By Jim Stanford on May 14, 2009
The application is named for a John Frechette painting once displayed at the Brew Pub. Nonprofits can try it for free at www.lightposthq.com.
The news in this economy isn’t all doom and gloom, as opportunity always exists to do something better or smarter than the lumbering behemoths of the past.
That’s the reasoning behind Lightpost, a new software application for nonprofits designed by the brainy, Jackson-based triumvirate of Clint Troxel, Clay Preheim and Steph Thomas.
Clint and Clay are Web programmers/designers and two of the creators of The-J-List, that clean, easy-to-use listing site ruefully dormant of late. (Clint is also our occasional hipster music correspondent, while Clay and his fiancée, Steph, kept us updated via Twitter from the Obama inauguration.)
Lightpost is a simple yet effective way for nonprofits to keep track of donors, fund-raising campaigns and related information without complex spreadsheets and byzantine database programs that look (and work) like a Windows 98 horror show. Best of all, it’s a lot cheaper than most of that archaic software — a critical consideration for organizations squeezed by shrinking budgets.
The three innovators are hosting an open house at the Brew Pub this afternoon from 4:30 to 7 p.m. The community is invited to partake in frosty beverages while test-driving Lightpost.
Apparently, keeping track of donor information is a nightmarish task for nonprofits, some of whom have to hire a consultant just to run the old database or software. The cost for buying or maintaining these programs can run thousands of dollars per year.
Lightpost starts at $15 per month for organizations with up to 100 donors, and the cost rises with the number of contributors.
When not picking a mandolin or critiquing the latest download from Animal Collective, Clint Troxel is doctor to all your computer ills.
“We wanted to be affordable,” says Troxel. One of the trio’s goals was to give something to the nonprofits.
The application is Web based, meaning it works just as well on PCs or Macs and can be accessed from anywhere. The information is stored on a secure server, protected in case of a computer crash or hacker in the organization’s system.
The data can be exported for use in spreadsheets or other applications, and existing databases can be imported — eliminating the fear of having to retype all those names and dollar amounts.
The Lightpost team is launching its program in Jackson Hole, home to a cottage industry of 501(c)3s, but hopes it catches on nationally and even internationally.
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Way to go guys!!! Very cool idea and application!