Qgiv's donation forms were redesigned in 2020. This document contains a summary of the major changes and new features available on the forms, along with some screen shots, links to other Help Desk articles, and directions on where you can go in the control panel to start adjusting settings and testing things out.
Click here to view a quick handout on the benefits of Qgiv's redesigned donation forms.
Here’s a quick-hit list of some of the changes and new features:
- Refreshed look and feel
- Faster load times
- Optimized for mobile in a big way
- Option for a multistep form
- Donation amount images for more powerful storytelling
- More flexibility with displaying personal info fields
- More custom field options and the addition of conditional logic support
- Separate tabs for one-time and recurring, with a few changes in types of recurring giving
- Sustaining gifts and giving plans
- Recurring donation upgrade prompts
- Friendlier confirmation pages
- Intuitive donor account creation at the end of the donation process
- New and improved landing pages
Let's dive in!
Form and Function
The new donation forms offer a modern, simple aesthetic and are optimized for mobile in a major way (without sacrificing desktop performance!).
You asked, we listened: You can now set up a multistep donation form! Have no fear, single-step forms are still available, because one size doesn’t always fit all.
A multistep form is a great option if you have a slightly more complex donation process. If you’re asking for additional details from your donors or offering dedications, for example, using the multistep format is a great way to break the process down into bite-sized pieces and lessen cognitive load!
A single-step form might be a better option If you have a pretty simple donation process.
Heck, one may just appeal more to you visually than the other!
To select the format you’d like to use, head to Form Settings>General>Appearance Settings. Check out our "[New Forms] Form Settings: General" article for a more in-depth look at the settings for redesigned forms.
Here’s a peek at what each format looks like on the front end. To see more of the front end, check out our "[New Forms] What Donors See" article.
Multistep (without additional options such as restrictions, dedications, custom fields, etc.)
Single step
We’ve also updated confirmation pages to be friendlier. Transaction details are neatly tucked away in an accordion menu that can easily be expanded.
If you enable donor accounts on your form, donors will now see the option to set up an account at the end of the checkout process. All they have to do is enter a password to set up their account!
Recurring Donations: Sustaining Gifts and Giving Plans
Speaking of recurring donations... you may have noticed this little guy on the form:
We call that a recurring nudge! It’s a way to encourage your donors to make their one-time gift a recurring gift. In addition to this nudge, we’ve given the recurring system as you know it some major upgrades!
Let’s take a look at your recurring options, which can be viewed in your control panel under Form Settings>Donations>Settings tab>scroll down to Recurring Settings. Our "Form Settings: Donations" article goes into more detail about donation settings for your form.
Under the umbrella of recurring giving, you’ll find sustaining gifts and giving plans.
Sustaining gifts are pretty much recurring giving as we’ve always known it. Those are the free-form recurring donations that donors set up on the frequencies you make available to them.
Giving plans are a little different. You can create pre-set plans for donors that consist of a total amount given at a specific frequency for a set number of installments. For example, you could create a giving plan for a $500 total donation given in $100 installments over a period of five months.
Functionally, giving plans are similar to our old pledges. You can still:
- Give each plan a name
- Give each plan an optional description
- Set an amount to give at a specific frequency for a certain number of times
- Set an optional start date
- Enable a “create your own” option so donors can set up their own plan
Another nifty little feature we added is the recurring upgrade modal during checkout!
Since recurring donors have a higher donor lifetime value than one-time donors, we wanted to offer a way for you to convert more of your one-time donors to recurring givers... without much effort on your part! Bonus: all of the language is customizable.
Amounts with Images
You always hear that visuals are the quickest and easiest way to connect with donors and show impact. Well now you can do that right on your form next to each donation amount!
To select if you’d like wide or standard images, head to Form Settings > General > Appearance Settings.
When you’re ready to upload images with your donation amounts, head to Form Settings > Donations > Amounts. In the editing UI for each donation amount, you’ll see an area where you can upload an image.
You can enter a name and description that will display with the image, as well. Here’s what a donation amount with an image, name, and description looks like on the front end.
Wide
Standard
System and Custom Fields
To take a look at fields, head to Form Settings > Fields. You’ll see tabs for System Fields and Custom Fields.
To read about System Fields in detail, click here. For more on Custom Fields, check out this article.
Long story short, you have much more control and flexibility when it comes to fields. We moved system fields (like name, address, and phone) into one area where you can toggle certain options on and off.
In custom fields, we added new types like radio buttons, multiple checkboxes, advanced fields, and hidden fields. And... drumroll, please... we added conditional logic! This means that you can display a field or question based on certain criteria. For example, if someone answers that they’re interested in volunteering, another field could appear asking what types of volunteer work they’re interested in!
You can even add custom fields to the confirmation page to collect information from donors after they’ve completed their donation!
We’ve put together full articles on system and custom fields for you, as well! Please refer to those PDFs for more information.
Form Builder
Form Builder got a bit of a makeover, too! Read the full article here.
You can update the theme color and fonts under the Theme tab.
In the Widgets tab, you can add Thermometer (if you have a goal set up in your control panel), Heading, Text, Spacing, and Custom Content widgets to adjust the layout and customize content on your form.
If you’re comfortable tweaking the look of your form, there’s even an option to add Custom CSS under the Advanced tab.
Some of the standard form language for one-time and recurring donations, upgrade prompts, and text-to-donate messages can be edited by clicking the gear icon in the main form widget.
You can edit the text in the donation steps widget along the top of your form, as well, by clicking the gear icon there.
To navigate to various steps of your form and edit the copy and widgets there, use the drop-down menu in the upper-right corner of Form Builder. You can edit the text in the Donor Details step, Payment Details, and on the Confirmation page.
If you’re using the single-step form option, the donor and payment details are all housed and editable in the Donation Form area. Your drop-down menu in Form Builder will look like this:
When you convert a legacy form to a new form, the form-level dashboard will include a "What's New?" link to the right of the form name. Clicking the link displays a brief summary of these new features and changes.
We hope you enjoy customizing your new form!
Additional Resources