Nonprofits: collect donations and memberships easily in 2025

Running a nonprofit means juggling a thousand priorities. Organizing events. Mobilizing volunteers. Communicating with members. And in the middle of all this, you need to collect donations and memberships. Without a marketing budget. Without a technical team. With tools that are often inadequate.

The good news: collecting donations and memberships easily is no longer reserved for large organizations. The right tools exist. You just need to know how to use them.

Why donation collection remains a challenge for nonprofits

The problem of fragmented tools

Most nonprofits use a patchwork of tools:

• An Excel spreadsheet to track memberships
• A PayPal account to receive donations
• An email inbox for information requests
• A WhatsApp group to coordinate volunteers
• A Google form for event registrations

Result: scattered data. Duplicates. Forgotten renewals. Donors who never receive a thank you.

The telling statistics

According to France Generosities, 54% of French people made a donation in 2024. The potential exists. But nonprofits struggle to capture it.

The main reasons:

• 60% of visitors abandon a donation form deemed too long
• 45% of potential donors give up facing a complex payment process
• 70% of nonprofits don’t have an automatic reminder system for memberships

Every friction in the donor’s journey is a lost opportunity.

The fundamentals of effective collection

Simplify the donor journey

A motivated donor should never be hindered by technology. The ideal journey:

1. I discover the nonprofit (website, social media, word of mouth)
2. I immediately find the “Donate” or “Join” button
3. I fill out a short form (less than 5 fields)
4. I pay in a few clicks
5. I receive an instant thank you

Every additional step drops the conversion rate by 10 to 15%.

Offer multiple engagement levels

Not all supporters are ready for the same commitment. Offer options:

• One-time donation: from 5 to 500 euros, free amount
• Monthly donation: regular commitment, adapted amount
• Basic membership: access to information and events
• Supporting membership: increased contribution for the most engaged
• Volunteering: signup to give time

A single form for all these needs? Bad idea. Separate forms adapted to each journey? Much more effective.

Automate communications

A donor who doesn’t receive a thank you within 24 hours is 50% less likely to give again. Automation isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity.

What should be automated:

• Immediate acknowledgment after a donation
• Personalized thank you
• Tax receipt (for eligible nonprofits)
• Membership renewal reminder
• Information on fund usage

Creating donation forms that convert

Essential fields (and nothing more)

For a one-time donation, limit yourself to:

• First and last name
• Email address
• Donation amount
• Postal address (only if tax receipt needed)

For membership:

• First and last name
• Email address
• Phone (optional)
• Postal address
• Chosen membership type

Every additional field must be justified by a real need. “It’s always useful to have the info” is not a justification.

The importance of design

A poorly presented form inspires distrust. Best practices:

• Consistent colors with the nonprofit’s identity
• Visible logo to reassure about legitimacy
• Clear progression if multiple steps
• Displayed security (HTTPS mentions, secure payment logos)
• Mobile-first: 65% of donations are made from smartphones

Suggested amounts

Don’t leave the donor facing an empty field. Offer pre-filled amounts:

• 10 euros: “funds a school supply kit”
• 30 euros: “provides a day of support”
• 50 euros: “covers a weekend of activities”
• 100 euros: “supports a project for a month”
• Other amount: free field

These suggestions guide and facilitate the decision. Studies show they increase average donation by 15 to 20%.

Managing memberships without hassle

Renewal tracking

A 500-member nonprofit that forgets to follow up on renewals mechanically loses 20 to 30% of its members each year. Not from disinterest. From simple forgetfulness.

The solution: automatic reminder system.

• D-30: “Your membership expires on [date]”
• D-7: “Only one week left to renew”
• D-0: “Renew now to continue supporting us”
• D+7: “We need you, renew your membership”

With Skedox, you configure these sequences in a few clicks. Each member automatically receives the right reminders at the right time.

