What “Abandoned Cart” means: A donor began the giving process, reached payment, but did not successfully complete the donation.
Why this matters: These are people who already showed intent to give. A timely follow-up can recover gifts that might otherwise be lost.
When to use it: Use this during campaigns, giving days, or regular fundraising periods to reconnect with donors who dropped off before payment completion.
How It Works
What counts as an abandoned donation?
A donor starts the gift checkout flow on a giving page.
The donation is not marked as completed.
It appears in your Abandoned Cart audience/list for that giving page.
Simple donor journey
Starts donation -> Enters payment step -> Leaves or does not finish payment -> Appears in Abandoned Cart list -> Admin follows up by email -> Donor can return and complete donation
Smart removal when a donor completes later
The Abandoned Cart list is specific to each giving page.
If the same donor comes back and successfully completes a donation on the same page, their earlier abandoned cart on that page is automatically removed.
The system uses timing to decide:
Completed donation happened after the abandoned cart (on the same page) → abandoned cart is cleared.
Completed donation happened before the abandoned cart → abandoned cart stays, because it’s a new drop-off.
Completions on other giving pages are not considered for this check.
What admins can do
View donors in the Abandoned Cart audience.
Send follow-up email reminders to encourage completion.
Re-send follow-up communication if needed (for example, a second reminder before campaign end).
Track recovered donations as donors come back and complete payment.
Practical example
A parent selects
$250, enters contact details, and reaches the payment screen.They close the page before confirming payment.
Their record appears in Abandoned Cart.
Your team sends a reminder email with a clear call to action.
The donor returns and makes another gift, completing the payment this time. This removes them from the abandoned list.
FAQs
What counts as an abandoned donation?
Any donation attempt that was started but not completed at payment.
How soon does it appear as abandoned?
It appears once the donation has been started and remains incomplete. In practice, teams can review this list and follow up promptly.
Is the Abandoned Cart list page-specific?
Yes. Each giving page has its own Abandoned Cart list, and the smart-removal logic only considers donations made on the same page.What if a donor abandoned on one page and donated on another?
They will remain on the Abandoned Cart list of the page they abandoned on, since the check is page-specific.Will donors receive automatic reminders?
Not by default in this flow. Your team typically sends follow-ups from the Abandoned Cart audience.
Can admins resend follow-ups?
Yes. Admins can send additional reminders as part of their outreach plan.
Will completed donors stay in Abandoned Cart?
No. Once a donation is completed, it is treated as a completed donation instead.