Frequently Asked Questions About ASPs

Answer: ASPs develop software products and make them available to nonprofits for an ongoing rental fee.

• When you use an ASP, you're hiring an external company to build and operate a system for you, so the 'in-house' burdens of technical management can be lessened.
• When you use an ASP, you can access the service over the Internet from any computer anywhere with Internet access. This makes working from multiple offices, on the road, or from home considerably easier.
• When you use an ASP, they take care of regularly updating the software with new features, so your staff doesn't have to be involved, other than sometimes having to provide or go through some training to understand how to use any new features the ASP is providing.
• When you use an ASP, they take care of doing regular backups of your data that is stored in their system. Data stored with an ASP is frequently more secure than data stored in a typical nonprofit.
• When you use an ASP, you pay as you go with monthly fees, rather than having all the costs up front.
• When you use an ASP, any computer with Internet access and a Web browser can access the software, no matter what brand or platform of computer. It is usually preferable to have a high bandwidth Internet connection (such as ISDN, DSL and faster) when using an ASP to improve speed and reliability of access.
• When you use an ASP, you can get up and running quickly. Because ASPs build their software tools once and then resell them over and over using a "cookie cutter" model. As a result, ASPs can sometimes deploy a complete software solution in a matter of weeks.
• When you use an ASP, you get specialized technical support to help you with training and troubleshooting that is directly related to that particular product.

Answer: We do not think that the risks mentioned below are in and of themselves reasons not to use ASPs but are offered to you to help you plan ahead and have realistic expectations. Just because copy machines jam up for example doesn't mean we decide not to use copy machines. We encourage nonprofits to keep these ASP risks in perspective and apply some good planning and flexibility so that if do use these tools you are prepared.

• Although ASPs can save technical resources, they also can reduce your control and involvement with the systems you depend on. Should you have a serious issue with your ASP (such as poor response time to technical problems or unexplained service failures), it could result in taking a large amount of staff and/or management time to get the issue resolved, so you end up losing the time you planned on saving.
• If you use an ASP to integrate different pieces of data together, this may necessitate changing the way you work, especially if staff are using different systems. Integration also creates a "super system" that will demand management. If your system had been made up of smaller, separate pieces in the past, the task of managing those systems was likely spread out. With an integrated system you may need to re-examine how you manage it, which could put a large burden on one staff member.
• If your Internet connection goes down or goes out of business, you risk losing access to data or the ASPs services for the time period that your Internet connection is down.
• Automatic software updates may be an ASP advantage, but not when they significantly change how the software is used. Your staff may access the software one day, only to find that menu items are in different places, or that a function they used no longer works the same way.
• There is always a risk of a backup being lost or the data corrupted. If your ASP has a poor backup process, you could lose data you thought was secure. Always have a backup copy of your data off-site to protect against disasters.
• One downside of the rental model is the long-term cost, which may greatly exceed the cost of purchased software. Rather than having to spend most of the money at one time, it will mean a constant flow of money to the ASP, which may be more difficult than the one time purchase for some organizations. The charge-by-use model also has a potential downside of increasing your overall costs if the service gets heavy use. You need to determine the value of the ASP service to your organization.
• Not all ASPs disclose fully that their services don't work the same way on Windows and on Macs, so be sure to indicate to the ASPs you plan to use what kind of computers you use and what kind of Web browsers you use.
• Speed of setting up a project with an ASP may not be an advantage. A product may have hidden flaws or an inability to perform as promised due to the pressure to get it up and running quickly. Also, it's important for your nonprofit to take the time necessary to create a strategy and a plan for using an ASP.

