First Program Setup
Use this guide when you want to create a recipient sponsorship program that is ready for donors to use. A complete program has a name, a compatible program setting, donor and recipient forms, required email templates, usable payment methods, recipient records, and a public page you can share.
New accounts may already include starter programs such as Child Sponsorship and General Campaign. You can update those starter programs, or create a new program when you need a separate sponsorship workflow.
If you are raising money for a general cause, fund, or designation instead of showing recipients for sponsorship, use Campaign Setup.
Decide how the program should receive support
Before you start, choose the setup path that matches what donors are trying to do:
Fixed sponsor slots: use this when each recipient needs a set number of sponsors.
Flexible contributions: use this when donors contribute toward a recipient or designation without a fixed sponsor-count limit.
Program settings control the amounts donors see, completion rules, payment methods, public page behavior, donor login, processing fees, and other checkout options.
Create the program shell
Open Programs and choose Recipients.
Select Create a program.
Choose the setup path for the program.
Select Continue.
Enter the program name and abbreviation.
Select Create program.
Note: If you close setup after creating the program but before attaching a setting, HelpYouSponsor treats it as a setup draft. You can continue from the program card later.
Attach program settings
Choose a compatible setting for the setup path you selected. HelpYouSponsor marks recommended settings when an existing setting matches the program type.
If there is no compatible setting, select Create starter setting. Starter settings give you safe defaults so you can finish setup, then you can open Manage setting to review the full settings form.
Check the setting summary before you attach it:
Amounts: the sponsorship or contribution amount options donors can choose.
Completion rule: how HelpYouSponsor decides whether a recipient is fully sponsored or funded.
Payment methods: the checkout methods enabled by the setting.
Public page: the donor-facing button text and public link behavior.
Email requirement: whether email templates are required before launch readiness is complete.
Select the setting, then choose Attach selected setting.
Note: After a setting is attached, if no usable payment method is available, the readiness panel keeps Payment methods marked as missing. Review payment gateway setup and the payment options inside the setting before sharing the public page.
Attach donor and recipient forms
A recipient sponsorship program needs two forms:
Donor form: captures supporter information during signup and checkout.
Recipient form: defines the recipient fields your team stores and may show publicly.
Choose the recommended forms when they match your program. If a form is missing, create the recommended starter form. Recommended donor forms use standardized donor fields, and recommended recipient forms include starter profile fields.
Existing recipient forms must have at least one field before they can be attached. If a form shows Needs fields, add fields or create a recommended starter form.
Select the donor form and recipient form, then choose Attach selected forms.
Attach communications
Attach email templates when the selected setting requires email. The email set must have at least one enabled template before it can be attached.
If no usable email set exists, select Create email templates. HelpYouSponsor creates a starter email template set with a donation receipt template that you can edit later.
SMS templates are optional when SMS is available for your account. You can attach them during setup or add them later.
Select the communication set you want to use, then choose Attach selected templates.
Review readiness
Use the Program readiness panel to confirm what is complete and what still needs attention. Required setup usually includes:
Program created
Program setting
Payment methods
Donor form
Recipient form
Email templates, when email is enabled
When everything required is complete, choose Finish setup. If you need to pause, choose Save and continue later and resume from the program card.
Add recipients
After setup, add or import the recipients donors can support.
Open Recipients.
Open the program.
Choose Add Recipient to add one record, or use import tools when you need to load many records.
Fill in the recipient form fields and save the record.
Recipients become available on the public page based on the program setting, recipient status, and public page options.
Share the public page
When the program is ready, open Manage on the program card to use Website & Embed.
Use this workspace to:
Check readiness before sharing.
Preview the donor-facing page.
Copy public links such as Infinite Scrolling, Pagination, External Data Entry, or Random Single Recipient.
Copy donor login links.
Copy Smart Embed code for your website.
For the full website workflow, see Website Integration and Website & Embed.
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