Breaking Down the Barriers to Online Giving
Once you've spent the time and effort putting together a savvy strategy for soliciting online donations, how can you be sure you are providing soon-to-be-online-donors with a stress-free, barrier-free donation experience? Here are a few things to consider before you "go live" with your solicitation. Barrier #1 --Email can be perceived as "bulk" or lacking a personal touch Solution: You already have a database with plenty of information about your donors--use it to your benefit when sending e-mail solicitations. Be sure to personalize both the e-mail message and the online experience by using database variables. Speak to them by name and--as appropriate to the message being sent--include giving status, personal interest, YTD giving / amount, acknowledge past utilization of their gifts, etc. Barrier #2 -- Online whiplash & form fatigue Solution: Avoid the "whiplash" that can occur when your giving page doesn't match what the donor saw on the