Isn’t it time to obtain a Membership Management Software which is easy and that works for you!? If so, the team at Wild Apricot believes that they have the best membership CRM for your trade and professional association.
Wild Apricot Software Review
We are excited to share this quick look at Wild Apricot, a nonprofit Association Management Software, AMS, for trade and professional associations. Despite looking at hundreds of AMS options over the years, it’s always interesting for me to review software vendors who do a terrific job of branding and content development. And, Wild Apricot has been doing that for years!
For those interested in learning more about Wild Apricot beyond this summary, we are available to share with you are thoughts about this membership software and how it fits into the larger membership software market today.
Suffice it to say, we have curated, interviewed, and prepared more detailed information for executives employed in the not for profit association industry to set up a time to discuss at length our software reviews are designed for those who would like fair and objective insights into the capabilities of this AMS software for nonprofit program.
Our sources: We have interviewed the Wild Apricot team, reviewed the solution in a demo format, curated specific insights from the vendor, read through various website pages and read multiple reviews. This brief summary is a culmination of those insights.
That said, this short review should not be your only source of the truth!
Introduction to Wild Apricot Software:
Per Wild Apricot website, Wild Apricot is online membership software for small associations, non-profits, clubs, and subscription websites, with features including Membership Management, Website Software Builder, Event Registration, and Online payment processing.
As of 2020, currently this solution has over 20,000 clients & an estimated half paying clients. It is “cloud” software, meaning it runs through a web browser without needing to install anything on your local computer. Since their focus is small organizations, they designed Wild Apricot to be both powerful and affordable, with pricing plans starting at just $40 per month. As of 2021, they offer a free version for less than 50 contacts.
In 2017, Wild Apricot became part of the Personify family of products. Personify is a legacy Constituent Management and Engagement (CME) platform for nonprofit organizations to better engage their constituents, maximize revenue and optimize operations.
Wild Apricot primary HQ is located in our friend to the north, Canada, in the city of Toronto, & province of Ontario. In 2019, Dmitry Ivanov, the Captain Apricot, Co-founder and CEO of Wild Apricot Inc stepped down.
As of 2021, Wild Apricot, a subsidiary of Personify, has an estimated 17 employees in the unit. The employee distribution and headcount growth by function is evenly mixed between IT & Software Development. Wild Apricot has functioned primarily without a formal sales team. All good signs for a healthy start up software company in the nonprofit association sector.
Per Wild Apricot, they are:
Serving over 20,000 organizations and 7 million members
Holding an international client base, with 21% of its clients outside the United States and a strong presence in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand
Had double digit growth year-over-year by being a customer-first, product-centric, and user experience driven software company
Per GlassDoor, an online company employee rating site, 81% of employees recommended the place to work to a friend. In 2021, they have a 4.5 out of 5 in employee happiness.
For an introduction and overview, click the picture below to review a short video introduction from them.
Statement of Philosophy from Wild Apricot:
“We listen. We care. We respond”, is the motto of this organization.
Per their team, listening and responding to their customers is a critical part of everything they do – they are there to make your life easier! Their technical support is not outsourced, but is handled by a self described “excellent in-house team”.
Listening to customers is also key to their development process. Problems reported in support or features requests made in their community forums are the most important factors shaping what they develop and improve. New releases of Wild Apricot happen automatically every few months, and as a result their quality and reliability is consistently rising according to regular customer surveys per their management team.
The Key Features of Wild Apricot:
With your Wild Apricot member database, you’ll be able to escape Excel Hell. All your member data lives safely in the cloud so multiple users can access it from a desktop, phone or tablet.
The system includes the following attributes:
Contact database/membership management
Online registration for membership and events
Website builder
Online payments
Online Store
Email/Newsletter Platform
Mobile App (for members and for admins)
A complete list of features may be found here.
The Wild Apricot system will allow your staff to do some of these key tasks:
Easily search and share your database
Customize membership levels and automate renewals
Database updates in real time when a new member joins online
Members can update their own info through a member login area
Your data is safe, secure and automatically backed up so you don’t have to worry
Set up a searchable online member directory
Where Does Wild Apricot Fit?
Wild Apricot’s focus is small to medium-sized membership based organizations (clubs, nonprofits, professional associations).
The online membership software fits best with staff who find themselves wearing many hats for their organization (running events, processing payments, updating the website, etc.). Wild Apricot is a self described “all in one” membership solution which aspires to develop a solution which can automate nearly all the administrative work and save staff massive amounts of time.
Those organizations who will likely find value in exploring this AMS comprise of some of the following traits and qualities:
Professional Associations, Nonprofits, & Clubs
Small staffs with less than 10
Associations and nonprofits with a membership comprised of a few all the way up to 15,000 per Wild Apricot
Those membership based organizations with basic dues calculations and limited financial requirements
How Much Does Wild Apricot Membership Software Cost?
From a pure financial perspective, Wild Apricot would be a considered an entry level Tier IV membership software program.
As of 2nd quarter 2018, Wild Apricot may be licensed for as little as $25 a month. For complete pricing guide, you may find more here.
Below is a brief outline of pricing framework:
Wild Apricot is “cloud-based” and it has a SaaS license model too, in which the software is licensed on a subscription basis and is centrally hosted.
Wild Apricot does not price by the staff user. Rather price by organization and offer an unlimited number of staff users.
There is one price which allows all essential staff members access to the database to promote continuity and visibility without a punitive price tag.
There are No setup fees. All clients obtain Free SSL, unlimited admins, Free Unlimited Support, & Free Hosting on Amazon.
Again, this software solution is a Tier IV offering. It has many of the traits found in your standard “all in one” solution.
Buyer Disclaimer!
It is very important to note and underscore here that pricing may change and it’s at the discretion of the manufacturer to do so. Every client is unique and software products evolve over time too. So, pricing may change from time to time. Therefore, this brief summary is not intended to be the final authority on pricing rather just a rule of thumb.
Make no mistake here.
We do not sell this software or any other AMS or membership software option for that matter. So, we ask that you please consult directly with the vendor for the most up to date pricing before making your final assessment.
What is the 911 Peer Review on this Wild Apricot?
Like software options today, software peer review sites are all over the internet.
Below you will find several review sites to choose from on Wild Apricot from it’s users (where applicable).
G2Crowd Review (4 out of 5)
Capterra (4.5 out of 5)
Software Advice (4.5 out of 5)
Get App Reviews (4.5 out of 5)
Buyer Note:
Before you check out the feedback found on these sites, my recommendation is that you please review our article on how to utilize these site and comments on various resources here.
Is Wild Apricot the Best Membership Software for you?
To answer this question, we have curated, interviewed, and prepared more detailed information for nonprofit executives, like you dedicated to the not for profit association industry beyond this summary review.
And, this analysis and expertise is available upon request. To be sure, our software analysis is not a “pretty brochure”, “marketing noise.” or a “sales pitch.”
Rather, we provide a free objective dialogue and insights designed to help nonprofit executives make a smarter software business decision.
If you are interested in some help with reviewing your options and comparisons, please check out our “vendor matching” services here.
Want More AMS Membership Software Reviews?
Please stay tuned to our ongoing “Searching for A Smart AMS Software” where we will continue to provide further insights into membership database software options designed for our 501(c) 6 organizations.
For the most recent published reviews, please click below:
And, to obtain a sample list of the database software reviews we have, you may follow the link here.
If you work for an AMS database software system and you would like us to include your firm in our software review process, please contact us.
Until next time, keep SmartThoughts in mind. Happy Software Buying!
