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FAQs for members of the public about GiveNow.com.au

FAQs for community organisations about GiveNow.com.au

How much does it cost to use GiveNow?

Nothing! In line with Our Community’s policy of providing a mixed business and community model, particularly in providing a comprehensive range of free services to the community, GiveNow charges no commissions for processing donations. We pass on 100% of your donation to your nominated group, less the standard fees charged to the group by the credit card companies for processed costs. We have negotiated a reduced charge for most major credit cards – this fee currently sits at 1.28% for Visa and Mastercard and 1.43% for Amex.

The key benefit of donating online is that you minimise the fees and overhead costs incurred by the organisation you are donating to, which through other fundraising activities can often be as high as 30% and even more.

How do I make a donation to a community group through the GiveNow.com.au website?

All you need is a credit card and a good heart. The GiveNow.com.au service provides giving channels that allow you to learn about and donate to a group, school, crisis, cause, charity or community that interests you.

Is giving to a community organisation the same as giving to a charity?

We use the term ‘community organisation’ or ‘community group’ to describe any not-for-profit organisation operating in Australia – that includes traditional charities such as the Red Cross and Oxfam but also other not-for-profit organisations that are also doing good work for no material gain; groups like schools, kindergartens, sporting and arts groups, for example. We believe all of these organisations are equally deserving of financial support.

Is my donation tax deductible?

Not-for-profit status does not automatically qualify an organisation for tax deductibility status. Donations to a not-for-profit or community organisation are only tax deductible when:

  1. An organisation is endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR). This can be checked on the Australian Business Register at www.abr.business.gov.auand is also indicated for each organisation listed on the GiveNow.com.au website;
  2. The donation is greater than $2; and
  3. An authorised receipt has been received. All receipts for donations made online to Deductible Gift Recipients using the GiveNow.com.au service will meet the requirements.

Only around 20,000 of the 700,000 community organisations operating in Australia have been endorsed as DGRs. We believe all 700,000 are potentially worthy of your donation, though only a fraction can offer you a tax donation.

How does the donation process work?

Once you have selected the cause you want to support, click the relevant button (either ‘GIVE A ONE OFF DONATION’ or ‘GIVE A RECURRING DONATION’) and you will be asked to provide your name, email address, and credit card information, as well as the amount of your donation. This section of the website is totally secure.

We then verify your credit card information and provide you with an email confirming your donation. In line with legislative requirements and our own strict code of practice, we then transfer the funds into a secure bank account for passing on to the nominated organisation you have selected.

Our Community and its banking partners will make every effort to make sure your donation is processed quickly and efficiently.  

Who’s behind GiveNow.com.au?

GiveNow.com.au is an initiative of the Our Community Foundation, a not-for-profit program established through the financial support of Our Community – www.ourcommunity.com.au. Our Community is a privately held enterprise that provides a number of business and community services, some of them free, some of them paid, many of them discounted for community organisations.  Find out more about Our Community here: www.ourcommunity.com.au/aboutus.

Some of the profits from the operation of the Our Community enterprise have been used to establish the Our Community Foundation, a principal activity of which is the operation of the GiveNow.com.au website.

This commission-free online donations service is part of Our Community’s mission to democratise giving in Australia – ensuring that even the tiniest community groups have the same access to safe, secure online donations technology as the largest groups. It is our belief that these small, grassroots community groups are every bit as important to community life as the larger ones, and that they should be supported by their communities.

We also believe that donations made in good faith to community organisations should not be subjected to hefty administrative fees.

The GiveNow.com.au online donations service is offered free to any community group in Australia, regardless of size or purpose or tax status. The service is non-exclusive, non-binding and fee-free (only credit card fees are deducted from donations). This allows any community group with a bank account and the will to raise funds to take advantage of this important and rapidly growing mode of fundraising.

We also seek to raise the profile of giving in general – providing a range of ideas on non-monetary ways to give as well as help sheets on how people can become more strategic givers.

In addition, GiveNow News, a monthly e-newsletter, provides ongoing education for members of the Australian public who want to become bigger and better givers.

GiveNow.com.au is proudly supported by Westpac.

How long has GiveNow.com.au been operating?

GiveNow.com.au was launched in March 2000 as the Australian Giving Centre, housed on the Our Community website at www.ourcommunity.com.au.

At this point in history, just before the tech-wreck, only a tiny number of Australian community organisations had even contemplated setting up an online donations facility.

Since its very beginnings, GiveNow.com.au has offered access to a commission-free online donations service to any community group in Australia, regardless of size or purpose or tax status.

We have since raised well in excess of $12 million for community organisations across Australia, with more than 50,000 people having used this service to make a donation.

The service was renamed GiveNow.com.au  in January 2009, and relaunched with a new website in November of that year.  

What services are provided at GiveNow.com.au?

