How to get donations?

[vikin]

I'm putting up a site to help a friend that is very sick, and it should have the possibility to donate. The easier to donate, the better. So I don't want users to fill out massive forms etc. But what is the best way to go about it?

I assume I need a SSL certificate? Because those cost a bit of money, and I'd prefer the money actually going to help her. Are there any third-party sites that can help with this kind of thing?

If going with PayPal, does the sender have to have a PayPal account?

I've never done a not-for-profit site before, are there any rules/pitfalls/benefits I should be aware of?

And so on. Any and all tips are most welcome.

[Rachel]

HI Eystein, it is good you want to help your friend :)

There are some services set up to administer donations (but this may be a problem if not registered as a charitable organisation). I'll see what I can find.

Alternatively can you partner with a known charity who may be able to assist?

If you are just setting up a paypal button people can pay without having an account. There are fees involved too, of course.

[ashul]

I'm putting up a site to help a friend that is very sick, and it should have the possibility to donate. The easier to donate, the better. So I don't want users to fill out massive forms etc. But what is the best way to go about it?

I assume I need a SSL certificate? Because those cost a bit of money, and I'd prefer the money actually going to help her. Are there any third-party sites that can help with this kind of thing?

If going with PayPal, does the sender have to have a PayPal account?

I've never done a not-for-profit site before, are there any rules/pitfalls/benefits I should be aware of?

And so on. Any and all tips are most welcome.

If you are going to use paypal you don't need a secure cert.

The paypal web payments standard is free and you only pay upto 2.4% +.30cts per transaction. The donor does not need to have a paypal account to pay

The donations example is https://cms.paypal.com/au/cgi-bin/?&cmd=_render-content&content_ID=developer/e_howto_html_donation_buttons

No real pitfalls when working with NFP's just do the right thing by them and pay very close attention to accessibility.

A

[ashul]

oh just re-read your post, ask her or her carers to contact the ATO about how to treat the donations from a tax perspective..

[vikin]

Thank you guys!
PayPal sure had a lot of info on how to do this. Seems like an easy way, even with the massively long explanation page there. I'll find out if they (the organisers, I'm just helping) have registered as a charitable organisation and talked to the ATO.

I might see you at freelance coffee today?