Frequently asked questions about online donations - for community groups

1. Why do online donations?

More than 700 separate online donation community appeals have been listed on the Australian Giving Centre at www.ourcommunity.com.au since opening in April 2001, and more than $5,000,000 has been donated through this service in that time. Online donations have continued to grow in Australia, mirroring the situation in the United States post-September 11.

Online donations are a quick and efficient way to donate and as more people become comfortable in banking, buying and paying bills online it will only continue to expand.

Other trends identified by Our Community:

Donations for the 12 months to the end of May 2003 increased by 196 per cent on the previous year.
The average donation rose to $118 - up from $99 in May 2002. The highest donation recorded has been $5000 while the minimum donated was $5.
The number of individual donations rose by 149 per cent in the 12 months to May 2003.
Evidence from groups that the online donations service is bringing new donors to their attention who had not given before through traditional means.
The emergence of a new group of "trawler" donors who are regular visitors to the site, selecting a number of different appeals to support.
Online donors tend to donate higher average amounts than those who give through traditional methods.

2. Who manages the Yarra Gives donations service?

The Yarra Giving Centre is a free service provided by the City of Yarra in conjunction with Our Community. Our Community manages the donations service, including registration of community groups and collection, processing and transferral of online donations.

Our Community is a private social venture company that works with community groups, peak associations, business and government to deliver services and products for strengthening the community sector across Australia. For more information about Our Community, see ourcommunity.com.au About Us.

3. What does this service cost?

Membership costs = $0
Online Donations start up costs = $0
Online Donations commission = 0%
Online Donations credit card fees = 2.65% of all transactions are taken by the bank for processing the credit card transactions. This is a fee directly charged to Our Community.

It is true - there is no catch, you do not need to give Our Community a single cent to become a member organisation that is listed for online donations. Our Community is non-exclusive, non-binding and fee-free. They generate their income from the sale of newsletters, sponsorship and training fees, and City of Yarra is funding the online donation service for Yarra community groups. Our Community does offer low priced products to the sector, but these are ABSOLUTELY at your discretion. You do not now, or ever, need to purchase anything from Our Community to receive donations online.

4. Is this service secure?

Our Community hosts the Yarra Giving Centre payment pages, and they are as concerned about security as you are. Any time they ask for financial information from an individual or an organisation they use industry practice and protocols. These processes have been endorsed with Thawte Secure Certification, an industry leader in Internet safety. All account and profile information located on ourcommunity.com.au is password-protected to provide additional security. All transactions conducted on ourcommunity.com.au are treated with the privacy and respect that all such transactions deserve.

For more information about security and privacy aspects of this service refer to ourcommunity.com.au Privacy & Ethics.

5. Who owns the donor details?

You do. Our Community collects the donor details, but they are not allowed to use this data without your consent.

6. Who issues the receipts?

Our Community have spoken to the ATO and they are able to issue receipts on your behalf. They do this in email form immediately after the donation has been accepted. However, you can choose to do the receipting after Our Community send the donor details through at the end of each month. Please advise Our Community when you send in your agreement (see our help sheet Signing up for online donations).

7. When and how do I receive our donations?

Our Community will send to you a cheque for the total of your donations that are collected at the end of each month, less the 2.65% credit card bank fees. This will include the full details of your donors.

8. Who else is using the online donations facility?

Our online donations service is used by smaller groups such as SpeakOut Limited and Grace Family Church through to the larger organisations such as the Heart Foundation and Oxfam. If you would like to speak to a referee from one of these groups, please let us know.

9. How do I sign up for online donations?

For step-by-step instructions on how to register your community group for online donations, see our help sheet Signing up for online donations.

10. How can I promote this new online facility?

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

For more tips see our help sheet Promoting your online donations.

9. How do I sign up for online donations?

For step-by-step instructions on how to register your community group for online donations, see our help sheet Signing up for online donations.

10. How can I promote this new online facility?

For more tips see our help sheet Promoting your online donations.

Further information

Access Yarra
Telephone 9205 5555
Email info@yarracity.vic.gov.au

Links

Within this site
Yarra City Council

External sites (Yarra City Council accepts no responsibility for the information or opinions contained within external sites)
Yarra City Council
OurCommunity.com.au