Donors are always looking for more convenient ways to support the nonprofits they care about. Since 98% of Americans own a cell phone, giving via mobile is becoming increasingly popular.
In 2023, revenue from mobile messages increased by 14%, and text fundraising campaigns generated $92 for every 1,000 messages sent. Text-to-donate is an efficient, effective way to raise funds via SMS and make giving a part of donors’ routines.
This guide will help you get started with text-to-donate by covering the following topics:
Text-to-donate is a type of campaign that allows people to donate money to your organization from their cell phones via text message. It’s also referred to as text-to-give or text-to-pledge.
These are the main steps involved in the text-to-donate process:
By leveraging text-to-donate tools, your nonprofit will be able to:
While text-to-donate and text-to-give are both effective forms of mobile fundraising, they have a few slight differences:
Although text-to-donate takes a little extra work, it’s a more efficient way for your nonprofit to receive funds.
Nonprofits of all sizes can use and benefit from text-to-donate. Naturally, a nonprofit’s size often impacts its budget, which may dictate what kind of text-to-donate platform it can afford. Thankfully, there is a wide range of price and feature options, making text-to-donate a very accessible fundraising tool for all nonprofits.
A strong text-to-donate campaign starts with a solution that can support your needs, streamline giving, and maximize funds. Look for a platform that offers features like:
We’ll review some of our top text-to-donate software recommendations in the next section.
Next, you’ll choose a keyword for supporters to text to your fundraising phone number. The best text fundraising keywords are:
For example, if you’re running a text-to-give campaign to supplement your upcoming 5K, you might select the keyword “5K2025” since it relates directly to your campaign.
Develop a communication cadence for your text-to-donate campaigns. Leverage automation to personalize these messages using donors’ names and involvement details.
For example, you may create a segment for recurring givers, sending them a “Welcome back!” message that thanks them for their continued support.
While you likely already have a standard donation page, consider creating a simpler, mobile-focused option to direct text-to-donate donors to. This form should collect basic information like:
Additionally, you may provide a few suggested donation amounts for donors to choose from to guide their giving decisions.
Lastly, follow up with donors about giving opportunities. Take advantage of your platform’s automation tools to keep donors in the know without burdening your team.
Best for:
Nonprofits looking for a text-to-donate platform that connects to a full suite of other fundraising tools and Bloomerang CRM for comprehensive, cohesive fundraising.
Top features:
How it works:
Check out this video to see Qgiv’s text fundraising tools in action:
Case study:
Hear about Qgiv’s powerful text-to-donate features from a real customer: “We used the text-to-donate tool for our scholarship luncheon. We had a goal of about $1,500, and we far exceeded that goal just from text donations. People were really interested in that.”
“We also use Qgiv for our donation page and our peer-to-peer fundraising activities. We’re able to clone the events, so I don’t have to spend a lot of time recreating an event with the same criteria as a previous one. It definitely saves me a lot of time!”
Taylor Millspaugh, Business Development Specialist, Big Brothers Big Sisters Rhode Island
Pricing:
$159/month, which includes text donations, outbound messages and reminders, screencast, and training, and 3.95% + $0.30 per transaction.
Best for:
Nonprofits looking to use a specific type of fundraising phone number, whether local, toll-free, or shortcode.
Top features:
Pricing:
Snowball Fundraising offers the following pricing plans:
Best for:
Nonprofits running text-to-donate campaigns in conjunction with auctions.
Top features:
Pricing:
Starts at $1,396 with single event and multi-event packages available and 3.5% + $0.30 per transaction.
Best for:
Nonprofits looking for a text-to-donate solution that integrates with political fundraising platforms and enables political fundraising campaigns.
Top features:
Pricing:
Contact Tatango for pricing information.
Best for:
Small or new nonprofits looking for a basic, cost-effective way to run text-to-donate campaigns.
Top features:
Pricing:
Free with transaction fees depending on your third-party payment processor.
Best for: Churches looking for an affordable way to run text-to-donate campaigns.
Top features:
Pricing:
Tithe.ly offers the following pricing plans:
Tithe.ly also offers text-to-give as a stand-alone service for $19/month. All plans have additional transaction fees depending on the payment method, with 2.9% for credit card transactions and 1% for ACH transactions.
Best for:
Nonprofits already using WordPress donation forms looking for a simple way to incorporate text-to-donate.
Top features:
Pricing:
Available as an add-on for $79/year with additional transaction fees from Stripe and Twilio.
Best for: Nonprofits looking for a text-to-donate platform that covers transaction fees for smaller donations (under $1,000).
Top features:
Pricing:
$5 disbursement fee to receive funds and 2.9% + $0.30 transaction fee for donations over $1,000.
Best for: Nonprofits looking for a text-to-donate platform that they can get up and running with quickly.
Top features:
Pricing:
Available as an add-on for $19/month with a standard keyword and $50/month with a custom keyword with transaction fees depending on the payment method.
Make it easy for donors to participate in text-to-donate by providing clear instructions. Walk donors through the process step-by-step. Then, share these steps via email, social media, and in person to guide them. Consider attaching visuals like screenshots and/or videos so people can easily follow along and submit their contributions.
Once you’ve set up your first text-to-give campaign, have a few staff members test it. That way, you can gather feedback before opening it up to your entire donor base. You may even host a brief focus group to get people’s thoughts and work out any improvements.
Share this new donation method widely through channels such as email, social media, blog posts, and direct mail. Explain the benefits of contributing through text-to-donate, such as added convenience, and encourage supporters to join in.
After donors contribute, automate thank-you messages that acknowledge their support. Attach donation receipts that they can keep in their records and use for tax deduction purposes.
Review text fundraising metrics like open rate and conversion rate to determine your successes and identify areas for improvement. You may also directly survey text-to-donate donors to gather qualitative feedback about their experiences.
A text-to-donate campaign makes it easy to meet donors where they are—on their cell phones—and raise money in minutes via text messages. If you’re interested in learning about other fundraising opportunities, check out these additional resources:
