Google announced today that Google Checkout is free to all websites for the rest of the year. If you’ve been contemplating adding a merchant account for your parish to accept online payments, act now.

Having an e-commerce option is a great fundraising channel to supplement sales that otherwise would have to transpire face to face. Think about all the tickets you would sell at the door for a church supper. If some of those parishioners can’t attend at the last minute then you’ve lost those sales. But, if those no-shows purchased their tickets online then that money is yours (well, the church’s). Just clearly state the tickets are non-refundable and that it’s all for a good cause.

Dance tickets? Advent candles? Choir CDs? Reserved seating at Midnight Mass? Let me know what works for you.