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Common Questions

Learn more about organizing a food train, care calendar, donations, and other help and support on Give InKind for friends and family experiencing important life events.

What is Give InKind?

Give InKind is an easy-to-use online tool for organizing support during life’s important and challenging moments. Each InKind Page empowers communities to help from anywhere through a Care Calendar, Wishlist, News and Updates, Donations, and more. From the birth of a baby, to the loss of a loved one, to medical crisis, and disasters, Give InKind makes support simple so that no one goes through a big moment alone.

Does Give InKind help people directly?

Give InKind does not provide direct support to our recipients; our purpose is to facilitate the support process with tools like Wishlists, Situation Updates, and our Care Calendar.

Is there a fee for using Give InKind?

No – Give InKind is a free platform for recipients and supporters alike. We make money from some of our partner products throughout the site, the products we sell directly, and optional tips from supporters.
While there are premium page organizing features available for upgrade, creating and supporting an InKind Page will always be free.

What is included in a Premium Page Upgrade?

The Premium Upgrade allows Page Organizers access to advanced page management features. A Supporters View: to track who has helped, and how; you can browse, search, and export details, resend gift cards and send Thank You notes. Also optionally show our suggested articles. The Premium Upgrade supports Give InKind and is unlocked with a one-time payment; no subscription.
Upgrade your page to Premium in the Page Settings.

How do I Upgrade my InKind Page to Premium?

Upgrade to Premium at any time in the Page Settings of your existing InKind Page. Once in Page Settings, simply click the button labled “UPGRADE YOUR PAGE” to pay the one-time fee and unlock the advanced page management features.

Can I create an InKind Page for someone else?

Yes, most InKind Page organizers are friends, family, or other members of the community. We make it easy to set up a page and invite the recipient to join as a co-organizer if desired.

How can I find out exactly what the recipient needs?

The InKind Care Calendar and Wishlist are a great way to learn what a recipient needs. The Care Calendar shows requests for meals, gift cards, or services at days and times most needed. The Wishlist shows products and services chosen by the page organizer to specifically help the recipient, and you can easily click to purchase items directly from the Wishlist. You can often find specific dietary restrictions and favorites in the Story or Special Notes sections of an InKind Page, and you always have the option to send a message to the page organizer with specific questions. Finally, the Give InKind blog has lots of articles on how to support people in many different situations.

I want to organize a meal train. Can I do that with Give InKind?

Absolutely! The Care Calendar is the perfect way to organize and schedule meal deliveries. Supporters can sign up to help with a meal request and choose to bring it themselves, have it delivered through GrubHub, or send a gift card. You can even request groceries! Listing their favorite food, restaurants, dishes, and dietary preferences in the Story or Special Notes section of your InKind Page is very helpful for supporters.

How can I make sure supporters remember their commitments?

Give InKind helps with that. We send confirmation emails to you and to supporters and follow up with reminder emails the day before the event they signed-up for.

I want to share my situation, but I am not up to having visitors or a lot of phone calls.

That is totally understandable and your InKind Page can help you communicate that. During page setup, you can set your preferences for receiving visitors, floral deliveries, and phone calls. These settings are always available to change in the Page Settings as your preferences evolve.

I just want to help someone. Do I need to know them?

We welcome anyone who wants to help someone! All you need to do is create a Give InKind profile, sign in, and then search through our InKind Pages to find someone you would like to help.

Can more than one person manage an InKind Page?

Yes. The people who manage InKind Pages are called Page Organizers. The creator of the page is the first organizer, but you can add other organizers to help you keep the page up to date.

I want to help my friend but I’m not sure how.

Give InKind was founded to help people know how they can support the people in their lives. Our blog offers tips on what to say, how to help, and more for many different life situations.

Does Give InKind take donations for people in need of financial help?

Give InKind does not take donations or manage crowdfunding campaigns, but you can connect your GoFundMe, PayPal, Venmo or CashApp campaigns and accounts to your InKind Page, providing quick access for your supporters. Note that those services may charge fees to fundraise or receive payments on their platforms.

How can I change my email address on my Give InKind account?

