A Guide to Effective Donation Landing Pages

Ilia Jones | June 2021

There’s no way around it. While fundraisers, events, and volunteering also make up a portion of your financial contributions, the steady pace of donations is what keeps the lights on for your nonprofit organization. 

So, how can you optimize your donation landing page to maximize conversions and get people excited about donating to your cause?

Create an Eye-Catching Banner and Headline

The banner and headline of your donation page is the first thing people will see. While you may view your NPO’s home page as the front door to your organization, the donation page is the true destination. 

Use a combination of compelling imagery and language that makes a simple, specific point. A picture is worth a thousand words when it showcases your organization’s impact, highlights the severity of the problem or shows the potential for a happy ending to the story. Then combine that picture with a headline that motivates.

Write Impactful Headlines that inspire action

Here are a few effective ways to motivate website visitors to donate to your cause:

• Ask for help – Making a clear and straightforward appeal can reach prospective donors’ better nature.
• Present a shocking statistic – Using data to reinforce the severity of the problem you’re trying to solve can drive the point home 
• Demonstrate value – Proving your worth as an organization in providing solutions and helping others gains trust
• Create urgency – Explaining why now is the best time to make a difference can spur action

Simplify Your Web Design to Keep People Focused

If you’ve done the hard work to get people to your donation page, the last thing you want to do is distract them or encourage them to leave. While your home page might include site navigation and links to other content or social media handles, minimize distractions or links on the donation page. 

While your donation page might have a simpler look and feel, make sure visitors know that they are in the right place.  make sure the donation page prominently displays your logo. And use branding that is consistent with the rest of your website. 

MOBILE OPTIMIZATION IS NOT OPTIONAL

If your website isn’t optimized for mobile, you are likely missing out. The latest data shows that 80% of social media browsing is done on mobile devices. So, when your target audience visits Instagram or Facebook to see the latest from your NPO, they are likely using a mobile device. And not being able to make the conversion on those devices could be a massive missed opportunity. 

Craft Convincing Body Copy 

Once people make it to your donation page, it’s time to eliminate any lingering doubts. You need to let your visitors know that your nonprofit organization is a secure and trustworthy place to donate their hard-earned money. This is where your body copy comes in. 

TELL A STORY

Craft body copy that tells a story that people will connect with. If people are reading the text, it means that you need to answer the question, “why should I donate to this cause?”

There are a few ways you can tell the story: 

• Make it personal – Highlight a success story that exemplifies how your organization changes lives. Introduce characters and explain how you were able to help their unique situation. 
• Go deeper in explaining the cause – No matter what your NPO does, there is a profound reason behind it that will resonate with people. Tell that story. 
• Use data and background information – Gain trust by explaining how you will use the money they are donating and your organization’s history of success and integrity in the space. 
• Get detailed – Explain your cause and how it is connected to the broader global circumstance and how what you do has the potential to effect change on a bigger scale.  

As you are writing, think critically about what reasons might be holding people back from donating. Then do your best to address them in a way that feels like a natural part of the storytelling. 

Make it Easy to Donate 

Making it as easy as possible for donors is common sense. But it’s surprisingly easy to fall into the trap of information overload or overwhelming with too many bells and whistles. Instead, keep it simple and make donating as easy as possible. 

Your donation page will also collect donor information, so it can be tempting to capture as much information as possible. However, every field that a potential donor needs to fill in is one more step that slows the donation process and makes it more tedious—and that’s not what you want! Instead, fine-tune your form to collect the least information required. 

Use a prominent call to action

A donation button or other call to action should be placed prominently on your donation landing page so that it’s one of the first things that visitors see. Ensure that it’s large enough that any text on the button is easy to read and use a bright color that makes it stand out and contrasts with the background. 

The text of your call to action should be powerful, concise, and action-oriented. Some examples include:

• Donate Now
• Help Us Today 
• Join Us Today
• Join the Fight
• Act Now
• Get Involved
• Join the Revolution
• Help [those in need]
• Fight [target issue]

Accept a Variety of Payment Methods

And finally, consider accepting a wide range of payment options, such as credit cards, payment services such as PayPal and Venmo, automated bank transfers, or even cryptocurrency. Accepting your prospective donor’s payment method of choice makes it more likely they will complete the donation. Be sure to put any fears at ease by highlighting the safety and security of the transaction.  

And don’t forget to offer the option of recurring monthly donations! Many people are happy to donate a small amount every month if it’s automated and they don’t have to think about it. 

Say Thank You

After completing a donation, send donors to a Thank You page to let them know how much you appreciate their contribution. This page should include a few pieces of information, such as:

• A sincere message of gratitude
• A confirmation number for their transaction or a receipt for tax purposes
• Your social media links so they can share information about your cause to their friends and followers 

You may also want to send a follow-up Thank You email with the same information as the Thank You page. This can also include a description of how their donation will be used to remind them that their act of goodwill is making a big impact. 

Letting your donors know how much they mean to you is the first step in building authentic donor relationships. But before that can happen, they have to become donors. Creating an effective donation landing page will help you increase your donations and build your community.