Free tool · Fundraising Planning
How much money is your charity losing from unfulfilled pledges? Enter your numbers and see the gap — then see how to close it.
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How much was promised at your event(s)
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Industry benchmarks
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Enter your numbers to see your pledge conversion rate
Stop losing pledges. Start recovering them.
PledgeNow's automated follow-up turns 85% of pledges into payments. Free forever.
Across the UK charity sector, an estimated 30-50% of pledges made at fundraising events, dinners, and community gatherings never convert into actual donations. For the sector as a whole, this represents hundreds of millions of pounds in lost revenue every year. The donors aren't dishonest — they're busy. Life gets in the way.
At a charity dinner, in a mosque after a powerful appeal, or in a WhatsApp group after seeing a friend's fundraising post — people pledge in moments of genuine generosity. But the emotional intensity that drove the pledge fades. Without a system to bridge that gap, the money disappears — not because of bad intent, but because of bad systems.
Most charities either don't follow up (too awkward, too busy) or do it inconsistently (one phone call, one email, then give up). PledgeNow sends a 4-step automated sequence — gentle WhatsApp and email reminders with payment details attached. It stops when they pay. Conversion rates jump from ~50% to ~85%.
Use the calculator above to see exactly how much your charity is losing. Then ask: what would an extra 33% conversion rate mean for your cause? For most charities, the answer is thousands of pounds recovered — automatically, for free.
The industry average for UK charities is around 50-55% — meaning nearly half of all pledges go unfulfilled. Well-organised charities with systematic follow-up achieve 70-80%. With automated follow-up tools like PledgeNow, charities consistently see 80-90% conversion rates. Every percentage point matters.
People who pledge at events genuinely intend to give. The problem isn't dishonesty — it's life. They forget, lose the bank details, the emotional moment passes, or they simply don't get round to it. Automated, gentle reminders sent at the right time recover most of these lost pledges.
Based on industry data, if UK charities collectively raise £2 billion through pledges annually, approximately £900 million goes uncollected. For a single charity that raises £100,000 in pledges per year, that's potentially £45,000-£50,000 in lost revenue — every year.
Three things: (1) Capture pledge details digitally at the moment of commitment — not on paper, not verbally. (2) Send automatic, gentle reminders with payment details attached. (3) Make paying as easy as possible — bank details, card links, multiple payment options. PledgeNow does all three.
PledgeNow sends a 4-step automated reminder sequence via WhatsApp and email. Each reminder includes your charity's bank details. Donors tap a link and pay when they're ready. The system stops automatically when they pay. No awkward chasing, no manual spreadsheets.
Yes — but not manually. Manual follow-up is awkward, inconsistent, and time-consuming. Automated follow-up is gentle, consistent, and removes the personal discomfort. Most donors actually appreciate the reminder — they meant to pay and are glad to be prompted.
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