Highlighting Online Donations: What Users are doing
We thought we'd check in with some users of GiftWorks Online Donations to see how they've incorporated the Donate option into their websites.

The most creative use of Online Donation buttons we've seen is done by the Just Heart Foundation.
Just Heart Foundation

Just Heart's Faith Winters reports that their website has been a long-time "work in progress." (The mission of Just Heart is to provide financial and emotional support to families who have a child with a serious illness, so that the family focus can be on the child.)

The first thing you see when you open the Just Heart Foundation's home page is a prominent "Please Donate Today" invitation. Charming photos of children and families bring the site to life. Scroll down past the Request for Information --- and you'll see another invitation: Please support our cause: Donate today. In fact, each page of the site includes an invitation to donate--prominently displayed.

Faith reports that "our graphic designer created the donation buttons, intending that we would choose just one of them. When we saw all of the different buttons, we wanted to use them in a creative way. The online non-profit marketing classes we'd taken suggested having a link to your donation page on each page within your site. So, we decided to maximize the impact of the donation buttons by using a different one on each page." Another nice touch on Just Heart's Donate page is the phrase: "Give through GiftWorks," reassuring the user of the site's security.

"GiftWorks donation page," concludes Faith, "makes it really easy to gather information and keep everything consistent. We really enjoy the site and hope that others will too."

Visit www.justheart.org

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Another GiftWorks user appreciates the convenience of the Online Donation software.
Asian Hope

Asian Hope has been using GiftWorks since February 2009. (Asian Hope's mission is to revive Cambodia from the destruction begun by the Khmer Rouge in 1975 by providing Christian education and occupational skills to Cambodian children, to enable them to become leaders in their country.) They switched to GiftWorks Online Donations from a four-page process for donating-which was confusing and cumbersome. Jordan Fischer, VP of US Operations, reports that visitors to his new beautiful and friendly page are giving larger donations than before. He also reports more than 30 ongoing recurring gifts (with no end-date) set-up since March. "We love having just one page; we've received positive feedback about the flow of the site."

"GW Online Donations makes data-entry a one-step process, tremendously decreasing the time and effort for entering donations; it's user-friendly for both donors and staff."

With DONATE in the menu list of the home page, those interested can easily click through to Asian Hope's Donate Page. The page opens with a smiling face of a child involved in learning. The page concludes by thanking "you" for partnering with Asian Hope in fulfilling children's dreams.

Visit www.asianhope.org

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Another user puts their "Donate" button in the very top section of each page.
Odyssey Networks

Odyssey Networks is the nation's largest coalition of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faith groups dedicated to achieving interfaith understanding through the media of television, the Internet, and theatrical releases. They've placed the Donate button in the masthead on each page-right up there with their logo. You can't miss that red button. One click takes you directly to the Donation form page.

Visit: www.odysseynetworks.org

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We like the tag line of another Online Donations user.
Federation of American Scientists (FAS)

"Join. Renew. Give" is the invitation for support used by the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). The Federation was founded by a group of Manhattan Project scientists who felt a responsibility to educate the public and policy leaders about the dangers from scientific and technical advances and to show how good policy can increase the benefits of new scientific knowledge. Robert Lilly reports: "GiftWorks certainly has simplified and streamlined our recordkeeping.

"Join. Renew. Give" - three little words that make a direct appeal.

Visit: www.fas.org

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:: Consultant's Corner ::
Effective Board Support--What is it?
Pete Nixon, Apogee Consultants (Park City, UT)

Does your 501c3 organization have enough money? If so, you can stop reading now. If not, it's time to evaluate how well your board is doing its job of connecting with the community. Community support comes in many forms: providing the community leaders who sit on the board, providing the cadre of volunteers who provide essential services without cost, and cash donations from the community. This last area is where many boards shirk their duty, placing the burden unfairly on the Executive Director or a Development Director.

The Evolution of a Nonprofit
A nonprofit organization might also be called a 'community-supporting and -supported organization'; it's typically started by a group of people who perceive there is a social need not being met by existing organizations, including government, business or other nonprofits.

In the beginning, the founders serve as both the board and the (unpaid) staff. They struggle to raise funds so they can develop and administer the programs to meet the need. If there is a broad enough interest by the greater community, the funding base grows and the organization is then able to hire paid staff. What happens next varies, depending on whether or not the leadership recognizes the distinction between staff and board functions.

"What happens when a nonprofit hires its first staff depends on whether or not the leadership recognizes the distinction between staff and board functions."

My point is: nonprofits are usually started, governed, and managed by people in a community who are focused on the mission, not on raising money. Fundraising in the community is seen as a necessary evil. As soon as the organization can afford to hire an Executive Director, one of the first tasks they unload is that of fundraising. At that point, the personal connection to the community becomes strained--if not severed. You need a Board to bridge that gap.

A Better Board Model
The Board's role in connecting the nonprofit with the community includes:

1. Representing the organization in the community
2. Representing the community's interests in ensuring the organization is meeting the community's needs

If the Board takes this role seriously, the community is always aware of the importance of the nonprofit to the community and of the need to support it with volunteers and funds. This is not something a staff person can or should do, unless it is in support of board initiatives.

Board members should be chosen not only for their interest in the mission, but for their ability to engage the community in supporting the organization with their money, time and talents. All too often, organizations that are in trouble financially are 'led' by a board composed of well-meaning, concerned citizens who do not understand or accept their responsibility to ensure the financial well-being of the organization.

An effective board is one composed of people who are willing to use their stature and influence in the community to raise funds from the community. Ideally, these are people who are successful in their own right - 'pillars of the community'-- who are not the least bit reluctant to ask for money for a good cause. In fact, they enjoy the challenge of doing so.

The Nonprofit's Funding Conundrum
By its nature, a 501c3 nonprofit derives little or no funding from those it serves and must instead obtain funds from sources that only indirectly benefit from the services provided. Think about that for a minute because it is at the heart of the funding conundrum faced by just about every nonprofit.

"By its nature, a nonprofit derives little or no funding from those it serves; it must instead obtain funds from sources that only indirectly benefit from the services provided."

A community health clinic or homeless shelter provides critical life-saving services to those who cannot pay; it must somehow convince the community to provide the funding. Animal shelters, soup kitchens, adult literacy programs, inner-city and at-risk children's programs--the list is virtually endless and the dilemma the same; those served cannot pay for the services so the community must be convinced to do so.

Many of these programs qualify for government funding, but it is rarely enough to meet an organization's financial needs. This is particularly true in tough economic climates as we have seen recently, where demand for services soars while these funding sources dry up. Even those nonprofits previously successful in obtaining foundation grants are now seeing that source constricting.

So, unlike for-profit businesses, nonprofits must not only serve their 'customers' (the users of their services) well - they must also convince someone else to pay for services they are not themselves using. Now that is a marketing challenge!

The Fundraising Duties of Staff
The staff's role in all of this is to administer the programs at the center of the organization's mission which serve constituents. All too often, though, I see Executive Director job descriptions that make the ED responsible not only for running successful programs but also fundraising in the community. This is an abdication of duty by the Board and a formula for constant financial distress for the organization.

What is the staff's role in fundraising? I believe it is limited to:

1. Identifying and applying for relevant foundation and agency grants
2. Developing an effective marketing strategy to get the right message out to the community
3. Providing administrative and marketing support for fundraising and awareness events that the Board has initiated and promoted within their circle(s) of influence
4. Developing and grooming a database of financial supporters to which occasional appeals can be targeted

In Summary
The key to active, ongoing community support is a Board with the right attitude toward its responsibilities as the 'community connection'.

If your organization does not have a board that understands and accepts its responsibility as the 'community connection', you will likely always struggle with funding. On the other hand, if your board becomes actively engaged in a two-way conversation with the community, you will likely find a much more receptive audience for your marketing message and have an easier time obtaining community support.

Organizations that have mastered the art of soliciting community support can actually experience an increase in community support during economic downturns. Make sure your community knows why you exist and why they should support you - and the best way to do so is with a board that understands this as their 'job one'.

Pete Nixon, of Apogee Consultants (Park City, UT), helps corporate and nonprofit clients recognize and overcome patterns of behavior and thinking that don't serve them well, and to develop strategies for future success. Pete has been an active leader and volunteer with numerous civic and charitable groups in the Salt Lake City area.

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GiftWorks Nonprofit of the Month
Tin Mountain Conservation Center

Change--a challenge for any organization. Tin Mountain Conservation Center embraced the challenges and used GiftWorks to enhance "administrative efficiency" and develop more effective outreach.

When Susan Beane arrived as Development Coordinator, Tin Mountain (which offers hands-on education about the natural environment for school children, campers, adults, and families in northern New Hampshire and western Maine) owned, but had not yet implemented GiftWorks. Understandably, naturalists and staff of the environmental center, already stretched with providing the many programs, events, and camps, were hesitant to tackle learning a new database.

"My mission as Development Coordinator, however," Susan relates, "is to create an environment in which we can raise the funds to fulfill our mission." After 29 years with Excel spreadsheets and a cumbersome database, Tin Mountain needed a change.

Currently, Susan is working with the GiftWorks Support Team to configure 30 years of data from QuickBooks and Access to GiftWorks. Once GiftWorks is in place as the central database, the need for double entry into parallel systems-and its probability for error-will be eliminated. Mailings will cost less and be more effective since they will no longer include incorrect addresses, deceased donors, "no-solicitation" requestors. With data entry and mailings improved, Tin Mountain anticipates having the time and opportunity to redesign financial flow and some job assignments.

"GiftWorks has already shifted our way of thinking about efficiency and fostered a culture of philanthropy," continues Susan. "With GiftWorks, we have a better understanding of what our members like and who they are. This focuses our outreach."

"While no one was eager to make a change, the rewards of GiftWorks have made it well worthwhile."

"While we may not have been eager to make a change," Susan concludes, "the rewards of GiftWorks have made it well worthwhile."

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