5 questions to help you create an online giving experience that makes it easier for donors to act on their generosity
Your nonprofit’s donors shouldn’t have to work hard to support your mission. But an extra field, slow page, or confusing donation form can make online giving harder than it needs to be.
Consider Gen Z. More than 70% reported giving in some way over the course of a week. These younger supporters are ready to give, but they’re also accustomed to fast, mobile-friendly online experiences with fewer steps.
While younger donors may have higher expectations for online giving, every donor benefits from a simpler experience.
So, how well is your online fundraising keeping up? These five questions can help you find out:
1. Are your online donation forms easy to use?
The best time for someone to act on their generosity is when they feel inspired to give back—right in that moment.
If a supporter has to hunt for your donation page, wait for it to load, leave your website, or work through a long form, their enthusiasm has more opportunities to fade. That makes your online donation form a significant part of the donor experience.
Start by looking at your own giving process from a donor’s perspective:
- How many steps does it take to make a gift?
- Does the form work well on a phone?
- Does it look and feel like your organization?
- Can a donor easily choose between a one-time and recurring gift?
- What happens immediately after they give?
- Can a supporter easily contact your organization?
Givecloud’s customizable donation forms are designed to make the giving experience user-friendly and simple. Forms can match your organization’s branding and work across devices, while offering convenient payment options like PayPal, Apple Pay, Venmo, and DAFpay. Default recurring settings can also make monthly giving an easy option to consider.
Once a gift is complete, automated emails can immediately acknowledge the donor rather than leaving them wondering whether their donation went through.
Each of these details can make it easier for a donor to complete their gift. And for your fundraising team, Givecloud can sync donor data to DonorPerfect, helping reduce the work required to move online giving information into your nonprofit CRM.
Test your online donation experience, including on mobile devices.
Make a practice donation through your own form on a phone. Note how many steps it takes, whether the form is easy to navigate, and how quickly you receive confirmation.
2. Does your online fundraising support monthly giving and other ways to participate?
A donation form is important, but online fundraising doesn’t have to begin and end with a donate button. People discover and support your mission in different ways. Someone might watch an impact video, hear about your organization from a friend, attend an event, or read a story that moved them.
What they want to do next can vary, too. A first-time donor may be ready to make a gift from their phone. A longtime supporter may want to renew their support. An event attendee may want to stay involved after the event, while another donor may be ready to join your monthly giving program.
Offering different ways to participate gives supporters more opportunities to engage with your mission in ways that work for them. Givecloud brings these opportunities together across fundraising, donor engagement, and campaign tools, including:
- Recurring donations – Let supporters make an ongoing commitment, such as a monthly gift, to your mission
- Peer-to-peer fundraising – Give supporters tools to fundraise within their own networks
- Text-to-give – Create another convenient path to your donation experience with text messages
- Memberships – Offer membership tiers, exclusive content, and VIP discount codes
- Sponsorships – Allow supporters to browse and manage sponsorship opportunities for events, services, and programs
- Fundraising events – Sell tickets, manage registration, track attendees, and support your nonprofit’s events
- Online shop – Combine merchandise and donations in a single checkout
A supporter who isn’t ready to make another direct donation might happily attend an event, while a passionate supporter may be more excited about asking friends to contribute to a peer-to-peer campaign.
Make monthly giving an easy next step.
Givecloud can make recurring giving more visible and offer a post-donation prompt to turn a one-time gift into a monthly gift. Once enrolled, supporters can manage their recurring gifts through the Donor Portal.
3. Is your online fundraising data connected to your donor records?
Imagine that Jordan donated $50 online last spring. That’s useful information.
Now imagine you also know Jordan later registered for your annual walk, became a member, purchased a T-shirt from your online shop, and started a peer-to-peer campaign that introduced 12 new people to your organization. Now you know a lot more about Jordan than their last gift amount.
That’s the value of fundraising intelligence: bringing information from online donations, events, memberships, and other channels together so you can better understand how someone engages with your organization.
Givecloud can send donor and fundraising data from online donations, memberships, sponsorships, events, and online shopping to DonorPerfect. Instead of piecing together activity from different places, your team can see more of the donor’s engagement in your nonprofit CRM.
That context can change how you communicate with someone like Jordan. Instead of treating them as a one-time donor based on their last gift, you can consider their event attendance, membership, and peer-to-peer activity when planning your next outreach.
That data can also help personalize the giving experience. Givecloud can use a returning donor’s giving history to suggest donation amounts that are more relevant to that individual.
Put your online fundraising data to work.
With Givecloud and DonorPerfect connected, your team can use online fundraising activity to inform reporting, donor communication, and stewardship. Givecloud’s intelligent suggested amounts can also personalize donation asks based on a returning donor’s giving history.
4. Does your online donor experience build trust?
Donors need to feel confident when they give online. Consistent branding, a clear giving process, secure donation processing, and an immediate acknowledgment can all reassure supporters that they’re in the right place.
Givecloud lets nonprofits customize donation forms to fit their brand and create a more consistent online experience. A supporter might read an impact story on your website, make a donation, receive a confirmation, and later return through their Givecloud Donor Portal to manage their giving.
That experience continues after the initial gift. Through the Givecloud Donor Portal, supporters can manage aspects of their own giving without having to contact your team for help. That makes ongoing support more convenient for donors while reducing administrative work for your staff.
Give donors more control with the Donor Portal.
Supporters can update payment methods and contact information, manage recurring gifts, view their giving history, and access tax receipts on demand. Updates sync with your CRM to help keep donor records current.
5. Can your online fundraising help you make more of every gift?
Once someone decides to donate, checkout options can help more of their gift support your mission.
Make monthly giving easier to start and maintain
The giving moment can introduce donors to ongoing support. Givecloud’s recurring settings can make monthly giving more visible, giving someone who’s already motivated to help an easy way to turn a one-time gift into a longer-term commitment.
For existing recurring donors, Givecloud can send reminders when a saved payment method is about to expire, before a gift fails. Donors can also update their payment information and recurring gifts through the Donor Portal, helping reduce interruptions to their support.
Help donors make more of their gift
With Givecloud’s Smart Donor Covers Cost, donors can choose to cover the costs associated with processing their gift. That means your nonprofit can retain more of the donation when a supporter chooses to cover those costs.
These options should be easy to understand and simple to act on, so donors have opportunities to increase or continue their support without making the giving experience more complicated.
“We did a live trial with Givecloud. Our online giving increased by a whopping 268%! We definitely saw an increase in donor covered costs because of the variable amount it allows for each user’s donation.”
— Peyton Davis, Marketing and Community Engagement Manager, The Humane Society of Pinellas
Younger, tech-savvy donors may have especially high expectations for online giving, but every donor benefits when supporting your mission is simple.
Givecloud and DonorPerfect can help you offer more ways to give and participate while keeping that activity connected to your donor records. With that information in DonorPerfect, your team can better understand donor engagement and plan more relevant communication and stewardship.
Ready to see how Givecloud can help you raise more?
See how Givecloud and DonorPerfect can help you create a more connected online fundraising experience.
