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Woman looking at computer to decide a crowdfunding site.

Top Crowdfunding Websites to Raise Support for Any Cause

Crowdfunding is a popular fundraising strategy used to raise funds for medical expenses, artistic projects, scientific research, business startups, nonprofit organizations, and more. If you’re interested in starting one of these campaigns but you’re unsure which platform to use, you’ve come to the right place!

Here, we’ll walk through 30+ of our favorite crowdfunding websites to give you a better sense of your choices. Here’s what we’ll cover:

Best Overall Crowdfunding Website	Crowdfunding Websites for Startups
Crowdfunding Websites for Individuals	Crowdfunding Websites for Religious Groups
Crowdfunding Websites for Nonprofits	Crowdfunding Websites for Rewards-Based Campaigns
Crowdfunding Websites for Schools	Crowdfunding Websites for Creative Projects

It’s important to know what to look for when choosing which site will best meet your fundraising needs, and that can vary greatly depending on your size, cause, and operating budget.

Which Crowdfunding Site is Best?

Different crowdfunding websites vary in fundraising guidelines, platform and payment processing fees, and so on. Keep an eye out for platform-specific rules and practices when considering your options.

For example, some crowdfunding sites follow a “Keep it All” (KiA) method of fundraising, while others opt for an “All or Nothing” (AoN) approach. Essentially, organizers of KiA fundraisers receive funding regardless of whether they meet their fundraising goal, while AoN fundraisers can only collect if they reach their initial objective.

Most crowdfunding websites price their services based on a percentage of overall funds collected. However, platform and processing fees can vary depending on the site.

Additionally, certain platforms cater to more niche fundraising needs, while others cover a broad range of topics. Overall, the best crowdfunding site is one that appeals to a large number of potential fundraisers and audiences—like Fundly! With this in mind, let’s jump in!

Best Overall Crowdfunding Website

1. Fundly

The Basics

Fundly’s crowdfunding platform allows for individuals and organizations to raise money nearly any cause, project, or event. Fundly is a “Keep It All” (KiA) platform, which means that fundraisers can keep whatever donations they receive (minus a platform fee of 4.9% and a credit card processing fee of 2.9% + $.30/transaction).

Standout Features

Fundly’s crowdfunding site is incredibly easy to use and has a blog-like feel to it. Fundraisers can easily add images and videos, share personal stories on their fundraising pages, and spread the word about their campaign via email, Facebook, and Twitter. An automated fundraising thermometer shows each fundraiser’s progress, and each page can be customized with colors, logos, and even background images.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Fundly’s versatile and easy-to-use platform makes it a top pick for any type of crowdfunding campaign. Plus, their support team is always there to answer any questions!

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Individuals

2. MyCause

The Basics

It’s free to start a crowdfunding campaign with MyCause, an Australian-based crowdfunding platform. They offer both a flexible and a fixed crowdfunding model, and they let fundraisers choose which campaign they’d like to run. Individuals can raise money for any cause, whether it’s for personal medical expenses, adoption fees, scientific research, or anything else.

Standout Features

MyCause has a variety of social sharing options so that fundraisers and donors can easily share their crowdfunding campaign via Facebook, Twitter, email, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and other platforms. This feature allows fundraisers to spread the word about their crowdfunding campaign far and wide, reaching as many people as possible.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for a beautiful crowdfunding website to help raise money for any sort of personal need, MyCause is a great option. Their simple layout and easy-to-use tools make it simple for anyone to fundraise!

3. GoGetFunding

The Basics

GoGetFunding is a popular crowdfunding website dedicated to effective fundraising for personal causes. Since its inception in 2011, this platform has raised millions of dollars for all sorts of campaigns, including medical, travel, community, and charity needs.

Standout Features

Crowdfunding pages are simple to set up on GoGetFunding’s intuitive platform, with only four easy steps required before launching your fundraising page. Then, you can begin accepting donations immediately with credit and debit cards as well as through PayPal.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

GoGetFunding also provides fundraisers with personal fundraising coaches to help guide them through the crowdfunding process. This can be extremely useful for those new to fundraising and experienced fundraisers seeking a basic refresher course.

4. RALLY.org

The Basics

Rally.org is one of the easiest to use fundraising platforms for individuals, groups, and charitable causes. Fundraisers without technical expertise can launch their campaigns in minutes with inspiring, high-end designs. Then, donors can start giving in no time.

Standout Features

Rally.org creates its crowdfunding pages with robust social sharing capabilities in mind to help your team share your fundraisers far and wide. Thanks to their dedicated social sharing integrations, you can invite supporters to participate via email, Facebook, Twitter, and more.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Rally.org offers a highly secure payment processing system for credit and debit payments. Plus, a crowdfunding page is free to set up on their site, with a 5% platform and 2.9% + 30 cents credit card fees for each donation. They also offer special rates for agencies and consultants!

5. GoFundMe

The Basics

GoFundMe is one of the biggest names in the crowdfunding space, and their online tools have helped numerous individuals and groups collect funding for a wide range of needs, including medical, emergency, memorial, education, and more.

Standout Features

This crowdfunding website allows you to manage your donations by accepting gifts, processing transactions, thanking donors, and withdrawing funds. GoFundMe’s platform also offers a streamlined giving process for donors as well as a simplified fundraising process behind the scenes.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

GoFundMe employs a number of special assistants called Customer Happiness Agents who assist fundraisers in maximizing their success and troubleshooting the fundraising platform. With 24/7 support available, this crowdfunding website is dedicated to providing users with speedy and efficient responses.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Nonprofits

6. Fundly

The Basics

Fundly starts with the basics of the Fundly crowdfunding platform and adds peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities specifically crafted for nonprofits. With Fundly, organizations can set up a beautiful and brand-cohesive fundraising page in mere minutes. From there, fundraisers can use Fundly’s tools, such as social sharing options, to spread awareness and take their campaigns to the next level.

Standout Features

Fundly campaigns are meant to be highly shareable and visually appealing. Additionally, teams can set up their fundraisers as peer-to-peer campaign pages to reach an even broader audience.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Between cost efficiency, ease-of-use, and dedicated fundraising features, Fundly is the best choice for nonprofits that are looking to start a crowdfunding campaign.

7. Double the Donation

The Basics

Double the Donation is a matching gift database that nonprofits can use to double (or even triple) their crowdfunding revenue. Using Double the Donations, supporters can look up their employers’ name to learn about their company’s matching gift program and determine their eligibility.

