Many nonprofits are heavily dependent on donations from the public to sustain their programs. In the digital era that we now find ourselves in, it is becoming increasingly important to communicate to clients, employees, and donors using the internet. This means using online tools to facilitate interactions that were once in person, through your website. Unfortunately, finding the right tool can be a complicated process. So where do you begin? This presentation focuses on online donation service options. This presentation will help you understand what options are out there and how to determine which service is best for your size, income, and number of clients.

1. Presents
Choosing an Online Donation Tool
3/6/2013

2. Introductions
Alex Green, Aimy Enriquez, and Jessica Fraser
Serving at 501 Commons
www.501commons.org

3. Presentation Overview
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Why online donation tools?
The challenge of choosing
Assessing your needs
Click and Pledge
Network for Good DonateNow
Paypal
Qgiv
Summary
Questions

4. Why Online Donation Tools?
• Donating online much much easier than traditional
donation methods
• Impulse donors are much more likely to give
• Online donating is becoming increasingly popular each
year
• An opportunity to connect with a younger
donor/client/volunteer base
• Can help build your contact database

5. The challenge of choosing
(and why you are not alone)
• Tons of different service providers available
• Not all providers provide the same type of service
• Some services are more customizable
• Each provider deposits your money differently and
has different security settings
• Each service provider charges differently*
• The majority of these differences
come down to cost.

6. Assessing your needs
*How much is your nonprofit relying on donations?
Will you be using your own merchant account, or your
vendors?
*What is the typical size and volume of the donations you
are expecting?
• Setup Fees, Monthly or Annual Fees, Transaction Fees,
Merchant Account Fees, Gateway Fees
Does the donation form need to look like your website?
Will you be wanting to accept tribute or memorial gifts?
Recurring donations? International donations?

7. Click and Pledge
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A great nonprofit starter service for first timers
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Competitive pricing
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Best for nonprofits that don’t expect a high volume of donations.
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$20 monthly fee, 3% + $.30
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Recurring payments are an option
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Semi – Integration capability
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Transactions are handled for you- Deposits after 48 hours
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Salesforce Integration

8. Network for Good- DonateNow Lite
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Straight Forward
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No set-up or monthly fees – Only %5 of
each donation
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Donors receive automated tax receipts
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Donations can be tracked with online
reports
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Donations disbursed once a month
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Not customizable, basic page
Another good option where you are not
expecting a high volume of donations and
just need the basic functionality of
receiving a donation

9. DonateNow
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Upgraded version of DonateNow Lite for
those who consider donations to be a
much bigger part of the puzzle
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$49.95/month, 3% transaction fee, $199
setup fee
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No merchant account required – will
transfer funds directly to your bank
account of choice.
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Donation page can be completely
customized to look like your website,
seamless integration.
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Weekly webinars and 24/7 customer
support
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Ideal for organizations that are
expecting a higher volume of donations
and network traffic to their website.

10. PayPal
Similar to DonateNow Lite, an extremely cheap
option
A lot of people are familiar with Paypal, it’s trusted
and secure
Money deposited into your bank account within
minutes
501©(3) get the discounted rate of 2.2% + $.30, no
monthly fees.
Donors do not need to have a PayPal account,
simply a credit card.
This is a good option for organizations that want
their service to be well known and don’t care about
having a customizable page for their donations.
When clicking the donate button, the user is very
aware that they have left the site and are now at
Paypal.
Recurring payments are NOT an option.

11. QGive
Full Integration
Free 30 Day trial at full functionality
Recurring option available
You can also sell tickets, event packages, and products!
$199 One-Time setup fee, 3.95% + $.25
The Qgiv guarantee
Highly recommended for the organization that is looking
for a service that is a step up from all the free options. The
entire donation experience will be customized so that the
donor does not even know they have left the site.

12. So what’s the first step?
Take the time to discuss with your team what some of the needs of your
organization are.
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How much are you relying on donations?
What is the average amount and frequency of donations?
How important is integration?
Most service providers give all of their critical information of pricing,
features, and support on the front page
Always inquire about a nonprofit discount

13. Any questions?
Is that it?!
photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/plasticrevolver/164351244/

14. We can help you further
For info on:
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Future workshops on technological applications,
social media methods, and other topics
• Participating in a free tech assessment of your
nonprofit
Email us: vistatech@501Commons.org

15. Resources
501 Commons' Technology Knowledge Center
o Tools, tips, & trainings to help make good tech decisions!
For other nonprofit events, please check out the events page
on the 501 Commons website
While you're at it, check out all of Technology Services 501
Commons has to offer
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