When nonprofits set out to serve their communities, technology is not always at the forefront of their minds. Their main focus, instead, may be providing hunger relief, being a voice for the overlooked and unprotected, or ensuring fair accessibility. For organizations in these spaces and many more, technology is a means to an end to bring about change for the causes that they have committed to.
That's not a bad thing. In fact, it's a really good thing, and we support it 100 percent.
Access to affordable, relevant, and useful technology is natural if you're a small nonprofit organization looking to make a difference in a cause you care about. You want an experience that reduces the stress and uncertainty of technology acquisition, particularly if you're not familiar with the process.
TechSoup has recognized that since its early existence. Our goal has always been to help minimize the effort for organizations to access, easily understand, and effectively use technology affordably. It's evident in our mission statement:
"To build a dynamic bridge that leverages technology to enable connections and innovative solutions for a more equitable planet."
But, as the world changes around us, how can we continue to do that in the best way for those we serve?
TechSoup Membership Is Evolving
Digital solutions are changing and evolving every day. There are new apps, new features, GenAI, and updates within your existing solutions that can be used to solve your challenges. You also need to think differently about technology decisions. Since most solutions are now subscription-based, planning becomes more critical than ever.
The idea of TechSoup membership is not new — we've always viewed the organizations that support us as members, and all of the additional services we have developed will continue to be part of the TechSoup experience.
After thoughtful consideration and evaluation, we have determined that the most supportive way to do that is through restructuring and tiering our membership model so that organizations can engage with TechSoup at the level that makes the most sense to them. New and existing TechSoup members now have three options to choose from:
- DIY (do-it-yourself, no annual fee)
- Boost ($99 annually)
- Quad ($200 annually)
To learn more, visit our TechSoup Membership page. I'll describe each below in more detail.
DIY — Access the Essential Technology You Need
The DIY (do-it-yourself) model is what you are used to today. It empowers any qualified nonprofit to gain affordable access to over 400 discounted products across 80+ donor partners. There is no annual fee for being a DIY member, and thus no additional cost to your organization.
This membership level is appropriate if you know exactly what you want and are eligible for, and you can independently learn and educate yourself on the technology solutions you acquire.
All validated TechSoup member organizations will continue to have access to a catalog of various discounted and donated products and services. That means you will continue to have full access to offers from Microsoft, Adobe, Intuit, Norton, Avast, and hundreds of other partners.
DIY members will also continue to have access to our sector-specific services and courses. If you're qualified with TechSoup today, you're most likely a DIY member, but we invite you to learn about the benefits of the other levels.
Boost — Discover New Solutions to Power Your Work
TechSoup has long been known for the discounted products that we make available. By becoming a Boost member, you get additional discounts on a select group of popular products, exclusive offers not found in the broader catalog, and curated product recommendations where we have researched offers and capabilities on your behalf.
At the Boost membership level, you can quickly learn what you're eligible for and all the solutions that might support you (even those technology nonprofit offers unavailable through TechSoup), enabling you to compare easily and decide quickly.
For Boost members, TechSoup becomes more than a point of access — it becomes a place for discovery to get what you want and learn about how to get other products you may want, as well as those you didn't know you wanted or were even eligible for.
Quad — Get Peer Support and Expert Answers
Nonprofits have long told us that they would like us to share more resources, more training, more content, and deeper levels of support. This is also a direct response to the changing nature of technology — it helps us support you with technology you already have, no matter what channel you acquired it from.
So, we have also introduced various ways that organizations can engage and learn well beyond acquiring a technology solution. Quad provides access to exclusive webinars and content, as well as live technologists and experts in various domains to help you understand and get the most out of your technology stack.
In addition, Quad offers a dynamic, growing, private online community for up to 10 members of your organization to share and learn from your nonprofit peers about technology challenges and better ways to serve your communities.
Join Us in Our Journey
We're still in the early stages of what we envision to be a powerful force for good in our sector, and we are rapidly making adjustments and tweaks to improve the models while allowing you to choose what works for you flexibly. This evolution of TechSoup membership has already begun through the value-added programs we have built up, and now we'll be able to do it more responsibly, conservatively, and sustainably.
We invite you to learn more about which TechSoup membership tier is right for you and to join us in the next phase of this journey.
