The Donation API provides organizations with the ability to create completely custom donation forms. Using this API, these custom forms can leverage the Convio CRM for transaction processing and storage of all relevant gift information, including donor data and specific information for the gift itself. This donor and gift information will then be accessible throughout the Convio CRM as if the gift originated from within a Convio Donation form.
Before your custom form can successfully process donations using the API a "ghost" form must be launched using the Convio Donations 2 product. This is a standard donation 2 form that incorporates all of your desired payment levels, field selection and validation, processing options, etc. We call it a ghost form because it will never be seen by a donor. The ghost form dictates the required fields, validation, payment levels, additional data fields and payment options which your custom form will replicate with a custom design, layout and experience. Therefore, the physical layout of the ghost form, the page wrapper and other aesthetic choices are not important.
Technically there is nothing prohibiting you from linking to the ghost form from your website or driving traffic to the page; however, we recommend clients keep the form hidden so that you can easily determine the success of your custom form by evaluating the results without interference. The best practice recommendation therefore is for you to create a donation "campaign" which contains two or more forms, and isolate one form to operate as the ghost, reserving potential other standard Convio forms as backup options and/or comparative analysis.
Q: Can my custom form use Flash, AJAX or another fancy publishing interface?A: Yes. You are only limited by the standard constraints of the web browser.
Q: Can I redirect successful transactions to a custom URL?A: Yes. You can also redirect failed transactions to a custom URL. A great use for this parameter feature is to direct failed transactions to a page that offers additional ways to help, along with language that kindly indicates "it's not you, it's probably me, so please visit this other form to make a donation", using your backup standard Convio form(s).
Q: Can I choose whether to send a "welcome email" for new constituent records?A: Yes.
Q: Can my custom form capture recurring or pledge donations?A: Not at this time.
Q: Can I process eCommerce transactions with this API?A: Not at this time.
Q: Can my custom form include eCards?A: Yes.
Q: Can the API support "in honor" or "in memorial" gifts and acknowledgements?A: Yes.
Q: Can I pass through the credit card number within a URL?A: No. This is not safe and therefore not supported.
Q: Why am I required to use Donations2 to create the ghost form?A: The API is a front-end to the Donations2 application. It invokes the D2 code to validate the input and the D2 code to process the request against a campaign and form. It cannot do this unless there is a D2 campaign, form, and levels created and you have to use D2 to create them.
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