Standout Features

By partnering with Double the Donation, you can embed a search tool with their matching gift database into your nonprofit’s website or online giving forms. This way, you can easily encourage donors to research their eligibility and take the necessary next steps, providing your organization with additional donations at the cost of soliciting one.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Although Double the Donation isn’t a dedicated crowdfunding website, it can do a lot to boost the success of any of your crowdfunding campaigns. With all of the new donors you’ll be bringing in, you’re going to want to steer them toward completing a matching gift request as soon as possible to maximize their donations!

8. Handbid

The Basics

Handbid’s crowdfunding and peer-to-peer tools help nonprofits everywhere connect to philanthropic supporters. With a user-friendly interface, you can easily set up, organize, and run your fundraiser without hassle. Plus, these tools integrate directly into their auction platform—letting you track and engage with our donors all in a single place. Existing users (those who have attended your past events and auctions) can start contributing with just a few clicks!

Standout Features

Handbid puts a unique spin on gamification. While many platforms only offer a fundraising thermometer, this forward-thinking company has developed a unique puzzle feature, giving donors a fun and interactive way to participate in your campaign. Simply select “before” and “after” photos that illustrate some aspect of your mission. Handbid then turns your “before” photo into a puzzle that donors can purchase pieces of to slowly reveal your “after” photo in real-time. They also supply traditional crowdfunding tools like leaderboards and fundraising thermometers to optimize your peer-to-peer campaigns.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for an affordable crowdfunding platform with an easy-to-use interface, Handbid is the solution for your team. This intuitive platform will handle the legwork, so you can spend less time managing your fundraisers and more time engaging your supporters.

9. Classy

The Basics

Classy is a powerful crowdfunding platform that helps nonprofits from all over the world raise meaningful funds. Its customizable, conversion-optimized campaigns can help you get the most out of your crowdfunding. In fact, they’ve helped nonprofits raise more than $5 billion dollars since 2010.

Standout Features

Classy’s mobile-optimized campaigns make it easy for supporters to give wherever they are without hassle. Its intuitive analytics and reporting allow you to track your campaign from start to finish and make needed adjustments when necessary.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Classy is a great choice for nonprofits interested in running large campaigns that require comprehensive solutions. Its impressive tech stack will help you scale your donor base and empower your supporters.

10. Plumfund

The Basics

Although Plumfund serves a wide range of crowdfunders, the site boasts a strong contingent of nonprofits. At any given time, Plumfund has over 2,700 campaigns running in the “charities” category. Like many of the other platforms, it’s a straightforward crowdfunding model designed to help fundraisers collect more for their causes.

Standout Features

This crowdfunding site lets campaign organizers receive offline contributions to their Plumfund 100% free of charge. That way, all of your funds are stored in a centralized location and you can easily view an accurate representation of your progress toward your goal.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Plumfund is a simple and straightforward crowdfunding platform that gives nonprofit fundraisers the tools they need to run a campaign. It’s a safe bet that has a strong suit in combining online and offline fundraising efforts.

11. Fundrazr

The Basics

FundRazr is a crowdfunding website that comes with ready-built social integrations, options for quickly and easily uploading images and videos, and a dedicated fundraising support team. Like with many other platforms, it also offers a feature that lets fundraisers add incentives to encourage giving.

Standout Features

Fundrazr’s crowdfunding website helps to reduce fundraising costs, turn your supporters into fundraisers, run multiple campaigns on a single website, and securely receive contributions directly into your account.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Fundrazr promotes their nonprofit offering in a clear and easy-to-follow manner. Their platform lets nonprofits create a crowdfunding campaign in minutes, share the campaign via social media once it is live, and receive contributions immediately.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Schools

12. Donate Kindly

The Basics

DonateKindly is a free online donation tool and crowdfunding website specialized for year-round campaigns that fund schools, churches, and other nonprofit organizations. To get started, add their free online donation tools to your school’s website and encourage your supporters to give and share your free fundraising pages.

Standout Features

DonateKindly stores basic information about your donors to make it easy to reach out to them for future fundraisers. They also send automated thank you messages and tax receipts to your donors for added convenience. With these features, your crowdfunding campaigns will only get more and more successful as time goes on!

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

DonateKindly’s features make it easy for nonprofits, schools, student initiatives, and other organizations to start free crowdfunding campaigns. Leverage their year-round free fundraising tools to raise more money and reduce fees.

13. DonorsChoose

The Basics

DonorsChoose is designed to help teachers and public schools raise money for supplies, classroom materials, and other education-related items. When a crowdfunding campaign reaches its goal, DonorsChoose sends materials directly to the school.

Standout Features

Because DonorsChoose follows a model where individuals who fundraise receive the necessary materials instead of funds, it relieves the fundraiser of the stress of shopping. To cover the costs of their unique process, this platform subtracts a $30 fee from each crowdfunding campaign.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

DonorsChoose is a highly specific crowdfunding platform. If you’re a teacher who’s in need of school supplies, it may be the perfect fit for you.

14. StartSomeGood

The Basics

StartSomeGood bills itself as “The Crowdfunding Platform for Changemakers,” and aims to help world-changing projects succeed. In fact, their website is used exclusively for social change initiatives such as education and other nonprofit causes.

Standout Features

One of the best features offered by StartSomeGood is their Global Support Team which provides fundraisers with personalized feedback before launching their campaigns. Their advice helps ensure that every campaign is positioned to reach and surpass its goal.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

StartSomeGood is a great choice for social change initiatives like schools that are in need of some extra help during setup. With their team’s personalized feedback, your organization will receive the advice it needs to make your campaign stand out from the crowd.

15. DoJiggy

The Basics

DoJiggy is an online fundraising platform with a number of revenue-generating solutions including crowdfunding, auctions and raffles, online donations, and e-commerce stores. Their crowdfunding platform allows you to create an online fundraising page, share it with supporters, and securely process donations for your cause.

Standout Features

This crowdfunding website comes equipped with a variety of useful features, and the platform has continued to expand its online functionality. Now, their crowdfunding solution can leverage live stream integrations, text-to-donate features, and more.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

DoJiggy is a great choice for fundraisers who are looking for a comprehensive, all-in-one virtual fundraising platform. It not only incorporates powerful crowdfunding and peer-to-peer fundraising tools, but their software can also set your team up for success in a variety of other ways as well.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Startups

16. Crowdfunder

The Basics

Crowdfunder is a UK-based crowdfunding website which aims to help individuals and groups connect with supporters to fund their community projects, businesses, sports teams, personal causes, and charities. Crowdfunder gives fundraisers the ability to raise money via their intuitive and simple crowdfunding site.

