5 Reasons Why Charities Struggle to Drive Online Donations

The global pandemic dealt a heavy blow to the non-profit sector. However, with 3 in 5 charities now optimistic about their future, many are recognising the need to shift to online fundraising. More than half of charities have made this a key priority.

At Daydot, we’ve worked with several non-profits, including RSPB, combining data with deep customer insights to design impactful experiments that drive measurable growth across supporter journeys. Drawing on this expertise, we decided to investigate how well charities optimise their online donation journeys, highlighting successes and opportunities for improvement.

We audited 10 charities’ subscription journeys using a heuristic analysis, a technique grounded in best practice frameworks. Our findings reveal several key areas where charities often fail to meet supporter expectations.

Donors don’t compare their experience with the last charity they supported – they compare it to their favourite e-commerce or fintech platforms. If a charity’s site doesn’t meet the standards of these highly optimised platforms, it risks creating trust issues and deterring donations.

Not all donors are alike. Warm donors want a fast, frictionless donation process, while new supporters often need more information, a compelling value proposition, and reassurance about where their money will go. Many charity landing pages fail to account for these differing needs, leading to unnecessary friction or missed opportunities.

Charities often struggle to strike the right balance between inspiring copy and transparency about how donations will be spent. Limited space makes this even more challenging.

Supporters need to feel certain they’re on the right organisation’s site. A lack of consistent experiences across offline and online touchpoints can create doubt and lead to abandonment. The goal is to transition supporters from "I think I’m on the right site" to "I know I’m on the right site."

Donors expect flexibility. Without a full range of payment methods, such as American Express, PayPal, or ApplePay, charities risk losing valuable donations.

A heuristic audit is just the first step. To truly optimise your donation journey, you need robust audience research to understand your supporters’ needs and behaviours. This can include:

• Pop-up surveys

• Heatmapping and scroll depth analysis

• Remote user testing

• Face-to-face feedback

By combining data with these insights, you can uncover actionable strategies to overcome specific pain points.

Effective research can help you answer questions like:

• What do your supporters expect from your site?

• Why do certain audiences underperform?

• Where are users dropping off?

• How can you convert one-time donors into regular givers?

• How can you increase average donation value without lowering conversions?

Understanding these issues enables you to design highly targeted experiments, ensuring every test addresses a specific challenge.

Leveraging customer-driven insights alongside analytics can significantly improve your site’s performance. For instance, a 5% increase in donation flow conversion rates, paired with higher average donation values, could have a transformative impact on your fundraising goals.

The future of fundraising lies in aligning online donation journeys with supporter needs. By prioritising research, experimentation, and a deep understanding of your audience, you can not only optimise your donation flow but also build stronger, long-lasting relationships with your supporters.