Software for fundraising has evolved along with the internet to allow charities to reach donors much more easily and to facilitate the donation process. In addition to the traditional methods, online fundraising increases a charity’s exposure and earning power into new demographics as a cost-effective business model.

Software for fundraising empowers a charitable organization to accept payments online via credit cards first and foremost; but there are many more tools to improve donations. For example, donor management software and integration with customer relations management (CRM) software allows an organization to do more than just accept payments, it allows a closer relationship between donor and charity. With the rise of social networking through the internet, software for fundraising can now tap into viral marketing and social networks to better expose a charity’s cause and truly build a community. 

Payment Options Beyond Simple Donations

The cornerstone of online fundraising is to accept payments online via credit cards and PayPal. Yet, there is a vast untapped potential if a charitable organization is only utilizing their online resources in such a manner. Software for fundraising, at the basic level, should allow for recurring payments, integration of tax documentation, and accounting transparency.

Going outside the box, other options include offering merchandise and premium content in exchange for donations. Returning a tangible product or service not only attracts donors, it also perpetuates a charity’s message above and beyond a single donator. Effective systems will account for sales tax, shipping arrangements, and bulk discounts for an easy plug-and-play arrangement to supplement any charity

Customer Relationship Management

A charity should be more than just a vehicle to accept donations and dispense needed services. Building a relationship between donors and a charity is as important as the relationship between the organization and the recipients. Software for fundraising should provide marketing tools to manage campaigns to reach and connect with donors and supply the required financial analysis to determine a return on investment for these campaigns.

Being able to better connect with and manage each donor really gives a charity a personal face to put forward. Outreach and sales tools should be able to pinpoint leads that will be truly interested in getting involved with a given organization. Keeping an entire online fundraising team on message will enable a unified effort to spread an organization’s cause and good works. Finally, effective software for fundraising will pull this all together with forecasting tools to keep everyone accountable and on goal.

Building Social Communities

A key aspect of online fundraising is social networking. The internet provides limitless avenues to build communities across physical boundaries and national borders. Maintaining a presence on the internet with an interactive, informative website will attract a steady stream of attention. Disseminating news through an online medium will keep your cause in the minds of donors and potential donors. These networking tools will also spawn secondary contacts as by their very nature they move on their own accord through donors.

Ultimately, effective software for fundraising should focus on making payments easier, providing more options for giving, and better promoting a sense of community between donors, charities, and recipients.