Member data management

An Excel file is fine for starting. But beyond 100 members, limits appear:

• Difficult to filter by membership date
• Impossible to cross-reference with donation history
• Risk of errors during manual entry
• No simultaneous collaboration
• No automatic backup

A centralized platform solves these problems. You access each member’s file, their complete history, their communication preferences. In one click.

GDPR compliance

Nonprofits are not exempt from GDPR. You collect personal data. You must:

• Inform about data usage
• Allow access and modification
• Guarantee the right to erasure
• Secure storage

A professional form integrates these elements natively. Legal mentions, consent checkboxes, preference management: everything is included.

Case study: Local Solidarity nonprofit

Local Solidarity, a food assistance nonprofit in the Paris region, had 180 members and received about 25 donations per month via a basic PayPal form.

Problems identified:

• 72% abandonment rate on donation form
• No membership renewal tracking
• Thank yous sent manually (when they were)
• Data scattered across 4 different tools

Actions implemented:

1. Simplified forms: from 11 to 4 fields
2. Automated thank yous: personalized email in less than 30 seconds
3. Renewal reminders: automatic D-30, D-7, D-0 sequence
4. Centralization: all data in a single dashboard

Results after 3 months:

Indicator	Before	After
Monthly donations	25	67
Average donation	28 euros	42 euros
Renewal rate	68%	89%
Admin management time	8h/week	2h/week

Average donation increased by 50%. Not because donors became more generous. Because suggested amounts guided them toward more significant contributions.

Essential tools for nonprofits

What to look for in a solution

A platform adapted to nonprofits should offer:

• Customizable forms: adapted to your visual identity
• Contact management: complete history of each member
• Automations: thank you emails, reminders, follow-ups
• Dashboards: real-time donation and membership tracking
• Data export: for your declarations and reports
• Affordable pricing: nonprofits have limited budgets

The advantage of an all-in-one solution

Multiplying tools means multiplying problems:

• Cumulative costs (even “free” tools have paid limits)
• Time wasted synchronizing data
• Risk of inconsistencies between platforms
• Training needed on each tool

An integrated solution like Skedox centralizes forms, contact management, and automations. You manage everything from a single interface. And you free up time for your main mission.

Collecting donations and memberships easily: best practices

On your website

• “Donate” button visible on all pages
• Dedicated page explaining fund usage
• Beneficiary testimonials (with their consent)
• Key figures about your impact
• Integrated form, no redirect to a third-party site

On social media

• Direct link to donation form in bio
• Regular stories showing donation impact
• Thank you posts (respecting anonymity if desired)
• Special campaigns during key moments (end of year, world days)

During events

• QR code to donation form on all materials
• Tablet available for on-site memberships
• Email collection for newsletter
• Automated post-event follow-up

Mistakes that drive donors away

Asking for too much information

A donation form isn’t an administrative form. Every additional field increases abandonment rate. Ask yourself: “Is this information essential to process this donation?” If the answer is no, remove the field.

Neglecting mobile

65% of online donations are made from smartphones. A non-mobile-optimized form loses more than half of potential donors.

Forgetting the thank you

A donor who gives and receives nothing in return feels ignored. A simple automated thank you email changes everything. It validates the transaction. It reassures. It creates the connection.

Not showing impact

“Thank you for your donation” isn’t enough. “Thanks to your 30 euro donation, we can distribute 15 meals” is much more powerful. Be concrete.

Conclusion: collecting donations and memberships easily is possible

Nonprofits don’t have to suffer with inadequate tools. Collecting donations and memberships easily relies on simple principles:

• Short and reassuring forms
• Suggested amounts to guide donors
• Automations to never forget anything
• Centralization to keep control

The tools exist. They’re accessible. And they concretely change the lives of nonprofit leaders.

Every euro lost due to a too-long form or forgotten renewal is one less euro for your mission.

Ready to simplify your collection? Discover Skedox and create your first donation and membership forms in minutes. The platform is free to start. Your nonprofit deserves tools that match its commitment.