Standout Features

This crowdfunding website brands itself as both “people led” and “people driven.” Not only do they provide a powerful platform for effective social fundraising, they also offer fundraisers access to their comprehensive coaching and support team.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Crowdfunder is a leader in personal and team crowdfunding that has the software to truly help fundraisers get the support they need. It’s a great pick for UK-based individuals looking for an innovative and effective path to funding.

17. WeFunder

The Basics

Wefunder’s goal is to connect investors with founders and startups they believe in. As they explain on their website, “Everyone has their personal motivations for investing in startups, but ours is to support founders we believe in, pursuing a vision we care about, with a good chance of earning a return should that vision transform into reality.” If you’re looking to fund a startup business, this platform is a great place to start.

Standout Features

Wefunder is the largest business-funding portal based on dollars raised, companies funded, and network of investors. This is due to Wefunder’s focus on understanding the mindset and needs of business founders.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Wefunder is a great solution for startups looking to turn potential customers into owners with true connections to the business. This site also has the added bonus of being willing to do all the grunt work of fundraising, so you, the founders, can focus on what is important for your business.

18. StartEngine

The Basics

StartEngine is a leading equity crowdfunding platform with an emphasis on venture capital and angel investing. StartEngine’s equity crowdfunding platform, previously known as SeedInvest is now able to offer the option for investors to grow more startup investing access. They’ve helped more than 1,000 startups to raise over $700 million dollars since 2015.

Standout Features

This platform offers a simplified lending and crowdfunding process, pairing eager startups with willing investors to create effective and long-term partnerships. To get started, businesses complete a streamlined application with basic information about their company and finances which is then screened to determine if the business is a good fit for the platform. Upon approval, investors can start funding your business, providing you with the revenue you need to grow and thrive.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

StartEngine boasts a rapidly growing network of personal investors that has recently exceeded 500,000. With the help of investors, they aim to raise $10 billion for companies by 2029.

19. Fundable

The Basics

Fundable’s slogan says it all: “Now anyone can fund your business.” In its first year, this platform generated $80+ million in funding commitments, and the crowdfunding website continues to develop today. To create a campaign, startups choose between the rewards option (funds in exchange for product sales) and the equity option (funding from accredited investors).

Standout Features

One of Fundable’s best features is that they take a hands-on approach. Their team will work with your business to help you better understand fundraising strategies, launch your crowdfunding campaign, and market your company.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Fundable works with thousands of investors who might be the right backers for your up-and-coming business. And once you sign up, their investor database is immediately available for you to browse. It’s an online solution to the funding problem many startups face.

20. Crowdcube

The Basics

Crowdcube is all about making investing accessible, affordable, and rewarding by enabling everyday individuals to invest alongside professionals and venture capital firms. This way, startups, early, and growth-stage businesses can secure funding, and investors can gain a stake in companies they previously wouldn’t have had access to.

Standout Features

With Crowdcube, you receive access to the following features: new investment opportunities added weekly, full pitch pages and videos from startups, the ability to handpick the businesses you want to support, and the option to invest as little as 10 pounds.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Crowdcube is a European equity crowdfunding site with the tools startups need to secure funding and the opportunities individual investors are looking for. Its focus is on accessible, affordable, and rewarding investments.

21. iFundWomen

The Basics

iFundWomen is a crowdfunding platform dedicated to helping female entrepreneurs fund their startups, receive coaching, and make connections. This statement on their website summarizes their overall mission: “For women who have big ideas, we’re here to make them happen.”

Standout Features

This platform knows that raising capital can be the most difficult part of the startup process. As such, they work to provide near-immediate access to funding through their online crowdfunding platform as well as small business grants from corporate partners. Not to mention, iFundWomen also offers access to one of the largest communities of female entrepreneurs who are able to learn and grow alongside one another.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

iFundWomen is one of the best equity crowdfunding websites for women-owned companies looking for sufficient funding to get started. By partnering with this platform, women are able to bring their business visions to life with the help of eager investors looking to fund up-and-coming businesses like theirs.

22. Seedrs

The Basics

Seedrs is an online platform that allows startup businesses to collect necessary funding via an equity crowdfunding model. This UK-based crowdfunding site has raised an approximate £1,117M for more than 1330 investment opportunities since its start in 2012.

Standout Features

Seedrs offers startup businesses and their founders the ability to grow their networks, acquire new customers, and raise critical investment funding. Then, once you complete your campaign, you can receive long-term benefits by joining the Seedrs Alumni Club, with access to exclusive partners, resources, and events!

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

A Seedrs campaign follows six easy steps to get started: submit a campaign, create a video and marketing plan, host a private launch, make your campaign public, reach 100% of your target revenue, and then collect your funds.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Religious Groups

23. GiveSendGo

The Basics

GiveSendGo lets churches and congregations raise money for their religious organization. Whether your project is to fund a mission, pay administrative costs, or cover medical expenses, this crowdfunding platform can handle it all!

Standout Features

While other crowdfunding sites typically take between 4 and 10% of donations, GiveSendGo is 100% free. This crowdfunding website is backed by voluntary donations from supporters, so they don’t need to charge a commission from your hard-earned contributions.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

GiveSendGo even gives 10% of the donations they receive to campaigns on their site. They have so much faith in the individuals and organizations that use their crowdfunding website that they support them personally!

24. We Raise

The Basics

The We Raise Foundation helps organizations and individuals raise funds for youth programs, community projects, and other mission-driven activities. These crowdfunding projects can be large or small, ranging from less than $1,000 to more than $50,000, depending on the organizer’s needs. This platform encourages fundraisers with all types of projects to raise money on their site, giving a special focus to those working to free people from violence, poverty, and inequality.

Standout Features

With We Raise, you get to keep all of the money you collect, whether you reach your intended goal or not. We Raise believes that any gift given is useful to your project, so they urge you to keep your funds and put them toward your mission. They even encourage donors to cover donation processing fees themselves so that your project takes 100% of the proceeds!

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

We Raise empowers its users to share their stories because they find that donors contribute more when they connect with a crowdfunding project’s blog posts, pictures, and videos.

25. WayGiver

The Basics

WayGiver is a Christian crowdfunding website dedicated to providing individuals, churches, and ministries with the tools they need to fund religious causes and overall honor Jesus. Common examples of campaigns on this platform include for mission trips, ministry programs, sabbaticals, service projects, and more.

