[Editor's note: The following first appeared in the September 2011 issue of NTEN:Change. Read the complete issue of NTEN's new quarterly journal for nonprofit leaders by subscribing to the journal for free!]

By Stephen J. Michaele, (C) Systems

The mere mention of PCI standards for protecting credit card data is enough to elicit painful looks from those who have had to untangle this Gordian knot to bring their organizations into compliance. However, regardless of its complexity, if you’re accepting credit cards you are responsible for complying with the standard. Here are some simple things you can do to prepare for the process:

[Editor's note: the following is an excerpt from the 2011 Nonprofit Social Networking Benchmark Report, sponsored by NTEN, CommonKnowledge, and Blackbaud. You can get the entire report for free here.]

It turns out that nonprofits of all sizes are able to scale their fundraising efforts on commercial social networks.

We identified a subset (27 organizations) of “Master Social Fundraisers” from amongst the survey respondents. Master Social Fundraisers are nonprofits that raised more than $100,000 on Facebook over the last year. Fascinatingly, the first characteristic that jumped out reversed many of our conclusions regarding organization size: 30% of the Master Fundraisers were Small organizations ($1 to $5MM annual budget) and 8% were Medium-sized ($6MM to $50MM).

[Editor's note: The following is an excerpt from a feature article that first appeared in the March 2011 issue of NTEN:Change. Read the complete issue of NTEN's new quarterly journal for nonprofit leaders by subscribing to the journal for free!]

By Katya Andresen, COO, Network for Good

When we think about giving online, we tend to focus on the latest new bell, whistle or widget for fundraising. But raising funds online is not about technology, any more than raising funds through the mail is about paper. It’s about the relationship between the nonprofit and the donor who wants to support a cause. People who give online are no different from other donors in that most of them expect a relationship— not simply a transaction—with the organization they support.

Our analysis [from the 2010 Online Giving Study] showed the following:

Ali Cherry, Beaconfire

It seems like "integration" has joined "strategy," "social media" and "ROI" as part of a family of words that we all agree are important to online fundraising campaigns but everyone seems to use slightly differently.

Meg Murphy, Convio

Do these statements sound familiar?

"I don’t have enough resources to do online fundraising and marketing", and

"I’m not sure I can afford to invest in online fundraising."

Those points are common in the nonprofit sector despite the growing number of studies and reports that show that online fundraising continues to grow — even during the tough economy.

Rebecca Higman and Katya Andresen, Network for Good

Online donors can be summed up with a phrase that would make an excellent soap opera title: the young and the generous.

They tend to be under 40 and their gifts are around $100. We want more donors like them: they account for most of our acquisition, and they are a leading source of new revenue for most nonprofits.

The trick is getting them to stay once they give. We've developed some tips to help you learn how to improve your cultivation strategy (or combat a lack thereof) and what fool-proof avenue will satisfy donors and Board members alike.

Steve MacLaughlin, Blackbaud

The last three months of the year represent a critical time for the fundraising efforts of nonprofit organizations. The end of the calendar year is also a significant source of the funds raised online for nonprofits.

There are still some skeptics out there, those who say "wake me up when online fundraising is really, really big."

Here's your official wake-up call. Blackbaud's analysis of online giving in 2008 found that December accounted for about 21% of the year's transaction volume, but 48% of the total dollars raised. The average online gift for the month of December increased to nearly $250.

Peter Deitz, Social Actions

When it comes to online fundraising, an obvious tip is to meet your current and potential donors where they are. With 300 million active users, Facebook is a natural starting place. Moreover, the company reports that people who are 35 years and older make up the fastest growing user demographic, which corresponds to the demographic mostly likely to make a donation online.

To help tech-savvy nonprofits make use of Facebook, this brief guide looks at four strategies:

1. Raise Meaning Before Money
2. Money Is Not the Only Metric
3. Your People Are Your Impact
4. Be Specific and Timely