Client Testimonials

With Sumac, we got the perfect solution - excellent customer service and an easy-to-use product at an affordable price. Within moments of installation, Sumac was helping us manage donor communications and preferences with greater efficiency and effectiveness. We now rely on Sumac every day to reach our high standards and those of our supporters.
Communications Manager, Transforming Faces Worldwide

Compared to other software, like Raiser’s Edge, Sumac is much more user friendly with no compromise to its performance.
Associate Director, Wildlife Conservation Society

Sumac converted all our historical data records, from several sources. In less than a week we were up and running, sending and tracking newsletters to our newly consolidated list of constituents. Sumac has made our communication and fundraising efforts more effective and much more efficient. In fact I think it paid for itself in the first week.
Executive Director, Theatre Museum Canada

There aren’t enough positive things I can say about Sumac. It has given us a better handle on every aspect of our organization – communications, donations, memberships,and contacts are all far better organized than they ever were with Raiser’s Edge, which we were using before. If every company provided service as good as Sumac’s, the working world would be a happier and more efficient place.
Administrator, PEN Canada

Thanks to Sumac, we are finally getting some control over our database. The program is easy to use and incredibly helpful in organizing contacts, communications and fundraising initiatives. The staff at Sumac are wonderfully patient and supportive. Three cheers for Sumac!

This year we upgraded to Sumac from eTapestry. We are amazed at how fast and efficient Sumac is... Our daily processing of communications and incoming donations has dramatically shifted from a full-time endeavor to a quick, easy and straightforward task. Furthermore, we love the simple design of Sumac and its visual functionality when managing queries and lists. Before Sumac, the majority of the staff stayed far away from our database because of its over-complicated interface. Sumac has proved to be extremely accessible to everyone working at Sky Works. We are all happy to be riding on the Sumac train!
Executive Director, Skyworks Charitable Foundation

Sumac has increased our office productivity, we are more responsive to clients needs and adept at managing communications – it is like having a whole new person on staff!
General Manager, Mixed Company Theatre

As a national organization with a staff of five, the Writers’ Trust relies on Sumac to manage diverse contact groups and maintain quality communication with its donors. The database streamlines daily tasks while establishing institutional memory that will ensure future stability and growth.
Executive Director, Writers’ Trust of Canada

We switched to Sumac from a tailor-made FileMaker Pro database system and couldn't be more satisfied. Sumac integrates all areas of our operations, which is something no other database software has been able to do for us. It has streamlined our processes and increased our productivity, making it possible for us to reach new levels in our programming, fundraising and marketing initiatives. The Sumac team are continually adding increased functionality to the program. They respond immediately to questions, often anticipating our needs and going a step or two further to develop new solutions to increase our efficiency, without even being asked. Great customer service and an incredible product.
Marketing & Communications Manager, Arts for Children and Youth

As I moved from Cahoots Theatre Projects to the Harold Green Jewish Theatre, the only software addition that I insisted on was Sumac. It’s the fastest  and least expensive way for me to communicate with stakeholders.
General Manager, Harold Green Jewish Theatre

HPCO had been using a third party to manage our direct mail campaign and tax receipting. Switching to Sumac has significantly reduced our preparation time for direct mail and reduced the time between receipt of a donation and the mailing of the thank you letter with tax receipt. We also use Sumac to manage membership renewals, communications to members, and manage all of our other contacts. Sumac is very user friendly and intuitive. Sumac is also easy to maintain and does not require database management training or technical support staff. The data conversion process from our old system to Sumac was smooth. The Sumac team was highly responsive to our needs and very adept in converting our data quickly. HPCO selected Sumac as a solutions partner and endorsed Sumac to our membership because we feel it is the best product to meet the range of needs of our diverse membership.

