GiveCampus makes it easy to create a customized confirmation email / tax receipt for every campaign and giving form, and craft more tailored messages to donors who choose to set up a recurring gift. This article will walk through the steps to create your Campaign Backup form email templates, campaign- specific email templates, outline the variety of potential recurring gift email notifications, and provide best practices on how to develop recurring-gift specific email templates.
1. Tax Receipts
For notifications that you do not set up a custom email template for, your donors will receive a standard default GiveCampus email. Every default email notification that donors receive for gifts made through GiveCampus, will include a tax receipt if you have enabled tax receipts (from your Admin Dashboard > School-Level Settings > Tax Receipts). With this tax receipt, you may have added text within three custom fields which appear above and below the tax receipt information (again, from your Online Giving Dashboard > School-level Settings > Tax Receipts).
Language added in the three custom fields will carry over to many default email notifications that donors may receive (e.g. Gift Receipt, Recurring Gift Updated, Recurring Contribution, etc.) for gifts made through your GiveCampus. We recommend only using these custom fields to include information that you’d like to accompany each tax receipt a donor receives if you do not plan to customize your email templates. If you previously used these fields to thank donors for their gift, we strongly recommend removing this language and instead including this type of thank you language within your custom email templates themselves, rather than the tax receipt 'custom text fields'. Below, you will find the recommended setup for your tax receipts.
Recommended Tax Receipt Setup:
1. From your Online Giving Dashboard > School-level Settings > Tax Receipts, check off "Include Tax Receipts". Do NOT enter any text within the "custom text fields" on this page.
2. Within the custom email templates that you set up for your donors, use the $TAX_RECEIPT$ merge field to include the tax receipt. See Section 7 "Gift Notification Email Template Language to Get you Started!" below for recommended language that includes this merge field!
2. Campaign Back Up Giving Form Email and Tax Receipt
When donors make a gift after clicking the ‘Make a Gift’ button on your landing page, they will receive a gift receipt and subsequent gift notifications that are unique to the Campaign Backup form giving form. To create these notifications, go to your ‘Administrator Dashboard’, navigate to the ‘Campaign Backup form’ tab, and then click on the ‘Email Templates’ Tab. From here, you’ll be able to craft a “Gift Receipt” notification email as well as a series of emails for donors who make a recurring gift. You can also preview what these emails will look like when your donors receive them.
To select which email template you’d like to edit, click on the ‘Email Templates’ dropdown and select the appropriate gift notification. The recurring template options will only be available if you have enabled recurring giving.
Once selected, you’ll be able to:
- Customize the 'from name' and 'reply to email address'
- Define the subject of the email
- Create the content of the body of the email and leverage the built in merge fields
3. Campaign-Specific Gift Notification
For each campaign you create on GiveCampus, you will have the opportunity to create a thank you email with a tax receipt that is unique to that campaign, as well as a series of emails for donors who make a recurring gift to your campaign. If you opt to not create custom email notifications, donors will receive our generic default GiveCampus notifications.
To create and activate an email template, go to campaign settings > email. As with the Campaign Backup form, with this tab, you can do the following:
- Customize the 'from name' and 'reply to email address'
- Define the subject of the email
- Create the content of the body of the email and leverage the built in merge fields
- Recurring template options will only be available if you have enabled recurring giving on the campaign
4. Giving Forms by GiveCampus Gift Notification
For each Giving Form by GiveCampus you create, you will have the opportunity to create a thank you email with a tax receipt that is unique to that form, as well as a series of emails for donors who make a recurring gift using that specific form. If you opt to not create custom email notifications, donors will receive our generic default GiveCampus notifications.
To create and activate an email template, go to form settings > email. As with the Campaign Backup form, with this tab, you can do the following:
- Customize the 'from name' and 'reply to email address'
- Define the subject of the email
- Create the content of the body of the email and leverage the built in merge fields
- Recurring template options will only be available if you have enabled recurring giving on the Giving Form
5. Recurring Gift Email Notifications
Donors who opt to make a recurring gift are making a sustained commitment to the work your institution is doing. With this in mind, it’s important to recognize and thank recurring donors in a way that is more tailored than is possible through the standard email tax receipt.
In addition to receiving email notifications each time their recurring gift is charged, over the lifetime of a donor’s recurring gift, they may also receive emails notifying them of updates made to their gift status or payment method. For each of these scenarios, you can create custom messages to your donors. Below is a summarized list of recurring gift email templates that you can set up:
- Recurring Gift: sent to donors as a thank you/confirmation when they initially set up their recurring gift
- Recurring Gift Updated: sent to donors when each installment of their recurring gift is processed or some other update is made to their gift
- Recurring Gift Canceled: sent to donors when their recurring gift is canceled
- Recurring Gift Ended: sent to donors when their recurring gift fulfills/completes
- Recurring Gift Failed: sent to donors when an installment of their recurring gift fails. Note: you must include the $MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$ merge field in the body of this email template. If you do not include it, the following sentence will automatically be inserted at the bottom of your email: To update your recurring gift, use the following link: $MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
- Recurring Gift Annual Reminder: a message sent to annual recurring donors 3 days before their credit card will be charged
- Recurring Gift Reactivated: sent to donors when their recurring gift is reactivated after it had failed
- Recurring Gift Card Expired: sent to donors when the debit/credit card that is used as the payment method linked to their recurring gift expires. Note: you must include the $MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$ merge field in the body of this email template. If you do not include it, the following sentence will automatically be inserted at the bottom of your email: To update your recurring gift, use the following link: $MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
Be sure to set up each of the above custom recurring gift email templates for your Campaign Backup form and each of your campaigns for the Social Fundraising Platform! If you are leveraging the Giving Forms by GiveCampus product as well, you should set up your recurring email templates for each giving form.
