Get Money. Get Planning!

Hey there Ivory House followers! This week I would like to bring your attention to a lovely little website called GoFundMe.com. Some of you may be familiar with this site. I have seen it floating around on social media from time to time, but wasn’t really intrigued until I saw one of my Facebook friends was using it to help fund their honeymoon. Uhhh….hellooo genius!

And this is where my story begins. So like most couples now-a-days, my husband and I had already established a home and didn’t really need a lot of wedding gifts. Our registry was filled with all of those mundane household items that were pretty unnecessary. So, we decided to give our guests an alternative option…..our honeymoon. We worked with our travel agent to set up a link on our wedding website that allowed people to donate any monetary amount to our dream vacation.  As a couple we were more focused on taking a once in a lifetime trip rather than hording kitchenware, so the prospect of people donating to our honeymoon really excited us.

Needless to say I wasn’t sure how the idea would fly with guests. But it went GREAT! We had numerous donations to our trip and we were pleasantly surprised when we showed up to our hotel and had enough money donated to our room for 3 days worth of room service! With this we were able to splurge on snorkeling excursions, couples beach massages, not to mention the amazing Hawaiian Luau.

While our idea worked, it was a little complicated getting all of the kinks worked out with the travel agent. The company we went through didn’t really have a process set up for online donations, so we were kind of starting from ground zero. This is where GoFundMe comes in.

This site would work great for honeymoon, wedding donations, you name it. No more fondling through cards, losing checks or having to worry about a middleman. Everything can be donated directly online via a credit card. This could even work for those that wish to forgo gifts in place of donating to their favorite charity. The possibilities are really endless.

So, here’s how it works.

1. Visit gofundme.com. Create your site. It’s quick, easy and free to sign up!
2. Share your page with your friends with their built in social sharing options or link your website to your GoFundMe profile.
3. Begin collecting online donations.
4. Track your results.

It really is that simple.

Q/A:

How do I get my money?

Once your fundraising campaign begins receiving online donations, you can easily request a withdrawal at any time. Withdrawing money does not affect the progress meter that is displayed on your campaign profile. You can request a bank deposit or a check be mailed to you directly.

How long do withdrawals take?

Typically between 5 and 7 business days.

Is it really free?

It is free to sign up. However, YouFundMe takes a 5% fee from each donation that you receive and a 3% processing fee. The fee is deducted automatically so you will never have to worry about paying a bill. For more information please see their official pricing and fees page.

Do they charge my donors?

No, never.

Are there any timing limits?

Nope. Your campaign can go indefinitely or until you shut it down. They do have an option to set a deadline if you would like. Just select the “all of nothing” option when you sign up.

How do I keep track of donations?

You will receive an email each time someone donates to your campaign. This way you can keep track and be sure to send out those thank you notes!

Is my campaign private?

You can hide the campaign from appearing on the directory. However, anyone with the link to your profile will be able to see your page. Therefore, your campaign is not 100% private.

Can I receive donations from other countries?

Yes! This means that all of those out of town guests don’t have to lug a package with them or even their checkbook. They can just donate online.

Mobile friendly?

Of course! People can even donate directly from their phone using their mobile site.

What about taxes?

You should consult a professional about the taxes. You need to be sure that you are not required to pay due to the nature of your donation. However, most donations from GoFundMe are considered “personal gifts” which are not taxed as income in the US.

There is a lot more important information listed on their website. These are just a few that I thought were important to note.

I was really inspired by this concept and think it can be very useful. I hope it helps all of the Ivory House lovers in some way, shape or form. And I hope to be able to guide future website clients in this direction. Feel free to let me know your thoughts and if you have ever used this service before. Until next week.

Kenzie