[May 01, 2012]

Charitable Giving Increased 4.2 Percent in 2011, yet Continued Growth in 2012 Remains Uncertain

Blackbaud, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLKB) today announced that according to The Blackbaud Index, charitable giving for full year 2011 increased by 4.2 percent as compared to 2010. It reported earlier this year that online giving rose 13 percent during the same time period.

The Blackbaud Index was updated today to reflect charitable giving through March 2012. According to the Index, for the 11th month in a row, overall charitable giving has increased over the prior year, by a modest 2.2% in the three months ending March 2012. For the 12^th month in a row, online giving has increased over the prior year, by 9.8% in the three months ending March 2012, a decrease from February 2012.

The company also announced many new updates to its monthly Index, which now tracks charitable giving of more than 2500 organizations representing $7 billion in charitable gifts. In addition to doubling in size, going forward, the Index will now be published two weeks earlier on the first of each month, providing a more timely barometer of giving. Moreover, Blackbaud clients using the recently-released Raiser's Edge 7.92 now have direct access to The Blackbaud Index from within the product.

Chuck Longfield, Blackbaud's chief scientist and creator of The Blackbaud Index noted that while still positive, the Index continues to see spikes and drops. "Giving continues to grow over last year; but it is not consistently growing from month to month," said Longfield. "We suspect this will continue along with the national economic trend as consumer and donor confidence levels remain inconsistent."

Blackbaud also released a report today focused on fundraising trends based on monthly findings from The Blackbaud Index and featuring commentary from Jim Yunker, chair of The Giving USA Foundation and president and CEO at Smith Beers Yunker & Company.

• Download this quarter's Blackbaud Index report

The Blackbaud Index of Charitable Giving - By Size

Blackbaud also releases additional data and analysis that reports on organizations by size and sub-sector. The Index found that three-month overall charitable revenue for small organizations (prior year revenue of < $1 million) increased 15.8% in March, while overall charitable revenue at medium organizations (prior year revenue of $1 - 10 million) increased 1.3%, and overall charitable revenue at large organizations (prior year revenue > $10 million) decreased 2.1%.

The Blackbaud Index of Online Giving - By Size

The Index found that three-month online revenue for small organizations (prior year revenue of < $1 million) increased 11.5% in March, while online revenue at medium organizations (prior year revenue of $1 - 10 million) increased 15.3%, and online revenue at large organizations (prior year revenue > $10 million) increased 4.1%.

Views from the sector

According to Jim Yunker, nonprofits can look to resources like Giving USA, The Blackbaud Index, and others, to track the trends and in the case of the recent reports, be buoyed by continued upticks in giving. "Some nonprofits held back, but positive figures from The Blackbaud Index and Giving USA in the past year, though not necessarily experienced by all organizations, should encourage them to increase their activities to reach out more assertively," he said.

Yunker cautioned, however, that although indices and reports help nonprofit leaders and donors understand trends, they are not a magic eight ball. Organizations need to work creatively and innovatively in sharing their messages with donors; to the extent organizations do that, they can raise funds even in periods of slower giving. If they do not do that, they are not likely to raise funds in periods when other organizations see growth.

"Despite the dip this month [March vs. February] in The Blackbaud Index, I continue to be pleasantly optimistic," said Yunker. "But depending on the community and the organization, not everyone may share that optimism. To some this news is an incentive to work smarter. Overall, Blackbaud's Index suggests from the past year that the cloud may be passing."

Visit www.blackbaud.com/blackbaudindex for further information on The Blackbaud Index and additional industry subsets, for monthly updates on the 1st (or next business day) or to subscribe to email or text alerts, and to download the latest report. Share your feedback at bbindex@blackbaud.com.

About Blackbaud

Serving the nonprofit and education sectors for 30 years, Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB) combines technology and expertise to help organizations achieve their missions. Blackbaud works with more than 26,000 customers in over 60 countries that support higher education, healthcare, human services, arts and culture, faith, the environment, independent K-12 education, animal welfare, and other charitable causes. The company offers a full spectrum of cloud-based and on-premise software solutions and related services for organizations of all sizes including: fundraising, eMarketing, social media, advocacy, constituent relationship management (CRM), analytics, financial management, and vertical-specific solutions. Using Blackbaud technology, these organizations raise more than $100 billion each year. Recognized as a top company by Forbes, InformationWeek, and Software Magazine and honored by Best Places to Work, Blackbaud is headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina and has employees throughout the US, and in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.blackbaud.com.

Forward-looking Statements

Except for historical information, all of the statements, expectations, and assumptions contained in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Although Blackbaud attempts to be accurate in making these forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based. In addition, other important factors that could cause results to differ materially include the following: general economic risks; uncertainty regarding increased business and renewals from existing customers; continued success in sales growth; management of integration of acquired companies and other risks associated with acquisitions; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products; the ability to attract and retain key personnel; risks related to our dividend policy and share repurchase program, including potential limitations on our ability to grow and the possibility that we might discontinue payment of dividends; risks relating to restrictions imposed by the credit facility; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organization; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in the SEC (News - Alert) filings for Blackbaud, copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov or upon request from Blackbaud's investor relations department. All Blackbaud product names appearing herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackbaud, Inc.

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