Documenting Capital Campaign Gifts with Signed Pledge Forms

Great news — your donor has made a capital campaign pledge! After you’ve thanked them, celebrate the moment and reflect on what went right. If volunteers were involved, enjoy the shared victory.

The next step, naturally, is to document the pledge. This seems like the easy part, and sometimes it is. I’ve had donors return signed pledge forms within days. But occasionally the process takes longer.

If your donor goes silent after receiving the form, you might wonder about how you should follow up and even whether you have unwittingly offended them.

However, if you’ve been transparent about campaign policies and are comfortable discussing them with donors, getting a pledge form signed doesn’t have to be an awkward process.

Capital Campaign Pledges: Your Policies Matter

One of the first steps toward campaign success is developing clear, comprehensive policies. Figuring out how you want to document and count various types of support (cash, stock, property, planned gifts, etc.) might not be the most entertaining thing you’ll do, but it will create a roadmap that will make decisions easier and minimize confusion.

A Personal Lesson

Early in my career as a consultant, I found developing policies and drafting pledge forms about as much fun as doing my taxes. I was afraid my volunteer leadership team would nod off as I presented this material. While it wasn’t my most animated meeting, the value of having all the volunteers, who would become the project’s biggest donors, on the same page was tremendous.

That conversation set the expectation that pledge forms were part of the gift process and reinforced the organization’s professionalism.

What to Include on a Capital Campaign Pledge Form

A reminder — simple pledge forms are often best:

• Donor names
• Organization name
• Gift amount
• Payment schedule
• Restrictions (if any)
• Space for signatures and dates

For examples, please see Phase Four of the Capital Campaign Pro Toolkit.

The Formalities of Signed Capital Campaign Gift Pledge Forms

There is a lot to remember in a gift request meeting, including who will say what and that you need to leave the donor space to respond.

Even if a donor isn’t ready to make a specific gift right away — and most aren’t — it is important to describe the entire commitment process. Consider wrapping up the meeting with:

“I’d like to follow up about your participation in two weeks. Once you’ve made a decision, we’ll ask you to sign a pledge form to make it official. Thank you for your consideration.”

But what happens when a donor makes a verbal gift but does not return their pledge form?

Basic Follow-Up and Matches

In many cases, basic follow-up is all that’s needed. However, if requests to document the gift don’t produce results, you might want to consider introducing a campaign-related benchmark or scheduling time for a conversation.

Many of us have received the mixed blessing of a challenge grant with a substantial match and a tight deadline. While this can be stressful, it’s also a great opportunity to secure gift documentation.

When I faced this situation, I realized that the match could be achieved if we finalized existing pledges. Some of these “verbals” had been on the books for months. When my team and I reached out to donors with the message about the match, we found that most of them were energized by the opportunity to secure additional funding.

Benchmarks and Deadlines

When everyone is so busy, the urgency of a benchmark can move your organization’s pledge form to the top of the to-do list.

If you don’t have an external benchmark, consider creating one. A campaign launch is a terrific deadline — everyone wants their gift to be part of the total when the public announcement is made. Other organizational activities can serve as benchmarks as well, including events, board meetings, and even committee meetings.

Addressing Underlying Donor Concerns

Sometimes a donor is reluctant to return a pledge form because they have underlying concerns. Of course, the best way to address this is to talk it out.

• A donor might need reassurance that the payment schedule can be adjusted if circumstances change.
• They might want your help talking to family members or a financial advisor.

I’ve worked with multi-generational families to finalize blended gifts that comprise both pledges and estate plans. It sounds difficult — most of us have families that can’t agree on where to have dinner. However, when everyone is invested in the mission, understands the campaign policies, and is patient and respectful, it can be an incredibly rewarding process.

Pledge Form Success: Good Policies + Strong Teamwork

Requesting and documenting campaign gifts can produce anxiety, even in seasoned fundraisers. It’s helpful to remember that it is all about achieving a vision.

It’s also reassuring to know that campaign policies, clearly shared and respected, are a great framework for healthy and respectful collaboration.