This guide will walk you through exporting your data from Bloomerang so it is import-ready for Givebutter. With the step-by-step instructions below, you can ensure you have all the data you need to successfully migrate to Givebutter.
Although data migrations can feel daunting, we're here to support you every step of the way! We've had hundreds of Bloomerang customers successfully move to their new home at Givebutter. Check out a success story about a real-life Givebutter customer who made the switch! →
We will be using Bloomerang’s reporting feature to export these details so they are easier to prep for import. You can also request a backup zip file of all your account data to ensure everything from Bloomerang is available offline. We recommend doing this for peace of mind!
Migrate recurring donors 🔁
Notify Bloomerang 📫
Bloomerang typically uses Stripe for your payments, but they may also be under Bloomerang Payments. You will need to check this in your Bloomerang account under Settings > Payments.
Once you confirm which of these processors your account is using, you can email Bloomerang’s support team the following template to start this process. Please note that as of 3/5/24, Bloomerang has implemented a fee associated with this transfer – this is not a Givebutter fee.
Hi there,
We are moving our recurring donors from Bloomerang to Givebutter. We will need assistance with this process, as our recurring plans are set up in a [Stripe or Bloomerang Payments] account we cannot directly access.
Can you please send our donors to this Stripe account, acct_17qVRFEBuKNYj3GG? Once that is done, it would be so helpful if you could confirm and send a file detailing which customer ID belongs to which donor.
Thank you!
Once Bloomerang confirms that this data has been sent to our Stripe account, you can submit this intake form so our migration team can retrieve the Stripe file you need.
Export recurring donors ➡️
Next, you'll export a recurring donor report from Bloomerang.
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left-hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Transactions.
You can select Add Column on the right side to select Recurring Donation Schedule and Payments and then choose Schedule Date, Frequency, Schedule Status, and Schedule Amount.
Select Add Column again and choose Constituent. From there, you will want to choose Email Address, Address (street, state, zip code, country), First Name, and Last Name.
When all of your columns are set, hit Save As > Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep a recurring donor import 📝
Between the resulting export file and the file that Bloomerang will send you once the donors are copied to the Givebutter Stripe account, you will have the beginning details needed for our recurring donor template. The remaining data will come from our Stripe account.
Here is a breakdown of how this information comes together:
Givebutter’s Stripe File
This file has the unique Stripe IDs needed to add to our importer so your recurring donors can bill with your account.
Bloomerang’s Stripe File
Lists the Stripe Customer IDs and who they belong to. This will help you identify which ID belongs to which donor.
Bloomerang Recurring Export
Gives you the final pieces needed to know how often and when each monthly donor is billing, as well as their email and full address.
After your import file is complete, you will finish the remaining steps to import, validate, and activate these plans. You will need to coordinate with Bloomerang to cancel your plans so no one is missed or double-charged.
Migrate contact records 👤
Export from Bloomerang ➡️
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left-hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Constituents.
Now it’s time to build this export! You can select Add Column on the right side to choose which columns of data you want to import. Our template is a great reference to start with to choose which fields you want to import. Make sure to include the Account Number, First Name, Last Name, and Type columns. This will allow you to filter by individual and organization records — we will import companies next!
Remember, we support custom fields for contacts. This means anything you don’t see on our template can still be imported as a separate column. Account Number is an example of this custom data that we will bring over.
When all of your columns are set, select Include under Constituents > Filters, choose Type is Individual, and then select OK on the right side.
If you don't have any other columns to add, your report is ready. Hit Save As > Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep for Givebutter 🌟
You can now open the downloaded file and copy the data into our template so it imports more seamlessly. If you notice any of your data needs to be re-formatted to align with our template’s rules, check out our prep guide, which highlights some great features in Google Sheets.
Bloomerang has specific communication and email interest columns, whereas Givebutter has a subscription opt-in or out column. You can approach this two ways: either opt-in only folks that are subscribed to all interests and out opt those that are not, or opt-in everyone that has any sort of interest listed and use a custom field to tailor their communication based on their prior interests listed in Bloomerang.
Once your file is ready, you can import your contacts!
Migrate company records 🏢
Export from Bloomerang ➡️
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Constituents.
Now it’s time to build this export! You can select Add Column on the right side to choose which columns of data you want to import. Make sure to include the Name, Type, Primary Contact, and Account Number columns, as well as any other data we support for company imports. Our template is a great reference to start with to choose which fields you want to import.
Remember, we support custom fields for contacts. This means anything you don’t see on our template can still be imported as a separate column. Account Number is an example of this custom data that we will bring over.
When all of your columns are set, select Include under Constituents > Filters and choose Type is Organization then select OK on the right side.
