Payment technology advancements have fueled notable shifts in spending behavior in recent years — particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic. Credit cards and digital wallets have overtaken cash and check spending. At the same time, the proliferation of mobile devices has ramped up purchases made from tablets and mobile phones.
These changes have also dramatically affected the nonprofit space — savvy nonprofits know that catering to these trends has a significant impact on donation volume. By supporting the latest payment methods and platforms, nonprofits can make it much easier for donors to give.
To that end, several top payment trends currently rippling through the nonprofit sector will help you grow your donation volumes. You’ll want to keep them on your radar as you seek out payment processing software that fuels your organization’s growth.
1. Online donation forms
Although in-person donations continue to make up a significant portion of total donation volumes, online donations are rapidly growing in popularity. According to Blackbaud, online giving grew by an incredible 42% between 2019 and 2021.
While much of this growth has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, another huge contributing factor is mobile accessibility. In fact, Blackbaud’s survey found that the percentage of online donations made from mobile devices has more than tripled over the past decade!
Why the increase in mobile giving? For one, donating from a mobile device is fast and easy — donors can often make a donation using their mobile wallet in just a few clicks.. Plus, social media goes hand in hand with mobile giving. As activists increasingly spread charitable campaigns on social platforms, more donors are making donations from their mobile devices.
To ride this wave of mobile-friendly online giving, you’ll want to be sure to add mobile-friendly elements to your online forms and web pages — such as mobile-responsive layouts and support for digital wallets.
2. Digital wallets
As more people access campaigns and charitable causes from their mobile devices, digital — or mobile — wallets have made it easier for people to donate. Rather than having to dig through their wallet and tediously type in card details, users of digital wallets like Google Pay and Apple Pay can pay with their stored cards in just a few clicks.
Providing this easy donation experience is a must for organizations looking to grow donation volumes. Central Michigan University revealed that after adding support for digital wallets, their 2022 annual Giving Day campaign experienced a 67% increase in mobile giving year over year.
3. Recurring payments
Every organization wants its supporters to become repeat donors. Fortunately, recurring payment processing technology has made it easier for organizations to set up automated recurring donation plans that improve revenue predictability.
Recurring donation plans are often preferred by donors, too. Ongoing, smaller contributions are a great option for donors who want to generously support a cause but don’t have the funds to make one large donation.
Looking to support recurring donations? Many payment gateways and payment technology solutions have recurring payment scheduling features. These tools will allow you to create custom recurring donation plans and let donors opt-in themselves for recurring donations.
4. Kiosks and tablets
Gone are the days of collecting spare dollars and crumpled checks in wicker baskets. Today’s donors want to pay with their credit or debit cards, which means that organizations must be able to accept in-person card payments. Kiosks and tablets are the best solution for in-person donations, as these lightweight devices enable nonprofit staff and donors to quickly enter payment details.
There are two main components of in-person credit card processing: hardware and software. You’ll need to select a device and create a customized donation form or web page that can be loaded onto the device.
5. Donor-advised funds
Donor-advised funds are tax-advantaged accounts used by philanthropists to allocate funds for charitable purposes. Many of these funds are linked to payment cards that donors can use to make donations.
Supporting a wide range of payment methods is a proven way for nonprofits to generate more donations. And as donor-advised funds rapidly become more popular among donors, you’ll want to keep this payment method at the top of your list. Recent data revealed that the number of new donor-advised fund accounts increased by 28.5% between 2017 and 2021!
Fuel your success with the right payment technology provider
To support the latest trends and preferences in donation processing, it’s crucial to work with a payment processing company that’s closely attuned to the needs of the nonprofit sector. You can find guidance in our white paper, A Guide to Integrated Payments for Nonprofit SaaS Providers, including details on how nonprofits increasingly leverage nonprofit software platforms with built-in payment features — rather than receiving donation processing capabilities from third-party payment processing companies.
These end-to-end nonprofit management platforms cater to organizations’ precise needs and pain points — cutting down on high processing costs, simplifying account reconciliations, and catering to unique donor preferences. If you’re interested in adding support for any of the above features, make it your goal to explore payment-savvy nonprofit software providers!
Zachary Jarvinen
he/him
Vice President, Exact Payments
Zachary Jarvinen currently runs marketing at Exact Payments, an embedded payments technology provider structured in a unique, new way that lowers costs and improves experiences for nonprofits and nonprofit technology companies. Before this role, Zach was a part of the 2008 Obama Campaign Digital Team, wrote a For Dummies book on Al, and started his career in the nonprofit sector in Latin America as he’s a fluent Spanish and Portuguese speaker. Today, Zach is passionate about helping nonprofits grow their donation volumes and better achieve their mandates by getting the most out of evolving payment trends and technology.
