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Create and Track a Pledge

Goal: Record a donor's commitment to give over time — capital campaign pledges, multi-year major gifts, installment-based commitments — and track the schedule and balance accurately.

What a pledge is in Ayuna​

A pledge is a documented commitment by a donor to give a fixed total amount over a specified period, paid in installments. The pledge record carries:

  • Total amount committed
  • Donor (individual or organization)
  • Installment schedule — when each payment is due, and for how much
  • Status — pending, active, completed, defaulted, cancelled
  • Designation — fund, campaign, project, or fundraising event the pledge supports

Each installment is a separate pledge_payment record. As payments come in, they create matching donations records and update the installment's status.

When to use a pledge vs. a recurring donation​

Both involve repeated payments. The distinction:

  • Pledge — total commitment is fixed, payments are tracked against the total, balance can be written off if uncollected. Best for capital campaigns, multi-year major gifts, and any commitment that should appear on the books as a receivable.
  • Recurring donation — open-ended, no fixed total, automatic processing of each charge. Best for monthly partners.

For a $10,000 commitment paid monthly over 12 months by autopay: combine a Pledge (for the $10,000 commitment and tracking) with a Recurring Donation (for automatic processing). Each processed recurring donation can be applied to a pledge installment.

Creating a pledge​

From the donor's profile, choose Create Pledge. Capture:

  • Total amount
  • Number of installments and frequency (monthly, quarterly, annual, custom)
  • Start date — when the first payment is due
  • End date — auto-calculated from frequency × count
  • Designation — fund, campaign, project, or event
  • Notes — context for staff (the conversation that led to the pledge, who's the contact)

On save, Ayuna generates the installment schedule. Each installment gets its own pledge_payment record with a due date.

Pledge statuses​

  • Pending — created but no payments yet recorded; receivable booked
  • Active — at least one payment made; balance remaining
  • Completed — fully paid
  • Defaulted — installments overdue past your tolerance window
  • Cancelled — donor withdrew the commitment

Tracking the schedule​

The pledge detail page shows:

  • The full installment schedule with status per installment (due, partial, paid, waived, written off)
  • Balance remaining
  • Activity log (payments, reminders, status changes, write-offs)

What's NOT auto-charged​

Important: Ayuna does not currently auto-charge pledge installments. Each payment must be recorded manually or initiated by the donor through their pledge payment page. See Collect Pledge Payments for the options.

If you want a pledge to be paid automatically, set up a parallel Recurring Donation linked to the pledge.

Pledge confirmations​

When a pledge is created, send a confirmation letter to the donor with:

  • The total amount committed
  • The installment schedule
  • The fund/project supported
  • A note about how their gift will be used

Use a Communications template so this stays consistent across pledges.

Major-gift pledges​

For pledges from major donors:

  • Use a signed pledge agreement document (legal counsel can provide a template)
  • Capture the agreement as a note or attachment on the donor profile
  • Coordinate with your finance team so the receivable is recognized correctly on the GL

When the donor can't pay​

If a donor falls behind:

  • Reach out personally before the schedule shows defaulted
  • Renegotiate if needed (extend the schedule, reduce the total — both involve creating a new pledge and cancelling the old)
  • Write off the balance if collection isn't realistic — see Write Off Uncollectible Pledges

The audit trail captures all of this so the next staff member who opens the record sees the full history.