How to Create a Donation Page that Catapults Fundraising

Your nonprofit donation page is a crucial tool for gaining and keeping new donors for your organization. Online donating is far and away a donors’ favorite method, with 63% of donors saying they prefer to give online with a credit or debit card.

Figuring out how to make the best donation page for your organization may seem tricky, but luckily, there are some valuable tips to help you create and design a great one: 

• How to set up a donation page
• Donation page best practices
• Our favorite donation page examples

How to set up a donation page

With today’s robust, user-friendly fundraising tools, building a donation page for your nonprofit is easier than ever. Learn how to set up a donation page with our preferred solution, Qgiv by Bloomerang. 

1. Select a platform to build your donation page.

Online fundraising software will make constructing your own donation pages much less stressful, and you’ll be able to create optimized forms that drive giving. Search for a fundraising platform that enables: 

• Fully customizable and professional forms. Build unlimited donation pages and customize them with ease. 
• Event registration capabilities. Your donors can donate and RSVP to your events in one convenient step. 
• Responsive design. Your forms will look great and be accessible on every device.
• Recurring giving options. Place a recurring giving option on your form to see higher donor retention rates. 
• Seamless integration with your nonprofit’s website. Easily include your form on your nonprofit’s website and collect new donor data. 
• Automated receipts. Automate receipts after your donors have given so your organization has one less thing to worry about! 
• Robust reporting and analytics. Track the performance of your form and adjust it to improve your fundraising. 

Our recommended donation page platform: Qgiv by Bloomerang

To simplify your search for the right giving platform, we’ll highlight features of our preferred option: Qgiv by Bloomerang. This solution offers all of the features and benefits listed above, along with a few special features, including:

• GiftAssist, a feature that gives donors the option to cover processing fees
• A campaign thermometer to gamify your fundraising efforts and encourage donors to give more to help reach your fundraising goals
• Customizable dashboards and reports to easily view the data that’s most important to your organization
• Integrations with other leading software solutions, including Bloomerang’s CRM, Constant Contact, and Google Analytics

Qgiv makes the giving process easier for both your nonprofit and your donors. Your nonprofit’s team can leverage a user-friendly platform to easily design branded, mobile-friendly donation pages. At the same time, your donors can quickly show their support using a giving form that’s tailored to their needs. It’s a win-win for everyone involved!

2. Map out your donation page’s structure.

You should have a plan in place before designing your donation page. Know exactly which fields and questions you must include and how to order them intuitively. Your form should be logical and cohesive, and the only way to ensure that is by creating a plan before you start building it. 

Approach your donation form’s design and structure strategically by incorporating these tips into your plan: 

• Order information logically. Ask for personal information like name and address first so your donors can introduce themselves. Then, move on to the nitty gritty details like shipping options and payment processing. Move optional fields closer to the bottom so they don’t obstruct the required fields. 
• Keep it simple. Your donors are busy people! Studies show that 83% of people who visit your donation page don’t actually make a donation. In other words, the shorter and easier your form is to complete, the more your donors will actually make it to the end and submit their donations. While it can be tempting to use your form to collect as much information on your donors as possible, keep the required fields and questions to an absolute minimum. If you wish to contact your online donors further, do so through email newsletters, periodic surveys, and other communications. 
• Reduce repetitive information. If your donation form has fields that might overlap, design it so that your donors don’t repeat information. A common example is shipping and billing addresses. Most online donation forms allow you to place a checkbox on your form that donors can click to autofill their billing information if it’s the same as their shipping address.

Making your giving form simple and easy to fill out creates a pleasant donor experience that will result in more donations down the road. 

3. Design and brand the donation page.

Your donation page is a reflection of your nonprofit, so it should be both functional and beautiful! In fact, according to our generational giving report, 33 percent of Generation X donors say they’re put off by outdated websites. 

Styling your page with fonts, colors, images, and more not only enhances the donors’ giving experience but also keeps your donation page looking fresh and modern. Additionally, a well-designed form enhances its professionalism and authority, which establishes more trust with your donors.  

Brand your form to your organization using easy-to-read fonts, professional-quality images, and complementary colors. To motivate your donors visually, add a fundraising thermometer for specific donation campaigns. 

4. Enable multiple payment options. 

Giving your donors multiple options to make their donations online is vital to enhancing the online giving experience. Including a variety of payment options will make giving more convenient for your donors, allowing them to choose the option that’s most convenient for them. 

