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YourCause.com Frequently Asked Questions |
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Our frequently asked questions can be found in the categories below. If you have searched through our FAQs and still have a question, please Contact Us to reach our Customer Service team.
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Getting Started
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What is a “cause” and how does it relate to a charity?
A cause is your personal campaign, goal or mission in which you will connect to a registered charity. Whether it's raising awareness, promoting a particular event, or raising money, it's about your passion to make a difference.
It is often easier to select a recipient charity first to determine exactly what you would like your cause to be. For example, after determining you would like to support a breast cancer charity such as Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, your “cause” may be ‘Finding a cure to end cancer’ or ‘Raising awareness about prevention of breast cancer.’
Can I raise money for myself or for a personal cause?
No, all monies raised go to your selected recipient 501(C)(3) IRS-registered charity that you selected for your cause page, which must be in our database of approved charities. All donations made on YourCause.com are sent directly to the charity. If you are looking to raise money for a personal cause that is not associated with a registered charity, please visit www.microgiving.com.
How do I find the charity I am looking for?
Our database search consists of public charities recognized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as tax-exempt under section 501(C)(3). This data contains more than 1.5 million non-profit organizations. However, a charity may not be listed because the organization is recognized as a private foundation (not a public charity) and therefore does not qualify for representation on our site, or the charity may be a place of worship that is not required to be recognized as a tax-exempt organization by the IRS.
If you are having trouble finding your charity of choice in the search engine, please try the following tips:
- Do not use any punctuation, such as apostrophes, commas and periods.
- Use variations of a word: try using “St” and also “Saint”, or leave off “Inc”.
- Search within a zip code by keyword if you know where the charity is located.
How do I find a specific branch of a charity?
Several charities list their various branches separately and some do not depending on how they were originally set up with the IRS. If a charity has several branches that display in your search results, you may wish to search by zip code within those results. Each branch that is set up within a charity will have its own Tax ID/EIM number. Some charities do not set up individual branches separately. You will return only one search result if this is the case.
You may specify in your Description of Cause that you would like your donors to designate a specific branch on the donation page to ensure that that is where the donations are distributed.
The charity I selected has the wrong category assigned to it — how do I change it?
The category cannot be changed. The IRS automatically assigns each registered nonprofit organization a category. YourCause.com has no influence on this assignment and cannot make changes. The non-profit organization may wish to contact the IRS to have their associated category changed.
Why do some charities have an X by their name?
The charity has opted out of receiving donations from third-parties. If you would still like to make a donation, you can contact the organization directly, or encourage them to change this option on www.Guidestar.com.
Can I add a charity?
No, if the charity you wish to raise donation for is not listed, they must register with www.GuideStar.com to be added to our database.
Can I raise money for a charity outside the United States?
No, currently our database consists of 1.5 million U.S. IRS-registered non-profit organizations. Several charities work outside the United States even though they are based here in the U.S.
Can I raise donations for a race or walk I am participating in?
Yes, however, it is not recommended because of time constraints. Donations can sometimes take from 2 to 6 weeks to reach a charity, and you would be responsible for making sure that organization is assigning all donations to your name. An alternative is to use your cause page as a showcase for your run or walk and direct them on how to sponsor you.
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My Account
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I forgot my login or password. How do I recover it?
The Sign In page offers a link to reset your password. You will need the email address you registered with and the exact answer to your secret question. You will receive an email with your User ID and a link to reset your password.
How do I change my password or User ID?
Once you are signed in, click on Reset Password under Admin Tools.
You cannot change your User ID.
How do I change my email address?
Once you are signed in, click on My Account and you can change your email address under Review/Edit Personal Info. Click Save to save changes.
Why am I having trouble signing in?
Check to make sure you are entering your information exactly as you did when you registered - your User ID and password are CaSe-sensitive.
How do I cancel my account?
Please send a cancelation request to accounts@yourcause.com. All premium membership users will be downgraded to a basic, free account unless otherwise requested.
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My Cause Page
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What are the guidelines for a cause page?
