4 Steps to Setting Online Fundraising Giving Levels

Imagine you have decided to donate to a new charity. You’re on board with their cause, and you’re ready to give them your hard-earned dollars. But just how many dollars? What real life impact will your gift make? And how much trouble are you willing to go to? Will you give up if the donation process is convoluted or time-consuming?

Setting giving levels can make the digital donation process smoother for your donors by answering some of the questions above while providing added convenience. It also can prompt them to give a little more than they might have considered otherwise.

Here are four tips on how to decide where to set your giving levels:

1. Evaluate

Take into account what amount most of your donors give. If a large portion of your supporters gives gifts less than $25, don’t have the lowest suggestion be $100. You will risk discouraging people from donating. However, if many of your donors make gifts of over $500, don’t lowball them into contributing less than they normally would. Take a good look at your donations history to determine what range to use for your high and low suggestions.

2. Push a little

You want to prompt your supporters to make a larger donation. Don’t push too much, however, so that you don’t risk alienating them. At the low end, if most of your donations are less than $10, consider suggesting $15. At the high end, if your donations top out at $500, recommend $550 or $600. You should have about five to six levels total, grouped closer together at the bottom and spread further apart at the top. Don’t forget to include an “other amount” option – but put this after the highest level in order to suggest that other donations should be more.

3. Show impact

After each giving level, show what this donation will “buy.” School supplies for a classroom? One night in a shelter? Demonstrating the effect a donation has tells a good story and makes these gifts more tangibly meaningful to the supporter. It can also encourage them to donate more when they see the impact their dollars will have.

4. Re-evaluate

These decisions aren’t set in stone. Once you’ve run your chosen giving levels for a while, take time to re-evaluate your strategy. Then make changes as needed. Being adaptable means being willing to improve at all levels.

Do what works for you – if you can’t come up with a reason to deviate from the standard “$25, $50, $100, $250 and $500,” then stick with it. Look at other organizations’ fundraising pages for inspiration. We like the ASPCA and Restore NYC.