Standout Features

The crowdfunding process is simple with WayGiver’s intuitive design and easy-to-use platform. To get started, create a free online campaign page and promote it on social media and within your digital network. Then, gifts provided by supporters will be automatically transferred to your bank account, so you can begin funding your need as quickly as possible.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Because WayGiver is specific to Christian needs and ministry opportunities, this crowdfunding platform offers a fantastic way for fundraisers to connect with like-minded individuals who are eager to support their efforts.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Rewards-Based Campaigns

26. Bonfire

The Basics

Bonfire combines classic t-shirt sales with the power of modern online fundraising to create a unique crowdfunding experience. Fundraisers can create custom t-shirts in a variety of styles and sell their products on their personal crowdfunding campaign pages. Crowdfunding campaign organizers can even set their own selling price to have full control over their fundraising potential.

Standout Features

Bonfire makes designing high-quality apparel easy for anyone, regardless of your graphic design skill level and tech expertise. You can use their t-shirt builder to create unique designs that represent your cause in mere minutes. To take it a step further, accept additional donations on top of t-shirt sales so everyone can support your cause in whichever way works for them.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

If you want to add a unique twist to your crowdfunding campaign, try starting a Bonfire campaign. You can raise money and awareness for your cause by creating awesome-looking t-shirts for your supporters to wear for years to come.

27. ABC Fundraising

The Basics

ABC Fundraising lets individuals and organizations raise money by selling various products such as candles, popcorn, face masks, and even holiday merchandise. Creating a product fundraising campaign is free and painless because their team does all the heavy-lifting, including designing, creating, and distributing your merchandise.

Standout Features

ABC Fundraising offers a vast array of unique products to sell. Your supporters will never get tired of your fundraisers because there’s always something new to choose from! Plus, tools like their free fundraising thermometers and online storefronts can help boost your campaign and bring in more revenue and new support.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

ABC Fundraising is known for its successful fundraisers hosted by schools and churches, although organizations of all shapes and sizes are welcome to take part. Your supporters will love receiving memorable, branded merchandise while giving to a good cause.

28. Represent

The Basics

Represent offers an intuitive crowdfunding platform for designing and selling t-shirts to raise money for any cause. With a simple startup process and no upfront costs, this site saves you time and money. This rewards-based crowdfunding site has even been recognized by TIME and The Wall Street Journal for their unique and innovative platform.

Standout Features

Represent’s campaigns are remarkably user friendly. In just three steps, you can customize your products, share your fundraising page, and sell merchandise. Then you just need to wait for your products to be shipped. Represent also offers a “no inventory” model which means no financial risk to the fundraiser, along with extensive customer service to help guide users’ campaigns.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

With Represent, you can track real-time sales analytics so you can see which products are the most popular and successful.

Best Crowdfunding Websites for Creative Projects

29. Kickstarter

The Basics

Kickstarter is one of the most recognizable names in crowdfunding, helping thousands of creative fundraisers earn money for projects related to the arts. Kickstarter does not allow fundraising for charity organizations, and fundraisers cannot offer monetary incentives.

Standout Features

Kickstarter’s platform is designed to help artistic entrepreneurs showcase their story and cause. Kickstarter has even put together a “Creator Handbook” to help guide fundraisers through the crowdfunding process.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Kickstarter is a major power player in the creative project fundraising world for a reason—it’s run with creative thinkers and innovators in mind! Just remember that they practice the “All or Nothing” method, meaning if you don’t reach your goal, you don’t keep any of the money you’ve raised.

30. Indiegogo

The Basics

Indiegogo is a crowdfunding platform for creative individuals with great ideas. Fundraisers first create a “Coming Soon” page to promote their campaign. Once they’ve generated enough engagement around their idea, they can start raising money for it. After the project has been successfully funded, the organizer can sell their product in the Indiegogo marketplace.

Standout Features

Indiegogo offers two different crowdfunding models: flexible funding and fixed funding. The flexible model allows fundraisers to keep whatever they raise, regardless of whether they hit their goal or not. The fixed model is a bit more risky and only lets fundraisers cash out if they meet their goal by a certain deadline.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Indiegogo is one of the leading crowdfunding platforms for creative projects. They also have a separate platform, Generosity, that can be used to raise money for charitable causes and events.

31. Pozible

The Basics

Pozible uses its global reach to crowdfund for various creative endeavors. From comic books and plays to art exhibits and films, Pozible helps individuals raise money for the artistic and creative projects they care about.

Standout Features

Pozible follows an “All or Nothing” crowdfunding model, which they frame as a plus for their fundraisers. Their website states that, “We believe creators know the most about what it will take to make their project a reality, and only receiving a fraction of their target amount is not going to be enough for them to be able to complete their project.” By having to set a realistic target, fundraisers only have to complete their project if they are successful in receiving sufficient financial support.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

With fundraisers in more than 100 countries, Pozible is a smart global crowdfunding platform for creative individuals. If you need help funding a creative or artistic project, look to Pozible for help!

32. Patreon

The Basics

Patreon is a unique subscription-based crowdfunding website which brands itself as “the best way for artists and creators to get sustainable income and connections.” By offering bronze, silver, and gold tiers of memberships, supporters can choose the amount they give monthly based on the perks and incentives offered at each level.

Standout Features

Patreon provides an easy-to-use platform for fundraisers of all shapes and sizes, including podcasters, musicians, visual artists, nonprofits, and local businesses. Creators can sell varying levels of membership to their top levels of supporters, who in turn receive exclusive content and behind-the-scenes insights.

Example Campaign

Final Thoughts

Patreon’s crowdfunding model looks a bit different than that of a typical crowdfunding platform, relying on monthly membership fees to sustain creators and fund their work. This way, creators and fundraisers are able to receive a recurring stream of income, rather than one-time gifts.

Crowdfunding Websites: Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits of crowdfunding?

Crowdfunding offers numerous benefits by providing an efficient and effective way to build capital. Around $17.2 billion dollars in crowdfunding money is raised annually in North America! For startups, crowdfunding offers an opportunity to get their ideas up and running quickly without a financial ceiling.

For nonprofits, crowdfunding places your organization in the spotlight and gives it a meaningful opportunity to market your mission. Whether you plan on using it to power your capital campaigns, awareness days, or disaster relief efforts, it’s an incredibly powerful resource to boost your revenue.

How can I use crowdfunding?

There are several ways you can use crowdfunding, here a few examples:

Project-based funding campaigns
Emergency response campaigns
Donor acquisition campaigns
Peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns
End-of-year campaigns
Matching gift campaigns
Awareness and advocacy campaigns

The opportunities are endless, just be sure to add relatable stories and engaging images to capture your campaign and inspire donors to give.

What should I look for in a crowdfunding site?

