Card machines for charities: How to tap into the future with contactless giving

Discover how adopting contactless giving and card payment machines for your charity can increase donations and fundraising efforts with exponential results. 

With all things going digital in recent years, today's “cashless society” shows people no longer walk around with spare change in their pockets like they used to.

While this might make things more convenient for consumers, when it comes to donation-dependent organisations, it spells trouble for charities, churches, and other non-profits alike.

After all, without adopting the modern approaches people use to spend money today, how can we expect to raise the funds our organisations need tomorrow? 

In this article, we discuss how card machines for charities help increase fundraising efforts before discussing how your charity can adopt contactless giving.

Can a charity have a card machine?

Charities, churches and non-profit organisations are allowed to use card machines and readers to receive donations. There are various providers online to support organisations with a contactless giving solution that accepts debit and credit card payments.

Having card machines for charities makes it easier to receive and increase donations, providing a convenient and versatile fundraising process for donors to donate and for staff to use.

However, not all card machine providers can cater for charity and religious organisations. Before you invest, check that your card machine solution is appropriate for your non-profit sector.

How card machines for charities have improved donations

Not only has cashless giving replaced traditional cash donating, but it’s also increased the amount of money charities and churches can raise.  

For example, the fundraising platform ‘Give A Little’ has seen £10 million raised for charities in cashless donations across 11 months. This number was an exponential rise from the previous £10 million raised over three years.

When interviewed about contactless giving, the Head of Marketing and Communications at Give a Little said, “Since starting Give A Little in 2019, we have seen the number of donations increase exponentially, growing by 136% year on year to 700,000 in 2022.” 

In being more convenient for donors, 54% of the public say contactless options would make donating easier. This ease and overall convenience make it more likely for someone to donate to your church or charity, with contactless giving marking the way for all future donations, especially seeing as the UK expects to be completely cashless by 2043.

Further benefits of card machines for charities

Alongside potentially increasing your donations with a more convenient solution for donors, card readers and contactless giving can also provide the following benefits:

Security

Due to the digital nature of contactless giving, with a card machine for your charity, you create fewer opportunities for theft. All aspects of collecting and storing finances to access and management are secured safely in a protected account.

Accounting efficiency

With the safe storage of your donations, account management is made much easier within one accounting system These accounting systems are available across cloud or desktop devices, such as MyFundAccounting.Online and Finance Coordinator v4. 

Fast payments

Contactless payments just take days to appear in your accounts, unlike cash donations, which require transportation, bank openings and process times.

Event fundraising

Using a card machine for charity events, fundraisers and on-the-spot campaigns represents a fast and effective donation opportunity, especially if immediate contributions are crucial to the running of your organisation.  

Transparency and accountability

Digital transactions provide a transparent record of donations, helping charities track and manage contributions more efficiently. With this transparency, you can build trust across your donation and fundraising networks. 

Modern perceptions

Keeping up with a “cashless society” is not so much the exception any longer for charities, churches and non-profits, but it’s become the general expectation. Continuing to operate without a card reader and not offering contactless giving may damage your reputation in appearing dated in the eyes of modern society.

Choosing the right card machine for your charity

Finding the best card machine for your charity or church relies on a few factors. Firstly, you must ensure the card machine integrates with your accounting software.

After all, there's no use taking contactless donations when your accounts are not linked within the same system. By connecting these two components, you guarantee your accounts and donations remain safely protected, transparent and organised.

Secondly, you should establish the right card machine that suits your operations. For example, if you have limited staff like some UK churches, you may require a permanent, self-service card machine station inside your church with operational instructions.

On the other hand, if you’re a mobile charity regularly on the move and hosting/attending various events in different locations, then a portable card machine is much more suitable.

At Data Developments, we recommend the CollecTin More card machine for charities and churches. In accommodating online and desktop accounting software systems, the CollecTin More card reader is an excellent method to elevate your fundraising. 

With reports showing people are more likely to donate in the region of £10 with CollecTin More compared to the average 90p-£1.70 in cash donations, it’s well worth the investment.

The CollecTin More also fully integrates with the My Giving platform, enabling simple and quick Gift Aid reclaiming. Plus, with the Give A Little app, you can fundraise anywhere, any time. All you need is a Wi-Fi or a mobile signal. 

Data Developments also offers 10% off purchases. Use the ‘DATADEV’ code on the website shop. Just insert the code into the discount box at the checkout. 

Discover more about card machines for charity organisations  

Here at Data Developments, we can solve your card machine and contactless giving issues with our expert training, software and services. 

Unlike other accounting and financial providers, all our products are specially designed with charities, churches and non-profit organisations in mind. 

So, no matter the scale of your operation, we provide unrivalled support and advice across all things donations and fundraising. 

For more advice on how we can start enhancing your organisation's finances, get in touch today.