We already knew that online practices are shaping the future of the nonprofit sector! And with the Covid-19 pandemic, it quickly shifted much of the fundraising efforts to the digital world.
But even now as people start to gather together again, nonprofit online fundraising practices are still in full swing.
While they’re not replacing traditional fundraising methods (and we don’t think they ever totally will!), they are super beneficial towards helping you grow your nonprofit organization.
So we’ve come up with some major nonprofit online fundraising best practices in this post!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #1: Email Marketing is Not Dead!
Did you know? According to the Global Trends in Giving Report, “26% of online donors say email is the tool that inspires them most.” That’s ahead of social media, your website, and print marketing.
And! From the same report, 63% of donors worldwide say regular email communication about the impact of their donation is what inspires them most to become a recurring donor.
Yep, even though we get aggravated with the red number that pops up on our Mail app, the proof is in the pudding.
Email marketing has one of the highest ROIs out of all the nonprofit marketing endeavors! So don’t skimp on it.
That being said, you don’t want to only send out emails that just ask for an online donation. Instead, follow these email marketing best practices:
Nonprofit Email Marketing Best Practices:
- Create an entire email campaign for your nonprofit, rather than just sending random emails asking solely for a donation.
- Send out a monthly newsletter that showcases what your mission is up to.
- Highlight volunteer stories so your supporters can see who’s doing amazing work for the cause.
- Show your email list exactly what their money is doing and where it’s going. Be transparent with your nonprofit endeavors!
- And every so often, incorporate nonprofit online fundraising practices like a “one-day donation campaign” or a promotion of your monthly donation program.
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #2: Make Sure Your Donation Pages Are Easy to Use
Your donation page is where the magic happens. So it needs to have all of the right information on it to help your donors know and trust in your nonprofit. So how do you do that?
Follow these donation page best practices!
Online Donation Page Best Practices:
- Make sure the design of the nonprofit page is simple. Don’t overload it with too many graphics. Don’t make the fonts too hard to read. Keep the design simple!
- But create a branded donation page so they know exactly who they’re donating to. You can do this with a lot of online donation platforms available on the market!
- The copywriting needs to be clear and concise so your readers clearly understand your nonprofit mission and what you’re asking for.
- Make sure they know where to click. You’d be amazed at how often this is overlooked! And how quickly it causes potential supporters to back out because they don’t know what to do next.
- Be clear in what they’re giving. Don’t take part in any tricks here! Otherwise, you’ll lose the trust of your donors.
- Offer your donors the option to pay in different forms. This opens the door for people who have different credit cards or different preferences for online transactions. You can even offer them the option to pay in cryptocurrency!
Not sure on how to get started with that? That’s okay! Our sister site, Charity How To, has a free webinar to explain more about cryptocurrency and how to use it in your nonprofit.
Check Out the FREE Webinar on Cryptocurrency Donations at CharityHowTo!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #3: Don’t Forget to Increase Awareness for Your Monthly Giving Program
Utilizing your monthly nonprofit online fundraising program is a sure-fire way to meet your monthly goals time after time!
In fact, donations from monthly gifts are on the rise. From the Benchmarks Report in 2021, recurring monthly donations increased by a whopping 25%.
The good news is that certain online donation platforms let your donors opt-in to recurring gifts on your donation page. And some others allow you to make specific monthly donor pages!
But remember. The phrase, “if you build it, they will come” doesn’t actually apply. So once you’ve got your monthly donation page set up, be sure to promote it!
Here’s how:
Promoting Your Monthly Giving Program Page Best Practices:
- Send it out regularly to your email list. Include it in your nonprofit monthly newsletters and any other fundraising email campaigns you send out.
- Social media is a great way to promote your nonprofit monthly giving program. While you don’t want to post about it every single time you post new content, reminding your followers of your program is necessary. Otherwise, they’ll forget and you won’t see any new donors come through!
- Have a clear link on your nonprofit website to your monthly giving program, too! When traffic hits your site, they should be able to see the link as an option for them.
- Use your Google Ads Grant to promote your monthly giving program, as well.
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #4: Use Social Media Fundraising Tools
Facebook Fundraising Tools is one of those nonprofit online fundraising tools that just can’t be overlooked. In fact, over $5 billion has been donated to nonprofits through Facebook Fundraising Tools.
When you set up your nonprofit account, you’ll essentially have a mini online donation platform directly on Facebook. You’ll get a nonprofit fundraisers page, a donate button for your page and all of your posts, and on-Facebook donation ads.
Plus, when someone donates through your Facebook page, you’ll get their contact information like their name and email address. And that’s an excellent way to track your nonprofit donor data to better understand your supporters!
Once you’ve signed up for Facebook Fundraising Tools, you’ll easily be able to sign up for Instagram’s own nonprofit program. And with it, you’ll be able to add a “Support” button to your profile, add “donate” stickers to your stories, create fundraisers, and even host virtual events through Instagram Live.
If you already have a social media marketing strategy planned out, or if you’re in the process of planning it out, be sure to include this in there. And be sure to check out our post on the best social media tools to help you with your strategy!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #5: Apply for the Google Ads Grant Program
Don’t forget! There’s money on the table with the Google Ads Grant program. You can snag up to $10,000 per month for your nonprofit. And even if you’re not eligible for the full $10,000, you may not even need that amount to meet your nonprofit goals!
We have an easy guide on Google Ads Grants that also lists the requirements for the program!
Nonprofit Online Fundraising Best Practice #6: Optimize for Mobile Giving
Double-check that all of your nonprofit online fundraising efforts are optimized for mobile giving. Whether it’s your email newsletters, your online donation pages, or even your website, make sure they’re ready for mobile donors.
According to Nonprofit Source, 25% of donors complete their donations on mobile devices. And we think that number is only going to rise given how easy it is to handle daily tasks on your phone!
It looks like nonprofit online fundraising is here to stay, friend! Which means it’s time we do what we can to make sure we’re following the best practices for it.
These 6 nonprofit online fundraising strategies will help you meet your donation goals month after month!
Want more related to nonprofit online fundraising? Check out these posts!
The Top 30 Statistics You Need to Know About Digital and Online Fundraising for Nonprofits
The 5 Most Valuable Nonprofit Digital Marketing and Fundraising Tools
The 8 Best Online Donation Platforms for Nonprofits to Boost Your Income
