This document discusses using WordPress to build effective charity websites and accept online donations. It provides tips on hosting, speed and security, recommended plugins and tools, designing an effective donation process, and best practices for peer-to-peer fundraising, crowdfunding, recurring donations and mobile optimization. The objectives are to explore how to create charity websites with WordPress and discover new tools and tactics to benefit causes.

1. USING WORDPRESS FOR SOCIAL GOOD
WordCamp Los Angeles 2017

2. Hi, I’m Devin!
@innerwebs
San Diego, California

3. ▸ How to build
effective charity
websites with WP
▸ Explore the various
methods to accept
donations online
▸ Discover new tools
and tactics aimed to
benefiting your cause
OBJECTIVES

4. HOSTING, SPEED, AND SECURITY
IT STARTS WITH YOUR WORDPRESS WEBSITE

5. ▸ Tailored environments for WP
▸ Built-in caching, backups,
security
▸ Staging environment(s)
▸ Content Distribution Networks
(CDN)
▸ Developer friendly tools like
Git integration and WP-CLI
▸ Popular Managed WP hosts:
▸ Media Temple / Pagely /
WP Engine / Pantheon /
Flywheel / GoDaddy Pro
USE MANAGED HOSTING

6. ▸ Page, Browser, and
Object caching
▸ Mobile detection and
optimization
▸ Image and font
optimization
▸ Minify and concatenate
Scripts (CSS and JS)
▸ Learn more in Andrew
Wilder’s session!
WEBSITE CACHING

7. ▸ HTTPs / SSL
▸ Security
▸ PHP version 7+
▸ Nightly Backups
▸ SEO
▸ Updates &
Maintenance
DON’T FORGET ABOUT

8. ▸ Page builders
▸ Beaver Builder or Divi
▸ Themes
▸ Organic themes
▸ Theme Isle
▸ Backups: WP Time Capsule
▸ Caching: WP Rocket
▸ SEO: WordPress SEO by Yoast
▸ SSL: Let’s Encrypt
▸ Ongoing Maintenance: WP Site
Care
RECOMMENDED TOOLS

9. TURNING VISITORS
INTO DONORS
First Impressions

10. “FIRST IMPRESSIONS
HAPPEN REALLY FAST -
ESPECIALLY WHEN THE
AVERAGE TIME USERS
SPEND ON A WEBSITE
IS EIGHT SECONDS.”
- Jennifer Winter usertesting.com
Why First Impressions Matter

11. THE JANE GOODALL INSTITUTE
http://www.janegoodall.org/

12. OBAMA FOUNDATION
https://www.obama.org/

13. LIBERTY IN NORTH KOREA
https://www.libertyinnorthkorea.org/

14. ▸ Deliver your message from the
audience’s point-of view
▸ Briefly tell your story then link to a
deeper explanation
▸ Use actual images, not stock photos
▸ Unique video is a bonus
▸ Be transparent
▸ What are you doing with the
donations raised?
▸ Consistent branding
▸ Check content for accessibility and
readability
▸ https://wordpress.org/plugins/
wa11y/
▸ https://readability-score.com/
EFFECTIVE MESSAGING

15. WIREFRAME + DESIGN + CONTENT + SITEMAP
EFFECTIVE WEBSITES ARE PLANNED

16. A ZERO FRILLS DOWN TO THE BASICS WIREFRAME TOOL
WIREFRAMING MADE EASY WITH BALSAMIQ
https://balsamiq.com/products/mockups/

17. S
USING PAGE BUILDERS DESIGNING IN BROWSER IS FUN AND EASY
DESIGN IN BROWSER OR USING SKETCH OR PHOTOSHOP

18. BEST PRACTICES AND RECOMMENDATIONS
EFFECTIVE ONLINE GIVING CAMPAIGNS

19. PEER TO PEER
Donation Campaigns

20. PEER-TO-PEER GIVING IS A
GROWING FORM OF FUNDRAISING
IN WHICH A INDIVIDUAL RAISES
MONEY ON BEHALF OF A
NONPROFIT BY REACHING OUT TO
THEIR SOCIAL NETWORK.
WHAT IS PEER-TO-PEER FUNDRAISING?

