Why it matters
Many donors who could give more never do, simply because nobody asked them clearly. A good solicitation names an amount, says what it will do, and then waits for the answer. Vague asks get vague results.
Keep track of every ask you make: who asked, how much, for what, and what happened. That history stops two people asking the same donor in the same month, and it tells you next year what each donor said yes to.
How Steward shows it
On a donor's profile you can start a proposal with "+ New proposal", which holds the amount you asked for and where it stands. An open ask is never counted as a gift. When a donor gives, the gift is entered on its own and linked to the ask.
"Request a gift" in the profile's More menu gives you a link the donor can give through, which you send yourself.
Related terms
- Cultivation Cultivation is the work of building a relationship with a donor or prospect before you ask for a gift: visits, tours, updates and conversations that deepen their interest in your mission.
- Case for support Case for support means the written argument for why someone should give to your organization: the need, what you do about it, the results, and what a gift will make possible now.
- Capacity Capacity is an estimate of how much a donor could give if they chose to, usually over several years, based on their wealth and income rather than on what they have given so far.
The free Lost & Found audit reads a giving export in your browser and shows your lapsing donors and what they used to give. Nothing is uploaded. Then bring the same file to a 20-minute demo.