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Article: Should you ask nonprofit donors to cover gift transaction fees?
<div>Guidance from Claire Axelrad on passing fees on to donors:
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clairification.com
Should you ask nonprofit donors to cover gift transaction fees? - Clairification
I’ve written about this before. But since I continue to get questions, I’m writing about it again. Fundraisers wonder about the upsides and downsides in asking donors to cover credit card and other gift transaction fees. Hmmn… First, let me … Continue reading
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2 Replies
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100%, you should make it an option for the donor to pay these days. Our nonprofit loses 3-5% of every donation and program fee for the convenience of the customer (who is frequently benefiting on their end from the use of the credit card in terms of cash back rebates, airline miles, etc). As a donor myself to many organizations, I am always happy to pay that fee, so that the nonprofit receives 100% of my donation. Make it an option, and most will chose to pay it.
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I’m really on the fence with this one. Should we also ask for postage, mailing, third-part fundraiser fees, fundraising salaries, and other reimbursements of the cost of raising funds?
At the end of the year, I gave a $1,000 charitable gift online. I was asked to pay an additional $39.XX to reimburse the charity for processing fees. I paid the fee, but I wondered how good their contract with the processing company was and what other fundraising costs I should be concerned with as a donor. I snapped out of it pretty quickly because I’m not an average donor, but it made the donation process just a little awkward for me.
It also occurs to me that raising the issue of credit card processing costs also raises the spectre of overhead costs more generally, especially for less knowledgeable and less sophisticated donors.
Again, I’m on the fence and not sure there is a single, simple answer.