Our mission is to provide users with a web platform that enables everybody to further their cause — all in hopes of making a positive difference in our world. As a part of that, we do require that all causes posted to our community not be designed (either unintentionally or intentionally) to offend others- or even run the risk of offending others. Please also see our Terms of Use.
My cause page is not yet active — why not?
You should first receive a verification email after you sign up. If you do not receive this email, please contact accounts@yourcause.com. After you have verified your email address, cause pages take up to 48 business hours to approve, Monday through Friday.
Can I link to more than one charity at a time?
Not at this time. However, you may choose to change your charity recipient at any time and as often as you wish.
I started a new cause, but it deleted my original one, replacing all of my information with the new cause. How can I get my old cause back?
You cannot get back your old cause; however, you can access the information for that cause, and then copy and paste it into a new cause or edit your current cause. On your About Me page there is a section titled My Past Causes. There you can access your information. We are currently working on a functionality that will allow you to switch back to your past causes.
How do I change or edit my cause page and/or recipient charity?
To start a new cause page, click on Start A New Cause under Admin Tools. Your previous cause will then deactivate.
To edit your cause page information only, simply click Edit on any of the boxes you would like to change. Click the Save button to submit changes.
To change your selected charity only, click on Edit in the Recipient Charity box and search for a new charity. After selecting a charity, click the Save button to submit changes.
Are my donations effected if I choose to change my cause and/or charity?
No. Once a donation is made to your charity, a transaction is automatically processed at the same time. This allows you to change your charity at any time while ensuring previous donations have already been processed.
What is my cause page URL?
Your URL is www.yourcause.com/User ID
How can I improve my user rating?
Ask friends, family, co-workers and others to sign up and click on the stars to higher your rating.
What is the Inappropriate Flag used for?
The flag is there for members to click on to notify our staff of inappropriate content on a member's cause page. Every cause page displays this flag for the reason stated and it does not mean that your page has been “flagged.”
How do I add My Favorite Charities?
Visit the charity's profile page and click on Add To Favorites.
What makes a great Cause page?
A compelling appeal and a lot pictures — particularly a great profile photo! If you do not want to upload a personal photo of yourself, you may upload a cause-related image (ex. a photo of your cat adopted from the SPCA). In a social network, a photo says a thousand words and helps make your cause real to others.
A catchy headline will help to keep viewers drawn to your cause, too. And the more you change it, the better. Refreshing your page often makes it more interesting to visitors. We encourage you to reach out by telling your personal story or using a quote. Other things that add substance to your cause page include adding Favorite Charities, Events, Blogs, and supporting others who are linked to your same charity.
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Donations
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Is there a place where I can specify to a charity what exactly I would like my donation to go towards?
Yes, absolutely. On the donation page, there is a Designation and a Dedication box. This allows you to specify how you would like to have your donation used, or allows you to give a gift on behalf of someone.
How do I make a donation to someone's cause?
If the user is a premium member, just click on the Donate Now button under their profile photo on their cause page. The donation will be displayed on their page.
If the member is a basic member and does not have a Donate button on their cause page, go to the person’s cause page, click on View This Charity under the Recipient Charity, and click the Donate Now button. This will ensure that your donation goes towards their cause.
How can I confirm that I have made a donation to a free member if their cause page does not display my donation?
On your own About Me page, it will show your donations under My Donations. Your donation will also display on the charity's profile page under Most Recent Donations if you were one of the last users to make a donation.
Are donations made to my cause affected if I choose to change my cause and/or charity?
Once a donation is made to your recipient charity, a transaction is automatically processed at the same time. This allows you to change your charity at any time while ensuring previous donations have already been processed.
Why does someone have to register to donate?
Registration is an additional security measure. Registration is free and quick, and you are not required to create a cause page.
Can I donate directly to a charity?
Yes, absolutely. Visit the charity's profile page and Click Donate Now.
When will a charity receive my donation?
All donations are sent out to charities on the 15th of each month for the previous month.
