How to create a donation pledge form with automated follow-ups

Turn pledges into lasting donor relationships

In this guide, you’ll create a Donation Pledge Form that not only collects donor details and pledge amounts but also automates thank-you emails and follow-ups until the donation is fulfilled.
Perfect for nonprofits, schools, or campaigns that want to make donor management easy and heartfelt, no manual tracking needed.

📘 Learn more: Create your first form, app, or portal in a flash

Step 1: Create your donation pledge form

From your workspace, click + New → Form, or choose a ready-made Donation form from the gallery.
You can also use Magic Create, try this prompt:

“Donation pledge form with donor info, pledge amount, payment frequency, and automated follow-ups.”

Add essential fields such as:

• Donor name and email
  
  
• Donation amount (numeric field)
  
  
• Pledge type (One-time / Monthly / Annual)
  
  
• Payment method (Bank transfer / Credit card / Other)
  
  
• Pledge date and due date
  
  
• Campaign or fund name (optional)
  
  
• Notes or dedication message
  
  

💡 Tip: Keep the form short — donors are more likely to commit when the experience feels effortless.

📘 Learn more: How to create a form

Step 2: Set up logic for recurring vs one-time donors

Go to Settings → Logic, and make your form adapt automatically.

Examples:

• If @pledge_type = “Monthly” → show “Preferred billing date” field
  
  
• If @pledge_type = “One-time” → skip recurring options and show payment instructions
  
  
• If @pledge_type = “Annual” → show field “Reminder frequency (Quarterly / Yearly)”
  
  

💡 Conditional fields keep the experience personal while collecting only the data you need.

📘 Learn more: How to add advanced logic to your form

Step 3: Send automated thank-you messages

Under Settings → Notifications, create a custom email template to thank donors immediately after submission.

Example email:

Subject: Thank you, @donor_name, for pledging your support!

Hi @donor_name,

Thank you for pledging @donation_amount to our @campaign_name campaign.
Your generosity helps us continue our work — we’ll keep you updated as we reach our goals.

— The @organization_name Team

📘 Learn more: How to create and send custom email templates

Step 4: Trigger emails automatically after submission

Now go to Settings → Logic → On submit, and add this rule:

If form is submitted → send custom email “Thank-you template.”

This ensures every pledge instantly generates an acknowledgment without manual sending.

📘 Learn more: What is on submit logic and how it works

Step 5: Create a follow-up reminder system

Use On update logic to send automated reminders based on due dates or pledge status.

Examples:

• If @status = “Pending” AND today = @due_date → send reminder email
  
  
• If @status = “Paid” → send “Receipt + thank-you” email
  
  

You can even personalize reminders by pledge type (monthly vs annual).

📘 Learn more: What is on update logic and how it works

Step 6: Track pledges in a dashboard

Go to Results → Dashboard to visualize donation progress and trends.
Add:

• Bar chart: Total pledged vs total received
  
  
• Pie chart: Pledges by campaign or type
  
  
• Table view: Donor list with pledge amount and status
  
  
• Kanban board: Group submissions by payment status (Pending / Paid / Overdue)
  
  

📘 Learn more: How to showcase charts based on form responses

Step 7: Generate donation receipts as PDFs

Once a pledge is fulfilled, automatically create a personalized receipt for the donor.
Use PDF templates with dynamic fields like:

• @donor_name
  
  
• @donation_amount
  
  
• @campaign_name
  
  
• @submission_date
  
  

Attach this receipt in a follow-up email confirming the donation.

📘 Learn more: How to create PDF templates to turn responses into documents

Step 8: Build a donor management portal

Turn your project into a Donor Portal App where your team can review submissions and donors can view their pledge history.
Add pages for:

• Make a pledge — your main form
  
  
• My pledges — filtered table showing donor’s own records
  
  
• Impact updates — content page with campaign results
  
  

Enable Login/Sign-up so donors can securely view or update their pledges.

📘 Learn more: How to create a portal and manage users access
📘 Learn more: How to let users view and edit their own data in your portal

Step 9: Sync with your CRM or Google Sheets

Connect your pledge form with Google Sheets, Salesforce, or other donor management tools to track and update records automatically.

📘 Learn more: How to set up two-way sync between Formaloo and Google Sheets

Pro tips

• Add autosave: Let donors resume incomplete pledges later.
  📘 Learn more: How to auto save incomplete responses and let users resume later
  
  
• Segment donors: Use filters in your dashboard to find recurring vs one-time supporters.
  
  
• Personalize emails with AI Smart Content: Generate heartfelt messages that change based on pledge amount.
  📘 Learn more: Create dynamic ending pages with AI Smart Content
  
  

Example scenario

A donor pledges $500 to your annual campaign via the form.
Logic categorizes them as “One-time donor,” sends an instant thank-you email, and schedules a reminder a week before the due date.
Once payment is confirmed, the system automatically generates a PDF receipt and a personalized appreciation message — all without manual effort.

📘 Learn more: Build personalized and time-saving flows with logic, automations, and AI

FAQ

1. Can I collect recurring donations directly in the form?
Yes, add a payment field connected to Stripe or your preferred gateway.
📘 Learn more: How to create an order form with online payment

2. Can I assign donors to specific campaigns or team members?
Absolutely, use logic to auto-tag submissions by campaign type or region.

3. Can donors update their pledge later?
Yes, enable login in your portal so they can edit their records securely.

Your pledge workflow, automated and human

You’ve just built a donor-friendly, automated pledge form that thanks, reminds, and receipts every supporter, building long-term trust with zero extra effort.
Next, expand it into a Fundraising Operations Portal with leaderboards, campaign tracking, and impact reports.

📘 Learn more: How to customize your portal with your brand identity

Last updated November 2025

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