Guides for people who run fundraisers.

Everything we’ve learned from live fundraising events — the planning, the room, the appeal, and the follow-up — written down so your next event starts further ahead.

GuideHow to run a fundraising dinner that actually hits its goal.Great fundraising dinners aren’t lucky — they’re choreographed. This guide walks through the whole arc: the plan, the room, the appeal, the live moments, and the follow-up where most of the money is won or lost.Read the guide →GuideThe fundraising dinner checklist.Print this, share it with the committee, and nothing falls through the cracks — from booking the venue to collecting the last outstanding pledge.Read the guide →GuideHow to collect pledges at an event (without losing a third of them).The pledge is made in a second and lost in the logistics. Here’s how to capture every promise in the room — and why the collection method you choose decides how much of the goal you actually bank.Read the guide →GuideLive fundraising display ideas that move a room.A screen showing a number is information. A screen the MC plays like an instrument is momentum. These are the display moves that reliably lift live totals.Read the guide →GuideThe mosque fundraising dinner guide.From the opening recitation to the last pledge fulfilled — how masjid committees run appeal dinners that fund the building, the school, and the community’s future.Read the guide →GuideFundraising auction ideas that earn their place in the program.The best auction lots aren’t the most expensive — they’re the ones two people in your room both want. What to source, how to stage it, and how to make sure winning bids become banked money.Read the guide →GuideHow to follow up unpaid pledges (and stay loved while doing it).Unpaid pledges are rarely broken promises — they’re unfinished ones. The right follow-up finishes them: warm in tone, precise in timing, effortless to act on.Read the guide →

Questions, answered.

Who writes these guides?

The PledgesDone team, drawing on patterns from live fundraising dinners, mosque appeals, school fundraisers and charity galas run on the platform.

Do I need PledgesDone to use these guides?

No — the advice stands on its own. Where software helps (live displays, QR pledging, automated follow-up), we say so and link to the relevant feature.

Where should I start?

If you’re planning an event, start with "How to run a fundraising dinner" and the checklist. If your last event left unpaid pledges, start with "How to follow up unpaid pledges".

Will more guides be added?

Yes — the library grows as we document more of what works at live fundraising events. Check back, or start your fundraiser and learn by doing.

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