How to Receive Donations without Ever Asking

Home Blogs →How to Receive Donations without Ever Asking

How to Receive Donations without Ever Asking

By Bob Speyer and Kristin Tomlinson, Web Success Team

Competition for donation dollars is fierce. One of the biggest dilemmas facing non-profits organizations is how to improve their charitable donations. Donating is personal and emotional. People want to give, but at the same time make sure the bulk of their funds are going to the intended recipients and not to the organization itself.

Non-profit websites need to connect with the potential donor, personalize their recipients, show how funds are being used to improve the lives of the less fortunate, and make it simple to donate money and get involved. Most importantly, the site must combine all these things in a way that’s welcoming to the organization’s potential donors and volunteers.

Here are a few effective strategies to spark involvement, educate your donors and increase donations:

Build Confidence and Trust

People are not going to want to donate if a page appears confusing and unprofessional. Building a well-designed page is key to building a trustworthy brand. When developing your page, keep it clean, to the point and design with purpose. A heavy emphasis on the visual aesthetic of your website will build legitimacy for your organization. Also a media room or “in the news” page depicting current events and media exposure builds credibility.

Protect Your Donors – Offer Security

Post a secure form of payment method so that people can donate their money with trust and reassurance. Sites that make it difficult for users to find where to make a donation or how to make a donation will not get a good response. Donors should be able to move to the actual transaction easily and securely and make a donation hassle-free.

Create a Relationship between Donor and Recipient

Establish a relationship between those giving and those in need. People will be more motivated to donate when they can feel for a person that is living without the things we take advantage of everyday. Adding a blog forms a connection, where potential donors can relate to the organization on a more intimate level. Blogs have the ability to communicate with people in a more personal way and reach a bigger market because they’re circulated within networks. Having recipients contribute their own stories is empowering.

Set a Goal to Make a Difference

Set a goal for your organization that is reachable and believable. In order to get people passionate about a cause, they have to feel as though their contribution will make an impact and get something accomplished. Donors want to know how an organization plans on helping. By establishing a mission statement with information about goals, objectives and work, donors can get a better feel for the impact an the organization can make to improve the lives of the recipients.

A Web “Success” Story

The Web Success Team is a major supporter of the Save Poor Children in Asia Organization (SCAO), which is an organization that supports orphaned children in poverty stricken Cambodia. We took on the pro bono task of redesigning their website, utilizing the strategies depicted in this article. Ever since taking over their website, we are happy to report more donors have been visiting the site and making generous donations. Donors are then thanked personally by email from Mr. Samith, the center’s director, who tells him or her how their contribution is working to improve the lives of  the children.

Please feel free to visit the SCAO website to see how we structured their site. Your comments are always welcome as well as your donations!

The Web Success Team specializes in developing and marketing direct response websites that take full advantage of the latest developments on the Internet. The Team has an arsenal of effective web strategies, online marketing tools and proven customized social media techniques to promote your products and services. And we’ll show you ways to increase the amount of qualified traffic to your site.

For more tips, tools and articles of interest, become a fan of the WebSuccessTeam Facebook page and learn more about online marketing, SEO and social media. Visit us at https://www.facebook.com/WebSuccessTeam. Contact the Team today for a complimentary consultation to your web success.

One comment

  1. Alteholla
    April 21st, 2010 5:27  / 

    What CMS architecture does this site use?

    My Personal Blog

Leave a reply translated

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

 
Background
Color scheme