Of course, your crowdfunding website needs will depend on your cause and organization. However, there are a couple of key features you should consider:

Donor experience. Look for a platform that makes the donation process easy with a secure payment processing system and enables repeat donations.
Usability. Your crowdfunding website should include intuitive design tools, tracking tools, and other easy customization options.
Integrations. From email to website and social media, make sure your chosen platform can easily integrate with other marketing channels to reach more supporters.
Engagement tools. Find a platform that enables you to easily update supporters and let them know your latest campaign news.
Multimedia support. Double check you can upload images, videos, and other media hassle-free to enhance your page and make it your own.

Crowdfunding Websites: Conclusion

Whether you’re in the market for a creative breakthrough or educational leg-up, crowdfunding websites can support your efforts. Start your selection process by finalizing your campaign goals, researching your budget, and comparing your options.

Consider looking into other third-party reviews to solidify your choice’s reputation, track record, and fee structure. This way, you can be sure you’ve selected the right one for your project.

For more ideas and tips to inspire your fundraising, check out these additional resources:

Discover 7 crowdfunding success stories and how they managed to achieve their goals.

Crowdfunding Success Stories: Campaigns That Reached Their Goals

by Kate White

Optimize your website for crowdfunding success with these 6 nonprofit web design tips.

The Top 6 Nonprofit Web Design Tips for Crowdfunding Campaigns

by Kate White

The ultimate goal of any nonprofit website is to convince supporters to take the desired action, whether that be signing up for an email newsletter, registering for a volunteer opportunity, or anything in between.

No matter what your goals, your website must be carefully structured and designed if your organization expects to reach the ideal outcome.

If that outcome happens to be increasing visibility and scoring more donations to your nonprofit’s crowdfunding campaign, you’ve come to the right place!

In this article, we’ll give you 6 tips that will help you design your website in a way that’s conducive to crowdfunding success, including:

Make sure your donation page is easy to get to.
Use your crowdfunding campaign to keep your website current.
Pack an emotional punch.
Standardize branding.
Keep mobile in mind.
Provide crowdfunding donors with other ways to get involved.

Let’s jump in!

1. Make sure your donation page is easy to get to.

Why it’s crucial:

Considering that crowdfunding relies on a large number of donors to be successful, campaign visibility and accessibility are arguably more important with crowdfunding campaigns than they are with other fundraisers.

To maximize donations to your campaign, your organization must make the giving experience as easy as possible for your donors.

If supporters have to search your website endlessly to find your crowdfunding page, chances are that they won’t even land on the donation form, nevertheless hit the “Submit” button.

Point is, a giving experience that is frustrating in any way is much more likely to be abandoned before the gift has been made, which won’t do much to further your crowdfunding campaign!

How it’s done:

If securing more donations to your crowdfunding campaign is your organization’s main website goal, treat it as the centerpiece!

The key here is to make your crowdfunding page as visible as possible (organically, of course). You should provide supporters with multiple pathways to access your campaign donation form.

For example, you might give supporters the option to access your page by:

Including a call-to-action and a link to your campaign page on your homepage.
Adding information about your crowdfunding campaign to your “Ways to Give” page.
Featuring a “Donate Now” button in your top navigation that specifically links out to your crowdfunding page.

Of course, this list certainly doesn’t cover all of the options. If there’s a natural opportunity to lead website visitors to your crowdfunding campaign donation form, then by all means, guide them!

To sum up: Ensuring that your navigation structure clearly points website visitors to your crowdfunding page will result in more donations to your campaign, since supporters will know exactly where to go to embark on the donation process.

2. Use your crowdfunding campaign to keep your website current.

Why it’s crucial:

Amidst a million other important efforts and concerns, it can be all-too-easy to forget to update your website… or to simply sweep updating under the rug.

However, updating your website is crucial to its effectiveness. You need to update regularly to reassure donors that your organization is still active and interested in keeping them in the loop with what’s going on at your nonprofit.

Furthermore, an out-of-date website can make your organization appear less credible. Think about it: have you ever landed on a business’ website that looks like it hasn’t been updated since 1999? You probably weren’t too inclined to believe that that company was up with the times and a current expert in their product or field.

Point is, regularly updating your website can be a difficult feat, but the potential ramifications of not updating can be even greater.

How it’s done:

Luckily, your crowdfunding campaign will give your organization plenty of material for updating your website!

As we’ve discussed in a previous post, it’s important to regularly give your supporters updates during your crowdfunding campaign. Doing so keeps them oriented with your progress and demonstrates the results of their contributions in a more tangible way, both of which lead to a more invested base of donors.

You can repurpose the updates from your crowdfunding campaign to generate new content for your website. For example, you could update your homepage daily to share current campaign progress or publish a series of news articles to your blog about the positive work that crowdfunding donations have already made possible.

And those are only a couple of the possibilities! No matter how you choose to leverage them, crowdfunding updates give you the fodder you need to keep your website current.

Additionally, if your website needs a design update, you can work with a nonprofit technology consultant to create an up-to-date website. These web design and tech-savvy consultants can not only help you refresh your design but also come up with solutions on how to link to your crowdfunding campaign.

For instance, they can step up a donation form that allows supporters to give to your crowdfunding campaign without leaving your website! All you’ll have to do is update your fundraising goal on your crowdfunding platform.

Check out this list of potential candidates to learn more about hiring a nonprofit technology consultant.

To sum up: By using news from your crowdfunding campaign, updating your organization’s website on a regular basis will be much more manageable.

3. Pack an emotional punch.

Why it’s crucial:

People are often motivated to give charitably because nonprofit causes tug at their heartstrings in some way. In other words, supporting nonprofits is usually (at least in part) an emotionally-charged pursuit.

That being the case, organizations generally do better at engaging their supporters and convincing them to give when they make an emotional appeal as opposed to a logical one.

By packing an emotional punch with your content, chances are that your website will be more impactful to your donors—both when it comes to conveying your message and encouraging more donations. After all, it’s those visceral reactions that lead to impulse giving!

While designing your website around an emotional appeal won’t directly influence the success of your crowdfunding campaign, it can aid it indirectly. The more you can inspire donors with your cause and impassion them with your mission, the more likely they are to donate to your campaigns.

How it’s done:

Take a nod from your crowdfunding campaign page, and make sure to tell your story through words and photos on your website.

While you should do so throughout your site, appealing to your supporters’ emotions is especially important on your homepage. The very first impression your visitors will have of your website is the look and layout of your homepage, so it’s important to get your message across immediately.

Design your homepage around an emotionally-charged photo of your work or those you serve, and make sure to include a shortened version of your mission statement above the fold (the part of the webpage that visitors can see without scrolling).

