Pledge Campaigns
ChurchTrac simplifies your fundraising with the ability to create pledge campaigns and track donations with pledge overview reports or individual pledge statements.
Creating a New Pledge Campaign
Below are the steps to create a pledge campaign:
Step 1: Create a Unique Category
Before creating a new Pledge Campaign, set up a new Giving Category specifically for that campaign. You can create a Pledge Category such as "Building Fund" or "Playground Equipment" on the Giving Screen by selecting the "Categories" tab from the Giving Screen top toolbar.
Each campaign must use a unique category name that is not used for other pledges or contributions (for example, "2020 Pledges", not just "General Offerings"). Pledge Campaigns are not tracked by a date range, but by the unique category assigned to the campaign.
Step 2: Setting up the Campaign
Select the "Add" option and name your campaign.
Next, select the Pledge Category you created for this campaign. All contributions entered on the Giving Screen using that category will be applied to this campaign. Then choose a Campaign End Date.
Step 3: Adding a Pledge Commitment
Pledges are linked to an Individual, and not per Family. Select the name of the pledger from the selection box and enter the annual amount they have pledged. If they pledged to give monthly, multiply that amount by 12 and enter that annual amount. If weekly multiply by 52.
As you add names and amounts, they appear in a ledger below. This is where you track the amount received to date (as entered on the Giving Screen), and the amount remaining. It also shows the running totals for the entire campaign.
Using a Pledge Campaign
Recording donations toward the pledge is not done on the Pledges tab. Using a campaign works just like recording any other donation on the Contributions tab.
In the Contributions tab, start a giving batch and select the "Add Contributions" button. Then enter the pledger's name and the amount they just donated. In the "Category" dropdown menu, select the category you assigned to the pledge campaign.
That donation will appear in that donor's line of the ledger in the Pledge campaign.
To learn more about recording donations, check out the Adding & Editing Contributions section of the "Getting Started with Giving" article.
Editing a Pledge Campaign
To edit an existing pledge campaign, select the Pledge from the selection box and make changes.