IconCMO reviews

Great Product! Excellent Support!

Opmerkingen: This software is affordable and produces quality results. It's easy to learn, intuitive and relevant. I recommend it to our congregations often.

Pluspunten:

I have been working with this software since 1999, back when it was Revelations and through the migration to Icon CMO. I serve in a synod (district) office of our church, so our contributions are a bit different from those of a congregation, but IconCMO serves us well. I've also used the congregation version and it's equally as functional. What I love most is the support! Quick answers to questions both online and by phone (I love that I've talked to my executive for almost all of these years!) and the team is responsive to suggestions of improvements to the software that would allow me to do my job better.

Minpunten:

Some forms and reports are set up more from a congregational perspective than for a synod, but that's a minor inconvenience.

2019 Review

Opmerkingen: availability of logical program reports that can be date specified.

Pluspunten:

Able to run finances from one bank account with separate designated Fund accounts.

Minpunten:

nothing comes to mind in this area. Not sure why this keeps highlighting when I hit the submit button. Maybe response was not long enough!!

improved but still needs more help

Opmerkingen: When I started working at St Stefanos GOC I was told I had to enter deposits into ICON and Qiuckbooks and I do. I get stewardship reports from ICON and also print reports for mailing.

Pluspunten:

There are a large number of reports available and it is easy for us to mail out statements of to our stewards from the software.

Minpunten:

Some simple fixes are still not done. Many of our checks come from banks issued but the check number field will not accommodate the number of digits. I enter deposits twice, once in ICON and once in QuickBooks. The deposit in ICON takes much longer because I have to use a cursor to select a letter range before searching for a steward family name. In QuickBooks I just type one or two letters to find the name. Deposit batches that need to be edited are assigned a new batch number, which is out of sequence with when the original batch was done. It would be easier if the batch was just marked as "edited". Some fields do not accept characters like / so dates must be typed out.

Treasurer, Spirit of Joy Church, Indianapolis, IN

Opmerkingen: As I am not an accountant, I find the customer support team to be superb! As a small church, less than 100 members, we find the cost to be very reasonable.

Pluspunten:

As a non-accountant, I like the ability to gather data for my reports. Once setup, with Icon help, I'm able to write checks to my vendors without having to reenter the account and fund information by using the last six transactions drop down. This is very helpful when writing payroll checks, as we only have three employees and we do not use the Icon payroll module.

Minpunten:

When paying the credit card, the check number on the Credit Card Payment screen is the next number in sequence; however when returning to the check writing screen, the check number is not updated to account for the check written in the Credit Card Payment screen.

Pros and Cons for our congregation

Opmerkingen: We are very satisfied with ICON. We are able to keep all our information in one program versus multiple. It is designed for churches, so the program has those items that a congregation uses. Limitation is only by the user. ICON is very receptive and offers updates to keep up with congregation needs are they arise.

Pluspunten:

This program is excellent for for tracking Membership and Contributions. It offers a great variety of reports and functionality for keeping your information tracked and available. The program can easily be configured to meets a congregations needs and wants. We have been very satisfied.

Minpunten:

The only con that we have found is it would have been nice to view some examples of how other users use the program.

Efficient and effective

Opmerkingen: Very responsive and helpful even with accounting rules and guidelines that really isn't their job. Any question receives timely and patient responses with effective accounting standards built into the software.

Pluspunten:

Accessibility and security are very effective and easy to put in place.

Minpunten:

No issues, really never had a problem that wasn't fixed almost immediately.

IconCMO

Opmerkingen: Our buisness has enjoyed our experience. Having one central location for all types of administrative/client information is helpful and that each person on staff can access that information is key.

Pluspunten:

I like that this software is a hub for all of the things our business needs. It is easy to use because of the way each area is categorized. It is also easy to update information. Multiple log-ins allow each staff person access and I can take this software on the go, too, which is important in today's fast-paced world.

Minpunten:

It took some time to be come familiar with the layout and how to access the information you are looking for.

Time Saving software

Opmerkingen: The capture of contributions is very important to my position as Church Financial Secretary. CMO makes my entry process very simple and fast. I love the distribution button so I can add one donation and then divide into the specified funds. The end of year statement process only takes a few seconds to generate statements. Great program.

Pluspunten:

I love the ability to collect a vast amount of data and then be able to present that information in many ways to meet our church needs. I love the fact that the company is constantly improving the product and list to the users needs.

