Entering & Managing Pledges
How to enter and manage pledges and pledge payments.
What is a Pledge?A pledge is a constituent's commitment to make a contribution in the future. Pledges can be for a one time cash donation or in-kind gifts like services or materials. Pledges can also be fulfilled with payments made over time, such as a pledge for $1,200 fulfilled by $100 monthly…2 min readHow do I create a pledge?A pledge is a commitment by a constituent to contribute cash or in-kind items in the future. They can be made via a one-time payment or paid over time, like a $1000 pledge paid in four quarterly payments. There are multiple ways to create a new pledge. First determine if this pl…12 min readHow do I see the pledges for a specific constituent?From the Pledges - Summary grid, you can see a row for each pledge that has been committed by your constituents. There will be a separate row for each pledge, so a single constituent may have several rows if they have more than one pledge. From the Fundraising Module Pledges, cl…1 min readCan a pledge or recurring payments be deleted?Yes, but there are several options to manage a pledge that will no longer be fulfilled. 1. Delete an entire pledge when no payments have every been received. 2. Delete future pledge payments when one or more payments have been received. 3. Write-off a pledge when payments have o…4 min readCan a pledge be anonymous?Yes, a pledge can be anonymous. For more information on anonymous gifts, please visit Could a gift be given anonymously?1 min readCan a pledge be a split gift?Yes, a pledge can be a split gift. For more information on split gifts, please visit the folder covering Split Gifts .1 min readCan a pledge be a tribute gift?Yes, a pledge can be a tribute gift. For more information on tribute gifts, please visit the folder for Tribute Gifts .1 min readCan a pledge have a matching gift?Yes, a pledge can have a matching gift. For more information on matching gifts, please visit the folder for Matching Gifts .1 min readCan a pledge have soft credits?Yes, a pledge can have soft credits. For more information on soft credit gifts, please visit the folder covering Soft Credits .1 min readCan a constituent have more than one outstanding pledge?Yes, there can be multiple outstanding pledges for a constituent. From the Pledges - Summary Grid, you can see a list of all open pledges for each constituent. You can also see pledge information on the constituent's Gifts and Pledges tab.1 min readWhat is a pledge payment schedule?A pledge payment schedule, also called payment schedule, designates the amount, frequency, due dates, and payment methods for the pledge. The payment schedule is shown as a grid within the pledge. You can view and edit the payment schedule by clicking on the Due Amount from the…1 min readHow do I customize the pledge payment schedule?When entering a new pledge or editing an existing pledge, the payment schedule is fully customizable. For a brand new pledge, from the new gift entry page, start by selecting the gift type of pledge and enter the date the pledge was made. - Note that total pledge amount and tota…3 min readHow do I create a pledge schedule that is based over a certain number of years?Annual pledges can be created by selecting the Frequency "Yearly," then entering the number of years. For example, a $50,000 pledge made with payments of $10,000 per year over 5 years.1 min readHow do I refresh the pledge schedule for changes that I’ve made to the terms of the pledge?As soon as you make a change and tab or click out of the field, the schedule will refresh to reflect your changes. When you are finished making changes, click the green Save button to finalize the changes.1 min readHow are the pledge due dates calculated?Due dates are calculated based on the frequency of payments selected and the date of the first payment. The day the payments are due can be modified by double clicking on the specific Due Dates in the payment schedule grid or by clicking on Update Outstanding Pledges to update t…1 min readCan I edit a specific due date on the pledge schedule?Yes, to open an existing pledge, click on a Due Amount from the constituent's Pledges tab or the main Pledges grid. On the payment schedule, click on that particular Due Date and click on it to edit the date either manually or by using the calendar. You can also update all futur…1 min readCan I edit a specific payment due amount on the pledge schedule?Yes, to open an existing pledge, click on a Due Amount from the constituent's Pledges tab or the main Pledges grid. On the payment schedule, click on that particular payment under Due Amount and edit the amount. The total Pledge Amount will update to reflect this new total. You…1 min readCan I add an additional payment due to the pledge schedule?Yes, to open an existing pledge, click on a Due Amount from the constituent's Pledges tab or the main Pledges grid. On the payment schedule, click on +Add Payments Due button. In the new dialog box, enter the number of payments in Add Number of Payments and then click OK. The pa…1 min readCan I delete a payment due from the pledge schedule?Yes, to open an existing pledge, click on a Due Amount from the constituent's Pledges tab or the main Pledges grid. To delete a payment, click on the trash can icon in the last column of the pledge schedule grid to delete a particular payment due. Type "YES" to confirm that you…1 min readCan I change the pledge schedule after payments have been received?Yes, as long as at it is not a one-time pledge. Once the payment is made on a pledge with a frequency of one-time, it cannot be edited. For recurring pledges, you can change all the future payments or select individual rows to change just those payments. You can open the pledge…3 min readHow do I enter a pledge payment?To enter a pledge payment, you can add a new gift from the Constituents Grid in the CRM Module or the Gifts Grid in the Fundraising Module by selecting the +New menu and choosing Gift, or from the constituent's record under their Gift tab by clicking on Add then Gift. From the N…1 min readCan I record a different donation if a constituent has multiple outstanding pledges?Yes, you can always add general type contributions, even if a constituent has any open pledges. You can apply any contribution to any open pledge, you can assign part of the contribution to the pledge and overpayment as a general donation, or you can apply all of the contributio…2 min readHow do I record a partial pledge payment?When recording the pledge payment, enter the amount received in the Amount field at the top of the screen. The amount will be applied towards the next Due Amount. If the payment amount is less than the payment due, it will show the difference in the Remaining Balance column. The…1 min readWhat if the donor paid more than what was due?If a donor pays more than the expected amount, you have the choice to treat the overpayment as an additional general gift or have it apply to the next payment due. The default is to apply it towards the next payment due. You will see the overpayment amount applied to the next ro…1 min readCan I edit or delete a pledge payment?Yes. If you need to edit a past payment that has already been recorded, you will need to edit that payment from the main Gifts Grid or the constituent's Gifts Tab. Click on the Amount of the applicable pledge payment and make your edits. If you need to delete a previous payment…1 min readUpdating a Credit Card on a Recurring DonationYou can request an update if you received notice that a credit card was declined or the constituent reaches out to update their credit card information. Please refer to this article " Updating a Constituent Credit Card " for instructions on getting the new card number entered by…2 min readCan I accept Online Pay Later Donations?Yes, using either the Simple or Advanced Donation pages, you can accept a pay later request. This type of donation will create a pledge within the constituent's record. For one time contributions, the pledge will show the Amount of their donation, a Payment Frequency of “One Tim…2 min readHow do I write-off pledge payments?If your organization tracks pledges in financial reporting, you may need to record any pledges which go unfulfilled as write offs. - You are able to edit pledges and delete the entire pledge or payments as needed, however this could affect reporting. - A write off means that the…3 min readCan someone else make a pledge payment on behalf of another donor?No. A pledge is set up for payments from one constituent. A contribution from one constituent cannot be applied to another constituent's pledge. In the case of a pledge that is completed via a check from a Donor Advised Fund (DAF), you have a two options. 1. Delete the pledge (o…1 min readCan a constituent make a pledge payment with a credit card if the pledge was not set up to pay by credit card originally?Yes. You can have the constituent update via the constituent portal, or an internal user can send an update request from the constituent's Payment Options tab. Using the Constituent Portal If you have the Advanced Portal activated and you allow constituents to update pledge info…2 min read