Multi-step donation forms are typically more accessible, easier to use, better visually, and produce more conversions than single-step donation forms. This article dives into why this is true and how you can create an effective multi-step donation form for your nonprofit.
An optimized and effective online donation form should be a top priority for your nonprofit. After all, 51% of high-wealth donors prefer to make their charitable contributions online! If your form is challenging to use or takes a long time to complete, you’re likely going to lose out on donations.
Multi-step donation forms provide your donors with the positive giving experience they are looking for. They are easier to use on mobile devices, they reduce cognitive load, and they have a cleaner look and feel when compared to single-step forms that often take up entire pages.
In this article, we’ll dive deeper into what a multi-step form is and the advantages of applying this tactic to your donation forms.
Multi-step forms are longer forms that are broken down into several pieces or pages. Typically, creators of these forms group specific fields together (such as contact information or payment details) into separate steps. The user will then click through each step to complete the form.
On the other hand, a single-step form lives entirely on one page of a website. Entering information into multiple fields is still required, but everything the user will need to fill out is in one place and can all be seen at one time.
Single-step forms are ideal when only a few pieces of information are needed and the number of fields to fill out is limited. For example, signing up for an email newsletter only requires an email address, plus a name, if desired. A customer support form usually only needs a field for the user’s issue or question in addition to a field or two for their contact information.
It’s best to use a multi-step form when you need to collect additional information that requires several fields, such as medical appointment check-ins, registrations for camps or programs, event ticket sales, and – of course – donation forms.
Donorbox Donation Forms are multi-step forms that make the giving process as smooth as possible for your donors, while still collecting the information you need to not only complete the transaction but acknowledge each gift and build upon your relationships with your donors.
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There are several advantages to using a multi-step donation form on your nonprofit’s giving page.
Cognitive load refers to the amount of information our brains can process and understand at one time. Long single-step forms often overload our brains with too much information at once, making it difficult to understand and complete the task at hand.
Breaking down your donation form into smaller, more manageable pieces reduces cognitive load and makes it easier to process. Even if you technically use the same number of fields as you would on a single-step form, ensuring your users’ minds only have to process a small chunk of information at one time lessens the chances that they’ll get overwhelmed and give up on filling out the form.
In short, fewer perceived steps that are easy to process usually lead to more completed forms – and more donations!
Pro tip: One of the benefits of single-step forms is that users know exactly how long it will take to fill them out at a single glance. To maintain transparency about the length of your multi-step donation form, include a progress bar at the top that shows how many steps remain, like this one used by Surrendered Artist.
Donorbox’s multi-step donation forms automatically include this progress bar. Plus, it’s easy to use the provided arrows to navigate backward and forward through the steps as needed.
Learn more about Donorbox Donation Forms
Multi-step donation forms also improve the accessibility of your donation page. This means that anyone, regardless of their age, socioeconomic status, skill level, or ability, can easily access and navigate your website.
Single-step giving forms, especially if they are designed with small text, are typically not considered accessible. They can be difficult for older generations and those with certain disabilities to read and navigate. Most multi-step forms, however, employ accessibility tactics such as descriptive form fields that are simpler for screen readers to capture.
Contactless fundraising became more popular than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s not going away anytime soon. This method of fundraising, which includes tactics such as online giving forms, donation kiosks, text-to-give, and more, doesn’t require donors to receive any assistance from fundraisers.
Multi-step donation forms make truly contactless fundraising possible by empowering your donors. They’ll feel confident in their ability to independently fill out your form. And, when they don’t have to take the time to ask for help, donors will be more likely to finish the process!
Let’s face it – long forms with several fields are just plain ugly. It’s difficult to lay them out in a visually appealing way and they take up valuable space on your donation page you could be using for a powerful call to action, an impactful story, and eye-catching photos or videos.
Not only do multi-step donation forms look better on your page, but they also leave more space for all of the important things you need to appeal to your potential donors and encourage them to make a gift.
Pro tip: Take your multi-step donation form to the next level by customizing it to match your organization’s brand identity.
Hardly anyone goes anywhere without their smartphones these days. There are many who prefer to use them for just about everything, including donating to their favorite charities. In fact, 25% of donors complete their donations using a mobile device!
It’s simply a must that you take mobile giving into consideration when designing your donation form. A multi-step process will function far better on one of these devices than a long, single-step donation form.
With a single-step form, mobile users must scroll a lot or zoom in on separate areas of the form to complete it. Multi-step forms enable donors to simply click through, with each page optimized to fit and function well within their smaller screen.
Take a look at this example from Donorbox user Upward Scholars. Notice that this entire form fits within a standard smartphone screen – no need to scroll while filling out your information!
Because multi-step donation forms are presented in bite-sized pieces, you can typically get away with asking donors to enter more information without overwhelming them.
This additional information could include more giving options, such as recurring donations, tribute gifts, and designated funds. You could also ask for detailed contact information. Plus, offer opportunities to sign up for e-mail lists, respond to custom questions, and more.
That’s right – we saved the best (and most important) for last! Because of all the reasons listed above, multi-step donation forms tend to bring in more donations than single-step forms.
When donors have a positive giving experience, they are more likely to complete their donation. Blackbaud recently ran an A/B test to prove this point – the multi-page form in their experiment saw 33% more conversions and a 54% higher average donation!
Pro tip: Improve the giving experience even further by making the checkout process as fast as possible. You can do this by offering digital wallet payment options on your form with tools like Donorbox UltraSwift™ Pay!
Creating a multi-step donation form for your nonprofit organization doesn’t need to be difficult or expensive. The Donorbox Donation Form tool empowers you to build a custom form in just a few minutes, without the need for design skills or technical knowledge.
Here’s a look at what the steps in our donation process look like when a donor gives using Apple Pay –
In addition to employing a multi-step giving experience, Donorbox Donation Forms have several effective tools and features to offer, including:
It’s also free to get started with Donorbox on our Standard Plan! You don’t pay to build your multi-step donation form, you’ll just receive a 1.75% platform fee on most of our tools. Learn more about our pricing – and the Pro and Premium plans that can take your organization to the next level – here.
Learn more about Donorbox and several donation page best practices in the video series below. And don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel so you don’t miss out on any tips or expert advice!
If you’re hoping to boost donations, you should start by looking at your online donation form. Is it a multi-step form or a single-step? Multi-step donation forms are easier to navigate, more accessible, and offer an improved giving experience, leading to more completed donations!
Donorbox makes it easy to create a multi-step donation form that you can embed into your website. You can also add it to your site as a pop-up or host it on a Donorbox fundraising page. Plus, we offer a powerful suite of tools and features to take your fundraising even further, including event ticketing, text-to-give, the Donorbox Live™ Kiosk app, peer-to-peer campaigns, and much more.
Ready to get started? Sign up today! Be sure to also check out the rest of our Nonprofit Blog for more detailed guides, top tips, and actionable advice that will help you take your nonprofit to the next level.
Kara has several years of experience in communications and marketing for nonprofit organizations, with knowledge in social media, email, public relations, event promotion, appeal writing, and more. She specializes in writing and enjoys sharing her expertise and advice with others.
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Kara Schmid