If you’re not incorporating Facebook’s Charitable Giving features into your philanthropy matrix, your non-profit organization is missing a valuable opportunity to capture donations. The fundraising tools enable you to connect with your audience, solicit donations, and empower donors to fundraise on your behalf. Ahead of Giving Tuesday, we broke down the pros and cons of utilizing Facebook and also how you can get started immediately.

Why You Should Use Charitable Giving Tools on Facebook

It is quick and easy to set up.

The requirements for you to use Charitable Giving are simple:

1. Be a 501c3 registered with the IRS.

2. Have a tax ID number.

3. Have a registered bank account.

4. Know the CEO/Executive Director’s address and date of birth.

Because Facebook giving tools are powered by Network for Good and Charity Navigator, any registered 501c3 organization can easily be found after clicking “Raise Money” when composing your Facebook post.

100% of funds raised go to your organization.

All of the money raised on Facebook benefits your organization. Compared to other fundraising platforms, such as GoFundMe, the cost to your organization to raise money is minimal.

Sharing features increase the size of your potential audience.

When composing a post and utilizing the “Raise Money” feature, you exponentially increase the size of your organization’s audience. When your followers share your post, they will also share the attached “Donate” button, exposing their Facebook friends to your organization and the opportunity to contribute. Posts can continue to be shared by friends of followers and so on, creating an opportunity to raise significant funds. Therefore, when composing your social media posts, be cognizant of your content, the impact it will make on your followers, and its shareability.

Drawbacks of Fundraising on Facebook

Facebook Charitable Giving is a long-term strategy.

Donations made via Facebook typically take up to six weeks to process. This lag between when donations are made and when your organization receives the funds can be challenging for some organizations that rely on the immediacy of other donation platforms. Furthermore, many posts may only bring in $20, $40, $60 due to decreased organic reach. Don’t get discouraged though, as these donations can add up!

Donors’ contact information is unavailable.

When donating on Facebook, donors have the opportunity to indicate if they would like to share their contact information with the organization, and donors who contribute to a birthday fundraiser in support of your organization do not have that option. This majorly limits your opportunity to add those donors to your database and target them in the future with your various campaigns and other channels of communication.

Some donors may be hesitant to utilize Facebook to donate.

It is no surprise that Facebook has faced some ethical challenges over the past few years and individuals’ trust in the platform may be wavering. Because this may lead some of your organization’s followers to become hesitant to donate on social media, consider offering alternative donation methods, such as Venmo, CashApp, or PayPal, in your post.

How to Fundraise on Facebook

Your organization is likely already included in Charitable Giving’s database.

Because Facebook utilizes the Network for Good and Charity Navigator, your organization will most likely be pre-populated when you search for an organization to add to your post. If you’re having trouble locating your non-profit, you can refer to Facebook’s FAQ.

Add a Donate button to your Facebook posts.

You can easily solicit donations from your social media posts. When composing your post, click the “…” on the right side of the “Add to Your Post” box.

When the lightbox loads, select “Raise Money” and search for your nonprofit. Once you select your nonprofit, you’ll jump back to your post-composition. Finalize your content and click the “Post” button to share.

Add a Donate button to your Facebook Page.

In addition to including a Donate button on your Facebook posts, you can also add a Donate button to the top of your Facebook page. Simply go to your Facebook page and click the “Add Button” under your cover photo and select “Donate” from the list that appears.

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