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Should my nonprofit use payment processing services?

Should my nonprofit use payment processing services?

Online payment processing is commonly used by schools, churches and all types of nonprofit organizations today. Most nonprofits accept credit cards in their offices, at special events, and especially online. But these services can be complicated and costly. You may be wondering, does my non-profit really need to accept credit cards?

What kind of credit card payments do nonprofits process?

  • Online donations: One of a nonprofits biggest goals is bringing in donations to help support your cause – whether this is accepting a one-time donation from a new prospect, or processing recurring donations from long-time supporters. By offering donation processing on your organization’s website, you make the process easier for donors by allowing them to make an online donation using their debit or credit card. This increases the likelihood that you will receive the donation.
  • Online registrations & ticket sales: Perhaps your nonprofit is hosting a fundraising event that requires participants to register. Rather than sending in registration forms and checks, this process can be streamlined on your website, as long as you are able to process payments online.
  • Sponsorships: If your nonprofit is hosting a fundraising event, perhaps you’ve approached local businesses to sponsor the event. Most event sponsors pay a fee to gain exposure at your event, and by offering online payment processing services, you provide a simple way for sponsors to select a sponsor level and make a payment easily from your online website.
  • Auction Bidding & Payments: Some nonprofits choose to host a charity auction for their fundraising campaign. By using nonprofit payment processing, you can take your auction bidding online. Bidders can set up a profile, bid on items (even select “buy now”) and then safely check-out and pay for all of their auction items with a credit card.
  • Vendor Fees: If your nonprofit is hosting a conference or fundraising event, perhaps you’ve invited vendors to participate. Often these vendors may pay your charity a fee in order to provide services/goods to your event attendees (i.e. a food vendor may pay a one-time fee of $500, but then sell food and beverages to attendees thus recouping their costs and making a profit).
  • Product Sales: Perhaps your nonprofit is hosting a charity golf tournament. Participants may be interested in purchasing golf merchandise (visors, collared shirts, golf gloves, etc.). If your organization is able to process credit cards, then you can easily offer product sales directly from your fundraising website (and possibly earn some revenue on sales).

If you intend to host any type of fundraising campaign (whether it be for donations, sponsorships, sales, etc.), finding a reliable merchant services provider is very important. By providing seamless, integrated credit card processing services, your organization will be able to raise more funds for your cause by accepting payments of all form (cash, check, debit and credit cards). The last thing you want to do is turn donations away because you are not set up to accept credit cards.

Read this article for more information on How to Select a Merchant Services Provider.

Kari Kiel

About Kari Kiel

Kari Kiel is the Marketing Director at DoJiggy. Her passions are branding and marketing communications and she holds a MBA in Marketing from the University of Colorado Denver.

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