February 27, 2015 | Read Time: 1 minute
For those new to online fundraising, the vocabulary can be an initial barrier to entry. Here are some common terms associated with online giving.
Payment processor: A company that handles donations or payments online, transferring the donor’s money to the organization. The payment processor usually charges a fee for the service.
Transaction fee: A flat fee, in addition to the processing fee, charged by a credit-card company on each credit-card transaction.
Third-party website: A site that donors are directed to if your group doesn’t host its own donation page.
Recurring gift: A donation that is made regularly, usually monthly, through a recurring charge to a donor’s bank or credit-card account.
Open rate: Percentage of recipients of an email who open the message.
Click rate: Percentage of viewers of an email, webpage, or social-media post who click on a link contained in it.
Bounce rate: Percentage of people who visit a website and leave after viewing just one page.
Conversion rate: In the case of nonprofits, the percentage of website visitors, email recipients, or people who see a social-media post who then make a donation.