If there are no other columns you would like to add, then your report is ready. Hit Save As, Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep for Givebutter 🌟
You can now open that downloaded file and copy the data into our template so it imports more seamlessly. If you notice any of your data needs to be re-formatted to align with our template’s rules, check out our prep guide, which highlights some great features in Google Sheets.
Once your file is ready, you can import your companies!
Migrate contact activities ☎️
All of your contacts must be imported first before you import your contact activities!
Export from Bloomerang ➡️
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left-hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Interactions.
You shouldn’t need to modify the present columns. Our template lets you know what data we support for your interactions. They are Activity Type, Date, Subject, and Note.
If you don't have any other columns to add, your report is ready. Hit Save As, Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep for Givebutter 🌟
You can now open that downloaded file and copy the data into our template so it imports more seamlessly. If you notice any of your data needs to be re-formatted to align with our template’s rules, check out our prep guide, which highlights some great features in Google Sheets.
You will also need to export your contacts so you can use their unique contact ID to add to this template. We have a detailed breakdown of how you can add those IDs more easily.
Bloomerang has a Purpose column that we do not currently support. However, you could always merge this data to include it in the Notes.
Once your file is ready, you can import your contact activities!
Migrate transaction records 💰
Export from Bloomerang ➡️
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left-hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Transactions.
You can select Add Column on the right side to choose which columns of data you want to import. Make sure to include the Name, Date, Amount, Fund, Method at the very least as these are the minimum required fields to import a transaction. The other fields we support for transactions can also be exported if you need them.
If you have soft credits, make sure to also include Soft Credit Names and Soft Credited Amount.
Lastly, click Add Column again and choose Constituent. From there, you will want to choose Email Address, Address (street, state, zip code, country), First Name, and Last Name.
If you don't have any other columns to add, your report is ready. Hit Save As > Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep for Givebutter 🌟
Once you are ready, you can copy the data into our template so it can be imported more seamlessly. If you notice any of your data needs to be re-formatted to align with our template’s rules, check out our prep guide that highlights some great features in Google Sheets.
For any donors missing an email address or phone number, you will need to add the donors’ Givebutter Contact IDs to the file. This will ensure that donations link to the right contact record and will help avoid creating duplicates.
Since Givebutter only has campaigns and publicly displayed fund designations, Appeals is usually the field past Bloomerang customers will choose to map over to Givebutter campaigns.
For any transactions that have a soft credit associated with them, you will want to use our Internal Note field to note that it is a ‘soft credit’. We will need that information later, so only the ‘hard credit’ needs to be imported right now.
Once your file is ready, you can import your transactions!
Migrate soft credit records 🍦
Export from Bloomerang ➡️
Navigate to the Reports tab in your account and select New Report on the left-hand side.
Select Build a Report from Scratch and then Transactions
You can select Add Column on the right side to choose which columns of data you want to import. Make sure to include the Name, Date, Amount, and Fund (or campaign or appeal if you choose to map that instead) as well as Soft Credit Names and Soft Credited Amount.
When all of your columns are set, select Include under Transaction > Filters and choose Soft Credited Amount is Between $1 and $500,000 (any high number you know you don’t have a soft credit amount for will do) then select OK on the right side.
You can add any other columns that are supported on the soft credit import template.
If there are no other columns you would like to add, then your report is ready. Hit Save As, Export to Excel, give it a name, and you’re ready to download.
Prep for Givebutter 🌟
Soft credits will need to be imported based on the transactions that you have already added, to which they are attributed. To start, navigate to your transaction dashboard in Givebutter and filter by Internal Note > With an internal note.
Then, you can click Export and select the following custom columns to include: Campaign Title, First Name, Last Name, Reference Number, Amount, Transaction Date, and Method.
Now that you have this file, you can use it against the Bloomerang export to compare which soft credit belongs to which transaction. This data can be compiled within our soft credit template.
Once your file is ready, you can import your soft credits!
Verify and clean up 🧹
Check Imports: Spot-check a few contacts and transactions in Givebutter to ensure data is transferred correctly (e.g., amounts, dates, names).
Handle Errors: If any rows fail (visible in Settings > Imports), download the failed records, fix them in the CSV, and re-import them.
Delete Test Imports (Optional): If you make a mistake, you can delete an entire import from Settings > Imports, but proceed cautiously as this is permanent.
Additional tips ✨
Timing: Plan this migration when you have downtime, as it may take a few hours to format and import everything.
Support: Givebutter’s migration process is self-service, but you can contact our support team if you have further questions.
This process leverages Givebutter’s free, user-friendly tools and Bloomerang’s export capabilities, ensuring a smooth transition without starting from scratch.