Jessica Millar
Development and Public Affairs Officer
C.D. Howe Institute
"We are a small organization with limited resources, and FoundationSearch and Big Online truly builds our internal capacity. Through this service, we have been able to efficiently identify prospective donors for particular projects without wasting valuable staff hours on massive prospecting campaigns. The keyword search allows us to identify organizations that support the particular activities on which we are currently focused, and the donor history allows us to adjust the size of our ask. I am confident recommending this service to any organization looking to allocate limited resources in a targeted, efficient and effective manner."

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Michael Pecho
Director of Development
Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation
"Montreal Children's Hospital Foundation has implemented Metasoft’s online resources as our primary tools for research on organizational giving since 2001. Currently we are raising the funds necessary to open a new children’s hospital in Montreal and could not do this without the proper tools. We have used another system available in Canada but find Metasoft’s BIG Online and FoundationSearch to be more effective for our needs. Metasoft continues to introduce new tools to deepen our research such as the visual mapping tool Director Connections."

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Audrey Dugas
Sponsorship Sales & Development Officer
Science North
"BIG Online is an absolutely fabulous resource for anyone in fundraising. Science North has had tremendous success in accomplishing their sponsorship and donation goals thanks to BIG Online. Highly recommended!"

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Josephine MacEachern
Development Officer
L’Arche Cape Breton
Nova Scotia
"As the only rural L’Arche community in Canada, and existing in an economically depressed region of the country, L’Arche Cape Breton has some unique challenges when it comes to fundraising. In the face of these challenges, having access to the information and resources found on BIG Online has been very helpful. With BIG Online I have been able to quickly identify foundations and organizations from across Canada whose scope closely matches our mandate. The staff at BIG Online is very supportive and helpful."

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Kellie Moynihan
Grants and Planned Giving Coordinator
Glenbow Museum
"Big Online and Foundation Search Canada make my job so much easier. These databases let me research prospective foundations so I’m making informed asks and not wasting time on bad fits. The more information I can gather means my asks are better tailored to each organization I approach. Big Online and Foundation Search Canada provide the most up-to-date information in a user-friendly format."

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Miriam Gregory
Development & Marketing Director
Vancouver International Children’s Festival
"We joined BIG Online and FoundationSearch in 2003. In that time, our membership has paid for itself several times over. We rely on BIG FoundationSearch as it is one of our best resources for fundraising research and the Metasoft staff have been very helpful and supportive over the years. Thanks so much!"

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Ron Robinson
Development Field Officer-Community & Communications
Cumberland Regional Economic Development Association (CREDA)
Amherst, Nova Scotia
"As a Regional Development Authority we are constantly challenged to match the Community Economic Development needs and aspirations of our rural communities and volunteer led not-for-profit groups and organizations with the realities of fundraising. BigOnline/Foundation Search is our "go to'' resource for identifying foundations and organizations that may be a potential source of funding and for matching their areas of giving with our individual needs and goals. It is user friendly, easy to navigate and Big Online staff are readily available to provide helpful tips and friendly advice. We are pleased to renew our membership. It is an investment in the long term sustainability of our communities."

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Philip Cox
My Brother's Place
"We had almost given up fundraising before trying again with BIG Online. It gave us new targets, and helped us create a 'winning' proposal that brought us $25,000 in new donations."

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Daniel G. Clapin
Director
Saint Paul University
"Recently Saint Paul University launched a three phase Library Expansion Project called, A Legacy of Wisdom. Phase I of the expansion project, a new Rare Book Room and Related Facilities, is now completed. BIG Online played and continues to play a significant role in the success or our Library Expansion Project. I like to consider my BIG Online as a sort of virtual in-house research consultant. Among the many prospect matches identified we were able to contact an American Foundation that eventually sent us a cheque for $50K US which at the time translated into a gift of in excess of $60K CN. BIG Online, a small investment that delivers excellent results."

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Pamela Gignac
JMG Solutions
"Metasoft's BIG Online is the best resource tool available in Canada for fundraisers and researchers. I highly recommend BIG Online to anyone moving to a higher level of fundraising."