As One Project, an organization committed to supporting secondary survivors of sexual assault, perfectly portrays their work in an emotionally compelling way on their homepage:

If you’re still in the market for more examples of successful, emotionally-charged nonprofit websites, you’re in luck. You can check out this excellent resource with 200 of the best nonprofit websites of the year, broken out by organizational focus (i.e., international, environmental, animals, etc.).

Whether you review sites through that resource or through other means, the important thing is that you’re analyzing industry-wide best practices and drawing inspiration from the great work of your peers. See what your colleagues in the field have done with their sites, and find ways to leverage those techniques to tell your nonprofit’s emotional story.

To sum up: Nonprofit work is emotional by nature. Increase the chances that website visitors will be swayed by your cause by using compelling stories and images to pack an emotional punch, particularly on your homepage.

4. Standardize branding.

Why it’s crucial:

As all nonprofits know, building trust is key to securing donations. This is especially true for online donations, which are more impersonal since there’s no aspect of face-to-face interaction to help donors feel secure.

If your organization wants to maximize the number of online donations received (and we’re assuming you do!), you must do everything in your power to make your website appear as trustworthy as possible to your donors.

Standardizing branding across your website is one of the most straightforward ways to do just that.

By keeping branding consistent across the board, it becomes a seal of trust. When donors see your look and logo across all pages of your website, they’ll be consistently reminded that they’re investing in a credible cause they care about.

How it’s done:

All pages of your website should have the same look and feel, derived from your logo.

Before you start designing, consider creating a style guide that outlines all design standards. Here are just a few of the many things you’ll probably want to think about:

Color scheme. Color schemes should be based on your logo and include no more than 5-6 colors. There should be 2-3 main colors (brights) as well as an array of neutrals to complement them.
Color usage. Beyond simply having a scheme to work with, you should determine which elements will appear in which colors. For example, what colors will donation buttons and other CTAs be? Hyperlinks?
Font. Use one font throughout your website, and stick with it. When selecting a font, keep in mind that sans serif fonts are more legible on screens.
Images. What types of images will your organization use on your website? Should images be shaped, sized, or formatted in a particular way? Where will images be sourced from? Do you need to secure any permissions? These questions all need to be answered in your style guide!

Once you’ve got your style guide, it’s time to decide how you’ll brand your donation forms. There are two routes your organization can take: hire a web design firm or build your own forms using the built-in customization tools available with your fundraising software.

If you don’t have much design experience or CSS and HTML knowledge, we highly recommend hiring a web design professional. This person can help you maintain a cohesive design throughout all your donation forms and create custom solutions that are tailored to your organization.

Completing the design in-house? Check out this list of amazing websites to get ideas on how you can brand your website’s donation forms.

Important: don’t forget to brand your crowdfunding campaign page, too! Considering that donors are submitting their sensitive information there, they’ll feel much more comfortable giving when your form clearly reflects your organization.

To sum up: Clear and consistent branding across your website builds trust because donors can be certain that they’re supporting a credible nonprofit.

5. Keep mobile in mind.

Why it’s crucial:

Now that mobile phones are so advanced, more and more people are using them to browse the web on the go.

In fact, it’s been estimated that a majority of browsers are now visiting nonprofit websites from mobile devices. The problem is that many nonprofits haven’t yet caught up with the times and optimized their websites (including their donation pages) for mobile users.

It might not seem like a deal breaker at first, but a website that isn’t mobile-responsive can cause your crowdfunding donations (and online contributions in general) to take a hit. Websites that aren’t mobile-friendly aren’t user-friendly, so mobile donors are much more likely to become frustrated and leave the site before submitting their donations.

Think about it: wouldn’t you be much less inclined to give if you had to zoom and pinch your screen, scroll up, down, left, and right, and fill out a bunch of tiny, illegible boxes to make a donation?

How it’s done:

How you build a mobile-responsive website will be dependent on how your nonprofit is approaching web design.

If you’re…

Designing your website yourself, the website builder that your organization is using should use a responsive design framework that automatically conforms your site to the device it’s being viewed on. However, just because you have this feature doesn’t necessarily mean that your site will translate well to mobile, so be sure to keep mobile in mind as you’re designing.
Working with a web design firm, make sure to select a firm who offers mobile-responsive design. Most firms should offer this service now that mobile is so prevalent, but it can’t hurt to double-check!

Remember: the best way to tell if your site is actually mobile-responsive is to test it out for yourself. Take out your smartphone and try donating to your crowdfunding campaign!

To sum up: Mobile-responsive websites provide mobile donors with the best possible user experience. When donating to your crowdfunding campaign is easy, donors will be much more likely to follow through!

6. Provide crowdfunding donors with other ways to get involved.

Why it’s crucial:

Crowdfunding campaigns can really give your donor acquisition a boost. These campaigns require widespread sharing and are low-stakes for donors, so they’re the ideal opportunity to recruit a lot of new donors to your cause.

In order to transform one-time crowdfunding donors into donors who give again and again, it’s crucial to actively continue building relationships with them. One of the best ways to do that through your website is by offering supporters other opportunities to get involved with your organization!

Not to mention, some supporters who land on your website might want to support your organization, but might not be ready to make a monetary gift. By providing a variety of engagement opportunities on your website, you can win the support of people with a variety of preferences.

How it’s done:

Post-donation engagement opportunities don’t even have to be limited to your acknowledgement page! In fact, they should be incorporated throughout your website.

The key is to match up your webpages with relevant opportunities. Some opportunities might be relevant across the board (for example, an email newsletter subscription box might remain at the bottom of the site on every page), while others would be very specific to certain pages (for example, the opportunity to volunteer for an event might only be limited to a dedicated volunteer information page).

No matter where you place them, all opportunities should be framed as calls-to-action (CTAs). Use short, clear, and actionable language to ensure that donors will understand exactly what you’re requesting.

With the right CTAs, who knows? That supporter who came only intending to give $5 to your crowdfunding campaign might be transformed into a lifelong volunteer!

To sum up: Including other engagement opportunities around your website actively continues the conversation both before and after crowdfunding campaign donors have given. With a wealth of thoughtful engagement opportunities backing you up, you should have a larger base of recurring donors to rely on for your next campaign!

Your nonprofit’s website strategy can greatly influence how much money you’re able to raise during your crowdfunding campaign. With these 6 tips, your website should be conducive to crowdfunding success.

