Disclaimer: ActBlue user roles and permissions dictate what users can do on our platform. If the tools or features mentioned in this article are unavailable to you, please speak to your Dashboard Admin(s) about updating your permissions.
In this article:
- How do I set up or apply for a new ActBlue fundraising Dashboard?
- How do I access my fundraising Dashboard?
- How do I navigate my fundraising Dashboard?
- What else do I need to do before I begin fundraising?
How do I set up or apply for a new ActBlue fundraising Dashboard?
If your campaign or organization doesn't have an ActBlue Dashboard yet, you can apply for one here! For more information and best practices, check out our full application guide.
Once your application is approved, you should receive a confirmation email from our support team with additional instructions.
How do I access my fundraising Dashboard?
To access your new fundraising Dashboard, start by signing into your ActBlue Express profile here.
Typically, your Express profile will be linked to the same email address you used when applying for your Dashboard. Please note that we strongly advise against sharing Express profiles, and encourage all members of your team to use their own profiles to access your Dashboard. You can find more information about how to grant additional users Dashboard access in this guide.
On the ActBlue sign-in screen, simply enter your Express profile credentials (email address and password). You will then be prompted to enter a one-time password code which should automatically be sent to your profile's email address. For more information about how to use OTP codes, check out our full guide linked here!
Once you successfully sign into your ActBlue profile, you should automatically be re-directed to your campaign or organization's fundraising Dashboard:
If you're a user with access to two or more Dashboard, you will automatically be re-directed to a list of Dashboards to choose from:
At the top of either screen, you should also see your user navigation tools. These include:
- Recent: pages you recently visited on ActBlue.
- Dashboards: fundraising Dashboards you have access to with your user profile. Clicking on a Dashboard's name will automatically re-direct you to it.
- Manage: various profile settings and menu options for your linked ActBlue Express account (if applicable). On ActBlue, you can use the same profile you use to access your Dashboard to contribute to your favorite campaigns and organizations. You can also use the Manage dropdown to enable or make changes to your two-factor authentication settings.
- Help: links back to ActBlue's support site (you're already here!)
How do I navigate my Dashboard?
Overview Menu
When you first open up your fundraising Dashboard, you should automatically be re-directed to the Real-Time Stats page of your Overview tab.
As its name implies, the Overview tab displays an overview of various fundraising performance metrics including the following:
- Total dollars raised
- One-time dollars raised
- Recurring dollars raised
- Contributions
- Avg. contribution
- % via mobile device
- % ActBlue Express donors
For more information on the Overview tab and what can be viewed there, check out our full guide linked here!
Next, navigate over to your Dashboard's left-hand menu bar and continue down the list to view Contribution Forms and Brandings:
The Contribution Forms tab will display a list of your Dashboard's contribution forms. When you apply for a new Dashboard, a default contribution form will automatically be created for your campaign or organization and will display here. Please note that this form cannot be archived and the default designation cannot be changed. Because of this, we strongly recommend making all edits to your default form first before creating others. For more on contribution form creation and management, check out our full collection of guides here!
Clicking the Brandings tab will take you to a list of custom designs you and your team can apply to future contribution forms and receipts. For more information on Brandings, check out our full guide linked here!
Tools Menu
Below Contribution Forms and Brandings, you'll see the Tools menu with the following options:
The Contributions Search tab will display every contribution made to your campaign or organization through ActBlue. You can also search for contributions using a donor's name, email address, or other information entered with their donation. For more information, check out our full guide linked here!
The Reporting tab will display disbursements (ex. checks, wires, etc) sent to your campaign or organization.
The Downloads tab will display various downloadable CSV reports of fundraising data. Typically, this is the data needed to complete accurate compliance reports. For more information on downloading fundraising data, check out our full guide linked here!
The Refunds tab will display all refunds made by you and your team, the ActBlue support team, and donors themselves (using our self-service donor refund tool). For more information about issuing refunds, check out our full guide linked here!
Insights Menu
Below Refunds, you'll see the Insights menu with the following options:
The Donor Segments tab will allow you to access, visualize, and download sophisticated donor data (and use it to create targeted email lists without writing code). For more information on donor segments, check out our full guide here!
The Recurring tab will allow you to view data and export reports for actively recurring contributions, recurring projections, and/or canceled recurring contributions. For more information on recurring program strategy, check out our full guide here!
The Tandem Fundraising tab will allow you to review which campaigns and organizations are receiving contributions via your tandem fundraising forms. For more information on tandem fundraising, check out out full guide here!
Settings Menu
Below Tandem Fundraising, you'll see the Settings menu with the following options:
The General tab will allow you to update your campaign or organization's internal contact information, donor-facing contact, and mailing address. You can also add or update your website and social media accounts by copying and pasting the URLs into the Online Presence fields.
The People tab will allow you to review other users who have access to your Dashboard. You can also use the People tab to add additional users, remove existing users, and/or change user permissions. For more information, check out our full collection of user roles and permissions guides linked here!
The Email Alerts tab will allow you to set up email notifications for donations and refunds. For more information on Email Alerts, check out our full guide linked here!
What else do I need to do before I begin fundraising?
- If you receive checks from us, make sure your mailing address is correct. To do this, head over to your Dashboard's Settings Menu and then click the General tab.
- Grant user access and assign user roles to other members of your team. After our team at ActBlue grants you access to your Dashboard, you will need to grant additional access to each member of your team.
- Learn the basics about refunds. We subtract refunds from your Dashboard's pending funds, but this process can vary depending on what type of Dashboard you have and other factors.
- Add your campaign or organization's contact information to your Dashboard. To do this, head over to your Dashboard's Settings Menu and then click the General tab. You should see a space to enter a contact information for ActBlue's internal support team, as well as a space to enter donor-facing contact information in case we hear from donors with questions.
If you have any questions, please contact our support team using the email address you use to access your ActBlue account.