Create an on-brand fundraising page to accept donations via a donation form while also adding other important elements such as a story, campaign images, videos, and other details. Learn the 12 essential tips to create a successful fundraising page and the steps to build one using Donorbox.
Online giving grew by 12.1 percent over the past year, as per the latest statistics. Most nonprofits are aware of this trend but may not know how to inspire more online donations for their organization. A fundraising page is more important than ever, and online donation processors offer several additions that help encourage more gifts. Organizations that use quality images, strong storytelling, and powerful details will always stand above the crowd.
This article shows how nonprofits can use these and other tips to create an effective fundraising page and increase online donations this year.
Before making a gift, the final thing online donors see is an organization’s donation page. A nonprofit’s fundraising page is critical to receiving the gift. Some may assume that donors have already decided to give once they reach the page. That may be true most times, but there are several things you can do to ensure that gift and even increase the amount.
Watch this short video on top tips for your donation form which is from our detailed webinar on how to maximize the effectiveness of your online donation form. During this session, we walk you through a personalized assessment to determine your level of donation form mastery. You can watch the full webinar on YouTube here.
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Companies with a strong brand presence have an easier time controlling the narrative. Building a brand includes everything – an organization’s product, values, communication, impact, and more. Brand presence can be added to your fundraising page with a logo, color palettes, and a tag line or mission statement. These features give people a level of recognition and trust and remind them why they’re giving. Look at this fundraising page here. One look at it and donors would have a feel of the organization’s brand and its mission.
Your fundraising page is no good unless there’s a donation form. You need it to raise the funds. But you must ensure the form is user-friendly at the same time efficient enough to gather the required information. When opting for a donation form, here’s a list of basic checks and add-ons you should definitely consider –
The below donation form is a great example you can refer to. We’ve highlighted some of its best features, also mentioned above. We also have a couple of more examples for a good donation form to help you design yours. Here they are –
The statement “a picture is worth a thousand words” is a cliche for a reason. Quality images and videos can tell your organization’s story better than any content. They can also catch a donor’s attention faster.
Imagine you’re a new visitor to your fundraising page. Would you rather see a bunch of words or a beautiful image or a heart-warming video? The answer is obvious. Donors love pictures and videos that tell a story. So, you must invest in a camera to grab at least a few images or edit a high-quality video for your website and fundraising page.
The below fundraising page by hopestory includes a video to talk about their mission and how the nonprofit strives to spread hope among families in need.
Recurring donation programs are the best way to boost donations. They work as a steady stream of income your nonprofit can depend on. Plus, you get to retain donors for a long time and create a stronger relationship over time.
Add recurring donation intervals like weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually, etc. to your donation form. If you prefer monthly donations, it’s good to have a way to highlight that so your kind donors can help you by opting for that interval. Here’s an example to help you give a better understanding.
Pro tip: Promote your recurring donation options on social media, through your emails, during events, and throughout all your fundraising campaigns. Tell people how you can improve impact through their regular donations. This also gives you an opportunity to reach out to your one-time donors and inspire them to turn into recurring donors.
Once you decide on a picture, you’ll need to include a compelling story to draw in donors. Images can quickly catch a donor’s eye, but without a story to connect the image to your organization, you put yourself in danger of losing their attention.
Compelling success stories do not have to be long. When adding one to your donation page, it is best that it isn’t. When choosing a story to add to your fundraising page, it is best to find a way to show how your nonprofit helped and made people happy. This way, you have a better chance of sticking in your donor’s minds and enticing them to act.
The following page tells the story of a blind dog found and now, on the road to rehabilitation. With images, this page could be more enticing, nonetheless, we feel the story truly touches one’s heart.
Website visitors who make it to your fundraising page are more likely to donate, but you can still convince them to give even larger gifts. One of the best ways to do this is by connecting each donation amount to a specific project or service done by the nonprofit. An example of this is a school tying a $100 gift to students receiving a chrome book to use during class. This connection gives donors a real-world example of where their money goes. 
When asked why donors don’t give to a nonprofit, most state that they don’t see how their gift is being used. Adding these details to your fundraising page gives your donor a concrete way their contributions can make an impact. Check out the above example to see how they’ve highlighted impact details under each suggested donation amount.
Fundraising pages that highlight the goal the nonprofit is trying to achieve can perform a lot better than they otherwise would. This can be done through a fundraising goal thermometer put above your donation form or in tandem with it. The idea is to make it stand out. A goal thermometer gives potential donors who care for your cause a sense of urgency. Some would give extra just to help you reach that goal.
See how Tarjimly used a goal thermometer on their fundraising page to inspire more donations from their supporters.
Your fundraising page is not just for your existing supporters, volunteers, family, and people who know about you. It is for a wider range of audiences that you can reach through social media shareability options. Have social media buttons on your fundraising page and remember to not push them down the page or hide them in any manner. People visiting and donating on the page should be able to share about your fundraising needs and have their network come forward to help.
Look at the below example. They have social media buttons on their fundraising page to encourage people to share about the campaign on all major social media platforms.
Thanks to technological advancements, nonprofit trends have moved to donors having more control over how they give. A common mistake many nonprofits make is believing donors are all the same. Nonprofits that offer a variety of ways to give start a stronger relationship with their donors from the beginning.
Donors who find options they love to complete a payment in tend to feel comfortable. They are more likely to complete a donation on your fundraising page. The ease might even encourage them to opt for recurring donations.
