Online Fundraising Strategies That Grow Donations in 2026

AI Summary

• A nonprofit team can grow online giving with three habits: a monthly giving program, a donation page that is easy to finish on a phone, and steady follow-up with every donor.
• GivingFuel is an all-in-one fundraising platform that keeps online donation pages, recurring giving, donor management, and email and text follow-up in one connected place, so teams spend less time juggling tools and more time building donor relationships.
• GivingFuel publishes its nonprofit pricing, with plans starting at $9 per month, no contracts, and pricing that does not change with the size of your donor list.
• Real people are part of the platform. GivingFuel's team can help your nonprofit get set up, and can help keep recurring gifts processing when you switch from another processor.
• The right plan depends on your annual online giving and how you raise money, whether that is recurring gifts, events, peer-to-peer, or church giving. GivingFuel works alongside the accounting and specialist tools you already use.

The online fundraising strategies that grow donations in 2026 are monthly giving, a donation page that is easy to finish, and steady follow-up with every donor. The good news is, even a small team can run all three. 

GivingFuel is an all-in-one fundraising platform that keeps your donation pages, recurring giving, donor management, and email and text communication in one place, so you can spend your time on donors instead of juggling tools.

If you have ever felt behind on online fundraising, you are in good company. Most teams are doing it between a hundred other jobs. This guide covers what is worth your time first, how to match it to your size, and what fundraising software really costs.

Strategy 1: Start a Monthly Giving Program

Monthly giving works best as a focused program with a goal, not a checkbox at the bottom of a form.

• Put the monthly option up front. Experiment with making it the pre-selected choice and see how your own donors respond.
• Show what the gift does. "$35 a month covers a week of meals" is easier to picture than a random number.
• Welcome new donors for 90 days. A thank-you, a short story about their impact, and a gentle second ask go a long way. 

With GivingFuel recurring giving, donors can choose weekly, monthly, or yearly gifts, split a gift across funds, and manage it from their own donor account. The auto card updater refreshes expired cards so monthly gifts keep going without having to chase anyone down.

Strategy 2: Make Your Donation Page Easy to Finish

Before you spend a dollar on ads, look at your page. Open it on your phone and try to give. If it takes more than a minute, there is likely too much friction, and your donors feel it too.

• Ask for the basics: amount, name, email, and payment. Add an optional monthly checkbox.
• Offer fast payment options. GivingFuel supports Apple Pay, Google Pay, and ACH.
• Add an optional fee-cover prompt. Donors can choose to cover platform and processing fees. It is on by default for Starter and All-In plans, and Enterprise teams can keep or remove it.
• Connect offline to online. Every GivingFuel page includes a free text-to-give number, and you can create a QR code for flyers and event tables.

You can build online donation pages with a drag-and-drop builder that shows changes live, so there is no developer needed. For more ideas, see our donation page best practices and conversion rate guide.

Strategy 3: Follow Up With Every Donor

The most effective way to fundraise online is through a mix of channels you already own: your donation page, email and text follow-up, and recurring giving. No single tactic has to do everything.

Picture a first-time donor who gives on a Tuesday. They get a receipt right away, a welcome email next, and a short text with an impact update a few weeks later. And your team only had to set it up once. See our guide to digital fundraising for more on each channel.

GivingFuel's email automation sends follow-ups minutes, hours, or days after a gift, and the donor CRM lets you send to segments such as first-time, recurring, or lapsed donors. Text messaging is built in, so ask the team about volume before planning a big send.

Strategy 4: Welcome Larger Gifts and Matching Gifts

Larger gifts often come from donors who give differently than your monthly supporters. Some give through a donor-advised fund (DAF), which is a charitable account a donor sets up and later uses to recommend grants to nonprofits. Others give through an employer that matches what employees donate. 

A few small additions can help you be more prepared for these types of gifts:

• Tell DAF donors you accept their grants. Add a short line on your giving page with your organization's legal name and EIN. DAF donors usually need both to recommend a grant, so having them handy saves a back-and-forth.
• Offer ACH for bigger gifts. Bank transfers cost less to process than cards, so more of a larger gift reaches your mission. GivingFuel supports ACH, and the All-In plan lists ACH processing at 1%.
• Add employer matching. Many donors never realize their employer will match their gift. GivingFuel's employer matching connects with Double the Donation so donors can check for a match while they give. 
• Thank bigger donors personally. A note or call from your Executive Director can mean more than any automated email. Your CRM can tag larger donors so you remember to follow up.

Then give bigger donors a personal thank-you. A note from your Executive Director can mean more than any automated email.

Online Fundraising Strategies by Nonprofit Size

Pick the plan that fits the team you have today. Annual online giving is the size measure, and the plan ranges come from GivingFuel pricing.

Online Fundraising Strategies by Use Case

• Monthly giving: recurring gifts, the card updater, and automated welcome emails.
• Events and galas: events and ticketing with seating, team registration, and mobile check-in.
• Peer-to-peer: peer-to-peer fundraising pages for supporters. Plan your follow-up first, since many of these donors are new to you.
• One-time campaigns: campaign pages with goal meters, then the same welcome sequence for new donors. Our guide to the platform for running a charity can help.
• Church and ministry giving: recurring gifts, multiple funds, and a custom domain such as give.yourchurch.org.

What Fundraising Software Costs

Your total cost has three main parts: the monthly software fee, the platform fee, and payment processing.

There are no contracts, and pricing does not change with the size of your donor list. When donors choose to cover fees, that can offset some of your costs.

Before you sign with any fundraising software vendor, ask four questions:

Can I export my donor and gift history? Your data should always be yours to take with you.

Can my recurring gifts move without donors re-entering their cards? This protects your monthly revenue during a switch.

What does total cost look like at my giving volume? Ask for monthly fees, platform fees, and payment processing in writing.

Who helps when something goes wrong? Ask whether you can reach a real person.

GivingFuel has no contracts, and you can import donor and gift history yourself at no extra cost. Its team can also help keep recurring gifts processing while you switch from another processor, without asking donors to take action. 

FAQs

What is the best online fundraising software for a small nonprofit?

Start with monthly giving, a donation page that is easy to finish, and follow-up with every donor. GivingFuel keeps all three in one platform, so a small team can run them without extra tools.

What is the best recurring giving software for nonprofits? 

The best recurring giving software lets donors manage their own gifts and helps reduce failed payments. GivingFuel offers weekly, monthly, and yearly gifts, donor accounts, and an auto card updater, starting at $9 per month.

What are some easy online fundraising ideas to start this month?

Publish a monthly giving page, add a QR code to your next mailer or event table, and turn on a matching gift prompt. Each one can go live in an afternoon.

What should donor management software include?

Donor management software should keep every gift and interaction in one record, tag donors by behavior, track tasks and notes, and connect to email and text. GivingFuel's donor management also includes donor accounts and offline gift entry.

You Can Grow Online Giving With the Team You Have

You do not need a big budget to raise more online. A page that is easy to finish, a real monthly giving program, and steady follow-up add up over time, and each one gets easier once it is set up.

GivingFuel is an all-in-one fundraising platform for nonprofit teams that want to raise more, understand their donors, and manage recurring giving, communications, events, and reporting in one connected place. It works alongside the accounting and specialist tools you already use.

We're here to help your team spend less time managing fundraising software and more time building the donor relationships that move your mission forward.

Compare fundraising software for your nonprofit's size and budget

–The GivingFuel Team