Answer:

• Designate someone in your nonprofit agency who will spearhead the effort to work with an ASP and assemble a team to move forward with the selection process. Your existing technology team or any staff/teams that work on communications and information management within your organization can often take on this work. If you currently do not have such a team then explore setting one up. You do NOT simply want an IT staff person to handle this without input and planning by staff from different departments within the organization.
• Perform a needs assessment to define your needs as simply as possible. An example of a general needs statement might be: "We need to be more flexible in the way we allow people to make donations to us. An online donation tool that allows people to donate money with their credit cards would be great," or "we need to connect more closely with colleagues who live in different parts of the country. A listserv to communicate with our network of advisers across the country would be a great add-on to our current mix of communication strategies." Then add other requirements you might have (for example, inexpensive or easy to use) that relate to your operations. Note that every needs assessment statement is grounded NOT in the technology but in the way the organization does its business. ASP selections, like any technology tools and strategies, should not be chosen without looking at programs and operational systems. Fundraising, communications, materials development, education efforts, advocacy, whatever you do, make sure that the ASP selection is grounded and connected to what you do, why and how you do it.
• Search for ASPs that match your needs. To get a good idea of how a service is used and how it really works, speak with other nonprofit customers of the service. To find those other customers, ask ASPs themselves, ask on listservs (such as the Online Fundraising Mailing List, see which can be found in our ASP Tools section), ask in the TechSoup Community , and talk to other nonprofits and board members you know. Try to find organizations that use the service in the same way you plan to use it. Ask these three key questions to other organizations: How do you use this ASP? What was your setup experience? Is their Technical technical Support support helpful? This is a great way to learn about real world experiences with an ASP, but can't take the place of listing your needs and expectations as benchmarks for selection.
• Consider the following criteria as you make your selection: your needs for features and the functionality of each ASP, pricing plans, frequency that the ASP updates the software, its commitment to customer service and training, testimonials from existing customers of that ASP, and the business stability of the ASP. Understand the 'total cost of ownership' of working with an ASP. Monthly rental fees, training and technical support, any hardware upgrades, staff time for research, and contracting and management of the relationship all need to be factored in to understand what the total cost is. This 'total cost' will vary from ASP to ASP depending on the way they work and what which services they offer.
• Sign a contract and then implement the technology that the ASP will be providing.

Answer: To select an ASP, consult the these online directories which will show you the options available to you:

• TechSoup TechFinder: Find Services
• Nonprofit Matrix

There are many ASPs on the marketplace that are not listed in these directories, and you may come across some that are very small and locally or regionally based. Regardless of where you find the ASP, the key to success is going through careful selection procedures to make sure you are contracting with a service that is reputable and will me your needs.

Answer: A needs assessment is a mission statement for your project, with a clear statement of your desired outcomes.

• Start with a broad definition of your needs. For example, "We need to improve our donation systems for prospective donors" or "We need a listserv to communicate with our national network of advisers." Use this as a starting point to review how you currently handle those needs, what works, what doesn't work, and what needs improving.
• Build this review into a more detailed definition of your needs, which will help you define which features and tools you might ask an ASP to provide.
• Use this needs assessment when you're shopping for an ASP and when you're evaluating your progress towards selection.

Answer: There's no sure way to know how long a company is going to be in business, but here are a few tips:

• Ask the company how long they plan to do business with nonprofits.
• Ask about their business stability and ask to see an audited financial statement. See how they handle these questions. Your goal is to determine their willingness to share their business strengths and weaknesses with you, and to determine if they have sound financial backing. Analyzing a financial statement can be very complicated and we do not advise you do much of it. The key is, how do they respond to these types of inquiries. Are they open or do they seem secretive?
• Find out how long the company has been in business. Ideally, choose a company that has been in business for a year or more (so they've completed at least one fiscal year) and upgraded their software product more than once.
• Look for ASPs that have created nonprofit community advisory boards to assist them in their business and marketing development.
• Ask the ASP about their contingency plans if they were to close down or be acquired by another company. How would they address your needs in this eventuality? Make sure that you understand how you would get access to your data stored in their system.
• Ask for references from other nonprofits that have worked with that ASP. Ideally you want to see a sizeable nonprofit client base as a demonstration that this ASP is able to serve nonprofit needs.