Minpunten:

There are many different reports but the location for different ones are found in different places. It would be great to have a general report tab and then a drop down menu showing categories then drop down showing the specific reports. I don't always remember where some reports are since I don't run all of them often.

Better for Large Congregations

Pluspunten:

Icon has a lot of features available that many larger congregations would use. Smaller churches, less than 300 members, may want something a bit more user friendly. Good value if you need reports on a regular basis tracking membership and demographics.

Minpunten:

Not user friendly. Certain features require multiple screens to be updated or reports will be skewed.

Helpful for managing Church Offerings

Opmerkingen: My church is only using IconCMO for tracking offerings and generating tax receipts, so only the tip of the iceberg for what it can do, but it is helpful and allows us to perform the basics of what we want out of it.

Pluspunten:

Ability to easily track offerings income by person, generate reports.

Minpunten:

Sometimes it's a little difficult to find what you're looking for (the report you want, etc.) Could be more intuitive.

Icon has helped our church grow without a headache

Opmerkingen: I was not involved in choosing the software, but I was involved early on as we started using it. I found it to be fairly intuitive especially for people with any database management background. As a volunteer, my involvement has varied in intensity depending on need and my availability and I find I can jump right in again after being away for a while. Icon and Vanco have both been very accessible for technical assistance. Our church has benefited a lot from this system.

Pluspunten:

I like that any number of members of our church can access the system at any time, from any computer. No application download is necessary, just an internet connection. I like that it incorporates donor information with donations - links with the credit card company. I like that things that matter are customizable, like fiscal year of donation, fiscal year start and end dates, families with multiple last names. I love the searchable Q&As, I have often found quick answers to my questions through that. I like the directory ap which we have just started using. I like that icon is always making improvements without making changes that change the functionality in a bad way, or a way that requires retraining.

Minpunten:

I don't find the canned graphs to be what I want, but since the data is easily downloaded I have made good use of excel and access to create what I want. I know there is a reporting module, but it is easier for me to use programs I already know. The attendance module has not been helpful to us, it is too cumbersome to identify attendance of individuals, we track attendance by raw numbers. This is more easily done for us separately in something like excel. Both a pro and a con - where the date ranges are customizable (which is a definite 'pro', they don't 'stick' when choosing a new fund or fiscal year or certain other choices, so they must be entered in again if the wrong sequence is used. Not a big deal, just an inconvenience. I wish there were a place for notes associated with the pledge page - to note specifics about household pledges if needed without having to go back to the household page for notes, also as sometimes $ notes are more confidential. I have not yet found where text input by the donor in Vanco webservices transfers to icon. I don't think it does and I wish it did. These are all minor 'cons', more like suggestions for future improvements.

All inclusive church software

Opmerkingen: I have used Revelations in conjunction with Quickbooks and also ACS. Icon does a much better job of incorporating everything into one cohesive package. Coming from a Quickbooks background, the fund accounting made for a huge learning curve to make Icon do what our church expected. I have to maneuver money between funds because of the lack of sub funds way too much, and reporting isn't as easy as in QB, but the benefits of one complete, cloud based product to the church in general outweigh the inconveniences there.

Pluspunten:

The ability to enter contributions and have the batch automatically post as a bank deposit is great (used 2 programs before) as is the Vanco importing. These two items save a lot of time for me. Being cloud based is a huge pro for the ministers as they can access the people section right from their phones while doing visitation. It also helps the secretary and business office to have only one place to change parishioner info and everyone have the update instantly.

Minpunten:

The inability to have sub-funds. It was explained to me that there could be tax ramifications, but to have a "Memorials" fund with separate "John Doe memorial", "Jane Smith Memorial" funds below would be fantastic and I see no tax issues in that. The learning curve was a bear also. While there is help online and by phone, I really could have used an in depth training class or a chance to sit with another church using it. I twice requested names of other churches in a reasonable distance from me and never heard back from Icon.

Lukewarm

Opmerkingen: Very full-featured for managing membership, though not always intuitive. Report generating difficult, but support very helpful. I support it in-house, and do not use it as much as others, so we go around in circles a lot trying to figure things out. Our staff is pretty suave, but they still have difficulties. We are grateful that we only do contributions, and do not use the financial/accounting features (outsource our accounting).

Pluspunten:

* Local company (in MN) * Cloud-based * Fabulous (local) support

Minpunten:

The way you sometimes feel like you are going in circles. It is not very intuitive. I think it is not as "full-featured" as some of the alternatives, and now simple things like text messaging, are out-sourced to third-party companies--that you have to pay additional for. The directory features are lacking, as is the member portal.