As a membership association, we need to track multiple programs and memberships effectively in order to grow, Sumac does this rapidly, even integrating into donations and communications for greater efficiency.
Director of Operations, Opera.ca

Setting up Sumac has been extremely beneficial to our team and our work. We have integrated the software into all our business processes resulting in significant gains in time and efficiency. Making the change to Sumac enabled us to publish The Theatre Listing on our website instead of on paper while reducing the effort to prepare it by 70%. Our Members are already reaping the benefits. Sumac is easy to use, and possibilities for future developments and support for new projects are numerous.
Executive Director, PACT

Before Sumac, we used a custom database built using Microsoft Access. It made it difficult to organize our donors and pledges. Analyzing information for development purposes was almost impossible. When we switched to Sumac, our staff was excited with its ease of use and power. Things that used to take a few days now take an hour or two.

I am really happy with Sumac and feel we made the perfect decision on software. I was very impressed with how easy the transition between systems was and how well you responded to our questions and feedback about the software.  Most people talk the talk, but when it comes to doing it they just ignore it.  You listened and responded in an efficient and useful way.  I would recommend Sumac to charities large and small who want an easy transition and a user friendly database that will meet all of your fundraising needs.
Campaigns Director, Zoocheck Canada

We are very excited about the possibilities of this amazing program.  Sumac, is an enormous time and effort saver for promoting shows and has the potential to seriously increase our level of earned and private sector revenues. Sumac support is a delight to work with and is passionate about assisting companies to achieve their goals with Sumac.  They were extremely patient and pleasant during the training process, which made it fun and easy.
Artistic Director, Theatre Gargantua

METRAC switched to Sumac because of its ease of use, superior flexibility and security features. Beyond the software itself, the Sumac team helped us along the transition process – they were accommodating and supportive to us as a small, grassroots not-for-profit organization.
Outreach Director, METRAC

Sumac has been invaluable in helping us accurately track our members and friends! Using the easy reports created by Sumac, we saw a new picture of our donors.  We quickly realized that a few of our supporters had continually given small donations - which added up to quite a lot!  We hadn't had a clear picture of how generous they had actually been until it was laid out simply in Sumac.  We've now done a much better job of tracking, and properly thanking, all our donors.

My staff loves Sumac because it’s easy to learn and use. I like the fact that we can add modules as our needs and our budget dictate.  When it comes to technical support, we have found that the Sumac team is very approachable, easy to work with, and really understand our needs.  We can also customize the system to our exact situation, and this is proving to be very helpful.
Director of Development, Market Hall

I really like the prospect weighting function in Sumac. It seems to have been designed with all the key variables that fundraisers look for in mind.
Chief Development Officer, National Youth Orchestra

As one of the initial clients of Sumac, Nightwood not only continues to use the system but has been gradually augmenting our operations with Sumac’s enhancement modules including volunteer management and ticketing.  I can attest that improved efficiency in our data management and communications in the last five years is directly associated to Sumac.  Most notably, it has assisted our strategies to more fully integrate audience development and private sector fundraising campaigns.  When I recommend Sumac to colleagues at other not-for-profit organizations, the first thing I endorse is their terrific customer service which seems in tune and crafted perfectly for organizations with limited overhead and resources.  Sumac support staff are responsive, approachable, knowledgeable, caring and willing to adjust programs so that they work for our organization, rather than our organization working around their system.  Sumac fits our needs: it’s cost-effective, easy-to-use, flexible and improves Nightwood’s organizational capacity.
Producer and General Manager, Nightwood Theatre

Sumac software is logical, easy to navigate and efficient.  The program greatly facilitates managing our member database, communications, donations and comparative reports.  Sumac support staff are responsive, eager to help and always searching for input to upgrade their product.  We are very glad to be using the program!
Executive Director, Orchestras Canada

After doing extensive research on several software solutions, we chose to go with Sumac because it allowed us to keep track of our clients,donors and volunteers all in the same database. We are easily able to track our clients' participation in all of the groups and services that we provide to those who are ill or bereaved in our community. We are able to collect the statistics that we need to report back to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and our Local Health Integration Network. We are able to provide a comprehensive history of our volunteers' involvement with our organization including the matching of volunteers with clients. The fundraising and donor management aspect of the database is second to none. We are able to generate our tax receipts from the system and the many built-in reports and fundraising tools has allowed us to analyze data and view donor history to develop a case for support which will help us to continue to grow and support more people who are in need of our services.
Office and Finance Coordinator, Hospice Peterborough

