Soapbox Engage Blog

In 2023, Facebook remains one of the easiest, most affordable, and effective ways for nonprofits to expand their audience. A few years ago, Facebook added a feature that allows charities and nonprofits to add “Donate Now” buttons to their organization page.

With all the buzz and traffic on Facebook (and the continued success of social media fundraising campaigns), many nonprofits see this as great news for fundraising! But is it really? What are the pros and cons? And how do you add this button to your organization’s Facebook page? We dug up all the dirt on the Facebook Donate Now button to help you decide if it’s right for your fundraising goals.

Table of Contents

Facebook’s Donate Now Button: The Basics

• Two types of Facebook Donate Now buttons
• Donation fees? Not for charitable organizations!
• Do people actually donate through Facebook?
• How to add a donate button to your Facebook page
• A few other things to know

Facebook’s Donate Now Button: The Basics

Let’s start with an overview of the Donate Now button. It allows qualifying nonprofits to fundraise directly from their Facebook pages for a 0% processing fee. Still, it’s essential to read the fine print.

Two method of donating through Facebook

There are two different ways to get donations through Facebook.

Link to a donation page: The older version is still available to most nonprofits. It takes donors to an external website of your choice (like your custom donation page) to process online donations.

Linking to your own donation page means you can customize everything from the suggested donation amounts to the “thank-you” message, and you’ll be able to collect valuable donor information. Plus, you won’t need to spend valuable time managing another donation page.

If you use the Soapbox Engage Donations App, you can create a custom Donations page that integrates with your CRM, is endlessly customizable, can engage your community with unlimited peer-to-peer campaigns, and more.

The only real disadvantage of using a donate button that links to an external page is that it can create a bit of “friction” for potential donors because of the extra step. Many people feel uncertain about any additional steps in the donation process, so they may drop off before they complete the donation.

On-platform donation button: The updated Donate Now button uses an on-platform donation flow and connects directly to your bank. Only nonprofits that apply and are approved to use Facebook Fundraising Tools can use this new type of button.

The benefit of using this option is a smoother process. People prefer simple donation processes and staying on one page rather than being redirected.

Unfortunately, using the on-platform donation button does require a bit of set-up and maintenance. You’ll also be limited in how much you can customize the page and what information you can collect from your donors.

Donation fees? Not for charitable organizations!

There is good news across the board! Facebook covers all the fees for donations to charitable organizations. However, Facebook deducts payment processing fees for any personal fundraisers. Additional taxes may apply upon distribution in some countries and regions.

Do people actually donate through Facebook?

Social media has undoubtedly played a critical role in increasing awareness and activism around all kinds of causes and social justice issues. But it’s one thing to get the word out and quite another to get people to donate or actually get involved.

Early on, industry experts were skeptical about whether or not people would actually engage with social media donation options. But the numbers tell a different story. 83.4% of traffic to fundraising campaigns is driven by Facebook.

Instagram also allows eligible nonprofits to raise money directly on Instagram through either a profile donation button, a donation sticker in your Insta stories, or through live donations.

How to Add a Donate Now Button to Your Facebook Page

It’s really not hard to add a Donate Now button to your organization’s Facebook page! First, you’ll need to be a page admin. After that, it’s really quite simple.

Step 1: Once on your organization’s page, click the “...” under your page’s cover photo and choose “Add action button.”

Step 2: Click “try it.”

Step 3: Choose “donate.”

Step 4: Click “save.”

A few other things to know

In 2019 Facebook changed the regulations so that only nonprofits that are signed up with Facebook Payments can add a donation button to their page. Enrolling there is almost as simple as adding the donation button. However, the applications can take up to three weeks to be reviewed and approved.

If you’re using the on-platform payment option, your nonprofit must also adhere to all the community standards and provide valid bank information to Facebook.

Now that you’ve got your Facebook Donate Now button all set up and ready to go, here are three more resources to help you boost your online fundraising efforts.

• 6 Tips for Facebook Live Virtual Fundraising: Now that you’ve got a donation option on your Facebook page, it’s worth considering hosting an event on Facebook Live! It doesn’t need to be a whole production; your donors just love seeing what you’re up to! This blog has six great tips to make your Facebook Live events fun and effective.
• 6 Tips for Virtual Peer-to-Peer Fundraising: Peer-to-Peer fundraising has become more popular than ever in the social media age. It keeps audiences more engaged and can generate higher donation margins for your nonprofit! This blog has some of the best tips and tricks to help you build an effective virtual peer-to-peer fundraising campaign.
• Write a Fundraising Plan That Converts More Donors: Do you have a donation plan? Do you know where your new Facebook Donate Now button fits into that plan? It’s not enough to just ask as many people as possible to give money to the cause. Your nonprofit will benefit immensely from taking the time to write a fundraising plan. This blog will walk you through the steps and help you do just that!