We love the functionality of program.

Opmerkingen: Convenience, flexibility, accuracy, and access from home, office or a laptop on the other side of the world.

Pluspunten:

Online access! We love multiple people having access from multiple places at the same time. It's integrated - we can move in and out of finance, membership, contributions easily and everything is available. It's comprehensive - we've been using the program for 5 years and there are still parts of the program we haven't begun to use effectively.

Minpunten:

It's so comprehensive...we just don't have the human resources to figure it out and input the data for using some of the activities/skills areas. Mostly we just don't. Therein lies the value issue. I feel we pay for a lot of things we don't use. And, truthfully, for a small congregation we're paying a lot for the convenience of online access. That is, we could play a flat fee for software that resides in our system (not on the cloud) and use it for years, but lose the convenience of online access. For a parish of 200 or fewer active households, it would be difficult to afford - we are able because the parish is affluent. As Pastor, I used both the online and software version in my previous parish for 5 years - St John Lutheran Church, Riverton, WY.

User Satisfaction

Opmerkingen: IconCMO is the primary accounting system for the Church. Spirit of Joy is a small congregation church, but IconCMO gives the church the benefit of a large church accounting at an affordable price. IconCMO has a large repertoire of reports.

Pluspunten:

Ease of use and comprehensive features. As a secure cloud based system, Spirit of Joy does not have to worry about back up's or loss of data from failed local hardware. System access is available 24/7. Training and support has been great.

Minpunten:

I understand this is a fund based system. However, not being an accountant, I do not understand that when purchasing property or paying a liability such as a mortgage why the value of the property or mortgage liability remains in the fund, even though the Fixed Assets Property and Long Term Liabilities are adjusted. This makes the Statement of Financial Position and Budget Comparison w/Variance misleading without additional notes.

I have learned how to make the software work for me and can generate most reports that I need.

Opmerkingen: It beats the socks of of QuickBooks when it comes to non-profit/fund accounting.

Pluspunten:

I think that it does a great job of doing the work of Non-Profit Accounting. I love that everything is in the cloud. I also like how easy it is to set up different funds and how the main chart of accounts can be used by any fund.

Minpunten:

If I want to change the comment section on a check, payable, deposit or receivable I have to delete the entire transaction and start over. The payroll section taxes each rate card individually instead of calculating the entire pay for an individual and then calculating the tax. We have several people that are paid out of many different categories and this causes the withholding taxes to be terribly short. Accounts receivable. I appreciated the recent improvement but I don't know why the payments have to applied directly to each item purchased. We are a school and families purchase many different things. We have several different checking accounts. If I accidentally record a deposit into an incorrect checking account I cannot go into GL-Register and repair it. I have to delete the entire transaction and reenter it. I wish that the payroll section would print out the actual W2s, W3s, 1099s. and Quarterly Federal 941s. It is a hassle to have to go to the IRS websites and reenter all of the employee information.

Outstanding Product

Opmerkingen: I have used many church software programs, but IconCMO is the most user friendly. I initially began with the Revelations program, many years ago. The new IconCMO has so much more to offer in church record keeping. And with new features to track people for events and the ability to offer check-in for events will be an added plus when we plan to incorporate these programs. I think the key to having a good product is the technical and support staff, which is outstanding with IconCMO. I would highly recommend this church software program to anyone.

Pluspunten:

The easy way to use this software it it's best feature. It's very easy to navigate, and little tutorial is actually needed. However, if you do need help, the support staff is outstanding. They are very familiar with the product and can usually answer the questions within minutes. They are professional and kind.

Minpunten:

Nothing really. IconCMO has so many features that I do not use. But to have the capability to enhance our record keeping, is nice to know.

Review From Gloria Dei Lutheran Church

Opmerkingen: During budget preparation, it is easy to fine what contributions have been made, how it relates to the pledges and who is behind. The contribution statements are great and I can send by email to those who have email addresses, then print out the statements that need to be snail-mailed. One of the best features I have found the working on the end of the year Congregational Report for the Synod. It makes this job a lot easier.

Pluspunten:

This program helps keep all information about members of the congregation located in one location. Once signed on to ICONCMO, I can find all members of the family, important dates about each member, addresses, etc. I also like the Contribution section because I can access the pledges for the members if there is any question.

