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How to Evaluate Online Fundraising Partners
| For an extensive listing of fundraising partners, see the Evergreen State Society's Resources for Fundraising Online. |
What Nonprofits Seeking Online Fundraising Tools
Should Look for in an E-Commerce Partner
1) Privacy Statement that addresses how donor data is collected and used by the e-philanthropy service
2) Statement on Cookies, and whether future visits to the site entail them, when they expire, and whether/why individual users are tracked during site visits. At this point, there should be an explanation of whether the interaction with the site and any follow-up mailings are based on an opt-out or opt-in basis
3) Explanation of the giving vehicle's operational model. Is it a:
- Payment Engine (service allowing nonprofits to receive credit card transactions)
- Charity Mall (e-commerce model linking portion of product purchases to direct contributions to identified or registered organizations)
- Charity Portal (listing/registry/directory of nonprofit organizations that can receive contributions)
- Charity Auction or Special Event Site (usually larger ticket online fundraising medium
4) Listing of the corporate sponsors or partners affiliated with the service, and listing of participating nonprofits and charities
5) Explanation of whether banner ads and logo are required on participating sites, and statement outlining whether corporate or nonprofit ads that conflict with the mission, focus or values of a particular participating organization will ever be displayed
6) Reference information on online giving versus promotional buzz on the particular giving vehicle. This ideally should include information on 990s, links and articles on how to/where to register charities to receive funds, etc. drawn from trusted sources (IRS, NCIB, BBB, Guidestar, NCCS, NFN, NSFRE, NASCO, NAAG), and links to relevant registration and ratings bureaus
7) Description of donor data accessibility to the participating nonprofit organizations
8) Description of how the giving vehicle generates money for itself and participating nonprofits, including any fees that must be borne by nonprofits, how fees and revenue are split, and how often and in what forms payments are directed charities
9) Explanation of other services offered by the firm as to avoid "bait and switch" including financial planning, management consulting, web hosting, legal consultations, marketing, etc
10) Statement of guarantee outlining what can and cannot be done through the service
11) Statement of obligations and expectations for participating nonprofits under a clearly marked "Terms/Agreement" section
12) Listing of those services, functions, or site features that can be accessed and maintained by nonprofit participants independent of the philanthropy host service