Donors love giving tribute gifts in memory or in honor of someone they love because it means they're doing more good - and nonprofits who accept tribute gifts enjoy more donations. Read on to learn how easy it is to accept tribute gifts using Donorbox.
From birthdays to celebrations of life, it is becoming increasingly popular for people and their loved ones to request donations to a charity in lieu of physical gifts. This is a wonderful way to honor or memorialize someone, while supporting a cause close to their heart.
That’s why it is important that you, as a nonprofit organization, make it possible (and simple!) for your donors to make tribute gifts.
Here, we’ll dive into why you should offer this option to your supporters, and how Donorbox makes it easy to add it to your fundraising campaigns.
Giving in honor of someone is making a tribute gift to a nonprofit organization in celebration of a loved one. There are many reasons a donor may choose to dedicate their donation in honor of someone else.
For example, birthday fundraisers. The person celebrating will ask others to donate to a nonprofit to honor their day. Many also put donations to favorite charities on their wish lists for other gift-giving occasions.
Some may also choose to give in honor of major life events – such as retirement or a wedding. In fact, some couples put links to donation forms in their wedding registries!
The family and friends of nonprofit board members – or even staff members – may choose to give to an organization in honor of their board selection or work anniversary. And, if a nonprofit gives out awards, some may want to make a donation in an award honoree’s name.
Loved ones of a beneficiary of an organization’s services, such as a cancer patient, may also want to donate to the nonprofit.
For example, check out this Mother’s Day campaign that uses the Donorbox donation form along with the tribute donation option to encourage in-honor donations.
Giving in memory of someone is a tribute to a person who has passed on.
In obituaries, it is common to see a request for tribute gifts to a charity in lieu of flowers. The obituary may list a link directly to the organization’s donation form.
But giving in memory of someone is not limited to immediately following their passing. Those who wish to keep a person’s memory alive may choose to make a tribute gift on the anniversary of their death, on their birthday, or on a favorite holiday.
United Way Saskatoon & Area uses its pop-up Donorbox donation form to accept in-memory donations from its supporters.
The short answer? Just about any nonprofit could benefit from adding a tribute gift option to their giving form. You’d want to make it easy for your donors to celebrate their loved ones in a meaningful way.
Faith-based organizations are often selected by members as the nonprofit they’d like their loved ones to give to in their memory. Many faith-based organizations also offer the option to purchase flowers or other decorations for their worship space in honor or memory of someone.
Food pantries, homeless shelters, and other local humanitarian organizations may hugely benefit from this option. Many people want to ensure gifts made in their memory are directly impacting their community.
Relief organizations often receive an uptick in donations during natural disasters and other emergencies. Supporters may want to give in memory of someone directly affected, or in honor of a volunteer at the disaster site.
Veteran organizations have many opportunities to capture gifts made in memory or honor of someone who served their country.
Animal charities are major recipients of gifts in memory of pets, or in honor or memory of a person who deeply loves animals.
Educational institutions, especially universities, may receive gifts in an alumnus’ name, perhaps in celebration of graduation.
And medical research organizations and hospitals are often top choices of family members who had a loved one pass from a disease; or who was well-cared for at a specific institution.
Adding this option to your Donorbox campaign is quick and easy. Simply follow the steps below!
First things first, you’ll need to log in to your Donorbox dashboard.
Don’t have a Donorbox account? It’s free to sign up! That’s right – you only pay a low platform fee starting at 1.75% plus standard payment processing fees (or ask your supporters to cover this). However, you can reduce this platform fee further down to 1.5% for most features when you upgrade to our Pro and Premium plans.
Once you’re in your account, go to the ‘Campaigns’ tab in the left-hand navigation.
Find the campaign you’d like to add this option to, and click the ‘Edit’ icon.
If you have not yet created a campaign, you’ll need to do so first. On that same ‘Campaigns’ page, click the orange ‘New Campaign’ button in the upper-right corner. Now, follow the simple instructions. Here’s the guide you’ll need to get started.
On the following page, click the ‘Edit Form’ dropdown and locate the ‘Tributes’ page of the donation form editor. Click this.
On this page, toggle on the option in the left-hand sidebar that reads ‘Enable tribute donations’.
Once you click the toggle, select the options and features you wish to have on your form for tribute gifts.
You can opt to allow the donor to input the recipient’s contact information as well as send a personal message via email or postal mail. Note that you – as the organization – will need to complete this notification. But the details will all be recorded for you.
Click ‘Save and Preview’ at the bottom of the page and you have now made it possible for your donors to make a tribute gift in honor or memory of a loved one!
If you haven’t already, share your donation link with your network, or embed your form into your website.
And be sure to announce that it is now possible for supporters to make tribute gifts. Encourage your social media followers to share your giving link on their birthdays. Send an email to your current donors. Announce this new addition in your next board meeting. Whatever you do, make sure to get the word out!
Giving to a charity in honor or memory of someone is a great way to show your love, especially if that nonprofit’s cause is important to the person being celebrated.
With the popularity of donating in honor of birthdays and weddings, or in memory of someone’s life, it’s important that you add this option to your donation form so you don’t miss out on potential tribute gifts. And it’s easy to do with Donorbox!
Sign up for your free Donorbox account today and follow the steps above to get started.
80,000+ organizations are using Donorbox to successfully raise more donations, sell event tickets online, run their membership campaigns, and manage supporters. Use our simple and effective features to become a part of this success story. And in case your nonprofit is all set to get to the next level of fundraising, Donorbox Premium is here to help! We’ve designed this growth package to help nonprofits with expert fundraising coaching, dedicated account ambassadors, a dynamic set of tools, and priority tech support. Pricing is personalized for each nonprofit. Book a demo now!
Explore myriads of insightful articles, fundraising ideas, guides, free templates, and checklists on the Donorbox Nonprofit Blog. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to receive a list of the best Donorbox resources (guides, articles, podcast episodes, webinars, product updates) directly in your inbox.
Kara has several years of experience in communications and marketing for nonprofit organizations. Her love for serving others began while fundraising for and attending mission trips. She then worked with multiple local nonprofits through various marketing agencies and volunteer opportunities before becoming a communications manager at Variety the Children's Charity of St. Louis for more than four years. Kara now specializes in writing and enjoys sharing her experiences and knowledge with others on this platform.
Subscribe to our e-newsletter to receive the latest blogs, news, and more in your inbox.
Kara Schmid