Donating via the Digital Domain: A 360o of the Online Charitable Giving Landscape

Rapid developments in digital technologies and the subsequent jolt towards an increasingly cashless society have caused charities to fundamentally rethink their fundraising strategies. The challenge this represents for charities is twofold: firstly, how can they leverage digital technologies to promote their cause to prospective donors and secondly, through what channels (online and offline) can they receive financial support.

This chapter explores the digital giving landscape and proposes an initial taxonomy of digital donation channels, which captures the digital promotional tools available to charities, the forms of giving facilitated online, the distinction between direct and indirect donations and the tools used to facilitate donor transactions. Such a taxonomy can be used to understand donor journeys as they engage with multiple digital touchpoints, and as such may guide fundraisers in developing their digital marketing strategies.