Understanding Soft Credits
Soft credits allow you to attribute donations to additional contacts beyond the primary donor, helping track relationships and recognize all contributors.
Common Soft Credit Scenarios
- Spousal attribution for joint giving
- Corporate matching gift programs
- Foundation gifts attributed to board members
- Tribute and memorial donations
- Solicitor recognition for fundraising efforts
Assigning Soft Credits
- Open a donation record
- Navigate to the Soft Credits section
- Click "Add Soft Credit"
- Select the contact to receive credit
- Enter the soft credit amount
- Add notes explaining the relationship
Tribute Donations
Handle memorial and honor gifts:
- Create tribute records for honorees
- Link donations to specific tribute campaigns
- Send automatic notification letters
- Track tribute donation totals
- Generate tribute reports for families
Matching Gift Companies
Manage corporate matching programs:
- Maintain database of matching gift companies
- Track matching gift eligibility
- Monitor matching gift status and processing
- Generate matching gift reports
- Send reminders to eligible donors
Soft Credit Reporting
Generate reports that include soft credit attribution:
- Individual giving statements with soft credits
- Household combined giving reports
- Solicitor performance tracking
- Corporate partnership summaries
- Tribute donation summaries
Notification Management
Set up automated tribute notifications:
- Email templates for tribute acknowledgments
- Automatic sending to tribute contacts
- Customizable notification timing
- Tracking of notification delivery