Searching for a reliable partner to fuel your nonprofit's progress? Shopify has cool things to offer for nonprofits.
Shopify goes beyond merchandise sales for charities and nonprofits. It enables organizations to offer one-time and recurring donations through their online stores.
In this blog post, we delve into how Shopify's dedicated nonprofit plans provide cost-effective solutions, empowering organizations to maximize their resources and amplify their missions.
Explore the additional benefits available exclusively to nonprofits, and discover how Shopify is a game-changer for driving positive change on a budget.
Let’s begin!
A nonprofit organization is a business entity that operates for purposes other than making a profit. The government grants it tax-exempt status because it serves a social cause or benefits the public.
Nonprofits reinvest their earnings into their mission and cannot distribute profits to individuals or shareholders. They rely on donations, grants, and revenue from programs to fund their activities.
A nonprofit's main goal is to impact society rather than focus on financial gain positively.
Starting a nonprofit involves building a solid foundation, creating a business plan, choosing a unique name, determining the organizational structure, and officially incorporating the organization.
Other steps include
The process can take several months, and it requires careful planning and compliance with legal requirements.
To sign up for one of Shopify's nonprofit plans, you'll need to connect with their live support team.
Once you connect them, keep in mind that Shopify may verify your nonprofit status to ensure you qualify for the benefits associated with these plans.
For this, you need to provide sufficient documentation/proof that your business has nonprofit status in your country.
Once the team verifies your nonprofit status in your country, they can offer the nonprofit plan to you.
The pricing plans of Shopify for nonprofit organizations are as follows:
For smaller nonprofits seeking an affordable solution with essential features, the NPO Lite plan is an excellent choice.
The NPO Lite plan offers additional features to the Basic Plan that are not normally available on that plan.
With a monthly cost of just $29, this plan provides numerous advantages:
Nonprofits seeking more advanced features and greater flexibility may find the NPO Full Plan the ideal choice.
Priced at $99 per month, this plan includes all the benefits of the Shopify plan and offers additional exclusive features:
After you decide what plan you want to continue with, the rest of the process is the same as a regular Shopify store.
Setting up donations on Shopify is a straightforward process that mirrors setting up a regular product.
When creating a donation item, you can follow the same steps as you would for any other product in your store.
However, there are a few specific settings that you need to adjust to ensure the donation functions properly.
First, you can turn off inventory tracking for donations since they are not physical products with limited quantities. By disabling inventory tracking, you eliminate the need to manage stock levels for donations.
Secondly, it's essential to mark the donation item as "not a physical product" to differentiate it from tangible goods. This distinction helps supporters understand that they are making a contribution rather than purchasing a physical item.
Depending on your region and applicable tax regulations, you may also need to adjust tax settings accordingly.
In some cases, donations may be tax-exempt, while in others, taxes may apply. It's crucial to ensure the appropriate tax settings are in place to comply with local laws.
You can also add a donate button or form on your Shopify store to collect donations. Below you can see some of the most popular Shopify apps for nonprofits.
Shopify could be an excellent choice for nonprofit organizations or charities seeking a solution to consolidate their donations in a centralized platform and enhance their brand presence.
Through Shopify's nonprofit features, you can:
Now let’s see some of the top Shopify apps for nonprofits and their features for you to reach your nonprofit goal.
ShoppingGives is a platform that enables brands to support nonprofits while ensuring compliance with regulations.
They provide a customizable social impact strategy and handle donation processing and reporting.
This allows businesses to focus on financial growth while building loyalty and trust through their philanthropic efforts.
Top Features:
Pricing: ShoppingGives provides free installation and a 7-day free trial with 20 donation credits, followed by pricing of 0.5% + $29/month.
Shop for Good is a platform that helps businesses drive customer loyalty by integrating charitable initiatives.
It offers donation campaigns, supports trending nonprofits, and handles compliance and distribution, allowing businesses to stay relevant and engaged with customers.
Top Features:
Pricing:
Startup Brands: Free to install with a 10% deduction from donations. Includes features like the portion of sales, round-up on the cart, $1 donation, and so on.
Emerging Brands: $299/month. Includes all Startup Brands features, plus custom amounts, donation tiers, donations for gifts, and so on.
Scaling Brands: $700/month. Includes all Emerging Brands features, plus custom fonts, custom branded widgets & flows, personal account manager, and more.
Easy Donation is a Shopify app that streamlines the collection of donations from customers at your store. It integrates with Shopify and allows you to set up and manage donations easily.
Customers can choose to donate any amount during checkout, which is added to their order total.
Top Features:
Pricing:
Basic Plan: $6.99/month, includes single donation widget, landing page, flexible placement, donation tracking, receipt, and no additional charges.
Advanced Plan: $9.99/month, offers multiple donations, landing pages, flexible placement, donation tracking, receipt, and no additional charges.
Popupsmart is a versatile, no-code popup builder perfect for Shopify stores.
With its user-friendly interface and robust features, Popupsmart empowers nonprofits to create captivating and customizable popups that effectively collect donations from their website visitors.
By leveraging Popupsmart, nonprofits can effortlessly design visually appealing popups that align with their branding and messaging.
These popups can be strategically triggered based on user behavior, ensuring maximum engagement and conversion rates.
With the ability to target specific segments of their audience, nonprofits can tailor their popups to communicate their cause and inspire visitors to contribute effectively.
Top Features:
Pricing: Popupsmart offers four pricing plans:
Free Plan: $0/month, 5,000 pageviews, 1 website, 1 popup.
Basic Plan: $32.5/month, 100,000 pageviews, unlimited websites, and popups.
Pro Plan: $82.5/month, 500,000 pageviews, unlimited websites, and popups.
Expert Plan: $132.5/month, 1,000,000 pageviews, unlimited websites, and popups.
In conclusion, Shopify offers an array of impressive features and benefits tailored specifically for nonprofit organizations.
With its dedicated nonprofit plans, Shopify empowers nonprofits to make a significant impact on a budget.
From reduced transaction fees and lower credit card rates to seamless donation acceptance and unlimited staff accounts, Shopify provides cost-effective solutions to amplify nonprofits' missions.
So, if you're a nonprofit seeking a reliable partner to fuel your progress, Shopify might be the game-changer you've been looking for.
Now it’s time to decide if you want Shopify to be your platform for driving positive change and making a difference in the world!
Nonprofit organizations are formed for purposes other than making a profit and are eligible for tax-exempt status.
They serve specific social or public causes and reinvest any surplus funds back into their mission.
Not-for-profit organizations also have a primary purpose other than generating profit, but they may not pursue tax-exempt status.
They can include clubs, associations, or cooperatives and have more flexibility in their financial activities.
In essence, nonprofits focus on serving the public good and enjoy tax benefits, while not-for-profits have a broader scope and may operate with different financial considerations.
Absolutely! Even if you don't have an existing store, you can still apply for an NPO plan.
All you need to do is reach out to our support team and provide the necessary documentation or proof of your nonprofit status in your country.
The team will review your application once they have received the required information.
Using Shopify for nonprofits offers several benefits. First and foremost, it provides nonprofits with a user-friendly platform to showcase their products, share their mission, and raise funds online.
The program often includes discounted transaction fees and special pricing plans, helping organizations save money.
Additionally, nonprofits can leverage Shopify's robust features, such as
to streamline their operations and reach a wider audience of potential supporters.
Yes, there are eligibility requirements to qualify for Shopify for nonprofits.
Generally, nonprofit organizations need to provide proof of their charitable status, such as a registered nonprofit or charity number.