Flexible giving: A guide to online donation payment methods with Give A Little

Payment processor compatibility for Give A Little online donations

Please note that while Digital Wallets (Apple Pay / Google Pay) and manual card entry (inputting 16-digit numbers, expiry dates, and CVVs) are available to charitable organisations using Give A Little with SumUp

Give A Little Stripe, Pay by Bank and Direct Debit are currently available to charitable organisations using Give A Little Stripe as their payment processor.

• Choosing SumUp?
  Donors can make online donations via Digital Wallets or manual card entry. 

• Choosing Give A Little Stripe?
  By opting for Give A Little Stripe, you unlock additional payment methods like Pay by Bank and Direct Debit. For recurring card contributions, Stripe tokenization ensures donations are secure and reliable. If a donor’s card expires, is lost, or replaced, Stripe tokenization works to automatically update card credentials, along with enhancing security and compliance. When successful, the recurring payment continues seamlessly, avoiding failed payments or donor drop-off

• Using both?
  If you integrate both SumUp and Give A Little Stripe into your Give A Little Account, Give A Little Stripe will act as the default payment processor for all online and QR code donations.
  This is due to the more favourable transaction fee of 1.58% inc VAT versus 2.5% for SumUp (correct at time of writing). SumUp limits online donations to £1,000 whereas Stripe accepts a higher online donation amount of £999,999.99. View our
  pricing page
  for more details.

Support for one-off and monthly recurring online donations

Give A Little presents the most applicable payment methods based on whether the donor chooses to make a single donation or sets up a regular monthly donation.

• For one-off online donations:
  Donors can choose from Digital Wallets (Apple/Google Pay), Pay by Bank, or manual card entry.

• For monthly recurring online donations:
  Donors can choose from Digital Wallets, Direct Debit, or manual card entry.

Understanding the online payment methods

Digital Wallets (Apple Pay and Google Pay)

A Digital Wallet securely stores a donor's card information on their smartphone or computer.

• The benefit for donors:
  This is the fastest one-tap way to donate online. Because it uses FaceID, TouchID, or a device passcode, it significantly reduces checkout friction. 

Pay by Bank allows donors to donate directly from their bank account without needing to reach for a debit or credit card.

• The benefit for donors:
  This appeals to security-conscious donors making a one-off online donation. The donor is redirected to their own mobile banking app to authorise the transfer. No card details are ever shared with the charity or stored in a third-party database, making it a highly secure way to facilitate a donation.

For donors wanting to give monthly via a web link, Direct Debit is a reliable and "set-and-forget" way to give.

• The benefit for donors:
  It provides a simple, automated way to manage monthly recurring online donations without having to remember to make a payment each month. It is a familiar and highly trusted method that gives donors total peace of mind. It also supports the new inflationary giving option for donors which enables their gift to be automatically uplifted on their anniversary by the latest consumer price index (CPI) inflation amount.

The online donor journey: How it works

The process is designed to be seamless and quick

1. The donor scans the QR code, NFC tag or clicks an online campaign link.

2. Donors choose their donation amount and specify if it is a one-off or monthly recurring donation. 

Note: For monthly donations, donors are asked for an email address and offered the option to opt-in to Inflationary Giving), which automatically adjusts their donation annually in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

1. They select their preferred payment method. 

2. Authorisation: 

   • Pay by Bank:
     The donor is presented with a list of banks (e.g., Barclays, HSBC, Monzo, Revolut). They select their personal bank from the list. The donor logs into their bank account as they usually would - using FaceID, TouchID, or a passcode. The bank displays the specific payment details and the donor simply taps "Approve" or "Confirm".

   • Digital Wallets:
     Donors confirm via their device biometrics (FaceID/Fingerprint/Passcode).

   • Direct Debit/Card:
     Donors enter their payment card details into the secure, encrypted online form.

3. Completion: The donor is returned to the Give A Little campaign to complete any further actions, such as opting-in to Gift Aid, marketing, or requesting a receipt.

How do payment methods differ from in-person contactless giving?

It is helpful to remember that online/QR code/NFC tag donations offer more variety in payment methods than physical contactless terminals:

• Online/QR code/NFC donations:
  Offer the widest choice, including Pay by Bank and Direct Debit (via Give A Little Stripe). 

• In-person contactless (devices):
  Donors can use their Digital Wallet (Apple/Google Pay) or payment cards to make a donation with a quick tap. Monthly recurring contactless donations are available with devices which incorporate Stripe card readers.

We recommend displaying a QR code or NFC tag close to an in-person contactless donation device, so that donors can choose to make a donation later, or share with a friend, or of course use their preferred payment method.

Interested to find out more? Visit our online giving, QR codes and regular giving pages for more information