Answers for Administrators
You can create giving events by going to Events > Add New Event. An event can be a donation fund, campaign, cause or merchandise item ─ any way in which your organization collects money. Once events are created, your supporters can contribute to any of these different categories. You can make it even easier by creating custom links that take donors directly to your organization's website.
You can place links for use on your website, e-mails and social media pages. Go to Events > Event Link Generator to select the events in which you want to create links. Complete the fields at the bottom of the page. If you want to gather more information from your donors, you can create questions for them to answer when they visit your web pages
Use the custom link created above and attach it to a donation button with a message such as "Donate Now" or "Support the Children's Foundation." Ask your webmaster to place this button prominently on your website. Click here to download donation buttons for your use.
GiveCentral reports tell you who made payments, to which events and on what dates. All reports are downloadable in CSV format which is compatible with Microsoft Excel. You can use any of the following reports that best suits your needs:
Deposit Report: This lists all payments made by registered donors and guests. It shows only the payments that have been batched and sent to your bank account for deposit. Payments may take 1-3 days to appear on this report.
Donor Report: This is a real-time report of all payments made by registered donors. It includes payments made during the last few minutes.
Guest Report: This is a real-time report of all payments made by non-registered guest pay donors. It includes payments made during the last few minutes.
Scheduled Payments Report: This report shows payments that are scheduled to be automatically processed in the future.
Credit card payment batches will appear on your bank statement as: Bankcard Deposit $45 or GoE Bankcard Deposit $45
ACH payment batches will appear on your bank statement as: GoE E-Check Settlement $45
Donations will be posted within 1-3 business days after they are initially processed. GiveCentral will batch credit card and ACH payments for deposit shortly thereafter.
When you set up an event, it must have a start date and an end date. Events will be visible to donors on the start date. Events will disappear from view after the end date. You are able to edit this date range at any time.
When a donor signs up for payment, they can choose any date within this range to begin making scheduled payments. The start date that a donor chooses is when the first payment will be processed. The end date that a donor chooses is the last date a payment will be processed.
The default date can be pre-selected by administrators and serves as the start date unless a donor chooses to change it. This feature is designed for donors who want to schedule payments for seasonal events, such as a holiday fund, at a different time of the year. Donors can opt for different default dates if they like.
GiveCentral lets you reconcile your bank deposits using QuickBooks software. Simply download the QuickBooks report in GiveCentral and upload it to QuickBooks, then divide bank deposits by donation fund.
When a donor sets up automatic payments in GiveCentral, no further action is required to accept donations to your bank account. If the donor information is not yet saved in GiveCentral, you will need to create a donor profile. To do this, go to Donors > Add New Donor then add the contact information, credit card number or bank account information for the donor.
You can add recurring payments by opening the donor profiles and clicking on Add New Event. To process one-time payments, go to Donors > One-Time Payments and click on Process Payment. Enter the amount, payment method and optional note, then click Submit.
If an erroneous payment is made, you can issue full and partial refunds through GiveCentral. Once the payment has cleared, go to Donors > Issue Refunds and locate the erroneous payment using the search criteria. Select the erroneous payment, click on Process Refund and add an optional note, then click Submit.
Donors can change their payment schedules at any time by logging onto GiveCentral and editing their account. In addition, administrators can add, edit or delete donor payments except when donors block their authorization. To change a payment, click on the donor profile under the Donors tab. Click to add a new event, edit an existing event or delete an existing event. If you are editing an existing event, the start date that you choose will be the date their first payment is processed.
GiveCentral is more than just a website for accepting online donations. It is also a powerful way to reach out to your greater community. The communication portal makes it easy to send electronic messages to your online donors, non-donor community or both.
Answers for Donors
GiveCentral is an easy way to contribute to nonprofit organizations. If your chosen charity or cause is on our website, it has signed up to use GiveCentral to receive donations. For nonprofit organizations, GiveCentral is the lowest cost way to accept online contributions. For donors, GiveCentral is convenient to use.