If you do not set up custom recurring email templates, then your donors will receive the generic default GiveCampus notifications. Click here to see what they look like! It is best practice to customize these however, as messaging that is more personal to your institution will help create a more meaningful donor experience. Further down in this article under the “Recurring Gift Template Language to Get you Started!” section, you will find templated text you can copy/paste into your custom email templates to use as a starting point!
6. Incomplete Gift Nudges
For each Campaign/Giving Form you create on GiveCampus, you will have the opportunity to create an incomplete gift reminder that is unique to that campaign. If enabled, donors who advance to the payment form (but do not complete their gift) will receive a follow-up reminder email within 30-60 minutes. If you opt not to enable Incomplete Gift notifications, donors will not receive the reminder.
To create and activate the gift reminder, go to campaign settings > email > scroll down to incomplete gift nudges
1. Check the box 'Send automated nudge emails'
2. If relevant to your campaign, select the minimum dollar amount that should not trigger an incomplete gift nudge. For example, Adair University wants to ensure donors giving $5,000+ don't receive the reminder. If you do not have a minimum amount, you can skip this step and leave the section blank.
3. Save those changes!
4. If you don't want to customize your reminder, a default from GiveCampus will be sent (see default below). If you'd like to customize the notification for your donors, proceed to step 5!
5. To customize the email template, scroll to the top of the page and select 'Email Templates' in the top left corner and select 'Incomplete Gift Nudge.'
6. Customize the 'from name' and 'reply to email address', define the subject of the email, and create the content of the body of the email with the default built-in merge fields. Make sure to include the merge field $INCOMPLETE_GIFT_LINK$. This merge token ensures your donor is put on the giving page that includes their prepayment information.
7. Save Email Template!
8. Once you save your template, you will be able to send yourself a test email, edit/update it, and activate it. Please note that it's not activated until you send a test email and select 'Activate.'
The 'Activate' button will not appear until you first send a test email of the template.
7. Best Practices
School Contact Information
It’s important to let your donors know who to contact if they have questions about their gift. From the Administrator Dashboard > School-Level settings, you should designate an email address that will populate automated emails that our system sends to donors, and remember to include this contact information in the body of your custom email templates as well (use the $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$ merge field!). This email address will also show up in the footer of each of your GiveCampus pages. Many Partners choose to use the email address of a team member who manages online donors, or to create a donor-question specific address that can be shared by multiple team members (e.g. onlinegiving@school.edu or givecampusdonors@academy.org).
'From name' and 'Reply To'
All emails will be delivered by info@givecampus.com to ensure the highest deliverability rates. However, you can customize the name that appears in the from section, as well as the email address that replies are sent to.
Subject line
We recommend the following for gifts made to your Campaign Backup form or Giving Forms by GiveCampus email templates:
Thank you, $DONOR_NAME$ for supporting $SCHOOL_NAME$
We recommend the following for your campaign-specific email templates:
Thank you, $DONOR_NAME$ for supporting $CAMPAIGN$
This subject line will include the name of the donor and either the name of the school or the title of the campaign based on the merge field you use. You could also use other merge fields to insert additional information into your subject line, such as the the donation amount.
Content
For your email templates, we strongly recommend that you start with the standard templates (language available in this article under "7. Gift Notification Email Template Language to Get you Started!"). These templates include suggested merge fields, and most importantly, include the social media share buttons and personalized URL.
A key outcome of your thank you email should be to encourage donors to also share the campaign with their networks. The Facebook, Twitter, and personalized URL are key to making this possible.
To use the template, simply copy and paste the template directly into the body of the custom email template editor. You can then add in spaces, additional language, etc. to customize the message and look of the email. We recommend that images for email receipts be no wider than 600px.
8. Gift Notification Email Template Language to Get you Started!
For each of the gift confirmation and recurring gift emails templates that you can customize, below you will find language that you can copy/paste directly into your custom email templates to build off of. Again, we encourage you to use our language as a starting point, and then put your own institution’s personal touch and flare on each email template!
Note: In email templates for your Social Fundraising Platform “Campaign Backup Form” or your Giving Forms by GiveCampus forms, you will notice a slight difference in the merge field tokens that are available. Rather than using $CAMPAIGN$ for example, you would instead use $SCHOOL_NAME$. You, of course, could also simply include the name of the initiative that the Giving Form is supporting in plain text rather than using merge fields because this would be a template specific to this form.
