Overview

The Checkout tab in the CauseMatch Dashboard is where you configure how donations are processed and what donors experience during checkout. This includes connecting a payment gateway, setting up donation notifications, configuring the fields donors fill in, and customizing the checkout page. At least one payment gateway must be configured before you can submit your campaign for review.

Who Can Use This?

This feature is available to users with the Client or Client Admin role.

Before You Begin

• Your campaign has been created and the Start, Goals, and Dates tabs are complete (see: Creating a New Campaign)

• A payment gateway has been connected to your account (Client Admin only, see: Configuring Payment Gateways)

• You know which currencies your campaign will accept donations in

• Your organization’s  legally registered name and Tax / EIN are ready. These are required when configuring tax-deductible donation receipts.

Step-by-Step Guide

To access the Checkout tab: 1. Log in to your CauseMatch Dashboard 2. Navigate to Campaigns and open your campaign 3. Click the Checkout tab  

Section 1: Notifications

This section has two buttons, Donation Notifications and Donor Rescue Notifications,  for setting up automated emails related to donations on your campaign.

1. Donation Notifications:

   The Donation Notifications button opens a dialog where you configure email alerts sent to your team each time a donation is successfully received on your campaign.

   1. Click Donation Notifications

   2. Toggle on Enable notifications to activate the feature

   3. Enter the Notifications Email addresses that should receive alerts. Press Enter after each address to add multiple recipients.

   4. Set a Subject Line for the notification emails

   5. Customize the Notification Content using the editor. Merge tags are available to automatically include donation details such as donor name and amount.

   6. Click Save

   

Donor Rescue Notifications:

The Donor Rescue Notifications button opens a dialog where you configure automated email notifications to both donors and your team about donations that were started but not completed. The dialog has two panels side by side:

Donation Recovery Email (sent to donors):

This email is automatically sent to the donor who started checkout but did not complete their donation, to encourage them to return and finish.

1. Toggle on Donation Recovery Email to enable it

2. Set the Subject Line for the email

3. Compose the email content using the editor. Merge tags are available to include donation details.

4. Configure when the email is sent:

• Enter the number of minutes, hours, or days after abandonment

• Or set the delay to 0 to send immediately

5. Click Preview to review how the email will look before saving

Tip: Donation recovery emails are one of the most effective tools for increasing your total funds raised. Enabling this is strongly recommended for all campaigns.

           
Abandoned Donation Notification (sent to campaign owner/manager):

This email alerts your campaign owner or manager when a donation is abandoned, so your team can follow up.

1. Toggle on Abandoned Donation Notification to enable it

2. Enter the To email address of the team member who should receive the alerts

3. Set the Subject Line

4. Compose the email content using the editor

5. Optionally check Send abandoned donation notification to layer item managers to also alert individual ambassadors when a donation is abandoned from their personal fundraising pages

6. Configure the send delay (same as above: enter a number, choose minutes/hours/days, or set to 0 for immediate)

7. Click Preview to review the email, then click Save

Section 3: Checkout Fields

This section controls what information donors are asked to fill in during checkout. It is split into two parts: Default Fields and Custom Fields.

Default Fields:

Default fields are the standard donor information fields. Each field can be toggled on or off, and marked as Required or optional:

• Email (always on, always required)

• Display Name (always on, always required)

• Phone

• Address

• City

• State / Province

• Postal Code

• Country

• Dedication (allows donors to dedicate their gift in someone’s name)

Tip: Only ask for information you genuinely need. Fewer required fields leads to less donor drop-off during checkout.

Custom Fields:

Custom fields let you collect additional information from donors that isn’t covered by the default fields

To add a custom field: 1. Click + Add Field 2. The dialog opens with two tabs: Basic Settings and Conditional Logic

Basic Settings tab:

• Label: the question or field name donors will see

• Field Type: choose from: Text, Number, Text Area, Date, Email, Checkbox, Dropdown, Data List, Checkbox Group, Radio Group, or Phone

• Required toggle: make this field mandatory if needed

• If using a Dropdown, Checkbox Group, or Radio Group field type, add the available options for donors to choose from

• Placement: optionally control where in the checkout form this field appears:

• Anchor field: select a default field to position relative to. Leave as No placement to append the field at the end of the form

• Position: choose Above or Below the anchor field

3. Click Save to add the field        

   

Conditional Logic tab:

Conditional logic lets you control when a custom field is shown or hidden based on values the donor has already entered in other fields. If no conditions are configured, the field is always visible.

1. Set the Mode:

• Show when: the field appears only when the conditions are met

• Hide when: the field is hidden when the conditions are met

2. Click + Add Condition Group to define a set of conditions

3. Within a group, click + Add Condition and configure each condition:

• Field: the field whose value to check (can reference default fields or other custom fields)

• Operator: how to evaluate the value (e.g., equals, greater than, is empty, is not empty)

• Value: the value to compare against (a dropdown selection, text input, or true/false depending on the field type)

4. Set the group operator:

• AND: all conditions in the group must be true

• OR: any one condition in the group must be true

5. Add more groups if needed. Multiple groups are always combined with OR (if any group matches, the rule is satisfied).

6. Click Save.

Tip: Use conditional logic to keep your checkout form short by only showing relevant fields. For example, show a “Company Name” field only when a donor selects “Corporate” in a “Donation Type” dropdown.

Section 4: Checkout Page Creative

Customize the visual appearance of the checkout page separately from the main campaign page:

1. Use campaign page banners: toggle on to use the same banner images from your Design tab on the checkout page. Toggle off to upload separate banners for the checkout page only
2. Checkout page heading: add a headline at the top of the checkout page
3. Checkout page content: add a description below the heading using a rich text editor

Click Save at the bottom of the page when done. A confirmation pop-up will appear to confirm your changes have been saved successfully.

Your Campaign is Ready for Review

Once the Checkout tab is saved with at least one payment gateway configured, your campaign is fully set up. Navigate back to your campaign overview page and click Send for Review to submit it to the CauseMatch team.

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Tips & Best Practices

• Always enable abandoned donation recovery. It costs nothing and can recover a meaningful percentage of incomplete donations.

• Configure your receipt email. Use the Edit Receipt button next to your payment gateway to customize the donation receipt donors receive. A branded, personalized receipt builds trust.

• Keep required checkout fields to a minimum. Every additional required field increases the chance a donor abandons the checkout. Only make fields required if truly necessary.

• Test your checkout before submitting for review. Make a small test donation on your campaign page to verify the full checkout flow works as expected before going live.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Related Articles

• Creating a New Campaign

• Designing Your Campaign Page

• Setting Up Products & Giving Levels

• Configuring Payment Gateways (Client Admin)

• Submitting Your Campaign for Review