On your form, list all the payment methods your nonprofit accepts. For example, include icons of all the credit cards you can process, and give your donors the option to donate through eChecks or digital wallets as well. While the number of options included will depend on your organization’s resources, the most important thing is to make these options clear!

Additionally, you should use online giving software with a secure payment processor to keep your donors’ sensitive information safe. Ensure your platform has security credentials, such as PCI compliance. 

When you ensure your page is 100% secure, you’ll give your donors and your nonprofit peace of mind, knowing that confidential information is kept safe. Donors will be far more likely to give to your organization if they know your nonprofit has taken every security precaution. 

5. Optimize your donation thank-you page and receipt.

Your relationship with your donors doesn’t end the minute they click the “Submit” button. 

After your donors make a gift, set up your online giving software so they land on a branded acknowledgment page. You can also automate donation receipts so your donors will always be certain that you’ve received their gifts.

With Qgiv, you can use tags within your customizable receipts to automatically include your donor’s name on their receipt to add a personal touch. You can also add a conditional thanks for any of your donors who used GiftAssist to cover their donation’s processing fee for you.  

Building relationships with your donors is crucial for your retention efforts, so use your donation form as part of your stewardship plan! 

6. Monitor your page’s success. 

To maximize success through online giving, monitor your donation page regularly to see how it’s performing. Monitoring your donation form is the only way to pinpoint areas for improvement so you can hone your online giving strategies. 

Use your online giving platform to run various reports to see how your donation page performs. Evaluate metrics such as:

• Conversion rate
• Average gift size
• The rate at which donors choose recurring giving options
• How much of your total giving comes from your online donation form

These reports provide you with deeper insights into your donors’ preferences and where you can improve the online donation experience. Pay attention to the patterns you see and adjust accordingly!

Donation page best practices

By following the steps above, you’ll be well on your way to designing a solid donation page that supports your online fundraising goals. But it never hurts to put a few finishing touches on the page that will take your efforts to the next level! Use these best practices to impress your donors and drive even greater results. 

Ensure the form is mobile-optimized.

In 2023, most nonprofit website traffic came from mobile devices (52%). To reach all of your donors wherever they might be, your donation page needs to look just as appealing and be just as easy to use on a mobile device as it is on a laptop or desktop. 

Most online giving software will automatically generate a mobile-responsive version of your online donation page for you, so if you’re using software, you’ll have one less thing to worry about! 

However, it’s still best to design with mobile in mind. Use large text and buttons and keep your layout vertical to ensure your page will look amazing on phones and tablets. 

Maintain consistent branding.

Branding creates consistency, which is key to establishing trust with your donors. Using a donation form that doesn’t match the rest of your website can create confusion and leave your donors wondering if they’re actually giving to your organization. In other words, using a branded form will make your donors feel more comfortable about giving. 

When designing your form, it should reflect the look and feel of your organization’s website. Use the same color scheme, imagery, font, and language as you would throughout the rest of your site. Additionally, include your logo in the top left corner so your donors can immediately be sure that they’re using your nonprofit’s donation form.

Share your story.

Your supporters give to your organization because they’re passionate about your cause and care about your story. 

That’s why along with your nonprofit’s About Us and Mission Statement page, your online donation page should reiterate your story. Reminding your supporters of why your cause is important can motivate them to continue giving or even increase their gift size! 

Include your mission statement at the top of the page, and tell a story about how donations impact your larger mission. This way, your donors know exactly how your organization uses their gifts to help the ultimate cause. 

Offer giving suggestions. 

Offering different giving suggestions makes giving more convenient for supporters and can even result in higher donations. For example, donors may arrive on your page intending to give a smaller amount but choose a larger option from your preset list of giving suggestions instead. 

When setting gift amounts, factor in your campaign goals, your donors’ average gift sizes, and the gift amounts featured on comparable donation forms to set gift levels appropriately. Let your donors know exactly how they can further your cause by linking each gift amount with quantifiable results. For instance, tell donors that a $20 donation helps purchase a new leash for a shelter dog, while $200 can purchase a month’s worth of dog food.

Enable recurring donations.

Recurring donors are some of the most lucrative contributors for nonprofits! Think about it: A donor who gives regularly can donate much more to your nonprofit than a one-time donor possibly could. However, not all of your donors will know how to set up recurring giving. By encouraging recurring gifts on your donation form, more of your donors will be aware of this option, and they’ll have a convenient way to get set up. 