By registering with GiveCentral, you are creating an online profile that you can use to make donations in the future. Your credit card or checking account information will be securely saved so you can access it later.
GiveCentral shares your information only with the organization in which you have chosen to donate. That organization has access to your contact information so it can acknowledge your generosity and keep you apprised of how your donation is being used. Organizations using GiveCentral are not authorized to share that information with other parties.
GiveCentral uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption, the industry standard in online payments. SSL ensures that your credit card or checking account number is stored securely with First American Bank. Once your payment method is saved online, only GiveCentral and your chosen organization can see the last four digits of these numbers.
You can donate to different funds using different credit cards, debit cards or checking account numbers. After you create a donor profile in GiveCentral, you can add multiple payment methods.
You can log on to your GiveCentral account and change your donations at any time. To view your ongoing donations, go to My Events and add, edit or delete any events.
Nonprofit organizations must sign up with GiveCentral to accept donations through this website. If you would like to donate to a nonprofit organization not listed on the GiveCentral website, please contact us via e-mail at info@givecentral.org.
To retrieve either, click the Log in button on the home page. On the following screen, click Forgot Username? or Forgot Password? and follow the instructions. If you are still unable to recover your username or password, please contact the organization you support for assistance.
After logging on to your account, go to My Profile Information on the home page, then click on Edit Profile.
After logging on to your account, go to My Payment Information. You can save multiple payment methods and use them for different events. You can also edit the expiration date or address of your credit card. You can replace your payment method with a new one. Finally, you can delete a payment method that you aren't using.
Click on Reports and select the type of report that you would like to run: Organization, Event(s), Date Range and Transaction Type. Reports can be downloaded in Excel, CSV and PDF formats.
The Card Verification Value (CVV) is a three- or four-digit number that is unique to each credit and debit card. This additional security feature is designed to protect you by helping to ensure the card is present during the purchase. It is printed only on the card and never on receipts or statements.
You must contact that organization about the donation to have the payment adjusted. GiveCentral is not authorized to alter processed donations.
In most situations, it is best to contact the organization that you are supporting. It will be most familiar with how it uses GiveCentral. In addition, it has the ability to make changes to your account, answer your questions and implement suggested improvements to its online giving presence.
Answers for Fundraising For The Future
Many locations know that they can improve giving but need a kickstart. You need help bringing information together, personalizing communications, and reaching out. You need help using new media and technology. Or maybe you just need an extra pair of hands. We provide the support to improve information, personalize communication, and increase giving.
We know some of our donors are older. Our communities can be very diverse. Older donors may prefer calls and mail. Some prefer email and Skype. Some donors prefer cash, while others prefer smartphones. Our goal is not to change your community. Our goal is to listen and provide tools that make it easier for them to engage and potentially to give more.
Our philosophy is that communications and giving are an “and” not an “or”. People want choices for communication and donating -- from mailings, calls, emails, and blogs, to cash, checks, online/mobile and text giving.
We can help personalize communications and come to your meetings. We can help organize and integrate your data. We can even help you find your "lost" emails. We will provide training and knowledge transfer, and consistently work to increase giving. We will be there to help make it all easy for you.
We can help customize everything from the text response to email thank yous. GiveCentral can also make sure a donor’s credit card statement is personalized based on your requirements.
You can learn more by reaching out to us via phone or email (312-929-2306, info@givecentral.org) so we can learn about your your goals and help customize a solution for you. You can get started as soon as today. We look forward to hearing from you!
Our goal is to have a measurable impact on communications within 12 weeks. We want to make sure that you can see results quickly.
Yes. If we haven’t had a measurable impact with your community within the first 12 weeks, we will refund any fees due. We don't want you to feel obligated without success. We want you to feel that we are there to help.
We are focused on you. We prioritize ease of use, personal communication, simple integration, and most importantly, helping you keep more of the funds you raise.