Offline donations are donations or gifts that are not submitted through the internet or electronically; rather, they are submitted through physical checks or cash. This might include money dropped in the plate or box on Sunday, delivered in the mail, or collected at a fundraising event.


Why record Offline Donations in GivingFire?

There are three reasons why it's important to capture all transactions made by a donor throughout the year.


  1. Donors can see an accurate donations history comprised of all their gifts. A donor might have a $50 recurring gift online, and then give a $100 check to a special fundraiser one Sunday. When he logs into his GivingFire account, he can ensure that his budget is accurate and funds are being stewarded effectively.
  2. By capturing all transaction data in one place organizations can automate important accounting functions and eliminate the need for double entry. The goal is to get everything into a single system.
  3. Organizations that use GivingFire to track all donations can use GivingFire's automated IRS statement generator. GivingFire can generate, print, and mail the required statements which must include all donations given in the course of a year.


In summary, the big idea behind Offline Donations is to capture all donation data in one place so that you’re providing the most accurate transaction records for your organization and donors, eliminating the need to meld information from multiple systems.