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Cinzia Favaro
Pelletier Homes for Youth
"Having BIG Online is like having another staff person on board."

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Alan Rycroft
Community Relations Coordinator
Victoria Cool Aid Society
"BIG Online databases make grant research easy and convenient – right from my desktop. I save time by knowing who to ask for how much. Equally important, BIG Online helps me understand whom not to ask."

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Natasha N. Taylor
Director
Investment and CAREERS: The Next Generation
"BIG Online has been an invaluable resource for me in fund development. Whether I’m working from home or at the office, BIG Online is always available and right at my fingertips – no more big, heavy binders to sift through, update and carry around. The database is particularly helpful in helping me establish a proposal writing cycle. BIG Online identifies important deadlines with potential deadlines and helps identify those investors most fitting with our organization. With the information I gain from BIG Online, I am able to employ resources more strategically to find investors who care and value the same things my organization cares about."

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Kimberly Parker
Director of Marketing and Development
Orchestra London Canada
"A lot of the resources (BIG) provides online are very important to developing a professional business case."

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Arno Bangert
BC Children's Hospital Foundation
"At BC's Children's Hospital Foundation, we have embraced BIG Online as a key major gift prospecting resource. We have found it to be a highly valuable tool for research and strategy development in a Canadian context."

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Susan Paterson
Foundation Co-ordinator
Hanover & District Hospital Foundation
"I started working for the Hanover and District Hospital Foundation in 2002. The hospital is located in the Town of Hanover which has a population of 7,000 and services a catchment area of 40,000. Our hospital has a total of 80 inpatient beds; however 31 of those beds are not staffed. The hospital services a catchment population of 17,000. I am working on obtaining my fundraising designation and am currently enrolled at Georgian College in Orillia. The online fundraising courses are extremely helpful and after completing the Grant and Proposal Writing course I asked my Board to continue to subscribe to BIG Online. Different databases were reviewed in this course but I liked BIG Online the best. It is easy to use and all the information about grant funders is categorized. If you had to research this information on the internet you would not have time for any other fundraising projects. In fact, I don’t believe you would be able to find most of the information. Sample letters and proposals are also available in the database. The staff at BIG Online is very helpful with refining your searches and they will give you a pep talk when you receive a lot of refusals. I was very nervous when we first signed up. It is a lot of money to put out. Like us I am sure you are always watching your expenses. Eventually I was successful and every year since I have received grant money. Some years I receive more funding than others but I always receive enough to cover the cost of the membership. The most funding I have received in one year is $25,000 and the least is $3,000. Compared to a gala auction or various fundraisers, grants are a lot easier. I have found that the results very depending on the number of fundraisers you are hosting. I am the only paid employee and find that I have limited time to work on proposals. Most board members feel that you should be hosting lots of fundraisers but dollar for dollar grants are more cost effective although fundraisers have their role to play in creating awareness and recruiting volunteers. This year my board has recommended that we subscribe to BIG Online for the five year membership. One reason is to take advantage of the cost saving and the other is to give me time to work on the proposals."

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Debbie Cribb
Coordinator - Development
La Société d’arthrite, Division du Québec
"Using BIG Online has been very helpful for me on different levels. For example, when we started the strategic planning of our 3-year fundraising campaign 12 months ago, I started with a list of companies to whom I wanted to target my ‘asks’ but little or no supporting data on them. I did not know what causes they supported, who the ‘key people’ in the organization were, what their fiscal period was, etc. For anyone who has worked in fundraising before, you know that these are all details that allow us to adapt the ask and to make it relevant to that company. It was a long process, no way to hide that fact. I began at the top of my list of 500 and one by one went through each dossier on BIG Online. What I came away with was a very complete spreadsheet that included the prime mailing address to the right person, with the current job title and a schedule of when the ask had to be mailed. Also, with the BIG Online dossier listing past donations made by the companies of interest and their preferred charities, I was able to personalise the letters even further. Our campaign in now in full swing and the results are encouraging. I have no doubt that the leg work done in the earliest stages of this campaign, with the help of BIG Online, are contributing factors. Access to this type of information in one central site is essential to any fundraising executive in Canada."

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