The Fund Raiser's Guide to the Internet

The American Red Cross received $128,000 in direct donations.

Greenpeace International's donations average $3,000 a week.

The World Wildlife Fund is getting over 100 donations a month.

All online.

Many nonprofits, intent on maximizing their donor base, have added the Internet to their roster of traditional solicitation vehicles, transforming it into an engaging, effective tool for getting out their messages. In addition to boosting visibility, Web sites offer a cornucopia of creative possibilities—from free coupon giveaways to tie-ins with on-air radio pledge drives to celebrity artwork auctions or online lotteries. In addition to the online convenience of e-mail membership and automated credit card donations, online solicitations can sometimes result in higher donations than "real world" donations.

This practical, nontechnical guide to fundraising on the Internet, written by an Internet veteran who's designed scores of successful money-making sites, describes not only how to set up an attention getting Web site, but also how to make a Web site as well as any credit card transaction entirely secure. The Fund Raiser's Guide to the Internet takes the novice Web site creator from the basics of writing on the electronic tablet to tips on creating an effective reply device, complete with information on designing a premium gift array, made with exhilarating graphics. Examples of innovative sites for such world-class nonprofits as the Rainforest Action Network, the World Wildlife Fund USA, and Greenpeace Canada illustrate the sites' role in overall fundraising campaigns. Complete with a Web site scratchpad for designing a mock-up Web page, a checklist of "musts" for fundraising sites at the end of every chapter, and a disk with over 100 sites referenced in the book, The Fund Raiser's Guide offers site-tested advice on how to actually craft and perfect a Web site that turns a site visitor into a committed donor.