As we discussed in our post on The Anatomy of a Donation Form, small optimizations can make a big difference.
Here are some recent Optimization Lab results to help guide how to ask for a donation.
And please tweet your test results using #EOYTest—partners, organizations, and our team will be excited to see what’s been working for you.
Which form won? Both, sort of.
We hypothesized that the sequential donation form (right) would increase conversions for Freedom to Marry. While they both performed well, and the standard donation form had a higher conversion rate, the sequential donation form had a higher average gift amount, thus making it the choice for the client.
Takeaway: once you’ve established your goals and KPIs, be sure that your donation form is working for you and tailored to your donors. Mobile friendly is key, but how can you improve the overall experience to inspire more giving?
One-time? Nah. Make it monthly.
Sometimes a monthly donation ask comes towards the end of the donation process, or as a follow-up, but we wanted to challenge this setup. For a major nonprofit, we asked donors to make their donation monthly on the first page of the sequential donate experience, instead of toward the end. This resulted in a 4x increase in recurring donors without a negligible change in initial donations.
Takeaway: question your standard set up, be bold with your asks, and optimize the giving experience so that no dollar is left on the table.
Sweet’N Low
Knowing which amounts in a donation form will influence most people to give, or give generously, can be an important part of your testing strategy—one that we recommend doing now so that you’re fully optimized for the final push. In a recent test, we tested listing amounts from high to low, in place of the typical low to high. The result: the low-to-high format had a higher donation rate, showing that it’s important to challenge your assumptions, even when your assumptions turn out to be correct.
Takeaway: Always be optimizing in an effort to understand what moves your audience and in which environment. While high-to-low may work for you in email, it may not work for you on the form, and vice versa.
It’s never a one-size-fits-all approach though, so we recommend testing all different variables to better understand what motivates your audience: from types of forms to personalization to framing of donation asks and to donation amounts. Always be testing and don’t leave any money on the table during this all-important December giving season.
Have more testing ideas? Submit them here. Keep testing!