Minpunten:

There are times when I have to hunt for the records I need because I am not sure where to look. I have tried to use the user manual, but I don't think it is very user friendly.

One of the best softwares out there!

Opmerkingen: As treasurer of my church, I have utilized the ICOM CMO website for various functions. If I ever have a question I reach out to the support staff via telephone or chat and always have my questions answered and issues resolved. Not to mention the help desk section along with weekly software updates are quite beneficial!

Pluspunten:

Icon CMO is truly a user friendly site and myself along with my church has been using since 2007! The website is easy to locate various documents and has a plethora of customizable spreadsheets and graphs to use. I have recommended this software to many other church congregations and they have been more than satisfied with the product as well.

Minpunten:

There is not one thing that I cannot stand about this software. When system updates and changes take place I kept well informed and take advantage of the hints provided by staff to adjust to new and improved features.

keeps accurate track of our membership, allows peace of mind knowing that our records are secure

Opmerkingen: Secure membership management and an excellent Customer Support team. Would love to have someone come to a Synod Conference and demo and train other churches and admins on this software.

Pluspunten:

IconCMO support team is the absolute greatest, quick to respond and always willing to help until any issue is resolved. Love the Vanco import option. Having experienced computer issues and various on site backup drive issues when I first began as Admin, I told the church Board of Management that I would only stay if we kept IconCMO!

Minpunten:

We would prefer if when a window was open it wasn't partially covered up by the side bar or another window. This has become a major frustration. That the app no longer is supported.

Icon

Opmerkingen: Satisfied overall - have not used anything else to compare it to.

Pluspunten:

You can choose who sees what data - for example only those concerned with finance can see that information. Those responsible for attendance only can view that information.

Minpunten:

Recent changes have been hard as we have mostly elderly volunteers that do the weekly data entry and learning new format has been challenging. Our pastors would really like mobile access to member info (like addresses and phone numbers) so when they are out of the office they can quickly reference those things.

My experience has been a very positive one

Opmerkingen: A much better accounting system

Pluspunten:

I like when you open up to do a journal entry, you really can't do it incorrectly as it tells you which way to the credit for the account & which way is the debit. I also love the myriad of reports! There are reports for everything you could possibly want. The support team is probably one of the best features ever! These guys have helped me so very, very much! They are wonderful! I can't thank them enough for all they do! I also like the manual being available online, but it would be nice if it was updated as they make changes to it. It's also nice to be able to have the search the support forum for help...that's a great feature & the videos too.

Minpunten:

I wish there was more graphing abilities & that there was a way to process payroll through it as well as W2's.

An excellent value for an integrated web-babsed church management software program.

Opmerkingen: Better fund accounting module. Decentralization of the data allowing for multiple users to access via the web.

Pluspunten:

* Web based. No software to install locally and maintain. No need to worry about your data getting lost. * FASB 117 compliant, allowing for true fund-based non-profit accounting. * Allows for unlimited number of users, each one's access customizable down to the individual menu level. * Able to signup for a free trial so I was able to see what the software was really like before I made the purchase decision. With other vendors, I'd have to rely on slick marketing promises that seem to promise the world and then you find out after you purchase it that it's not what you expected.

Minpunten:

* Payroll module seemed a bit difficult and clunky. However, this should not be hinderance since I highly recommend that everyone should use a payroll service and not do it yourself anyway.

Daily User of ICON

Opmerkingen: ICON has helped us as a church to better organize and track our financials, data management, mailings, emails, communication etc.

Pluspunten:

The software is very user friendly an easy to learn. I started using ICON a little over a year ago, learned it as I went along. It was and easy very easy to use and figure out. If I get stuck customer support is right there to help!!!

Minpunten:

Not much. The people at ICON have been making changes that continue to improve the product. When I begin to think there might be an easier way to do something-it seems like ICON is making the change.

Well done, easy to learn and great staff as well

Opmerkingen: Overall the system is great, easy use in all aspects, it does well in all areas of service for the church and if we do have an issue the service desk is always happy to help us.

Pluspunten:

I like the ease of use for the most part. There are still a few items that need to "cleaned" up but for the most part this program is quick and easy to learn.

Minpunten:

I don't like that you have to enter the same information twice in certain places. (ie: phone numbers, emails)I don't like how difficult it is to join/sep. a family. WHEW! However, I was told to call whenever we need to do this so a step is not missed and they don't mind, GREAT help desk!!