Aplos

Comentarios: We began using Aplos as a brand new church. They helped us every step of the way as we grew - absolutely stellar customer service! We still don't have the complexity that some larger churches do, but every time we have needed to add something, the capacity has been there. The one exception was the lack of payroll integration, which I understand that they are now adding but we have not used yet. What I love about the product is that it is easy for us who are new to accounting to use, but also robust enough that our treasure (CPA) is able to use it in more complex ways.

Puntos a favor: Cloud-based Accounting with multiple user accounts makes it easy to keep finances updated.
Clean, simple, straight-forward layout makes use easy.
Super-responsive customer service are always there when you need them.
Bank integration makes it easy to import transactions.
Contact management.
Reports are quick and easy to generate with customized data.
Ability to connect to online-giving.

Contras: At the moment we are unable to link families within the contact management system.
There are awesome graphs and charts on the dashboard, but unfortunately they do not have a lot of customization options or the ability to easily export.

Comentarios: Aplos is doing the job for me. Some things are frustrating, but mostly, it's better than doing things by hand or by spreadsheet. Occasionally odd things happen. For instance, it's now January 17, and the home page is telling me that my YTD income is different from my monthly income. This can't be true in January. Similar things happen in some reports. The balance sheet will say that a fund has X dollars, but the report for that fund will say Y dollars. So there are some quirks to get around, but it's no worse than making a spreadsheet (or other software that knows nothing about fund accounting) behave. I like the reports Aplos generates. Especially at the end of the year, when everyone in our congregation wants a statement for their taxes. It's really just one button. If I were the boss of Aplos, the first thing I'd change is that I'd clean up the wasted screen real-estate. There's a button on the bottom right that has a bad habit of covering half the number I want to see, and pop-up "alerts" occasionally disrupt my work. And the box the pop-ups come from is also wasted screen area. Actually, this box keeps telling me I'm 85% set up. It's wrong. I'm as set up as I want to be. I can't see how to make the box go away, except to buy more product which I don't need. This amounts to a pop-up ad, and not the good kind. So this isn't a glowing review. But software nowadays is written so poorly, that bare competence floats to the top. Aplos is better than anything else I've used, but that's not saying a lot. If they raise the price again, I'm going back to spreadsheets.

Puntos a favor: Fairly clean interface. Most reports are close to what I want.

Contras: It's still buggy. Amounts that should match, don't always. The cost has tripled in the last 3 years.

Comentarios: Much more accurate accounting and record keeping, balancing with bank deposits.

Puntos a favor: We made the transition from paper to online accounting via Aplos. It is very easy to make entries and retrieve reports, keep up with contributions and even church membership.

Contras: Users with little computer experience could be put off a bit but that would be the case with any online accounting system.

Puntos a favor: I like that everything is all together in one spot - donor software, accounting, newletters and online giving forms. I like how when someone gives online through your forms that it automatically incorporates into your accounting and saves info from the giver into your contacts. Their customer service and support is their beacon of light. Extreme strong point. It's almost as if you have nonprofit accountant on your staff to answer your questions. They answer you quickly, and their answers are always helpful. And often times they've logged in and completely helped me fix an issue. This is the best thing I love about them and something that makes them completely unique. This was a game changer for me as a brand new nonprofit and didn't know what I was doing. I can't say enough about this! This is what makes me recommend them to everyone I know that's a nonprofit leader.

Contras: The newsletter email templates and online giving forms are very template-y and don't give you a lot of control. The final product can help you get information out, however it looks pretty amateurish, which in turn makes your nonprofit/your brand, look amateurish - which is more important than most people know. If Aplos could follow constant contact's lead on design formatting they would be top notch. The other thing I don't like is often I'm fundraising for events and have options for customers to pick (example : I want to buy tickets for an event and a tshirt for two people), or want them to be able to buy multiples of items and it really needs somewhat of a "cart" option for online giving forms. Third, I get lots of complaints from customers about the transaction errors which make it hard to give. I get this a lot. Which can hinder givers, often they won't go back again and give again when they get an email way later that the transaction didn't go through, so you lose donations. I've addressed this with them several times, but there hasn't been any resolution. I think it has to do with that the provider they use does a micro-transaction to the bank and then banks don't approve it.

Comentarios: Aplos has THE BEST Customer Service team you could ask for! No matter what the issue or who answers the phone, I am always treated professionally and courteously. For example, I recently called because our church was changing our fiscal year from the calendar year to a July-June year. In a matter of minutes, I was on my way with my questions answered! At times when what I wanted wasn't available in the software, I have always been told that my request would be sent to the IT team for review and consideration. I like the fact that Aplos LISTENS to its customers and responds! The webinars and support areas offered are always helpful as well. Lastly, I personally enjoy the humor of the Aplos team; and the occasional contests/prizes are fun, too!

Puntos a favor: The software is basically user-friendly.

Contras: Some areas (like events) don't allow me all the options I wish were available.