We just starting using Network for Good for our online donations (sigh). We received our first online gift the other day now I need help processing it in Raiser's Edge. First of all we have just received the notice that we received an online donation not the actual donation yet. So I need to enter the gift I know that I have to enter it into Network for Good and then soft credit the actual donor. But that is where I get stuck. When we received money from Network for Good it isn't going to match the actual amount of the gift because they take their fees out of it first. In reality though the donor gets credit for the whole amount they gave ($25.00). So how would I enter this? I was thinking about entering the notification as other gift type and then $25.00. But then how would I enter when we receive the check from Network for Good? HELP ME PLEASE! Thanks

Hi, we enter these the same as United Way.  The donor gift is put in under other for the whole amount and when the check comes in it is put in under Network for Good for the amount on the check.  We reference the donor so we know where it came from.

Here's how I do it.   Since the actual check often comes more than a month after I receive the email notification, I enter the full amount in the donors record using gift type other (this type is then excluded in all financial reports) when I am notified of the gift.   I acknowledge the gift at the same time.  When the check arrives from Network for good.   I enter the cash gift (for the amount that we actually receive) in the Network for Good record.  This way you aren't double counting anything and your actual amounts agree with your finance office reports.   I hope this helps.

 

 

Kathy,

 Do you actually use Network for Good? If so I would love to talk with you some more. I am new to all this online giving stuff.

 

When we receive notification of a gift I enter the entire amount of the gift (including any fees paid by the donor) as a cash/credit card gift into NFG record and soft credit the donor.  The check is just forwarded to the Finance Office.  They treat any fees taken out the same way they treat credit card fees, bank fees etc, as cost of doing business.   Again, RE is not accounting software. I leave that to Finance. 

We also receive gifts via Network for Good and gifts are processed much like Nina describes. I also agree that the adjustment of fees is an accounting/finance issue. I did look at their website and read more about how fees are processed and it looks like the donor can contribute an additional 4.75% to cover the processing cost ,if desired:

Are there fees?

Your donation is to the Network for Good Donor Advised fund. Network for Good re-grants the donation funds to your charity(ies), retaining 4.75% for our mission of training and supporting more than 50,000 nonprofits in their fundraising efforts. If you prefer, you can add a tax-deductible 4.75% grant to Network for Good when you check out so that 100% of the donation amount will be granted to your charity(ies).

Many of our donors choose to pay the extra to cover the fee.  When I book in RE, I book the entire amount -- donation and fee.  After all, the donor gave the money, whether it is used to cover a fee or not.  They, in fact, are donating extra to cover our expenses.  When we thank them we say thank you for you donation of $xx and the $y.kh to cover the processing fee.  In reality, they don't get their tax document from us but from Network for Good.

We enter the full gift amount and don't deduct the NFG fee, viewing it as a vendor fee, in the same way that a credit card processor would take a percentage.

There has been some discussion on multiple forums I've been on lately so I thought I would post a response form NFG's customer service. When donors donate via NFG they are supposed to be agreeing to theri temrs which means they should be aware that the 'whole' of their donation is not going to your organization because of the fees. We 'round up' on our recognition in order to address these types of gifts via NFG & United Way.

For IRS purposes, the donor is donating to Network for Good. We are technically a donor advised fund, where donors make donations to us which we then re-grant to the organizations they chose. Network for Good sends the donors receipts for tax purposes immediately after the donation is processed.

If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact us again.

Sincerely,
Maggie
Network for Good Customer Service

We are a non-profit organization, when our donors make a contribution via credit card they expect to be credited the amount of their donation.  Exception to this, would be if they're getting something in return.  As any business excepting credit card transactions we except the fees, not the donor. Raiser's Edge is not an accounting software, this is left up to finance.

 Respectfully submitted

Z LaRocca

CMH Foundation

Wilmington, OH 45177 

I think the questions here are the legality of the donation and who to receipt and the dollar amount to use. NFG donations are like United Way donations in that the money we receive from them needs to be receipted to NFG & United Way and cannot be receipted from us even though we think of the individuals that made the donations to NFG & UW as 'our donors'.

NFG is not a bank or a credit card processor - they are a stand alone Charity. The 2 ways I have seen this handled are:

John Smith donates $30 online via credit card to NFG and designates the money to go to your organization. NFG sends the donor their legal receipt. NFG sends you a check for $25 and indicates John Smith in the memo of the check.

NFG is the legal donor and receives the receipt from your organization.

Example 1: $25 is put on the NFG constituent record (legal donor) and John Smith is soft credited $25

Example 2: $25 is put on the NFG constituent record (legal donor). A second Gift for $30 is put on John Smith's account using the Gift type of OTHER. Other gifts are excluded from all financial reporting - and the thank you letter sent does not mention the dollar amount because they are not the legal donor - just like a soft credit.

 

I guess what this really means is that the person your organization considers the donor (not NFG) in their solicitation mind set should never see a dollar amount on their thank you letter because they are not legally the donor to your organization. What should happen is that you have a recognition policy that is robust and flexible enough to reward donors that donate through organizations like these but may miss a giving level recognitiopn by a few dollars due to fees being collected from organizations like these.

We send the donors a letter that thanks them and reminds them that the NFG receipt is their legal receipt for the gift.