We’re adding things to the site daily so the best way to find out what’s available at GiveNow.com.au is to explore the site.

But as a quick rundown:

  1. Online Donations: Find a cause that speaks to you. Search by name, location or interest area. There are more than 1600 listed appeals, with causes spanning every possible interest area and organisations located in every corner of Australia. You can give a one-off donation or spread your giving by setting up an ongoing payment.  It’s important to note that GiveNow.com.au is entirely commission-free.
  2. Personalised giving: Create an account at GiveNow.com.au to keep a record of your donations throughout the year and from year to year. GiveNow.com.au is the only place in Australia where you can track your donations to any number of causes in this way. ·      
  3. Making tax time easier: We keep track of your donations and send you a tax record at the end of every financial year, making tax time a breeze!·      
  4. Other ways to give: We know that not everyone is in a position to give money, but we believe everyone can give something. GiveNow.com.au provides the tools you need to get started, including listings of where you can give clothes, furniture, mobile phones and food, information sheets on how to give blood or become an organ donor, and tips on how to give land, shares, bequests and time.
  5. Building giving expertise: As well as providing help sheets on how to become a more strategic giver, we have produced Australia’s first and only giving e-newsletter, GiveNow News, delivered monthly to your inbox.
  6. Trusted, reliable: GiveNow.com.au has already collected over $12 million for community groups right across Australia. More than 60,000 people have used this service to make a credit card donation.

What’s the benefit of donating online?

The key benefit of donating online is that you minimise the fees and overhead costs incurred by the organisation you are donating to, which through other fundraising activities can often be as high as 30% and even more.  

How much of my donation will reach the group I donate to?

Unlike almost every other giving service anywhere in the world, GiveNow.com.au is totally commission-free – we don’t charge for your donation.

Only credit card fees are deducted by the credit card merchants, and even these are smaller than you’ll usually be charged when using your credit card.

Unlike other giving websites, we don’t charge community groups any fees. The costs of running the site are covered by Our Community – it’s our way of giving back.

How can I be sure that the group I’m giving to is legit?

We check every single organisation listed with us for donations to ensure they are a properly constituted not-for-profit organisation.

We also check to ensure that the donations we receive from you are going to the organisation itself, not to someone’s private bank account.

And we check that all organisations that need to obtain authority to fundraise through state bodies have done so.

Can I make an anonymous donation?

No. For security purposes, we cannot process credit card transaction without full donor details.

Who qualifies to receive donations through GiveNow.com.au?

All not-for-profit and community organisations which are incorporated can apply to receive online donations at GiveNow.com.au. This is provided that the state authorities, national registers or Australian Tax Office validate that the organisation exists.

To receive donations via the GiveNow.com.au facility, we require documentation and information regarding the organisation, including an authority to fundraise, as applicable.  Organisations interested in receiving online donations can find out more at www.ourcommunity.com.au/receivedonations.

Is it safe to give my credit card details?

Our Community has managed this secure online donations system for the past 10 years. We have never had a security breach.

We use 256-bit SSL security to protect your credit card details as they travel across the internet, which is the same security that every major bank uses to protect your data.

What’s your privacy policy?

GiveNow.com.au is governed by the Privacy and Ethics policies of our parent organisation, Our Community. Click here to find out more.

Briefly, though, be assured that GiveNow.com.au will never sell or loan or give away information collected from any of our activities.

The information you provide to us will only be provided to the organisation you are giving to.

No data collected from the site will be disclosed to any additional parties except where it is legally required, such as in the investigation of a criminal offence, and in compliance with a search warrant or subpoena.

What if I want to contact the organisation before I give?

Each cause listing provides contact details for the organisation that is collecting the funds. Please contact the organisation directly if you have any queries.   

FAQs for community organisations about GiveNow.com.au

How much does it cost to use GiveNow?

Nothing! In line with Our Community’s policy of providing a mixed business and community model, particularly in providing a comprehensive range of free services to the community, GiveNow charges no commissions for processing donations. We pass on 100% of the donation to your group, less the standard fees charged to the group by the credit card companies for processed costs. We have negotiated a reduced charge for most major credit cards – this fee currently sits at 1.28% for Visa and Mastercard and 1.43% for Amex.

The key benefit of donating online is that you minimise the fees and overhead costs incurred by the organisation you are donating to, which through other fundraising activities can often be as high as 30% and even more.

Why bother with online donations?

A few important statistics that all community and non-profit groups should know are listed below:

  1. British comedy fundraiser Comic Relief raised £16 million (more than $A33.2million) online in a six-hour period during its 2009 appeal. This compared to raising just £5.25 million ($A10.8 million) in 2001.
  2. The US Red Cross has found that online donors give on average $US127 ($A180), compared to $US22 ($A31) via traditional mail-ins.
  3. A US study by The Social Initiative showed that online donations had grown from just $10m ($A14.2 million) online in 1999 to $250 million ($A355 million) in 2000 and $5 billion ($A7.1 billion) in 2006.
  4. American online donation organisations have recorded growth in online donations as being between 33% and 50% since 2006.
  5. Community Groups listed on GiveNow.com.au (formerly known as the Australian Giving Centre) raised more than $10 million in the first eight years of the centre’s operations. The annual giving figure has grown markedly every year.

