Question 1

What is Classy and what problem does it solve for nonprofits?

Accepted Answer

Classy is a modern online fundraising platform designed to help nonprofits streamline their donation and fundraising processes. Founded in 2011, Classy addresses the outdated fundraising technology landscape that nonprofits have long struggled with—outdated donation pages from the 1990s, clunky payment processing, and lack of mobile optimization. The platform provides beautiful campaign pages, peer-to-peer fundraising tools, event registration, recurring giving capabilities, and social media integration. Classy serves over 7,000 nonprofits including major organizations like Wounded Warrior Project, Robin Hood Foundation, and numerous universities, helping them modernize their donor experience and increase their fundraising impact.

Question 2

When was Classy founded and who are the founders?

Accepted Answer

Classy was founded in 2011 in San Diego, California by four co-founders: Scot Chisholm, Darius Vasefi, Pat Walsh, and Marshall Peden. Scot Chisholm, who serves as CEO, personally experienced nonprofit sector inefficiencies while volunteering and recognized the opportunity to modernize nonprofit fundraising technology. The founders combined deep understanding of the nonprofit sector's pain points with consumer web expertise in design, mobile-first development, and social integration. The platform launched in 2013 after two years of development, quickly establishing itself as a leader in modern nonprofit fundraising software.

Question 3

What happened with Classy's acquisition by GoFundMe?

Accepted Answer

Classy was acquired by GoFundMe Charity (GoFundMe's nonprofit arm) in 2022 in an undisclosed acquisition deal. This strategic acquisition integrated Classy's SaaS subscription model—where nonprofits pay monthly fees for the platform—with GoFundMe's transaction-based charity donation system, creating an end-to-end platform serving both individual donors and institutional nonprofits. Following the acquisition, Classy has maintained operational independence within the GoFundMe portfolio while leveraging the broader GoFundMe ecosystem. The acquisition provided significant growth capital and synergies, contributing to Classy's estimated $100M+ in annual revenue as of 2024.

Question 4

How many nonprofits use Classy and what is its market position?

Accepted Answer

Classy serves over 7,000 nonprofits globally and is estimated to generate $100M+ in annual revenue, making it one of the leading nonprofit fundraising platforms. The platform has strategically positioned itself to serve mid-to-large nonprofits with annual budgets between $1M and $100M, differentiating itself from both enterprise competitors like Blackbaud (which dominates the $1B+ revenue segment with solutions like Raiser's Edge and Luminate) and mass-market crowdfunding platforms like GoFundMe and Kickstarter. Notable Classy clients include Wounded Warrior Project, Robin Hood Foundation, and Thorn, representing a diverse range of mission-driven organizations.

Question 5

What are the core features and capabilities of Classy?

Accepted Answer

Classy's core feature set is designed to support the complete nonprofit fundraising lifecycle. Key capabilities include: beautiful, customizable campaign pages that inspire giving; peer-to-peer fundraising tools that allow supporters to create personal campaign pages rallying their networks; event registration and ticketing; recurring giving management to build predictable monthly donor revenue; comprehensive donor management and relationship tools; mobile-first design for seamless giving on any device; and social media integration for viral fundraising campaigns. These features work together to modernize the donor experience, streamline operations, and help nonprofits increase their fundraising effectiveness.

Question 6

What types of campaigns can nonprofits run on Classy?

Accepted Answer

Classy supports multiple campaign types tailored to different nonprofit fundraising strategies. Organizations can run traditional donation campaigns with beautiful, shareable campaign pages optimized for inspiring giving. The platform excels at peer-to-peer fundraising, where supporters create personal fundraising pages to rally their networks—ideal for walks, runs, marathons, and other community fundraising events. Classy also supports event fundraising and registration, recurring giving campaigns to establish predictable monthly revenue streams, and major donor campaigns. The mobile-first design ensures all campaigns perform beautifully across devices, while social integration helps campaigns go viral through sharing.

Question 7

How does Classy's pricing model work?

Accepted Answer

Classy operates on a SaaS subscription model where nonprofits pay monthly or annual fees based on their needs and usage levels. The subscription-based approach provides predictable costs for nonprofits while allowing them to scale their fundraising infrastructure as they grow. Pricing typically varies based on factors such as the nonprofit's annual fundraising goals, number of campaigns, feature complexity, and transaction volumes. This model differs from transaction-based alternatives where platforms take a percentage of each donation. The subscription approach appeals to mid-to-large nonprofits seeking transparent, predictable costs and deep customization capabilities.

Question 8

What competitive advantages does Classy have in the nonprofit fundraising market?

Accepted Answer

Classy's primary competitive advantages include its specialized focus on modern nonprofit fundraising experiences (beautiful design, mobile-first, social integration) that specifically address the outdated technology landscape nonprofits have historically relied on. The platform's peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities are particularly strong, enabling supporter-driven campaigns that amplify fundraising reach. Unlike enterprise solutions like Blackbaud that serve primarily large organizations, Classy targets mid-market nonprofits ($1M-100M budgets) with solutions that are more accessible, affordable, and easier to implement. The GoFundMe acquisition provides additional advantages through ecosystem synergies and broader platform integration capabilities. Finally, Classy's focus solely on nonprofit fundraising (versus horizontal solutions) enables deep specialization and industry expertise.

Question 9

How does peer-to-peer fundraising work on Classy?

