Imagine for a second what double the funds could do for your cause. Perhaps you could feed more people or build more shelters for people without homes.
Whoever your charity serves, let the feeling of having the money to cover your needs overcome you. Soak that in for a moment.
Now come back to reality. Open your budget and look at how much of it is funded. I bet that the warm, fuzzy feeling just dried up.
The reality is you could do with more funds for your charity. You’re not alone – we could all do with more money. Yet raising those funds always seems like an uphill battle. People’s attention can wane, and attracting new donors to your cause seems to get more complicated all the time.
Not all is lost, though! With a few key strategies, you can increase your non-profit’s online donations. The idea is to get better at grabbing your donor’s attention and make it easy to donate.
Online success is about creating a smooth and straightforward way for donors to find you and contribute their gifts. When you think about it, these are the strategies that all big websites use to attract both traffic and attention – why would a charity be any different?
So, together, let’s explore how your charity can double donations using simple yet powerful tips that successful websites employ to keep their causes moving forward.
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1. Keep your online donation page simple and the donate button clear
Keep your online donation page simple. This is not the place to experiment with the latest in cutting-edge features. A donor wants to complete their donation in the fastest way possible.
Attention spans are getting shorter. Between news alerts, social media posts, and all the info we’re bombarded with daily, chances are your donor’s mind is tired. Make your online fundraising page painless for them.
How do you do that? Here are a few tips to kick-start your online fundraising efforts:
- Create a donate button with a clear call to action (CTA). A donate button allows donors who are ready to give a simple, one-click step to pledge their gift and pay.
- Make the donate button easy to find everywhere on your website, not just on the donation page. That way, donors can pledge money anytime they’re ready. They don’t have to scour the site for your donation page.
- The donate button should use a contrasting color scheme to make it easier to find.
- Cut out clutter from your donations page, i.e., reduce the amount of information you collect in your donation forms to the bare minimum.
- Reduce the number of steps/clicks required to make a donation. Donating should be easy, and donors should be able to pledge their gift and pay within one page.
These steps create a smooth and straightforward experience for your donors, helping to increase online donation frequency.
2. Boost donation reliability by asking for recurring donations
Recurring donations provide a source of dependable income for your charity. It’s the same principle that big websites use with subscriptions or monthly fees.
A recurring transaction removes the hassle for the donor in the same way a direct debit allows them to pay monthly fees automatically. With recurring donations, donors don’t have to remember to donate each month, and you gain a reliable source of donations.
Including a recurring donation option is one of the top tips for charity website page design. Why? Because it works brilliantly and it’s easy to implement.
In most cases, all you have to do on your online non-profit donations page is include a checkbox. That checkbox gives the donor the option of making their donation recurring. You can provide specific schedules for donations, e.g., monthly, quarterly, or annually.
You can also include a specific figure along with the schedules. This eliminates work and thought on the donor’s part and makes it easier to click that donate button.
3. Use the power of suggestion and limited choice in your fundraising
Limited choices reduce mental fatigue. You’re more likely to choose when you have three options than when faced with a hundred. It’s why many shops will stock the five most popular brands instead of every available brand.
Fundraising should feel easy for the donor, and you’re more likely to receive donations when your website leads donors from a clearly-marked donate button to a donation page that moves them through the donation process quickly.
Suggesting specific figures for donors makes it easy for them to give. All they have to do is pick an amount that appeals to them. Consider the following website design tips for charities when implementing donation choices.
- Make gift suggestions in 3-4 reasonable amounts, ranging from modest to more generous.
- Aim for an average figure based on what your donors typically give.
- Describe the impact each level of donation will have on the causes your charity serves. You can list the number of backpacks you can fill with school supplies or the amount of food you can purchase for your animal shelter. Whatever the number, make it specific and genuine – a donation is more satisfying for the donor when they understand how much it can do for your charity.
Humans are visual creatures, and we love a good story. Using visual cues and painting a picture of the impact each donation level accomplishes helps you increase your non-profit online donations. It also enhances your cause in the minds of your donors.
4. Let your charity brand shine
Your charity brand tells a story. It’s how potential donors recognize you from the crowd. The colors and fonts that you use and the message you present should be consistent throughout your online presence.
Your brand should also shine on the donations page.
This provides potential donors with a sense of security. You want that. You want your donors to feel secure because they’re trusting a web presence with their personal details and hard-earned cash.
So, how do you make your brand shine on your non-profit donations page? Here are a few tips:
- Use the same colors as the ones used on the rest of the website
- Include your name and logo at the top of the page
- Use the same font as the one used on the rest of the site where possible
For more information on the Google Grant Checker, click the link below. Check your eligibility here.
5. Embrace mobile fundraising
Nowadays, everything is mobile, and fundraising can be, too. Think of the massive range of things you do on your smartphone daily. You can check email, read the news, watch videos, FaceTime with your kids, get work done, and so much more.
Most people are connected to their phones 24/7 – and so is your potential donor.
This is why making your non-profit online donations page mobile-friendly is paramount. Most modern websites come with a mobile-ready version, but if your website is more than three years old, it will likely need mobile optimization to support donating.
To really up your donation game and raise more money for your charity, implement some of the following tips:
- Use shorter paragraphs on the donations page. If your donor has arrived on the donations page, they’re probably ready to donate. A mobile donations page doesn’t need to sell them on your cause. It just needs to allow them to pay.
- Cut clutter on the page by reducing fields and icons.
- Use a vertical, scrollable layout, which works best on smartphones.
- Keep the content under a page in length.
6. Get social to raise awareness and giving
Social media has swallowed the world. We tweet, update, like, follow, capture and share moments every day. Social media is a great interactive way to spread the message about your cause, and to connect with a diverse group of people who are passionate about your work.
Social media supports your fundraising by letting you promote your non-profit online donations page. You can do this directly or by providing donors an option to share or broadcast their donations on your profile pages.
Make it fun by including an option for your donors to customize their messages. Also, keep in mind that not everyone wants to broadcast their gift. Provide an opt-out option for folks who want to help you raise money without the fanfare.
To level up on social media, consider adopting some of these strategies:
- Pick a catchy hashtag and use it across your social platforms.
- Share links to your donations page on social media.
- Comment and reply to people on your social platforms.
Keep in mind that you can’t engage fully on all social platforms. Pick the ones that work best for you and your cause. Consider where most of your donors consume their content and pitch your camp there.
Also, it’s about more than just getting donations. Use social media to educate and entertain your audience. The rule of thumb here is to go 80/20 on information vs. donations. Charities that ask their audience to donate too often run the risk of putting them off.
7. Thank your donors for their support
Gratitude goes a long way, and donors love hearing how much you appreciate their support.
It also doesn’t need to be boring, either. You can use a thank you page to thank donors and also to inspire further action.
Receipts must follow compliance rules for the countries you operate in. Other than that, you are free to customize your receipts and thank you page however you see fit. Replace old, boring copy with something personal and memorable that makes your donors feel truly appreciated.
You can also use the thank you page to tell donors how to get involved or spread the message about your cause. Go ahead: add a memorable image, video, or graphics. This is what most donors will remember after they donate.
Think like a donor to encourage them to donate
Ultimately, you have to think like your donors to increase online donations. You want to make the experience simple, painless, and memorable. This calls for a subtle balance between championing your cause and getting donations. Using the tips above should help you achieve that.
We love helping charities connect with donors to raise support for their cause. If you’d like a free consultation with one of our digital strategists, get in touch via email at info@irelandwebsitedesign.com or call us at 051-393524.
