Fundraising for Non-profit organizations and membership organizations has traditionally required a combination of personal requests, direct-mail asks, telephone solicitations and special events. Fundraising is the process of soliciting and gathering money or other gifts in kind by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. ... A non-profit organization (often called non-profit org or simply non-profit or not-for-profit) can be seen as an organization that doesnt have a goal to make a profit. ...

Within the past 10 years use of the Internet has enabled a new form of fundraising and introduced a significant breadth of complexities, strategies, advantages, amazing success stories, challenges and unfortunately fraud.

The practice of fundraising online has evolved from the basic strategy of the Donate Now button, where organizations developed a simple web form to capture credit card gifts and posted a "donate now" button on their website, to more complex strategies using lessons from traditional direct mail appeals and the expediency of email campaigns to solicit gifts from a list of opt-in supports; and now organizations have begun employing new strategies with web based tools like blogs, community networking, social peer-groups and advanced virtual worlds.

Email based campaigns reduce the need for door-to-door canvassing and can increase the safety of those individuals involved.

Software

• eTapestry
• Change Round-Up
• Convio
• DonorPerfect
• GetActive Software
• Groundspring
• Kintera Software

Other Tools

• Freelanthropy Branding and Communications Toolbar
• Artez Interactive

It is proposed that this article be deleted, because of the following concern: This article is a patent advertizement for freelanthropy. ...

Online fundraising consultants

While many consultants and strategy agencies provide online fundraising advice as part of their integrated marketing services, the following groups and individuals specialize exclusively in fundraising online strategies.

• Artez Interactive
• Blackrock Associates
• Change Round-Up
• Donordigital
• HJC New Media
• Instep Fundraising
• M&R Strategic Services
• Madeline Stanionis
• Sea Change Strategies

Educational Fundraising Initiatives

• Your Name Into Space - supports students interested in science, technology, and space

Personal Online Fundraising Pages

• Firstgiving.com - Helps fundraisers create free personal online fundraising pages for any US non-profit. Firstgiving is partnered with Guidestar, a registry for non-profits. Fundraisers then send out the link to their friends and family via email or through their blog where they can place a firstgiving widget. As the money is raised the funds are periodically sent to the non-profit through electronic transfers.