Accepted Answer

Peer-to-peer fundraising is one of Classy's signature capabilities, allowing nonprofits to amplify their reach through supporter-driven campaigns. When a nonprofit launches a peer-to-peer campaign, supporters can create personal fundraising pages linked to the overall campaign. These personal pages allow supporters to share their own fundraising stories, set personal fundraising goals, and invite their networks to donate through their pages. All donations aggregate toward both the individual's goal and the nonprofit's overall campaign goal, creating a viral effect. This approach leverages social networks and personal relationships to dramatically expand the nonprofit's fundraising reach beyond their direct audience, making it ideal for walks, marathons, community events, and awareness campaigns.

Question 10

Which nonprofits are best suited to use Classy?

Accepted Answer

Classy is specifically designed for mid-to-large nonprofits with annual budgets between $1M and $100M that are ready to professionalize their fundraising operations. The platform works particularly well for nonprofits that engage in event fundraising, peer-to-peer campaigns, monthly giving programs, or multi-channel fundraising strategies. Organizations like Wounded Warrior Project, Robin Hood Foundation, Thorn, and numerous universities have found success with Classy. The platform is ideal for nonprofits that want to move beyond basic donation pages, need sophisticated donor relationship management, require mobile-optimized giving experiences, and seek to build recurring revenue through monthly giving programs. Smaller nonprofits with minimal fundraising infrastructure or very large enterprises (like those using Blackbaud) may find Classy less optimal.

Question 11

How can nonprofits get started with Classy?

Accepted Answer

Nonprofits can begin their Classy journey by visiting the platform's website and connecting with the sales team to discuss their specific fundraising goals and organizational needs. The onboarding process typically involves consulting with Classy's implementation team to understand the nonprofit's current fundraising infrastructure, pain points, and desired outcomes. Classy then customizes the platform setup for the organization's specific needs, including campaign page configuration, donor management preferences, and integration with existing tools. The platform provides training and support to ensure nonprofit staff can effectively use all features. While Classy serves nonprofits of various sizes within the mid-market segment, organizations should ideally have dedicated fundraising staff and be ready to commit to modernizing their fundraising processes.

Question 12

How does Classy handle donor data and security?

Accepted Answer

As a platform handling sensitive donor information and payment data, Classy takes security and compliance seriously. The platform must comply with donor data privacy regulations and payment card industry (PCI) standards to protect nonprofit donors' information. Classy's infrastructure is designed to securely process donations and store donor data while maintaining compliance with applicable regulations like GDPR and state-level privacy laws. The platform provides nonprofits with tools to manage donor preferences and privacy settings. Given the critical importance of donor trust and the regulatory landscape governing charitable giving and data privacy, security and compliance are foundational elements of Classy's platform architecture and ongoing operations.

Question 13

How does Classy integrate with other nonprofit tools and systems?

Accepted Answer

Classy operates within the broader nonprofit technology ecosystem and provides integration capabilities with common nonprofit software platforms and donor management systems. As part of the GoFundMe portfolio, Classy benefits from integration with GoFundMe's broader platform, creating synergies for nonprofits that use multiple services within the ecosystem. The platform is designed to work alongside existing nonprofit infrastructure including constituent relationship management (CRM) systems, accounting software, email marketing platforms, and event management tools. These integrations help nonprofits maintain unified donor databases and streamline operations across multiple platforms. Organizations evaluating Classy should discuss specific integration requirements with the sales team to ensure compatibility with their existing technology stack.

Question 14

What challenges do nonprofits face when using fundraising platforms like Classy?

Accepted Answer

While Classy addresses many nonprofit fundraising challenges, organizations should be aware of sector-specific headwinds. Nonprofit budget constraints are a primary concern—the nonprofit sector has historically lower software spending than commercial sectors, making technology adoption decisions carefully scrutinized. Donor data privacy regulations continue to evolve, requiring platforms and nonprofits to maintain compliance and transparency. Proving return on investment (ROI) can be complex—determining whether increased donations result from the platform, brand strength, or cause appeal requires careful measurement. Economic cycles significantly impact charitable giving, meaning nonprofit fundraising performance fluctuates with broader economic conditions. Finally, competition from other fundraising platforms and changing donor preferences require nonprofits to continuously evolve their strategies.

Question 15

What trends is Classy focused on in the nonprofit fundraising space?

Accepted Answer

Classy has increasingly focused on recurring giving and subscription philanthropy as a strategic priority, recognizing that monthly donor programs provide nonprofits with predictable, stable revenue streams. This shift reflects broader nonprofit sector recognition that recurring donations create more sustainable funding than one-time campaigns. The platform has invested in mobile-first capabilities, understanding that donors increasingly give through mobile devices and expect seamless mobile experiences. Classy continues to enhance peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities, as this approach leverages social networks to amplify reach. The integration with GoFundMe has also positioned Classy to benefit from trends toward integrated, ecosystem-based fundraising solutions. These strategic focuses position Classy to help nonprofits build more resilient, donor-centric fundraising programs.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is Classy and what problem does it solve for nonprofits?

When was Classy founded and who are the founders?

What happened with Classy's acquisition by GoFundMe?

How many nonprofits use Classy and what is its market position?

What are the core features and capabilities of Classy?

What types of campaigns can nonprofits run on Classy?

How does Classy's pricing model work?

What competitive advantages does Classy have in the nonprofit fundraising market?

How does peer-to-peer fundraising work on Classy?

Which nonprofits are best suited to use Classy?

How can nonprofits get started with Classy?

How does Classy handle donor data and security?

How does Classy integrate with other nonprofit tools and systems?

What challenges do nonprofits face when using fundraising platforms like Classy?

What trends is Classy focused on in the nonprofit fundraising space?

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