Data Nightmare. Cooperative Solution.

When I ran my very first capital campaign in 2015 managing the data associated with the campaign was a nightmare. Literally. I would wake up in the middle of of the night with cold sweats during the first two weeks of the campaign when the spreadsheet we were using (on a shared platform) continually crashed. We lost data every day for two weeks. Which means, every day was like starting from scratch. And when a campaign is only 8 weeks long, losing 2 weeks is pure terror. My worse nightmare (which never came true thankfully!) was that the co-op would call an owner to ask them to participate in the campaign only to find out they already had made a commitment and our data was incorrect.

I knew there had to be a better way. Co-ops across the country were raising money through capital campaigns and had been for centuries. I knew this was a problem I could solve and help other co-ops avoid the data nightmare I experienced. I spent the next 5 years perfecting a spreadsheet that did it’s job…but its only a spreadsheet. It has limitations, including data integrity and security issues.

Fast forward to 2021 and meet CoApp. Its the first of it’s kind CRM (Contact Relationship Management) system designed FOR CO-OPS BY CO-OPS. There are numerous CRMs on the market today – but most are complicated and expensive. CoApp is exactly what a co-op needs, is highly customizable and easy to integrate into your current systems.

If you’d like to learn more about CoApp, send me an email and we can schedule a demo.


If you don't follow Start.coop, you should. They have a great newsletter that is jam-packed with great resources. In this month's newsletter, they announced their new Job Board, a place to easily find and share cooperative job opportunities. I am often asked by co-ops where to post job openings - especially for the role of …

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We'll discuss what neighborhood canvassing is, why it's useful, execution tips, and ways to measure your success!  Join Katie on January 26, 2023, at 12 noon CST! This session will be recorded and distributed to all who have registered. Feel free to invite other members of your co-op to attend! Coffee with Katie is a …

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Last year at this time I was inspired by my work with Southside Food Co-op in Chicago to learn more about the connections between Kwanzaa and Cooperative Principles. It's invigorating and exciting to learn more about this African-American celebration and how it so closely relates to the cooperative movement. I am by no means anything …

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