Text to Give: Make Mobile Giving a Breeze
You want to meet people where they are. In this day and age, that's their phones. So wouldn't it make sense to give people an easy way to donate to your nonprofit… by sending texts? See how it works with a free demo today.
What Is "Text to Give"?
"Text to give" refers to nonprofits accepting donations via texting. With Mobile Text Alerts, this involves allowing the user to text in a particular "keyword" (such as DONATION). When the user texts in this word, they'll receive an automated text message back with your donation link. They can then follow that link in order to donate.How Does Text to Give Work?
Step 1: Set Up Your Donation Keyword
You can set up a donation keyword within the Mobile Text Alerts platform. You'll be able to designate what word you want people to text in order to donate, and what you want the donation message to say.
Step 2: Make Sure You Include Your Donation Link
When setting up your donation keyword and message, make sure you include the link to your donation page. (This would be whatever online page you already use to accept donations.)
Step 3: Give People Instructions to Text in the Keyword
Once your donation keyword and message are all set up (including your donation link), tell people to text that keyword into the phone number specified in your Mobile Text Alerts account. When they text it in, they'll automatically receive the text message with the donation link.
So Text to Give Makes Giving Super Easy - How Else Does It Help?
No Technical Knowledge Needed
Setup is easy-peasy. Just click-click-click, type in a few things, and you’re good to go!
Free 1-on-1 Walkthrough
Getting started with any new tool can feel intimidating. But you can have free access to a full personalized walkthrough and get all your questions answered. (No commitment required.)
Connect with Donors via SMS
Not only can you use the texting platform to collect donations, you can also use it to send text messages to your donor (or member) contact list.
Friendly Live Help
Even with an easy-peasy platform, you may have questions from time to time. That’s why it’s nice to have nearly instant access to friendly live support when needed.
Budget-Friendly Plans
If you’re like most nonprofits, you’re on a pretty strict budget. But never fear! You can use text to give for as little as $20/month with Mobile Text Alerts.
Decluttering Is Fun
You can “declutter” your life with organization management options like contact grouping, unlimited users and automated messaging.
Who Can Use Text to Give?
Any nonprofit can use text to give as a part of their fundraising arsenal.
Here are a few examples…
- Churches
- Government-run organizations
- Healthcare services
- Political candidates
- Political groups
- Religious organizations
- Schools and universities
Here’s a Step-by-Step Breakdown…
Step 1
First, you'll sign up for an account at Mobile Text Alerts. (No credit card will be required - it will just ask you to enter your email address and create a password.)
Step 2
Next, you'll be assigned a phone number for your account. You can request a different one if you prefer something different.
Step 3
After that, you’ll go to the Opt-In Methods→Keywords tab within the platform. This is where you’ll set up a “keyword” that you can have potential donors text in so that they automatically receive your donation link.
Click “Add Opt-In Keyword.”
Step 4
Next, you’ll type in the keyword you’d like to use, and the “Auto-Response” message you’d like to send out whenever someone texts in your keyword.
An example of a keyword you could use would be DONATION or GIVE.
An example of an Auto-Response message would be something similar to the following: Thanks for your willingness to give! Tap here to donate: http://mbltxt.com/zFH
Step 5
Let your audience know what word they should text in, and what phone number they should text it into.
For example, you could post the following instructions on your website, in social media posts, somewhere at your physical location, or anywhere else:
Text DONATION to 402-475-9928 to donate!
Then all they need to do is follow the instructions to receive your donation link so that they can donate via their mobile phone.
“Easy to use service with THE BEST customer support”
Give “Text to Give” a Try for Free
How to Text to Give Money (and Other Questions You May Have)
How to text to give money?
To text to give money to your organization, your donors will simply need to…
- Send in a text message to the phone number that comes with your account.
- That text will trigger an automated message to send back to them.
- This automated message can have your organization's current donation link, so all that people need to do is tap the link to be taken to your donation page.
How effective is texting?
Texting is one of the most effective ways to really reach people today. To put it in perspective, 98% of text messages are read.
That's why it makes sense to incorporate texting into your donation strategy. You want to make it as convenient as possible for people to donate to your organization.
What's included in the free trial?
The free trial gives you 50 messaging credits for 14 days. This essentially means you can use the texting platform to accept 50 donations.
Can you use the texting platform for other things besides donations?
Yes!
You can use the texting platform for any kind of update. Some of these may include:
- Member Updates: "Announcement! We're opening a new location at 33rd and Old Cheney Rd. Check out more details here: http://mbltxt.com/qGI"
- Cancellations: "Tomorrow's service is canceled due to snow! See you next week!"
- Fundraising Campaigns: "Help us make a difference. Your support matters! Today only, every donation is DOUBLED thanks to a generous donor! 🎉 Click here to donate: http://mbltxt.com/Djs
- Event Promotion and Reminders: "Join us tonight for our Annual Gala at 7:30pm at the downtown Marriott Hotel! See you there."
- Volunteer Recruiting or Organization: "Attention all volunteers! We need you to check in by 5pm for tonight's event. We appreciate your willingness to help and we'll see you soon!"
- Personal Needs: "Shelly Johnson is requesting prayer for her doctor's visit today. If you know Shelly, consider letting her know you're thinking about her and praying!"
- New Visitors: "Thanks for visiting Calvary Community Church! We'd love to get to know you better. Reply YES if you're interested in chatting with a pastor."
- Facility Maintenance: "Because of current remodeling, please avoid using the main parking lot and enter the building through the side doors. Thank you!"
What else does the text to give platform offer?
You're able to do much more than allow people to give. You can also do things like:
- Engage in 2-way messaging conversation, so that you can have personalized interactions with your audience
- Integrate with your other services, so that you can streamline messaging with your current contact database (or other software)
- Create automated messaging flows to send SMS campaigns, so that you can take full advantage of texting for your nonprofit
- View reporting that allows you to analyze you're messaging efforts, so that you can make decisions about how to use SMS
- Use any of multiple opt-in methods, so that you have flexible ways to get people added to your SMS contact list
How much does it cost?
You can find info about plans here.