People are increasingly comfortable about transacting online – in fact, many people now demand it. If you don’t provide this option for your supporters, you risk missing out.

Who ‘owns’ the donors’ details?

You do. We collect the donor details so that we can process the donation, but we are never allowed to use this data without your consent. All donor details are passed to your organisation along with your monthly remittance.

Why register for online donations with GiveNow.com.au?

The GiveNow.com.au service provides information about crises and causes, as well as a searchable database of not-for-profit and community groups, all in one place. We provide individual donors with a wealth of information and make it easy for them to donate online to the group or cause of their choice.

GiveNow.com.au provides a quick, convenient and secure way for individual donors to give time or money to the causes and groups of their choice. Besides being quick and secure, there are a number of other reasons for registering your organisation:

  1. Access to a secure donations service. Setting up your own secure online donations service is extremely costly. We provide this service to you for free.
  2. New audience of potential donors. Our Community partners with many high-traffic websites to bring your organisation and its message to a broad pool of potential donors. In addition, we undertake many awareness raising and other promotional activities to push traffic into the GiveNow.com.au website.
  3. Direct transaction of online donations. Donors give online with their credit card and we remit this money directly to your account.
  4. No membership fees or commissions. Our service is free of any charges from us. We take no commission or fee-for-service. We only deduct from your donations the cost of credit card fees, which have been negotiated at a lower-than-normal rate for groups using the GiveNow.com.au service.

Who issues the receipts?

With the permission of the Australian Tax Office, we are able to issue receipts on your behalf. We do this in email form immediately after the donation has been accepted, and again at the end of each financial year.

However, you can choose to do the receipting yourself after we send the donor details through at the end of each month. Please advise us when you send in your agreement which option you prefer.

Who else is using the GiveNow.com.au online donations facility?

More than 1600 community groups use the GiveNow.com.au donations service.

We service the smaller groups such as TheatreWorks and Edgar’s Mission through to much larger organisations such as the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Listed groups come from every corner of the community sector – schools, CFA branches, charities, sports clubs, self-help groups – they’re all there.

If you would like to speak to a referee from an organisation with an existing listing with GiveNow.com.au, please let us know.

When and how will we receive our donations?

We will transfer to your nominated bank account the total of your donations that are collected at the end of each month, less the credit card fees.

You will receive an email notifying you of this as soon as the transfer has been made. This will include an Excel spreadsheet attachment containing the full details of your donors.

Can we offer donors a tax deduction for their donation?

If your organisation is an ATO-approved Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), the receipt will entitle them to a tax deduction.

If you don’t know if your group has DGR status, visit http://www.ato.gov.au/nonprofit/ and follow the links.

How can I promote my new online donations facility?

Your success in collecting donations is dependent on how well you tell people about it. Placing a link to your appeal on the bottom of all emails and on your letterhead, and including articles in your newsletters and direct mail campaigns are all important ways of getting your message across.

Above all, though, you have to ask people to give.

More information about online fundraising is in Our Community’s online Community Funding Centre at www.ourcommunity.com.au/funding.

Who will give to my group?

A few people who come to GiveNow.com.au without a particular group in mind may give to your organisation. Most of your donors, however, will be people who already know you, and the bulk of those people will be those you have sent there by recommendations printed in your promotional material or attached to links on your website.

What level of donations can my group expect to receive through GiveNow.com.au?

The largest single donation received through the GiveNow.com.au service was $100,000, with the smallest being $5. Most donations fall somewhere in between.

But, again, you will only get donations if you ask people to give. Very few people will find your listing if you don’t point them to it. Many groups also suggest how much people should give, depending on need and the anticipated capacity of their donors.

Donors using GiveNow.com.au also have the option of making a regular donation that is automatically deducted from their credit card once a month. There are currently more than 1000 donors making a monthly contribution to a group of their choice through GiveNow.com.au.

Can we register for online donations with GiveNow.com.au even if we don't have DGR status?

Yes! Only around 20,000 of the 700,000 community organisations operating in Australia have been endorsed as DGRs. We believe all 700,000 deserve free online donations.

If you don’t know if your group has DGR status, visit http://www.ato.gov.au/nonprofit/ and follow the links.

How can I find out more?

Email to: service@givenow.com.au
Telephone: (03) 9320 6800
Fax to: (03) 9326 6859
Write to: GiveNow.com.au
51 Stanley St
West Melbourne VIC 3003
Online: www.givenow.com.au
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