For more information about planning your crowdfunding campaign, check out these additional resources:

3 Crowdfunding Campaign Page Writing Tips to Captivate Donors. Looking for more advice on how to write a compelling crowdfunding page? Fundly’s guide has all the tips and tricks you need to grab your donors’ attention.
3 Strategies to Pull Your Crowdfunding Campaign Out of a Slump. Let’s face it: every crowdfunding fundraiser is going to experience a lull in donations, but how you react to this slump can greatly affect the outcome of your campaign. Learn how you can heighten the buzz surrounding your campaign in just three simple steps.
Top 7 Salesforce Apps and Integrations for Nonprofits. If your organization is using Salesforce, did you know you can connect your Fundly campaign to your CRM? Learn about more ways you can boost your Salesforce tool with seven apps and integrations.

Raise Money for Any Cause - Start Your Fundly Fundraiser

Successful Crowdfunding Examples for Schools and Education

by Kate White

Follow our steps to finding out if Luminate Online is right for you and discover the top strategies for implementation.

Luminate Online: From Consideration to Implementation

by Kate White

Blackbaud’s Luminate Online Marketing has become a major player in the online fundraising game, and for good reason! For larger organizations with unique needs, Luminate Online offers a variety of tools that can boost engagement, streamline donor management, and increase fundraising revenue.

Luminate Online is well known, but many nonprofits don’t have a thorough understanding of what this powerful product can do, or if it’s truly the best choice for their organization. That’s why we’ve taken it upon ourselves to examine every stage of the Luminate Online buying process, from initial questions all the way to getting set up with your new Blackbaud system.

Interested in finding out more about Luminate Online? Follow along as we run through these 6 crucial steps:

Understand the Luminate suite.
Determine your nonprofit’s needs.
Prepare your budget for Luminate Online.
Anticipate integrations and customizations within Luminate.
Migrate your existing data.
Train your nonprofit to use Luminate Online.

There are plenty of fundraising solutions available, so let’s find out if Luminate Online is the one for you!

BONUS: Learn the questions you should ask when purchasing fundraising software! Download our free fundraising software Q&A.

Download Now!

1. Understand the Luminate Suite.

We said we’d start at square one, and we meant it! Before you can consider purchasing Luminate Online, your nonprofit needs to be fully confident in exactly what Luminate Online Marketing encompasses (and what features come at an extra price).

Let’s break down some specific questions you may have about Luminate Online:

What is Luminate Online Marketing?

Luminate Online Marketing (also simply called Luminate Online) is a cloud-based digital fundraising and marketing software solution. With tools for email management, online donations, event planning, eCommerce, and social media campaign management, this solution is a truly comprehensive, standalone fundraising tool.

Organizations can use Luminate Online Marketing for all of their fundraising needs. Plus, Luminate is fully customizeable, allowing nonprofits to create a system that fits their specific cause and fundraising strategy.

Does Luminate Online offer expansions?

Luminate online offers 3 add-ons to the core product:

Luminate Advocacy, a tool that helps organizations build effective grassroots campaigns. Organizations that already have an advocacy strategy can enhance their campaigns with this tool by connecting advocates, collecting donations, and organizing petitions.
Lumniate Content Management System, a product that allows organizations to manage their website to help engage supporters, drive donations, and improve the usability of your website.
TeamRaiser, Luminate’s peer-to-peer platform that allows organizations to build custom fundraising pages.

With these solutions you’re able to develop a system that meets your needs completely.

Is Luminate CRM different than Luminate Online?

Luminate CRM is Blackbaud’s constituent management solution for nonprofits already using Salesforce as their primary CRM. For more details on how these products differ and work together, read Double the Donation’s helpful post on Luminate CRM.

With all of its features and configuration options, Luminate can adapt to meet your nonprofit’s fundraising needs in a number of ways. However, because Luminate is so comprehensive, it might be an overwhelming purchase for smaller nonprofits who need a marketing or fundraising solution that can help them get on the go quickly.

Small to mid-sized organizations would be better off finding a nonprofit CRM that can grow with them and accommodate their needs, without being weighed down by features and customizations that are really designed for enterprise-level organizations.

If that sounds more like your nonprofit, we recommend taking Fundly CRM for a test drive before considering Luminate Online.

In short, Luminate Online Marketing from Blackbaud is a highly versatile tool that can help large nonprofits manage communications, online donations, and reporting, with add-ons to enhance the product even more.

2. Determine Your Nonprofit’s Needs.

Now that you know what Luminate Online is, it’s time to start thinking about how this product can help you meet your goals as a nonprofit. After all, what good is fundraising software if it can’t help your organization raise funds for your cause?

Before you commit to software, you should work with your team to establish answers to questions such as:

How does Luminate fit into your current fundraising strategy? What will you be using Luminate Online to do—accept donations, manage email campaigns, design web content, or something else entirely? Answering this question can help your team decide if you really need a product as expansive as Luminate or would be better off utilizing a more lightweight fundraising platform or nonprofit CRM.
How many constituents do you intend to serve? Luminate Online can help you manage an unlimited number of supporters. While that’s a huge benefit for enterprise-level nonprofits, smaller organizations can just as easily take advantage of a less expensive solution that can still fit their constituency. Find software that will grow with you, but don’t waste money on an unnecessarily far-reaching tool.
How complex are your nonprofit’s needs? Luminate Online was built to help nonprofits whose needs aren’t immediately met by simple online fundraising solutions. If your organization has particularly unique needs or goals, you can work with a nonprofit technology consultant to configure and customize Luminate to completely fit your nonprofit.

Once you know what gaps in your fundraising strategy could be filled by capable fundraising software, you can make an informed decision about whether or not Luminate Online is the solution best-equipped to help you do it.

In short, Luminate Online is intended for larger nonprofit organizations with complex needs and custom fundraising strategies.

3. Prepare Your Budget for Luminate Online.

Being such a comprehensive product, you can expect Luminate Online doesn’t come for free.

After you’ve familiarized yourself with Luminate’s feature set and decided that it’s the right solution to help you achieve your goals, you should start considering if you have room to fit a new solution of this scale into your organization’s budget.

As with any software, you’ll need to convince your board that Luminate Online is a wise investment. That means answering questions including:

Can your nonprofit afford the initial cost of Luminate Online? As an enterprise product, Luminate Online is priced on a quote basis. You’ll need to contact Blackbaud to learn about pricing for your nonprofit. Remember—you should view this initial price tag as the starting line for total costs.
Will you need to pay for add-ons? Integrations? In addition to the base product, you may also need to purchase Luminate Online add-ons to expand the feature set to meet your needs. Additionally, you might search for other Blackbaud or third-party integrations that each have their own costs as well as potential implementation fees.
What training, migration, or other charges will you incur later on? We’ll explain what each of these areas might entail later on in this post, but keep in mind that you’ll likely be responsible for a variety of costs throughout the implementation process. For example, training and data migration are both essential parts of getting set up with your software, so you can’t ignore them when laying out your budget.

