Sofort is a secure and widely used online banking payment method in Europe. Donorbox’s customers in Europe and the US that use Stripe as a payment processor can accept one-time and recurring donations from their donors based in Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, and Spain. In this blog, we’ll discuss more about Sofort and how to accept donations today.
Sofort is a secure and widely used online banking payment method in Europe. With over 85 million people across European countries opting for Sofort, this method has become a necessity for every business. Sofort has been a part of the Klarna Group since 2014 and user safety remains its top priority.
Stripe nonprofit users in Europe and the US can accept one-time and recurring donations from their donors based in the following countries through Sofort –
Since Donorbox uses Stripe as its main payment processing system, nonprofits can easily connect to Sofort via Stripe on Donorbox.
In this blog, we’ll discuss what Sofort is, it’s advantages, and how you can accept donations with this payment method on Donorbox.
Sofort enables instant and direct transfer of money by letting users log in to their bank account on its secure payment page. At first, the user will select their country and the bank from which they want to pay. Then, they will log in with their online bank details. To complete the payment, they’ll enter their TAN which is unique for each payment. That is all – they’ll soon receive a confirmation from the business they made the payment to.
For nonprofits having donors based in the 6 European countries, Sofort is a highly secure, smooth, and reliable payment system. The transaction fees are comparatively lower and the chances of fraudulent or failed payments are minimal. Stripe also makes it possible for you to accept recurring donations with Sofort using SEPA Direct Debit.
When you use Donorbox to accept donations with Sofort, most of the above-mentioned steps are highly automated. All you need to ensure are these 3 things here:
After that, it’s as simple as checking a few checkboxes and clicking buttons.
So let’s see how you can start accepting donations with Sofort on Donorbox!
Donorbox partners with Stripe to give you a myriad of secure payment options including Sofort. Follow the below steps to start receiving donations with Sofort via Stripe on Donorbox.
You must be based in Europe or the US to be able to accept Sofort payments from your European donors. Check if that reflects on your Stripe account.
Next, you have to navigate to the Payment Methods page on Donorbox. You’ll find a section called “Additional Payment Methods with Stripe”. Under it, you need to enable “Sofort Payments”.
To be able to accept recurring donations, you need to activate SEPA on Donorbox and your Stripe account.
On Donorbox, you can do so from the section called “Additional Payment Methods with Stripe”. Toggle the switch for “SEPA Payments”.
Now, you need to enable SEPA on your Stripe account as well. On your Stripe payment settings page, click the “Activate” button next to “SEPA Direct Debit”.
You’re now all set to accept donations with Sofort on Donorbox. Here’s a glimpse into how it looks on your donors’ end.
Your donor selects Sofort on the Donorbox donation form.
As they input their name and country and click “Donate”, they’ll be taken to the Sofort payment page where they’ll be required to choose their bank.
As they click “Next”, the donor will be taken to the next page where they’ll have to log in to their chosen bank account.
Your donor will be asked to confirm their login from their bank application on the phone.
They’ll have to confirm the login attempt on the app.
The webpage will then prompt them to enter the confirmation pin.
As soon as they enter the pin and click “Next”, they’ll be asked to confirm the transfer on the bank app on their mobile phone.
And it’s done. The donation will be on the way to your nonprofit bank account.
As soon as the donation is processed, you should receive the amount in your bank account connected to Stripe.
Your donor receives an automatic donation receipt from Donorbox.
The transaction fees will include Donorbox’s platform fee that starts at 1.75% for the Standard plan. You can reduce this fee to a 1.5% for most features by upgrading to our Pro or Premium plans. These plans are curated to help grow and scale your fundraising efforts. The other fee would be Stripes’ 1.4%+2.40kr fee for each successful Sofort transaction.
Learn more about Donorbox plans and pricing here.
As a nonprofit, you’ll be offering your donors a secure payment method that does not require them to input card details or share personal information. Many people including the older generations are skeptical about these things. So, when you let them authorize their donations by logging in to their bank accounts securely, you establish trust, transparency, and a relationship that may last forever.
Plus, your donations will be instantly processed. That means you don’t have to wait to receive it and get started with the good work.
The transaction fees reduce the amount you receive by a certain percentage for each donation made by a credit/debit card. With Sofort, you get to cut down on these fees and make the most of the donations you receive.
Card transactions come with the risks of fraud and failed payments. Cards often get lost or expire. Donors tend to forget card details. All this leads to failed payments that can become a major setback for your fundraising efforts. With an online bank payment system like Sofort, you get to bypass these hitches and ensure a smooth and reliable experience for yourself and your donors.
If you have supporters based in the European Union rooting for you and your cause, Sofort is the payment method you should offer them for a smooth donation experience. Its secure online banking payment system coupled with Stripe’s excellent payment success rate and Donorbox’s fundraising features will ensure your fundraising success.
Know more about Donorbox, the all-in-one fundraising solution for nonprofits, on our website here. Do check out our simple-to-use, affordable features such as Peer-to-Peer fundraising, Crowdfunding, Text-to-Give, Memberships, Recurring Donations, Events, Donor Management, QuickDonate, and more.
Donorbox Premium lets your nonprofit take its fundraising to the next level with expert coaching and high-performance tools.
Opt for Donorbox UltraSwift™ Pay to make giving a breeze for your donors with the power of digital wallets like Venmo, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal.
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Product Manager - Integrations @ Donorbox
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