Title: Essential KPIs for Fundraiser Success in Blackbaud CRM™
- BrightVine Solutions
- Jul 30
- 3 min read
by Leah Mitchell and Liz Feskoe
Measuring the effectiveness of fundraising efforts and understanding donor engagement is key to achieving your organization’s goals. In Blackbaud CRM™, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) provide a powerful way to set benchmarks and make informed, data-driven decisions.
While Blackbaud CRM™ supports a wide range of KPIs across functional areas, fundraisers will find particular value in those focused on prospect activity and revenue outcomes. Below are three high-impact KPIs that fundraisers can create directly within the system:
Major Donor Engagement Activities – Tracks personal meetings, calls, and events with major donors, reflecting active relationship-building.
Proposal Success Rate – Measures the percentage of submitted proposals that result in secured gifts.
Accepted Opportunities by Value Range – Reports on the count of accepted opportunities within specific monetary ranges.
Getting Started with KPI Creation
To build any KPI, navigate to Analysis > Information Library and select the KPIs tab. Click Add to open the Select a KPI window, which displays available KPI types organized into folders. For fundraising-related metrics, the Prospects and Selections folders are most relevant.
1. Major Donor Engagement Activities
For this KPI, “engagement activities” are defined as completed Prospect Plan steps (also referred to as “moves”).
Select: Prospects > Number of Completed Moves
General Tab: Enter a name and optional description.
Criteria Tab:
In the Fundraiser field, choose the individual this KPI will track.
Set Prospect Status to Active.
Optionally filter by Plan Type or Plan Stage.
Goal Tab: Enter the target number of completed steps.
Finalize: Click Save, then locate and open the KPI by name. Click Update KPI Value and select Start to process.
2. Proposal Success Rate
This KPI compares accepted versus submitted proposals to determine success rates.
Select: Selections > Percentage of Records in One Selection vs. Another
General Tab: Name your KPI and add a description if desired.
Criteria Tab:
For “Calculate number of records in this selection”: Create a query for Accepted Proposals (based on your organization’s definition).
For “as a percentage of the number of records in this selection”: Create a query for Submitted Proposals.
Goal Tab: Set targets for Overall, Good, and Satisfactory performance levels.
Finalize: Save, open the KPI, and process using Update KPI Value > Start.
3. Accepted Opportunities by Value Range
This KPI reports on how many accepted opportunities fall within specific value thresholds.
Select: Prospects > Opportunities Count
General Tab: Provide a name and optional description.
Criteria Tab:
Set Opportunity Status to Accepted.
Choose Active in Prospect Status.
Select a value range under Amount Range (editable in Prospects > Major Giving Setup > Opportunity Amount Ranges).
Goal Tab: Enter the target number of opportunities within that range.
Finalize: Save, open the KPI, and click Update KPI Value > Start to process.
Automating KPI Tracking
Each KPI can be scheduled to update automatically—daily, weekly, or monthly. From the KPI record, navigate to the left-hand Tasks pane and select Create job schedule to define the frequency.
Final Thoughts on KPIs
Leveraging KPIs in Blackbaud CRM™ equips fundraisers with critical insights to guide strategy, evaluate progress, and optimize donor engagement. By tracking metrics such as Major Donor Engagement Activities, Proposal Success Rate, and Accepted Opportunities by Value Range, fundraisers can set meaningful goals and stay proactive in managing relationships and revenue.
When used consistently—and paired with automated scheduling—KPIs become a valuable part of a fundraiser’s toolkit, turning data into action and boosting the impact of every campaign.