Data Hygiene: Get your technology systems in top shape for your end-of-year campaign

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With end-of-year planning in full swing, don’t forget to add data cleaning to your checklist.

You want your technology systems to be in their best shape before your “busy” season begins, so making sure you start putting some processes into play now by practicing good data hygiene so you can guarantee your campaign will run as smoothly as possible.

Jeff Miller, our in-house data management guru, gives three recommendations for maintaining good data hygiene that you can start doing today.

1) Keep addresses up-to-date and in a consistent format.

Make use of address standardization and validation services offered as part of your CRM or online fundraising system, including CASS certification and NCOA address updates.

Consider adding a front-end address validator, like SmartyStreets, to donation forms and other web forms where addresses are collected.

2) Stop ALL bad data at the source.

It’s not just bad/incomplete addresses that can be stopped at the source. Consider all the sources of incoming data—web forms, data entry forms, system integrations, import/exports—and make sure that they’re consistent with each other and capturing the information that’s really needed.

Use validation rules to enforce data requirements, and design forms that are specific to the task at hand. Where possible, dynamically hide/unhide questions and picklist options based on previous answers.

3) Don’t neglect duplicate maintenance!

One of the biggest reasons to use a CRM for fundraising in the first place is being able to see the entire relationship and history between a donor and your organization in one place. If that donor’s history is split up among several duplicate records, that advantage is lost. Plus, the resultant potential for duplicate mailings, inaccurate email audience lists, and generally increased customer service times, all come at a cost: both in program expenses and loss of donor goodwill.

Have a plan for regularly dealing with incoming potential duplicates (including prepping for the aftermath of high volume campaigns), and consider working with a vendor that specializes in detecting and merging duplicates if there’s a substantial backlog.

 

Start maintaining that data today and you will definitely benefit when your end-of-year campaign begins. And if you need any help getting started, feel free to reach out to our team!

Authors

  • Shannon Miller

    With over 15 years working in the nonprofit and technology sector, Shannon has seen a little bit of everything regarding marketing to and from nonprofits. Some good, some bad, but regardless she hopes her insights help strengthen your organization.

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  • Jeff Miller

    In over 15 years as nonprofit technology professional, Jeff developed a passion for helping organizations of all sizes achieve their technology goals. He has worked on both the client side and as a consultant. Fundraising technology can provide unique challenges to nonprofits, and Jeff lives for finding uniquely creative solutions.

    View all posts
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    India e-Entry Visa says:

    This is a very practical guide for nonprofit teams preparing for a busy fundraising season. I especially liked the focus on data hygiene before an end-of-year campaign, because clean and consistent information can make a huge difference in both efficiency and donor experience.

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    Egypt E-Visa Application Form 2026 says:

    Data hygiene is one of those jobs that can easily get pushed aside until something goes wrong. The duplicate-record point especially matters during busy fundraising periods, when a small data issue can turn into repeated emails or incorrect donor records pretty quickly. I’d also look at how often validation rules are reviewed, because forms that worked well last year may not collect the right information now. Cleaning data before a major campaign starts seems much easier than trying to fix hundreds of records afterwards.

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    Russia eVisa says:

    I really appreciated reading this guide because it highlights a crucial point that many organizations overlook. Robust data security can help avoid unnecessary complications during busy campaigns. The suggestions regarding verifying information at the source and regularly checking for duplicate records are extremely useful for non-profits looking to improve their fundraising processes.

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    Saudi Arabia Visa Documents says:

    I appreciate how clearly these data hygiene tips are explained. Keeping addresses accurate and avoiding duplicate records can make fundraising much smoother and prevent unnecessary confusion, especially when organizations are handling a large number of donations.

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    How to Apply for the Lao eVisa? says:

    Keeping donor data clean before a major fundraising campaign makes a lot of sense. I particularly liked the focus on preventing bad information at the source rather than fixing everything later. Consistent addresses and regular duplicate checks can save time while also improving the donor experience.

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