Many of the extraneous implementation costs can be accounted for when you hire a nonprofit technology consulting firm to help you implement Luminate Online. These invaluable professionals can help you with almost any need, from customization to general fundraising counsel. While bringing on their help requires a financial investment, their guidance can pay off in a big way later on once you’ve maximized your fundraising potential.

Bonus! Can’t afford Luminate Online yet? Don’t worry. There’s a wide range of low-cost or free fundraising solutions to meet your needs without breaking the bank. Check out @Pay’s top picks to get started!

In short, your nonprofit needs to consider the up-front price of Luminate Online as well as additional costs, such as bringing on a nonprofit web consultant to help your team prepare for and implement your new software.

4. Anticipate Integrations and Customizations Within Luminate.

One of Luminate Online’s great advantages is that it’s highly customizable to meet an assortment of nonprofit needs. That being the case, if you’re thinking about implementing Luminate into your fundraising strategy, you should anticipate certain configurations will be necessary to get the most out of your software.

If you’re used to using simpler fundraising platforms, this need for customization may come as an adjustment. And if your organization doesn’t have a robust IT team prepared to handle the development side of customization and integration, you’ll probably need the help of a consulting firm to design and implement all of the adjustments you need.

Take some time to decide what your customization strategy looks like by answering these questions:

Will you need Blackbaud or third-party integrations? Blackbaud has an extensive product family, with options for virtually any fundraising need. Because they’re all from the same vendor, these integrations are less complicated than an outside platform. If you need a custom integration with a third-party solution, consider working with a nonprofit technology firm to ensure the two tools can compatibly work together.
How will you customize your Luminate platform? With the right configurations, Luminate Online can accomplish anything your organization needs. Brainstorm with your team to determine which adjustments can help take your fundraising strategies to the next level. (Need inspiration? Check out some of the amazing examples of how nonprofit technology firm DNL Omni Media helped organizations customize their Luminate Online solutions.)
Who will manage these configurations? Being able to mold your fundraising software to meet any need sounds unbelievable, so what’s the catch? You’ll need the help of a tech-savvy developer with experience configuring the Luminate system to build out these customizations. You can work with Blackbaud’s team or seek the help of a third-party web consultant to devise a plan for customizing your software.

Without customizations and integrations, you won’t be able to reap the full benefits of Luminate Online, so take some time to develop a plan for making this software your own.

In short, you can work with Blackbaud or a nonprofit web consultant to come up with custom solutions within your Luminate Online platform. Don’t forget to integrate your system with other Blackbaud products or implement custom integrations if needed.

5. Migrate Your Existing Data.

Now that you’ve decided that Luminate is the ideal fundraising solution, let’s discuss how you’ll go about implementing this software in the most effective way.

As you probably know, no fundraising software is complete until it’s powered by donor data. And donor data isn’t worthwhile unless it’s guaranteed to be accurate and complete!

What does that add up to? Basically, in order to use Luminate Online, you need to migrate your existing supporter data to your new system.

Before you transfer your data, make sure you have answers to these important questions:

What’s your nonprofit’s plan for cleaning data? You don’t want to transfer information that’s incomplete or outdated, so you’ll need to clean up your data beforehand. Search for lapsed donors, out-of-date information, and duplicate profiles to start.
Who will manage the data migration process? Large nonprofits have years’ worth of supporter information on file, so you might require some professional data transfer assistance from a consulting firm. On top of that, make sure you appoint a data migration manager to work with the consultant and spearhead the transfer on behalf of your team.
How will you monitor data input going forward? To keep your data as clean as possible on a long-term basis, your staff should develop a well-documented process for inputting donor data. This will help you keep track of current best practices and clearly communicate your data entry policies to the entire team.

Without data, your fundraising software isn’t going to be very helpful. That’s why you should take the data migration process seriously and ensure you have a plan in place to manage the process from start to finish.

Bonus! Learn about Luminate data migration in great detail by reading this post from DNL Omni Media. As nonprofit technology consultants, their team knows their way around the Blackbaud product family, and they can help you prepare for your data migration with as little stress as possible.

In short, your nonprofit should plan to transfer your existing donor data from your old platform(s) to Luminate Online before you can implement your new software. You can work with a nonprofit consultant to ease the process and ensure no valuable information is lost.

6. Train Your Nonprofit Staff to Use Luminate Online.

The final step to implementing Luminate Online? Make sure your nonprofit knows how to use it!

For organizations just starting out with Luminate Online, it can be a complicated system to navigate. Just considering how much this software can do, it only makes sense that your organization would need a helping hand to get acquainted with the platform.

When it comes to training your staff on Luminate, consider these questions:

Will you look to Blackbaud’s training team or work with a third-party consultant? Blackbaud offers defined training courses for their products, or you can seek out an independent web consulting firm to train your team. Depending on the services the consultant offers, they may also be able to work with you to develop customizations, plan out your fundraising strategy, and migrate your data, making them a one-stop shop for all the assistance you might need throughout the implementation process.
Which members of your team will need to be trained? Any member of your team involved in fundraising and online marketing will need to understand your new software. Consider how you’ll make time in everyone’s schedules and how the training period will impact your ongoing fundraising campaigns or projects.
What’s your nonprofit’s timeline for training your staff? You should work with your consultant or training team to put together an actionable training plan with specific benchmarks leading toward your goal. Make sure you’re covering the areas of the platform that are most pertinent to your everyday use, and don’t overwhelm your staff by cramming too much training into a short time frame.

Once you’re done with training, your entire team should feel confident with using Luminate Online to complete your fundraising objectives and propel your efforts forward.

In short, your staff won’t be able to manuever the many facets of Luminate Online without some outside help. Work with Blackbaud’s training team or an outside consultant to get your team up-to-speed on Luminate’s features.

Choosing new software is a big decision, with a number of considerations along the way. With our points in mind, your nonprofit should feel confident making Luminate Online a new part of your fundraising strategy!

For more insight into fundraising software, take a look at these additional resources:

Luminate for Blackbaud: 5 Questions to Ask Before You Buy. If you’re still unsure if Luminate Online is right for you, let Double the Donation answer the most important questions you need to be asking about this software.
Top Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Platforms. Learn which P2P platforms can help you supercharge your social fundraising endeavors. We’ve run through the best peer-to-peer software on the market to help you find the right fit for your nonprofit.
Top Nonprofit Advocacy Software. Not quite ready for Luminate Online’s advocacy add-on? Check out these options to help you boost your outreach initiatives and win over supporters.