Online Donation

An online donation, with a credit card on a secure site, is the quickest, most economical way of helping a non-profit charitable organization meet crucial needs. Such ease to make charitable gifts has revolutionized the process of giving money. On average, about 70% of Americans give a total of 2 percent of their income in contributions, but the Internet has increased their size. The Salvation Army has said they frequently receive envelopes with $20 or $50 checks, but the average online donations were $185.

Online gifts have catapulted compassionate giving to charities because of the convenience, automation, and immediate benefits to both the charity and philanthropist. However, if donors don't do their homework, this form of making a contribution can be risky. Evaluate each website's authenticity beyond the meta tags that pop up in a Google search. For example, over 4,000 fraudulent websites tried to lure online contributions from benevolent donors rushing to help with the recent natural disasters. Legitimate charities welcome questions and freely supply information about their nonprofit status, annual reports, or how planning to use the online donation. As with any gift to need based organizations, the contributions should be based on informed giving to organizations who are reputable and committed to giving the highest percentage of your online donation to a cause. If there is any question about the site security, double check to make sure that the site uses encryption technology for data transmission. Do not make online donations based on an e-mail or chain letters sent an email inbox. Never give personal information or credit card numbers for online donations without being sure that there is a privacy policy. Plus, if in doubt, call or e-mail the organization about personal concerns before processing the contribution.

Once the transaction has been made, the sender's e-mail confirmation will meet the IRS requirement for proof of giving. If an e-mail confirmation does not arrive, find out why before making any further online donations. If donations in the past were made, the charities can continue to send updates, newsletters and breaking news at no cost through the contact e-mail address. Find out exactly how an online donation made a difference, plus be a further part of programs that touch personal issues. Motivation to give is love in action. "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:34-35)

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