When you look for the best way to collect donations online for your nonprofit, you need to make sure you consider how your choice will affect your ability to build strong relations with donors.
Fundraising is a year-round project. The donation software and payment processor you choose can either increase your workload or arm you with the tools and information you need to engage meaningfully with supporters and raise more money without additional effort.
We worked with our partner Silent Partner Software to explain why an integrated, all-in-one solution is the best way to support your online fundraising.
The difference between integrated and third-party donation processors
When it comes to collecting donations online, you have two options: You can either use all-in-one donation software with integrated payments like Sumac Donations by Silent Partner Software, or a third-party payments system like PayPal in addition to your CRM.
Integrated donation processing
All-in-one donation software with integrated payments is built to work for the needs of your nonprofit better than third-party systems. If you use donation software like Sumac Donations with an integrated payment system like iATS Payments by Deluxe®, you will have your own merchant account that you can use to accept credit card and ACH donations.
Here are the benefits of using donation software that offers built-in, integrated payments:
- Rather than sending donors to an external website, your donation page is on your own website and matches your branding so there is less drop-off.
- Donors can choose to cover processing fees for their donation.
- Donations are processed with enhanced security because of built-in fraud protection tools
- Receipts are sent to donors automatically and have your nonprofit’s branding
- Donations are recorded in your CRM automatically. You don’t need to manually import or export data, leaving you more time to engage with donors
- If (when) you need technical assistance, you won’t be stuck in a 1-800 loop. iATS answers the phone in a few seconds and works exclusively with nonprofits
Third-party donation processing
A third-party processor like PayPal lets you accept donations online without opening a merchant account. The funds you raise go into an aggregated account with many other businesses or nonprofits instead of into your own merchant account.
This may seem like it’s a convenient option for your nonprofit business, but there are major disadvantages:
- If you use a third-party payment processor with your donation software, you will need to manually export and import data into your CRM.
- Donors are less likely to complete a donation if they’re redirected to a third-party website that does not match your organization's branding. Drop-off increases if they need to create a new account to donate.
- Some third-party processors can hold your funds for up to 90 days before disbursing them, leaving you unable to access the funds you’ve raised for months.
- Many processors have a deceptively low base rate but levy additional charges and fees, which add up to a high total rate.
- Relationships between some third-party processors and their clients tend to be transactional and impersonal. Customer service is often outsourced, and you may not get to speak to a person when you need technical help.
- If your funds are in an aggregated account, a cyberattack targeting any of the other companies or nonprofits can put your funds and mission at risk.
The importance of working with companies that understand nonprofits
You should always try to work with companies that focus their work on nonprofits. Companies like Silent Partner Software and iATS have years of experience serving nonprofits and understand your challenges and how to solve them.
We know that as a fundraiser, your goal is to build strong relations with your donors. Your nonprofit business requires all the support you can get, and we work with our partners like Silent Partner Software to make sure your organization is successful.
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