How to engage donors outside of fundraising events

What is recurring giving? 

How can you steward your donor relationships and communicate so that your donors feel empowered to give to your organization monthly? 

How do I use recurring giving on GiveSmart? 

Recurring giving, or monthly donations, is a feature built into the GiveSmart platform that can be turned on or off by an admin in the system for each campaign. If you are running a ticketed event like a gala, you always have the option to turn the feature off to focus on items, raffles, ticketing, etc. But if you are running a donation-based campaign such as a voting contest or something on Giving Tuesday, this is a feature you don’t just want to have—you need to have it. 

There are multiple benefits to offering recurring giving as an option on your main fundraising platform:

• Your donors are familiar with your system. They’ve used it to buy tickets, bid on or buy items, and complete direct donations. Why not give them the opportunity to extend their giving on a platform they already know and trust? Using one platform for all of your fundraising initiatives builds donor trust and confidence. Plus, don’t we all love having our data in one place? 
• Donor adoption is turnkey. If recurring giving is turned on in your campaign, when your donors go to submit a donation, they have the option to make it a recurring donation. It’s a front and center feature within donation options. 
• Communication is simple. Customize your homepage to put the donation section towards the top, and include messaging in your event description about recurring donations as a giving option. Your donors may not have noticed it as an option if they’re new to the platform or campaign. 
• The process is easy to track and manage. In GiveSmart, recurring donations have their own designated tab in your organization’s hub. Every donation lists the campaign they originated from, and all other transactions, completed or planned, show in this area. And, every time a recurring donation is completed, your organization’s platform admins will be notified. 
• Simple sync with your donor management platform. Tracking all your donations – recurring, one-time, major gifts, in-kind, and stocks – is so much easier when using a donor management platform. The right tool will automatically track donors, thank them, and support you in retaining them to give again

We recommend always offering recurring giving. Turn that option ON! Why NOT give your donors more opportunities to give, and in different ways? 

Want to see how recurring giving works in real time? Request a demo here and a platform expert will give you a personalized tour of all things recurring giving. 

How do I encourage donors to use the recurring giving feature? 

Home page design: GiveSmart’s home page design options allow you to prioritize your messaging and your asks. You can easily edit your home page so your event description and the donations section are at the top of the home page and the first thing your donors see when they visit your campaign. 

Unlimited campaigns: You can dedicate an entire campaign JUST to recurring giving. We’ve seen recurring giving drives be very successful, with some events gaining monthly donations of $50, $100, or more charged monthly. A GiveSmart subscription includes unlimited campaigns, meaning you can try as many fundraisers as you want to see what works. 

Want more tips and tricks? Visit our How to increase recurring donations for nonprofits blog for more ideas and inspirations to drive recurring giving for your organization. We also have a short Jam Session and webinar that are both worth a listen.