21. AND SO I KEPT LIVING
https://www.classy.org/campaign/world-suicide-prevention-day-2016/c90377

22. CROWDFUNDING
Donation Campaigns

23. DONATION BASED
CROWDFUNDING IS A WAY TO
COLLECT FUNDS FOR A PROJECT
BY ASKING A LARGE NUMBER OF
CONTRIBUTORS TO DONATE A
SMALL AMOUNT TO IT
WHAT IS CROWDFUNDING?

24. BETHLEHEM THEME
https://demo2.chethemes.com/bethlehem-v1/donations/help-us-build-a-new-church/

25. RECURRING DONATIONS
Donation Campaigns

26. THE AVERAGE RECURRING DONOR
GIVES 42 PERCENT MORE DURING
THE COURSE OF A YEAR THAN
ONE-TIME GIFTS.
Network For Good
http://nonprofithub.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/recurring-gift_infographic.jpg
RAISE MORE OVER TIME

28. ▸ Provide the donor a
choice to opt-in to give
on a recurring basis
▸ Recurring donors
average more than one-
time
▸ Lessens donor’s
immediate financial
impact
▸ Improves cash flow and
planning
RECURRING DONATIONS

29. ▸ Allow donors to easily
opt-in to recurring giving
▸ Provide an easy way to
manage the subscription
▸ Enable donors to share
subscription giving with
friends and family
▸ Social media, email,
text
RECURRING BEST PRACTICES

30. ▸ Encourage subscriptions
to one time donors
▸ Explain how recurring
donations make a
difference
▸ “$19.20 to feed and
care for 10 people”
▸ Keep your subscribers
notified about how their
donations are being
used
RECURRING BEST PRACTICES

31. OXFAM AMERICA
https://www.oxfamamerica.org/donate/

32. AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
https://donatenow.heart.org/

33. EVERYTOWN
https://donate.everytown.org/

34. ▸ Reduce the number fields as
much as possible
▸ Allow for custom amounts
▸ Use goals when possible
▸ Leverage analytics and
reporting
▸ Reduce outside form
distractions
▸ Display donation buttons
prominently
▸ Support tablet & mobile
GENERAL BEST PRACTICES

35. END-OF-YEAR GIVING ACCOUNTS
FOR 34.8% OF ONLINE GIVING (Q4)
AND DECEMBER REPRESENTS
20.3% OF THE TOTAL.
Frank Barry, npENGAGE
http://npengage.com/nonprofit-fundraising/11-facts-about-online-fundraising/
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF TIMING

36. MOBILE OVERTOOK DESKTOP
COMPUTERS AS PEOPLE’S
PREFERRED DEVICE TO ACCESS
THE INTERNET LAST YEAR [2015]
Zenith’s Media Consumption Forecasts
http://digiday.com/publishers/mobile-overtaking-desktops-around-world-5-charts/
DON’T FORGET ABOUT MOBILE

37. JUSTICE AT STAKE
http://www.justiceatstake.org/

38. GETUP!
https://www.getup.org.au/donate/

39. ▸ Accept multiple payment
methods
▸ PayPal, Credit Card, Bank
Account, Offline
donations
▸ No unnecessary redirects
▸ Provide clear terms and
conditions of donation
▸ Display branding
prominently
▸ Use proper terminology
BEST PRACTICES CONT.

40. ▸ Give
▸ https://givewp.com
▸ Charitable
▸ https://charitable.com
▸ Seamless Donations
▸ https://wordpress.org/
plugins/seamless-
donations
▸ Gravity Forms,
WooCommerce, EDD
DONATIONS PLUGINS

41. WITH WORDPRESS,
THERE’S NO REASON TO
CONSIDER ONLINE
DONATIONS OUT OF REACH
Final takeaway

42. Thanks!