staffed hypercare period. Keep core gift processing running first; add the rest in waves.
Is Salesforce truly “nonprofit ready”?
Yes. Nonprofit Cloud supports fundraising, programs, volunteers, and marketing with a unified data model and the Power of Us licensing benefits.
What skills do we need?
An internal product owner/admin, a data lead, and power users. Trailhead provides free training; a trusted partner can accelerate the first build.
Watch the webinar
Want the full discussion from CNIB and The Mustard Seed? Catch the recording on our YouTube channel to see the play-by-play of their migrations and outcomes.