For example, donations made from April 1st to April 30th will be sent out on May 15th. The check or funds sent will be from Network For Good, who processes all donations. It can take from 2 to 6 weeks for an organization to receive the check depending on when in the month the donation was made. The check is accumulative per month and includes an itemized statement with specific information for each individual donation.
Can I donate anonymously?
Yes, the donation page has a check box if you choose to make an anonymous donation.
Is my donation transaction secure?
YourCause.com uses industry-leading Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology to keep your personal information as secure as possible. YourCause.com helps to protect your information by working with partners that provide a secure and safe environment for credit card donations. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.
Does YourCause.com take any percentage of donations as profit?
Absolutely not.YourCause.com actually gives a percentage of our profits back to our users through our Daily Donation program.
Who pays for the donation processing fees?
The processing costs for completing your transaction and disbursing the funds to your selected charity is just one of the many costs Network for Good incurs as part of their mission of training and supporting nonprofits in their fundraising efforts. A 4.75% grant is made to Network for Good with each donation transaction to fund our mission. You can deduct that grant amount from your base donation amount. Alternatively, you can add a tax deductible 4.75% grant to your donation so that 100% of your donation is granted to your charity. Either way, the full amount of your donation is tax deductible.
Is my donation tax-deductable? Will I get a receipt for my donation?
Yes, donations are 100% tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law, because every charity in our database is qualified to receive tax deductible donations under the Internal Revenue Service rules. When you make an online donation, a donation receipt will be automatically emailed to you from Network for Good. When you file your taxes, you will need to itemize your donations on Schedule A of the 1040 form. You can download this form and the instructions for how to fill it out from the IRS Web site.
Why donate through YourCause.com?
- It's easier and quicker than writing a check and putting it in the mail.
- You are automatically emailed a receipt for tax-purposes (from Network For Good)
- It saves your favorite charity money, because processing fees are extremely low (through our partner Network for Good).
- You are supporting someone’s cause!
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Miscellaneous
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What does YourCause.com do to help support members?
YourCause.com is proud to be your partner in making a difference that matters. In addition to our tools and features, here is how we support you:
- Daily Donation — We award one Daily Donation each day, Monday thru Friday, selected randomly. Not only does your charity receive a donation from yourCause.com, but your cause is also featured prominently on our homepage for the day.
- Daily Featured Causes — Our homepage slideshow proudly displays several randomly chosen members' causes. Each cause is featured with a cause-related background image to attract viewer’s attention to your cause. YourCause.com also features a member cause each day on the “All Causes” page.
This is your opportunity to make your difference in the world with a huge, global Internet presence. Our goal is to give you all the means and tools to do just that!
How does a charity get on your Website?
Non-profit listings featured on YourCause.com originate from the GuideStar database that contains records on more than 1.5 million organizations classified as 501(C)(3) by the Internal Revenue Service. GuideStar verifies that each organization is qualified under IRS rules to receive tax-deductible contributions. While we attempt to provide as much information as possible, we encourage you to do research about any charity you chose to support or promote.
What can I do on other member's cause pages?
The purpose of a social network is to connect, communicate and support other members and their causes. There are several things you can do to interact on the cause pages of others!
- Cause Connect with your Friends
- Add a member’s charity to your Favorites
- Add Personal Testimonials
- Post messages of support
- Rate the member
- Donate to their cause
- Tell a friend about their cause
What is the best way to develop a good list of supporters?
Start by sending your cause page link out to those who already support you in some way and invite them to spread the word. In addition, we encourage you to reach out to all your online contacts.
What is Cause Connect?
Cause Connect is your network of friends! Once a member has accepted your request, friends can email each other, post messages of support, add personal testimonials and much more.
How do I subscribe to the YourCause.com email newsletter?
You can subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here.
What is Zazzle shopping?
Zazzle is a storefront that allows you to create personalized YourCause.com merchandise. Click here to start shopping!
What additional features are you adding to YourCause.com?
Please visit our Coming Soon page.
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