How to Accept DAF Donations on Luminate Online or Engaging Networks
Donor-advised funds are one of the fastest-growing sources of charitable giving, yet most donation forms still make DAF donors leave your site to complete their gift. DAFpay™ by Chariot fixes that: donors complete a DAF gift directly on your donation form in a few clicks. If your organization runs on Blackbaud Luminate Online® or Engaging Networks, you can add DAFpay today, with a setup process specific to each platform. Luminate Online requires a custom DAF integration, while Engaging Networks includes a native one you can configure in your account settings. In this post, we walk through what each option involves, what it costs, and what real organizations are seeing after adding DAFpay to their donation forms, so you can decide whether it belongs in your annual giving plan.
Why Should You Include DAF Donation Options on Your Donation Form
DAF donors are high-value donors, and removing friction pays off. Organizations using DAFpay are seeing real results: Blood Cancer United built a new $2.6 million giving channel with more than 1,700 donors, March of Dimes found donors give 8x more through DAFpay, and Fred Hutch Cancer Center added 357 new DAF donors. If your form offers credit card, Apple Pay, and nothing for DAFs, you are making your most generous donors work the hardest.
DAFPay on Blackbaud Luminate Online® is a Custom Integration
Luminate Online does not currently have a native DAFpay integration, though Blackbaud has a future native integration in the works. In the meantime, organizations that want to start capturing DAF gifts today have a proven path: a custom API integration.
We build that custom integration for our Luminate Online clients. It connects DAFpay directly to your donation forms and keeps gift data flowing into Luminate Online, where your reporting and stewardship workflows already live.
You can see DAFpay live on Luminate Online forms at NYU Langone, Fred Hutch Cancer Center, and Central Park Conservancy. Read more about that last one in our Central Park Conservancy DAF integration case study.
What it costs
A Chariot subscription is required for the Luminate Online build. Through our partnership with Chariot, our clients have access to exclusive pricing options.
DAFPay on Engaging Networks is a Native Integration
Engaging Networks has DAFpay integration built into the platform, so no custom development is needed for the core integration. Some styling updates may be required so the DAFpay button renders cleanly on your donation pages.
How setup works
- Register a Chariot account at givechariot.com
- In Engaging Networks, go to Hello > Account Settings > Gateways > New Payment Gateway, select the Chariot Gateway, and enter your EIN
- On each donation page, go to Admin > Donation Settings and add Chariot as a merchant account
- Edit the form block and check “Enable digital wallet buttons” to display the DAFpay button
The full walkthrough is in the Engaging Networks DAF integration guide. One caveat: organizations using the BBIP gateway are not currently compatible with DAFpay, though this will be coming in the future. You can see the native integration live on Rady Children’s Health donation form.
What it costs
There is no upfront or subscription cost for Engaging Networks clients. A 2.9% processing fee applies to DAF transactions, in line with typical credit card processing. If you expect higher DAF volume, Chariot offers subscription plans with zero processing fees.
What to Know Before You Launch DAFPay on Your Forms
A few requirements apply to both platforms.
- Nonprofit eligibility: Must be 501(c)(3) registered
- Currency: USD only. The DAFpay button will not render for other currencies
- Transaction status: All DAF gifts start as “pending”. Funds are not immediate (released from the financial institution)
- Chariot Verification: Verifying your Chariot Deposit Account is required to access DAFpay. Chariot’s onboarding guide covers the steps.
DAF giving is only going to grow, and the organizations capturing it are the ones that made it easy first. Whether you are on Luminate Online and need a custom build or on Engaging Networks and want help configuring and styling the native integration, we can help you scope the right approach and get DAFpay live on your forms. Book a call with Doing Good Digital, and let’s talk about where DAF gifts fit in your annual giving strategy.
