Multiple Paths for an Effective Online Disclosure: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis of Italian Community Foundations

The COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent need to socially distance has prompted nonprofits to rely more on their institutional websites to reach donors and seek financial support. In this study, we use qualitative comparative analysis to explore which different combinations of information on organizational profile, governance, performance, and finances are deemed most suitable by Italian community foundations to encourage charitable giving. The results highlight two different paths, suggesting that organizational profile, performance, and governance information matter most to Italian community foundations for retaining donors and donations, or attracting new ones, whereas financial information is not considered relevant for designing effective online disclosure.