Gift Notification
Subject: Thank you, $DONOR_NAME$ for supporting $CAMPAIGN$
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for making a gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$ through GiveCampus! Your support of $CAMPAIGN$ is critical and has a meaningful impact.
Your donation details are as follows:
Donation date: $DONATION_DATE$
Donation amount: $DONATION_AMT$
Please use the links below to spread the word about this campaign and encourage your friends to participate:
$FB_LINK$
$TWITTER_LINK$
$LINKEDIN_LINK$
$SHORT_LINK$
If you have any questions, please contact us at $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
We are grateful for your support in making this campaign a success. Thank you again for your generosity!
$TAX_RECEIPT$
Recurring Gift
Subject: Thank you, $DONOR_NAME$ for your recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for making a recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$ through GiveCampus! Your support of $CAMPAIGN$ is critical and has a meaningful impact.
Each $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ installment will be made on a $RECURRING_FREQUENCY$ basis, and you will receive a second email with further details and a summary of your recurring gift shortly.
Your donation details are as follows:
Donation date: $DONATION_DATE$
Donation amount: $DONATION_AMT$
Please use the links below to spread the word about this campaign and encourage your friends to participate:
$FB_LINK$
$TWITTER_LINK$
$LINKEDIN_LINK$
$SHORT_LINK$
Below, you will also find a tax receipt. If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
We are grateful for your support in making this campaign a success. Thank you again for your generosity!
$TAX_RECEIPT$
Recurring Gift Updated
Subject: Your recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for your continued generosity to $SCHOOL_NAME$. Your recurring gift to $CAMPAIGN$ has been updated and you will find a summary of your gift below. If you would like to make any changes to your recurring gift, please use the following link:
$MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thank you again for your support!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
$TAX_RECEIPT$
Recurring Gift Canceled
Subject: Your recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$ has been canceled
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Your $RECURRING_FREQUENCY$ recurring gift of $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ to $CAMPAIGN$ has been canceled and you will no longer be billed for this recurring gift.
If you would like to make another gift to continue supporting $SCHOOL_NAME$ or have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thank you for your generosity!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
Recurring Gift Ended
Subject: Your recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$ has ended
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for your ongoing generosity to $SCHOOL_NAME$. We are emailing you because your $RECURRING_FREQUENCY$ recurring gift of $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ -- totaling $RECURRING_TOTAL$ -- to $CAMPAIGN$ has been fulfilled. Your gift and commitment are critical and have a meaningful impact on the community.
If you would like to make another gift to continue supporting $SCHOOL_NAME$ or have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thank you again!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
Recurring Gift Failed
Subject: Action Required: latest gift installment failed
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for your continued generosity to $SCHOOL_NAME$. We are emailing you because we attempted to process your latest $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ installment of your recurring gift to $CAMPAIGN$, and the payment failed. The reason for this failure is as follows: $RECURRING_FAILURE_REASON$
Please click the link below to update the payment information for your recurring gift:
$MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thanks again for your support!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
Recurring Gift Reactivated
Subject: Your recurring gift to $SCHOOL_NAME$ has been reactivated
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for your continued generosity to $SCHOOL_NAME$. Your $RECURRING_FREQUENCY$ recurring gift of $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ to $CAMPAIGN$ was reactivated.
If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thank you again for your ongoing support!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
Recurring Gift Card Expired
Subject: Action Required: latest gift installment failed due to expired card
Dear $DONOR_NAME$,
Thank you for your continued generosity to $SCHOOL_NAME$. We are emailing you because we attempted to process your latest $RECURRING_INSTALLMENT_AMOUNT$ installment of your recurring gift to $CAMPAIGN$, and the payment failed because your credit/debit card has expired.
Please click the link below to update the payment information for your recurring gift:
$MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thanks again for your support!
Your Recurring Gift Summary:
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
Recurring Annual Reminder
Subject: Reminder: Annual Recurring Donation for $SCHOOL_NAME$
Dear $FIRST_NAME$,
This is a reminder that you have an upcoming recurring gift scheduled to be processed on $RECURRING_NEXT_RUN_DATE$. Your recurring gift information is summarized below.
If you would like to make any changes to your recurring gift, please use the following link:
$MANAGE_RECURRING_GIFT_LINK$
If you have any questions, please email $SCHOOL_CONTACT_EMAIL$.
Thank you again for your support!
$RECURRING_GIFT_SUMMARY$
9. FAQs
Q: How do I activate my template?
A: Click "Save Email Template", then click "Send Test Email", and then after you've reviewed the test email that was sent to you, click "Activate Email Template". At that point, the Status will show as "Active".
Q: Why does the test email show a "Fair Market Value of Incentive" and "Tax Deductible Amount" in the tax receipt section?
A: This is for illustrative purposes only. If you haven't enabled donation based incentives that include a fair market value, neither of these lines will display on your receipt.
Q: How can I know exactly what the email will look like for donors?
A: Activate your template, launch your campaign, and make a sample donation. You can always refund your donation via the Admin dashboard.