Credit cards, checks, cash — the typical means of exchanging money are looking at some stiff competition in the world of apps. Venmo is one of many mobile payment services that allow users to link their bank accounts of debit cards and send money to friends, family, and now, nonprofits. As of 2020, Venmo had more than 52 million users and had over $102 billion in payment volume in 2019. That’s a lot of people, a lot of money… is it also a lot of potential donations?
Is Venmo the next Charity Donation portal for nonprofits?
Let’s cut straight to the chase: as of October 2022, Venmo now allows nonprofits to register via Paypal to create Charity Profiles! Once an organization has validated their 501(c)3 status on Paypal, they can get an official Venmo profile.
Some of the benefits of creating a Charity Venmo Account:
- Ability to @ your charity name on Venmo to pay!
- A blue checkmark badge to show donors that your charity is verified
- Increased visibility on Venmo with enhanced and shareable posts from donors
- Low transaction fees of 1.9% + $0.10 per donation received
- Donation history and account statements, complete with donor contact information
- Same-day access to funds from donations (fees apply)
- Separate wallet for personal payments and transactions
- Photo gallery to help tell your charity’s story
- QR code and QR Kits for collecting touch-free donations in person
Other options:
There is also fundraising platforms, like Givebutter, that allows nonprofits to include a donate via Venmo option through a website. Note this doesn’t allow direct @ payments.
One challenge to Venmo officially expanding is regulation: Nonprofits and regulators are still working through the challenges associated with new donation and solicitation channels.
We can’t wait to see what this formal system looks like: As nonprofits aim to reach and cultivate younger donors, why not meet them on their own turf of smartphones and apps? While the legal details are tested and sorted out, you can still plan for the launch by testing the tool. Here’s how we see an eventual strategy for incorporating Venmo into your existing donation strategy playing out.
How to manage a nonprofit Venmo account
How frequently do you want to hear about donations?
Do you prefer email or push notifications on your phone?
If email, who should receive those messages?
When setting up a Venmo account, you’ll have options for these notifications — keep the above questions in mind so that you aren’t entirely overwhelmed, or entirely out of the loop. In addition to keeping track of donations, you will also want to know who those donors are and how much they are donating to update your CRM, if applicable. Venmo has monthly reports that they send out to make this easier.
Be careful when reviewing Venmo notifications though, especially if you use it personally. As it stands, Venmo is a two-way street: People can send you money, but they can also request money. Accidentally sending money from your organization to a friend or stranger would be embarrassing — even more so than requesting money from a stranger as your organization.
How to get donors to use Venmo
Now, how would you actually get people to make donations on Venmo once it becomes available for nonprofits?
1. Give a tutorial
Whether or not your audience is on Venmo, it’s wise with any new donation tool to send your followers an introductory onboarding email to let them know it’s now an option. Outline what Venmo is, why you decided to use it, and how they can use it to donate. Make sure to include any best practices for payment captions so you can track donations. (Venmo payments currently see a lot of emoji use in captions — #FreeCampaignIdea.)
2. @ Yourself
On every fundraising message, whether it’s sent via email or social media, be sure to include your Venmo handle. In emails, you can also link to your Venmo profile page to make it even easier.
3. Say “thank you”
Venmo is a social platform, as much as it is a payment service. Thank donors for their contributions by commenting on the payments!
4. Get competitive
Consider holding fundraising competitions, where “teams” create hashtags and lead crowdfunding campaigns on your behalf. Each team uses a unique hashtag, so your organization can award winners for most people and most money raised. Their reward could be a promo code to your online shop, a shoutout on social media, or a matched donation. As mentioned, Venmo is a social platform, so users will see their friends donating in their feed which will spark a conversation which will (hopefully) encourage them to participate.
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5. Ask for a lot of a little
Venmo stands out compared to competitor organizations for being the largest source of small transactions under $300. Grow your donor base by asking for small donations: You’ll expand your reach and get a foot in the door with new supporters who may donate more down the road. Plus, as we’ve seen from politicians like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — a lot of small donations can make a huge difference.
We hope Venmo becomes a new donation cash machine for your nonprofit this season!
Have you already used Venmo for digital fundraising? What worked? What was challenging? Share with us by tweeting @WholeWhale.