Have No Fear! Monthly Giving Help Is Near
Over the past few months, I hope I showed you how monthly giving has become so much easier for nonprofits to organize and then actually start.
That’s because so many payment processors and donor bases now have built-in tools to create giving pages, add the recurring/monthly option and capture new monthly donors without a lot of jumping through hoops.
Having said this, if you’re still hesitant or you think you really do not wish to handle the in-house processing of monthly donors, there is the option of outsourcing the whole process.
External monthly donor processing options are here! In fact, they’ve been around for many years. Organizations that started monthly giving years ago have created the landscape, and you’re reaping the benefits.
The companies I come across most are Payment Solutions, EFT Corporation, Caring Habits and Vantiv Solutions.
(Please forgive me if I forgot somebody! Feel free to let me know if you’re offering this service, and I’ll add you to my list!).
These payment companies are experts in processing your monthly donations, especially for Electronic Funds Transfer, as well as credit and debit cards. They’ll help guide you every step of the way, all for a small fee. That’s more than recouped by the tremendous annual value of a monthly donor ($288 a year!).
So, if you’re worried about your regular monthly donor processing or if you’re still investigating options, I highly recommend you check some of these out and see what fits best for your organization. I’d definitely make sure that they have the account recovery option for you as that’s going to help you with your credit card retention rates.
All you have to worry about now is acquiring those monthly donors, and these partners will give you the tools to get the donor’s payments in every month!
Monthly giving absolutely does not have to be scary. So, have no fear, payment processing help is here!
Erica Waasdorp is one of the leading experts on monthly giving. She is the president of A Direct Solution, a company serving nonprofit organizations with fundraising and direct marketing needs, with a focus on monthly giving and appeals. She authored "Monthly Giving: The Sleeping Giant" and "Monthly Giving Made Easy." She regularly blogs and presents on fundraising, appeals and monthly giving — in person and through webinars. She is happy to answer any questions you may have about this great way of improving retention rates for your donors.
Erica has over 30 years of experience in nonprofits and direct response. She helped the nonprofits she works with raise millions of dollars through monthly giving programs. She is also very actively supports organizations with annual fund planning and execution, ranging from copywriting, creative, lists, print and mail execution.
When she’s not working or writing, Erica can be found on the golf course (she’s a straight shooter) or quietly reading a book. And if there’s an event with a live band, she and her husband, Patrick, can be found on the dance floor. She also loves watching British drama on PBS. Erica and Patrick have two step sons and a cat, Mientje.
