But as always, a hybrid model can include plenty of different revenue angles, from merchandising to events-hosting. Crowdfunding is a big one, whether it’s pure donations or a fee for services rendered. Here’s a look at one little-known way to crowdfund straight off of the WordPress platform: Through these three crowdfunding plugins.
IgnitionDeck
This is the largest, one-stop feature among crowdfunding plugins: It works with any WordPress theme and integrates with third-party finance partners including PayPal, Stripe, and MailChimp. You can also track your contributions through the service’s real-time statistics. It’s the professional option, which means it’ll cost you a one-time fee of $149 or $449 for enterprise organizations, but there’s a free version that allows you to try it out for size.
WordPress Fundraising
Here’s what the WP Engine blog has to say about this one: It comes along with a suite of other services that will cost you $49 per month following a month-long free trial.
Charitable
This is the charity-based options for fundraising plugins: It’s designed to allow your followers to support a worthy cause, and is easy enough to use that you’ll be able to set up a campaign in just a few minutes. It’s regularly updated, is developer-friendly, and has been downloaded over 7,000 times. If you use either PayPal or offline donations, it’s a free service, but other third-party partners like Stripe are premium add-ons. WordPress blogs account for 27 percent of the internet. In the online community’s frenzy for revenue, over a quarter of the world’s blogs could be just a plugin away from their new funding source.