With online giving software, your nonprofit can empower donors to set up recurring giving via a field on your form. Provide donors with multiple options (for example, monthly or annually) so they can choose the option that’s most convenient for them. When donors have the flexibility to choose their own involvement, they’ll be more likely to become longtime givers! 

Align donation amounts with tangible impacts.

Provide a tangible impact for each donation level to give your supporters a more concrete idea of how they are helping your cause and furthering your mission. Enabling donors to visualize exactly what their donations will do keeps them invested in your story. 

When you’re creating your online donation form, make sure to indicate the tangible impact right next to each suggested giving amount. Be as specific as possible. For instance, instead of simply saying, “A gift of $20 will help the hungry,” you can say, “A gift of $20 provides people experiencing food insecurity with food, toiletries, and other necessities.” 

Provide matching gift options.

Did you know that an estimated $4-7 billion in matching gift funds go unclaimed each year? This is not only due to donors not knowing if they’re eligible but also because many organizations don’t promote matching gifts enough. Adding a matching gift option within your online donation form will help increase your fundraising.  

A simple way to advertise matching gifts within your donation form is to include a matching gift search tool on the form. Your donors can quickly look up their employer to see if they’re eligible and receive the necessary guidelines and forms for their company’s program.

Make your website’s “donate” button highly visible. 

To provide the best user experience, your donation button should be visible to your donors on every page of your site. When your donors don’t have to search around for a button and can quickly access the pages they want, there’s a better chance they’ll stick around long enough to make a gift. 

Your website’s “Donate” button should be prominently displayed across your site, not just on your ways-to-give page or homepage. To ensure it’s ever-present, include it in your top navigation so your donors can spot it immediately. Make your button even more eye-catching by making it large, using a bold font, and selecting a standout color from your brand palette.

Our favorite donation page examples

When figuring out the best way to design your nonprofit’s donation page, it can be helpful to review effective examples from other organizations. We’ve compiled a list of our favorite donation page examples to help spark your creativity. 

1. CROS Ministries

CROS Ministries offers donors a choice of where their money goes on their multi-step form. Plus, donors can opt-in to cover extra fees with Qgiv’s GiftAssist feature. 

2. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Beaver County

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Beaver County demonstrates the effect your branding can have on your donation page. The page includes bold brand colors and a video to demonstrate the impact of donations. 

3. CARE

The CARE online donation page uses emotion to create a compelling pitch, with a powerful impact description and attention-grabbing hero image. 

4. Junior Achievement of Arizona

Junior Achievement of Arizona uses impact statements and images to show donors what their gift can accomplish. This allows donors to see the exact impact of different donation sizes.

5. The ASPCA

The ASPCA’s donation form also uses images and impact statements to describe the impact of different giving levels. Additionally, high color contrast and large, readable fonts make this donation page both mobile-friendly and accessible. 

6. Weld Food Bank

Weld Food Bank keeps users focused on giving with a simple form that offers GiftAssist. It also clearly displays the payment types accepted. 

7. Feeding America

The Feeding America giving page clearly displays donors’ impact with a statement saying, “Your impact: $1 = 10 meals.” This shows donors exactly how their contributions will be used. 

8. Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region

The Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region adds a unique touch by customizing its “Give” button with a pawprint. Its suggested donation amounts also each contain a specific description of how donations will help pets in need. 

9. St. Jude

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital allows donors to give in honor or memory of someone. Its donation page also features a compelling photo of a St. Jude patient. 

10. The Climate Reality Project

The Climate Reality Project allows donors multiple payment options, including bank account payments, PayPal, and credit cards. The organization also uses FastAction, a tool that saves donor information to autofill the donation form upon future visits. 

Additional Resources 

For more information on fundraising with your online donation form, check out these resources: 

• Fundraising Software: 15+ Leading Solutions to Consider. The right fundraising software makes it easy to design a powerful donation page that drives giving. Here are the leading solutions to explore. 
• 8 Text-to-Give Platforms to Mobilize Your Donors. Text-to-give is an effective platform for sharing your donation page because so many nonprofit supporters use their phones to connect with their favorite organizations. Review top text-to-give platforms here. 
• 8 Steps for How to Successfully Ask for Donations with Free Templates. Want to make your donation requests more successful? Use these free tips and templates to create requests donors won’t refuse.