Donation Schedules: Step-by-Step Guide

How to Set Up a Donation Schedule

• Open the Create Pledges screen either from or from on the account.

• Select located under the Date field.

• The Create Donation Schedule screen opens.

• Select an account if one is not selected.

Please Note:

Any data that you filled out before you selected will carry over.

Admire will guess whether the amount you filled in is now the installment amount or the total.  If wrong, it may take a few attempts to adjust.  

It is generally easier to leave the amount blank until you come into the Donation Schedule screen.

• Choose which type of Donation Schedule from the Type dropdown.

• Continue to the appropriate Types setup directions (Installment/Recurring).

Quick Guide to Donation Schedule Types:

Installment: Donation with a set total amount divided over a set time period.

Recurring: Open-ended donation with no set end date nor set total amount.

Setting Up an Installment

• This is the screen for creating the Installment Donation Schedule.
  

• Type: Choose Installment from the dropdown.

• Campaign: Choose from the dropdown list.

• Frequency: This refers to how often the bill/pledge should be due.  Choose from the dropdown.

• Start Date: Choose the date that you want this plan to start.  The default is always the current date.

• 

  • This is where Admire calculates the installments.

  • If you fill out any two out of the three fields, Admire will compute the third.

  • Amount: This refers to the amount per installment.

  • Quantity: Over how many time periods should this installment be spread.

  • Pledge Total: The sum of the Amount x Quantity, which is the grand total pledge.

• Payment Method:

  • If you are setting up payments to be automatically charged on the installments’ due date, choose a method from the dropdown.  Leave this out if not creating payments.

  • Only Payment Methods that have the Payment Type of Credit Card or Check can be chosen.

    • If the Payment Method is Check will appear.

    • Fill it in and then click on to fill out the check numbers consecutively.

    • Otherwise you can scroll further down to manually enter in all the check numbers.

• Scheduled Installments: Once you complete the Amount x Quantity = fields, each part of the installment plan will list under this header.  

  • Use the up/down arrow to hide/display them as needed.

  • If needed you can adjust Date and Amount of each installment portion.

  • Use the X after the installment portion to remove it.

  • Use (located at the bottom of the list) create an additional installment to the overall plan.

It is Important to Note:

Changing an Installment Amount, Removing an Installment and Adding an Installment will all cause the Pledge Total to recalculate and adjust.

• Hit .  All pledges/payments due now will be billed immediately.  If there are multiple installments due now they will be combined into one (for example you are putting in a pledge from 3 months ago so the first 3 payments will be combined into 1).

Setting Up a Recurring

• This is the screen for creating a Recurring Donation Schedule.

• Type: Choose Recurring from the dropdown.

• Campaign: Choose from the dropdown list.

• Frequency: This refers to how often the donation should happen.

• Start Date: Choose the date that you want this plan to start.  The default is always the current date.

• Amount: This refers to the pledge amount that will be donated each occurrence.

• Method:

  • This field is mandatory as Recurring Donations must be set up with payments.

  • Only Payment Methods that have the Payment Type of Credit Card can be chosen.

• Credit Card: Choose the correct credit card to charge from the dropdown list or add a new one.

• 

  • This is informing you that as soon as you the card will be charged the $Amount specified in the Amount field, and then placed into a Batch just like anytime you enter a credit card payment.

  • Use the dropdown arrow (red circle on above screenshot) to Enter a Manual Bill Instead.

• Expected Pledges: Although a recurring can end at any time, Admire estimates some payment details for you.

  • On the top line we estimate:

    • 1. What the total pledge amount will be for the current year, eg. 2024 Total $30.00 (because we are starting in October).

    • 2. The 12 Month Total, eg. $120.00.

  • After we show the individual recurring charges fading out - demonstrating that this will go on until it is ended.

  • Use the up/down arrow to hide/display this as needed.

• Don’t forget to !

Note:

You cannot put an end date on a Recurring Donation during initial setup.  Learn how to end a Recurring Donation by editing it here.