Advancement · Community & Giving · Campaigns

The gifts a goal
needs, from the
top down.

Type the campaign goal. The calculator builds the gift table fundraisers plan with: the lead gift, the gifts at each level below it, the prospects you need to find, and how much of the goal rests on the first few names.

Build the gift tableWhat you get
$12one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $12

Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Development and giving kit, $39 for 19 items.

The gift table calculator

The worked example is made up: a $2.5 million campaign for a school STEM wing. Nothing you type leaves this browser.

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What you get

Advancement · Community & Giving$12 · included with Classroom and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
A gift range chart with every level’s gift size, number of gifts, prospects, level total, running total and share of goal, plus total gifts, prospects and the top-ten share. It prints as a table and downloads as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
School advancement directors, heads of school and principals planning a campaign, nonprofit fundraising staff and campaign committees.
Format
Browser calculator for a phone, tablet or computer, by touch or keyboard. Prints the table; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file.
Access
$12 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Development and giving kit ($39) and the Advancement Suite pass ($99), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Community & Giving space in Caveat Advancement.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Name the campaign and type the goal.
  2. Keep or adjust the lead share, the multiplier, prospects per gift and the smallest level.
  3. Read the gift table and the top-ten share.
  4. Put real prospect names against the top levels.
  5. Print the table or download the spreadsheet for the campaign committee.

Build the gift table

How the table is built

Halve the gift, multiply the gifts, stop at the goal.

The worked example: how the table is builtLead gift$375,00015% of $2.5 millionNext level2 × $188,000half the gift, twice the giftsAnd so on7 levelsuntil the goal is reachedProspects4204 for every giftThe worked example: how the table is builtLead gift$375,00015% of $2.5 millionNext level2 × $188,000half the gift, twice the giftsAnd so on7 levelsuntil the goal is reachedProspects4204 for every gift
Each level asks for half the gift of the one above from twice as many donors, so every full level adds about the same amount; the table stops when the running total reaches the goal.

The planning rules

A gift range chart starts with the lead gift, commonly 10 to 20 percent of the goal. Each level below asks for about half as much from more donors, often twice as many, so each full level contributes a similar amount. Gift sizes are rounded to amounts a donor would recognize. When gifts fall below a floor, the rest of the goal is shown as a broad base of smaller gifts. Prospects needed are the gifts times the number of prospects you expect to approach for each gift.

What the table is for

A gift table is a test of the goal, not a forecast. Campaign counsel and experienced development officers compare it with the real list of prospects and their capacity; if the top levels cannot be filled with names, the goal or timing changes. Most campaigns raise a large share of the goal from a handful of gifts before going public.

Sources

  1. Association of Fundraising Professionals. Capital campaign planning and gift range charts (afpglobal.org).
  2. Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Campaign reporting standards and campaign planning resources (case.org).
  3. Dove, K. E. (2000). Conducting a Successful Capital Campaign (2nd ed.). Jossey-Bass: the gift range chart and prospect ratios.
  4. Internal Revenue Service. Publication 1771, Charitable Contributions: Substantiation and Disclosure Requirements (irs.gov).

The worked example is made up. The table follows common conventions; your donor research decides the real one. Your figures stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.