Custom fields are additional prompts to ask questions and collect information from your supporters during checkout on any campaign. Custom field questions can include text, as well as images and links. You can view and export your custom field responses to manage your donor preferences and information.
Text: A simple text field for collecting short answers
Textarea: A larger text box for collecting long answers
Checkbox: A yes/no checkbox
Select: A dropdown menu for selecting a single option from a group of options
Radio: Radio buttons for selecting a single option from a group of options
Adding custom fields ➕
On your dashboard, select your campaign from the recent campaign list on the left-hand panel. (If you don't see it, you can click All Campaigns to get the full list.)
Click on the campaign's Tools tab.
Scroll down to the Custom Fields section, and click New Custom Field.
Fill out the title and description, and add selection options (answers) as necessary. You can also add clickable links, and determine if this is a required field.
When creating custom fields with multiple answer options, you can remove an option by selecting the red trash can, or add another option by clicking the blue plus sign. You can add up to 50 response choices per custom field.
Editing custom fields ✏️
To edit an existing custom field, click the Edit menu. Click the [...] icon to Delete or Archive a custom field. You can reorder how your custom fields appear, by clicking the arrows beside the custom field to move it up or down.
If you want to change the type of field (ie. convert a dropdown menu to a radio button), you will need to delete the option and create a new one.
Custom field responses 👀
If you want to check a response from an individual, click on a transaction on your Transactions page, and scroll to the bottom of the sidebar.
Custom field responses will also appear in email receipts sent to your supporters, and in the transaction notification emails you receive as an admin.
For responses from all of your supporters (at the end of your campaign, for example), you'll need to run a Transactions export. Custom field responses are included in this export.
The transactions export file contains a lot of columns. You'll need to scroll to the far right side of the file to locate your custom field responses. Each custom field will have a separate column, named by the custom field question you created.
More information 🔎
Add HTML links 🔗
Each custom field can contain an optional description. Descriptions allow the use of HTML, which is ideal if you'd like to add a link to a waiver, disclaimer, or terms. You can use the following HTML to add a clickable link that opens in a new tab:
<a href="HYPERLINK" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">TEXT</a>
Replace HYPERLINK with the web address for the link (keep the quotation marks), and replace TEXT with the text you'd like to appear as a clickable link. It'll look something like this:
You can use the following template to replicate the description shown above:
Please read and agree to our <a href="URL TO TERMS HERE" target="_blank"
rel="noopener noreferrer">terms of service</a>.
What are "target" and "noopener noreferrer"? Can't I juse use normal <a> links?
Target tells the browser how to open the link. Blank opens the link in a new tab so donors are not directed away from the checkout.
Noopener noreferrer sets a secure relationship (rel) between your browser and the URL to prevent phishing attempts and is highly recommended.
Add images 📷
You can also add images to the description of a custom field. To add an image, use:
<img src="INSERT A PUBLICLY HOSTED IMAGE LINK HERE">
You'll need to replace the text that says "insert a publicly hosted image link" with a URL to your image. It'll look something like this:
You cannot add images in the selectable custom field answer options — only the description can host images.
Required / Optional ⭐
If you mark a field as required, all supporters will need to select/complete the custom field before they can continue. Required fields will be marked with a red asterisk. Optional fields can be left blank by supporters.
Zapier ⚡
If you're using Zapier, a Zap that includes transaction data will also include custom fields – this data will be sent over as part of the Zap, once it's set it up to do so.
FAQ 🤔
How many dropdown options can I enter?
You can enter up to 50 unique custom field answers for donors to select from.
Do custom fields support dependencies, or conditional logic?
No – custom fields are treated separately, and all custom fields will be shown to all donors, regardless of answer selection. Please see the feature request for custom field dependencies.
Can custom fields be added to ticket purchases, rather than the general checkout?
Yes, however you'll need to add these as per-ticket custom fields, so they apply to each ticket purchase individually, rather than the purchase as a whole. You can use both (ticket custom fields and campaign custom fields) if you like. This is ideal if your custom fields serve multiple purposes, for example, an item/preference selection per ticket, plus a terms agreement per purchase.
Does Givebutter collect physical or mailing addresses?
Givebutter will collect billing addresses (as applicable), so if you need to collect physical or mailing addresses from your donors, we'd recommend adding a custom field to collect this information.