Software Helps Increase Twin Cities’ Habitat for Humanity Donations by 75%
- August 30, 2018
- By: Vonigo
Twin Cities’ Habitat for Humanity ReStore first opened in 2008 in New Brighton, Minnesota. In 2015, they added Vonigo’s donation pickup software. In one year increased their Habitat for Humanity donations by 75%. Here’s how they did it.
Rapid Growth Made Possible With Software
Robin Henrichsen, Twin Cities ReStore Donations Manager
When they added Vonigo software, offering donors the option of online booking, the number of donations increased substantially. “Twin Cities ReStore had a 75% increase in bookings in the first year using Vonigo,” says ReStore Donations Manager Robin Henrichsen. “To support increased donation pickups and sales, we expanded our truck fleet from one to two trucks. This change was easy to implement in the Vonigo system and got us up to speed quickly.”
“Jill Carmody, our Store Manager, is our hero,” says Henrichsen. “She brought in much-needed processes in store to help things run smoothly.” She also credits Sr. Operations Manager Pete O’Keeke with being the team’s “fearless leader,” but says it’s the community that makes their success possible.
“Business donors and individual donors are the lifeblood of the ReStore,” she says. “We help them to find a home for their unneeded items and we keep things out of the landfill and help families in our local community find safe, stable and affordable housing.”
Habitat for Humanity Donations Fund Local Home Building Projects
When a donor donates their used building materials to Habitat for Humanity, the ReStores sell it back to consumers. The funds they raise from the ReStores go toward building homes in their local communities and abroad for deserving families in need of support. Vonigo is proud to play a part in the success of ReStore locations across North America.
How Software Helps Solve Problems
The addition of donation pickup software helps them reduce the time the ReStore teams spend entering data into their systems. “We had one system for creating a pickup and another system to create the route,” says Heinrichsen of life before the new tech. “The system was not reliable and broke down often. This caused frustration and rework.”
After looking for a replacement, they settled on Vonigo. “We chose Vonigo as it allowed the donor to enter all of their information about their donation and allowed them to include a photo of their items. We created auto-response emails to confirm details of the pickup. This reduced time spent on the process.”
More Than Just Time Saved
“We continue to look for ways to increase our donation pickups, which leads to increased sales,” says Heinrichsen. “This could be adding a truck or adding days to the route. We continue to strive to increase sales, be profitable and support more home builds with our profit. The ultimate goal is to increase our store count as the donation stream grows.”
Their appreciation for the community is a sentiment that runs in both directions. Donors and customers in the Twin Cities like the ReStores for the ability to find a great deal on a home improvement items, and for the great customer service during the donation pick up and scheduling.
Learn How Donation Pickup Software Can Work for You
Want to learn about how donation pickup software can help your non-profit? Book a free, private demo of Vonigo.
