Claimed Is Not Received: Track Both in Your Holiday Drive
Every requested gift has a donor. Your holiday drive looks complete. But how many gifts have actually arrived?
A donor commitment and a received donation are different milestones. Tracking them separately helps your team see what still needs attention.
For example, imagine a family needs 12 gifts. Donors have claimed all 12, but only eight have arrived. Four gifts are still outstanding, even though the family is fully claimed.
Use a clear distinction:
- Claimed: A donor has committed to providing the gift.
- Received: Your team has checked in the gift that arrived.
Assign someone to update received status during drop-off. Match the donation to the correct recipient and request before recording it. A bag arriving at the collection table should not automatically mark every expected gift as received.
Review outstanding commitments at a regular interval that fits your drive. Before contacting a donor, check whether another volunteer has already received the donation. Then send a short reminder with the item, deadline, and drop-off instructions.
If a donor cannot fulfill a commitment, follow your organization’s cancellation process so the request can be made available again when appropriate.
Try this today: Choose one family or recipient and compare the gifts claimed with the gifts received. Can your team identify what is still outstanding without searching through separate messages and lists?