We're big fans of Sumac at Cahoots.  First, the interface is highly intuitive which is important for a company like ours where we have a lot of volunteers and new faces coming in to update our data.  Second, the product does everything we need from communications to donation tracking.  Finally, the quality of customer support is superior to any other product I've seen. Any questions we've had have been addressed in a prompt, professional, and courteous manner.  I have recommended this product to many colleagues and will continue to do so in the future.
Artistic Director, Cahoots Theatre Projects

Sumac has proven to be a most useful tool for the Society. We are now able to effectively manage a growing database of membership and professional contacts, as well as donors. Prior to installing Sumac, regular contact with our membership was a challenge  – now we are able to send correspondence on a regular basis and with ease. We appreciate the prompt and courteous support that Sumac continues to provide.
Manager Outreach & Operations, Aspergers Society of Ontario

Thanks to Sumac we're able to keep our database organized with ease!
Program Director, Dance Immersion

Staff and volunteers at the Elora Centre for the Arts are thrilled to finally have one Data Base Management Program (Sumac) that will handle ALL of our organization's needs.
General Manager, Elora Centre for the Arts

I am really impressed with how easy Sumac is to learn (thanks to great documentation and excellent service) and how powerful it is.  We've just completed our first mailout campaign and it worked beautifully for us.
Artistic Director, Phin

I was very impressed with Sumac's turn-around time on our data conversion. Within a week we had a decade's worth of spreadsheets at our fingertips in a central location. Sumac and its staff have been really supportive and so responsive to our specific needs and even our suggestions for improving the software. I can't imagine having such a hands-on relationship with any other company.

Sumac has provided us with exactly the tools we need to manage our database. Sumac is so user friendly and intuitive, Peter Turk and his team have thought of everything an not for profit could need. Thank you Sumac for helping us streamline our processes and become more efficient!
General Manager, Turning Point Ensemble

Sumac has given us the tools we need to keep personalized contact with our ticket buyers, donors and community members. It's ability to organize communications and record information has been critical in maintaining the growth of our independent organization

Associate Producer, Theatre Columbus

Prior to Sumac, Trillium Gift of Life Network was manually issuing donation receipts. Thank you and acknowledgement letters were also manually done after donation receipt. This process was time consuming and record keeping was a challenge. Now, using SUMAC, issuing receipts, printing Thank you and acknowledgement letters and recordkeeping is both faster and more streamlined. Record keeping is also more secure and accessible via the system data base of information which can be accessed through user defined security. System reporting has also proven to be flexible to accommodate other needs required by TGLN. Last but certainly not least, system support has been excellent anytime it was required. Our Communications department is now looking at Sumac to provide a database of contact information for its particular needs.

Sumac has allowed us to easily manage our database of members, donors and contacts. Through Sumac we have streamlined many of our operations allowing us to better serve our members. The software is very user-friendly and the technical support is always available and ready to help.

Administrative Assistant, Choirs Ontario

Thanks to Sumac, we now have an easy to navigate, custom database that’s tailored to OUR needs.                        

Communications Officer, Community Living Peterborough

Sumac has been a tremendous help in the management of all our organization's contacts, and an essential support tool for fundraising, communications and event administration. The software is easy to use and data can be searched in many ways. Overall, Sumac supports our daily work and is a key element of fulfilling our mission.

Executive Director, The Glenn Gould Foundation

When I arrived at Obsidian, Sumac took me virtually no time to learn. It is so intuitive and simple. It has also been a great help to Obsidian, as it has virtually grown with us over the years we've had it. As our company progresses we find we are able to utilize more and more of the tools. Thanks to all the Sumac staff for being so supportive and helpful to us.

Artistic Producer, Obsidian Theatre

Communication with our members and beyond is one of the core activities of Creative Trust. Sumac has brought ease and efficiency to our contact management. Sumac’s personalized and hands-on customer service is an added bonus. We are also delighted to see that many of our member companies have adopted Sumac to manage their audiences and donors - which is a fundamental step in strengthening and growing our sector.

Executive Director, Creative Trust