You can change your information anytime in your user profile. Log into Give InKind and click your profile picture or hover over your picture to open the dropdown menu and click View User Profile.

How can I search for a gift?

Give InKind’s product pages offer products and services that can be helpful in a variety of situations. You can explore products and services by selecting “Ways to Help” from the menu at the top of the Give InKind website. You can search by situation or browse our curated gift guides.

I have not received my gift card yet. Can Give InKind track my gift card?

We are pleased to now offer a wide selection of gift cards for helpful products and services that you can purchase directly through Give InKind. These are noted as “on Give InKind” under their name on the product pages. Gift Cards purchased “on Give InKind” are delivered in 24 hours from the time of purchase to the recipient’s email address and can be tracked with the help of our Customer Support Team.

Some gift cards (as well as other products and services) listed on our website will connect you to a third-party vendor to complete your purchase. As your transaction is managed with that vendor and not directly with us, questions about purchases or shipping would need to be directed to their customer support team. In some cases, gift cards that are sent via email may be directed to your Spam folder.

Who delivers food when a person claims a meal?

When a supporter claims a meal on the Care Calendar, they can choose from a variety of options: they can prepare and deliver the food themselves; they can place an order with a restaurant for delivery to the recipient’s designated address; they can order food through GrubHub, Give InKind’s meal delivery partner; or they can purchase a Gift Card to a favorite restaurant or delivery service that goes to the recipient’s email. These options are presented to the supporter when they claim the meal request, so you will know in advance how they are planning to provide support. When choosing to send meals through GrubHub, food can be ordered up to seven days in advance.

Can I add links to our favorite restaurants?

Yes! It’s always great to help your supporters make choices. If you have a few favorite restaurants, you can include their names, phone numbers and website links in your page’s Story, Special Notes, or the specific calendar request.

How do I share my InKind Page?

When you first create an InKind Page, you will receive an email confirmation from us welcoming you to share your page with friends and family. This email contains the link to your InKind Page for you to copy and paste into any messages, emails, or social media posts to your potential supporters. You can also copy the link when you are on your InKind Page from your web browser’s address bar and paste that into any messages, emails, or social media posts. There is also a section of your InKind Page that offers options for quickly inviting support via Facebook, Twitter, and Email (you can copy your page’s link from this section also).

How can I update my supporters through Give InKind?

We know that contacting everyone individually can become daunting, so we offer features that keep your supporters updated without the need for individual messaging. Page Organizers can share news, milestones, photos, and videos. You can even use it as a health journal to let followers know what’s going on day-to-day.

When you add an Update to your InKind Page, you also have the option to share your Update directly to your Facebook or Twitter accounts, and to email the Update to all of your InKind Page followers.

How do people follow my InKind Page?

Anyone who has access to your InKind Page can become a follower if they create a Give InKind profile and click “Follow Page.” Also, anyone who signs up to provide support through your Care Calendar will be automatically made a follower of your InKind Page. This helps keep supporters updated, as well as helps them keep track of the support they are providing.

How do I contact someone who has signed up to help on the Care Calendar?

If you have any need to contact a Care Calendar supporter directly, you can do so by clicking their name in the Care Calendar request, and choosing “Email Participant.” This is our main reason for asking supporters to create Give InKind profiles: so you have a way to contact them if any changes need to be made to the support you have requested.

Who can access my InKind Page?

Anyone who has your InKind Page URL will be able to access your page. Page Organizers can mark an InKind Page as Private in Page Settings. InKind Pages that are not marked as private can be found through the Give InKind search field.

I can’t find an InKind Page that I’m trying to support.

Make sure that you are searching by the title of the InKind Page (i.e. Supporting the Smith Family). If you’re still having a hard time finding the page you’re looking for, it’s possible the InKind Page has been marked as private. This means that you will not find it when you type the name of the page into the Give InKind search field. To access a private page, you will need the direct link (URL) from any of the page’s organizers.

What can I add to my Wishlist?

You can choose from hundreds of options in our product catalog, including over 200 Gift Cards and other thoughtfully curated products and services relevant to your situation. Take a look here.

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