National Kidney Foundation increased average recurring gift size by 22% with Intelligent Ask Amounts
Mission
Revolutionizing the fight to save lives by eliminating preventable kidney disease, accelerating innovation for the dignity of the patient experience, and dismantling structural inequities in kidney care, dialysis, and transplantation.
Challenge
Find a fundraising platform that can support multiple campaigns, grow recurring giving, and scale across a national team
Solution
Migrate to GoFundMe Pro to build mobile-optimized, story-driven campaign pages that align across channels and unlock features like monthly giving optimization and brand management
“GoFundMe Pro is so user-friendly that I now build and edit our campaign pages myself without needing support from our web services team—something we couldn’t do before.”
– Ann Marie Liadis, Field and Donor Communications Senior Manager
Results on GoFundMe Pro:*
20% increase
in online revenue year over year
74% increase
in new recurring donors during National Kidney Month, year over year
22% increase
in average recurring gift size with Intelligent Ask Amounts
*Based on 2025-2026 GoFundMe Pro data
Unlocking independence with Campaign Studio
On National Kidney Foundation (NKF)’s previous fundraising platform, even small campaign updates required JavaScript knowledge and support from a web services team. This made it difficult for nontechnical staff to build or update campaigns. The platform also lacked mobile optimization and did not support digital wallets like Apple Pay or Google Pay. With three major giving campaigns each year and a growing portfolio of field events, these limitations were not sustainable.
After migrating to GoFundMe Pro, the team saw an immediate impact. Campaign Studio enabled the team to build, update, and publish donation pages without developer support. Features like a countdown timer, impact tiles, embedded video, and mobile optimization were available out of the box. Teams across the organization can now create campaigns and keep the story consistent, no matter where donors engage.
GoFundMe Pro gave us back our independence. Features that used to require a developer are now built in—and that changes how we build and launch campaigns.
Storytelling that connects donors at every touchpoint
The team focused on creating a seamless experience across all channels. Direct mail now includes a QR code that links to a dedicated donation page that tells the same story. The campaign page, email, and direct mail all carry a consistent narrative—from the first touchpoint through to the thank-you page.
At checkout, GoFundMe Pay expanded payment options for NKF’s donors, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and other digital wallets. For a donor base increasingly using mobile, reducing friction at the final step made a measurable difference. Together, these improvements contributed to a 20% increase in online revenue year over year.
From the first email to the thank-you page, GoFundMe Pro helps us create a consistent experience across channels.
Optimization and intelligence drove sustained giving
One of NKF’s most important insights came during National Kidney Month. In previous years, the team limited its match to first-time monthly gifts to encourage sustained giving. This approach created unintended friction, leaving one-time donors feeling excluded.
This year, the team expanded the match to include all gift types and used Intelligent Ask Amounts, which, on average, increase recurring conversion rates by 5.15%, to surface recurring giving naturally. Instead of making recurring giving the primary focus, the donation experience is adapted to each donor based on factors like past giving, location, and device. As a result, monthly gifts remained strong without requiring a direct ask.
This approach led to a 74% increase in new recurring donors during National Kidney Month year over year, along with a 22% increase in average recurring gift size on the main donation form.
We still saw a large number of monthly gifts come in during Kidney Month, because when you go to the page, it’s optimized for it. It encourages sustained support without requiring a direct ask.
Results reflect National Kidney Foundation’s campaign strategy and may vary for other organizations.
Ann Marie’s GoFundMe Pro tip:
- Use GoFundMe Pro’s intelligence features to support your strategy. When you optimize for monthly giving, you can drive results without needing a dedicated ask.
Sean’s GoFundMe Pro tip:
- Preview every campaign on mobile before publishing, and check that the donation form appears above the fold.
Intelligent Ask Amounts
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