How RallyUp and ApproveThis (via Zapier) Turn Fundraising Chaos into Smooth Operations

When Approval Workflows Meet Fundraising Muscle

Let’s cut to the chase: Nonprofits are drowning in spreadsheets, email threads, and “Hey, can you approve this?” Slack messages. RallyUp handles the flashy side of fundraising – campaigns, donor engagement, transactions. ApproveThis handles the unsexy but critical backstage work: getting decisions made fast without chasing people down. Connect them via Zapier, and you’ve got a system where every donation trigger, campaign update, or big-ticket pledge automatically kicks off the right approval process. No more manual handoffs. No more “Wait, who needs to sign off on this?”

Why This Combo Works for Mid-Sized Orgs

Nonprofits with 50-5,000 employees aren’t startups anymore, but they’re not enterprise bureaucracies either. You need tools that scale without adding layers of red tape. RallyUp gives you fundraising firepower; ApproveThis adds just enough structure to keep things compliant without killing momentum. Example: A $10k pledge comes through RallyUp. ApproveThis automatically routes it to your ED, Finance Director, and legal (if needed) – with deadline reminders. No one’s stuck waiting because someone’s on vacation (thanks, delegation features).

Key Benefits You Can’t Ignore

For Finance Teams: Automatic approval triggers for transactions over $X. Real-time dashboards showing what’s pending. No more surprise expenses.
For Campaign Managers: Launch new initiatives faster – get internal signoffs routed while you focus on donor outreach.
For Leadership: See approval bottlenecks (why is legal taking 3 days to review contracts?) and fix them before they delay campaigns.

Real-World Use Cases (No Fluff)

1. “Why Is This Auction Item Still Pending?!” → Automated Approval Chains

The Problem: Your silent auction team adds a high-value item (think: vacation package) to RallyUp. It needs signoff from procurement, legal, and the ED. Emails get lost. The item goes live late.
The Fix: Zapier triggers an ApproveThis workflow the second the item is added. Approvers get email alerts (they can approve/reject without logging into RallyUp). Legal’s feedback is tracked in ApproveThis, not buried in inboxes. Result? Items go live 2x faster.

2. Donation Discrepancies Solved Before They Blow Up

The Problem: A-Thon pledges (like walk-a-thons) often have complex per-unit donations. RallyUp tracks them, but finance needs to verify totals before depositing funds.
The Fix: Every new pledge in RallyUp auto-generates an ApproveThis request with key data (donor info, amount, activity type). Finance approves/rejects with one click. Bonus: Use ApproveThis’ calculated fields to flag pledges exceeding $5k for extra scrutiny.

3. Emergency Campaigns Don’t Wait for Committee Meetings

The Problem: Disaster relief fundraising goes live in 2 hours. Needs quick signoff from Comms, ED, and board rep. But getting everyone on a call? Impossible.
The Fix: RallyUp campaign drafts trigger parallel approvals in ApproveThis. Comms reviews messaging, ED OKs budget, board rep checks compliance. All async. Campaign launches same day.

Setup: Less Time Than Your Next Team Meeting

1. Create a Zapier account (free tier works for testing).
2. Connect RallyUp (trigger: “New Transaction”, “Activity Added”, etc.).
3. Connect ApproveThis (action: “Create Request”). Map RallyUp data to approval fields (amount, donor email, campaign ID).
4. Set approval rules: Who needs to approve? Sequential or parallel? Automatic escalations?
Pro Tip: Use ApproveThis’ approval thresholds so small donations auto-approve, only big ones need human eyes.

Features Nonprofits Actually Care About

Email Approvals: Board members hate new software. Let them approve via email.
Vacation Delegation: Development Director out? Automatically reroute approvals to their deputy.
Audit Trails: Every decision logged with timestamps. Perfect for grant compliance reports.

The Quiet Advantage: External Approvers Don’t Cost You

RallyUp’s built for engaging donors; ApproveThis handles internal/external approvals without added licenses. Example: Need a corporate sponsor to sign off on campaign branding? Add them as an approver. They get emails, click approve, done. No RallyUp seat required. No extra fees.

Bottom Line: This Isn’t About Tools, It’s About Time

Nonprofits waste 12 hours/month on manual approvals (yes, we did the math). That’s donor outreach time. Crisis response time. Burnout-reduction time. RallyUp + ApproveThis via Zapier isn’t magic – it’s just removing friction no one has time for.

Ready to Stop Chasing Approvals?

Get ApproveThis (free trial available), explore RallyUp, or book a 15-minute demo to see the integration live. Pro tip: Ask us about the “Nonprofit Discount” when you mention this article.