A few different ways to include on your fundraising page are:
When it comes to boosting donations, you need to think creatively about different ways to raise more funds. One such way is peer-to-peer fundraising. You can add a button at the top of your fundraising page to help interested visitors/donors choose to fundraise for your cause. You never know, there are many earnest supporters of your organization and mission, who are looking for a way to get more involved. Educate your audience about the option and make it stand out on the fundraising page.
With Donorbox, it’s very simple to turn a simple fundraising campaign into a peer-to-peer one. It’s as easy as toggling a switch. And you’ll have these buttons (shown in the image below) on your fundraising page to boost donations and gain advocates for your cause.
As we mentioned earlier, your donation form must collect donor information. It’s up to you if you want to store just the basic details or go in-depth and ask a few more questions. Your fundraising page should be connected to a backend donor management system that securely stores all this information and lets you add some more (communication notes, observation, interaction details, etc.) to cultivate relationships with your donors.
This information and such relationships will eventually be effective in getting more donations for your organization.
Pro tip: Remember to not clutter your fundraising page and the donation form with too many fields and questions. That can turn off your donors. Collect only the information that matters.
The example below should help you decide on some of the important questions to ask.
Lastly, to have your donors come back to your fundraising page, again and again, there’s an essential need for appreciation and acknowledgment. If you can highlight your donors’ gifts, their names, and comments on the fundraising page, there’s nothing like it. These donors will feel more appreciated and may share your page with their network.
Also, people who visit your fundraising page for the first time will come to see these comments and gifts on the page. This will act as social proof for them. They will be more likely to make a donation, now that they know how many other people have.
Donorbox lets you add a donor wall to your fundraising page that lists down donors’ comments, their gift amounts, and names upon taking permission from them. Here’s an example for you.
All these beautiful and customized examples and screenshots of fundraising pages you saw up there were created using Donorbox. We pride ourselves on creating an affordable, easy option for nonprofits of every size. Donorbox lets nonprofits create donation forms (embeddable and popup) and set them up on their existing websites. Alternatively, they can also use the Donorbox-hosted fundraising pages that are highly customizable and easy to set up.
The following step-by-step tutorial will help you develop your own online fundraising page on Donorbox, customize it with donation-boosting add-ons, and give donors more opportunities to give.
Signing up for Donorbox only takes a few minutes.
Visit our homepage and click the Org Signup button to fill out your organization’s details. There is no set-up fee and no contract for you to sign. No documentation is required as well.
it’s time to set up your donation page. Give your campaign a name and enter a few basic details about why you’re raising funds.
When creating your first campaign, you need to choose a name, language to be used, and goal amount. It’s up to you if you want to turn this into a peer-to-peer campaign.
Look to the right and you’ll find the option to get started with your fundraising page.
Click “New Fundraising Page” under the Fundraising Page box.
Complete your branding first. Add a logo, background image, and change color.
Write down your campaign story and make changes to your goal if you want to.
Scroll down and find more options. Add a donor wall to your page. Social media sharing is enabled by default. Your page will have social media sharing buttons. If you want, you can disable it here. You also have the option to turn on crowdfunding.
Once done, you can click the “Create Campaign” button at the bottom of the page. Your campaign as well as the fundraising page will be created.
This is what your basic design will look like.
You’d want to customize your fundraising page, the design, and the donation form. For that, you need to click “Continue Editing”.
First, make changes to your donation form to ensure a more accurate and customized look.
Select your donation intervals, the preferred interval for your nonprofit, and the default one.
One done, click next.
Select multiple donation currencies if you want to and the payment methods.
Make changes to your suggested default donation amounts. Add impact details and set a minimum donation amount if you want to.
Scroll down and enable asking the donors to cover your processing fee. You can also add a piece of disclaimer information to your page for transparency.
Click next to add tribute donation or donation designation to your donation form.
It’s time to decide what information you’ll be collecting from your donors.
Lastly, write down a thank you message for your donors to see once they’ve made the donation and click “Update”.
As you come back to the Donorbox dashboard, it is time to edit your fundraising page further and make sure you have all details and branding in place.
Make the necessary changes you must and click “Update”.
Now preview your fundraising page again and see the change for yourself.
You’ll find a section for additional settings as you come back to the Donorbox dashboard page for your campaign. To make it more efficient and a complete package for your donors as well as your organization, consider editing your email receipt that will be automatically sent to your donors after each donation.
You’ll also find many other options (for collecting customized information from donors and asking questions) to further customize your fundraising campaign. Keep exploring them to have the most amazing fundraising experience with Donorbox.
Fundraising pages can be your most successful fundraising tool if done correctly. The tips and steps provided in this article will help you encourage more donations and create a strong connection with your donors.
Learn about donation page best practices on this blog here. We regularly post nonprofit management and fundraising tips on our nonprofit blog here. Subscribe to the Donorbox newsletter for receiving a curated list of our best resources every month.
Donorbox also offers other simple-to-use and affordable features like Text-to-Give, Crowdfunding, Peer-to-Peer fundraising, Memberships, Events, Donor Management, QuickDonate, and more. If you want to take your fundraising to the next level, Donorbox Premium is there for your nonprofit – with expert fundraising coaching, a dedicated account manager, high-performance tools, and priority tech support.
Kristine Ensor is a freelance writer with over a decade of experience working with local and international nonprofits. As a nonprofit professional she has specialized in fundraising, marketing, event planning, volunteer management, and board development.
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Kristine Ensor