The Potential Matching Gifts subtab on the Giving tab displays potential company matching gifts associated with a donor’s gifts.
A potential matching gift represents a possible future matching gift from a company or foundation. It is not the company’s received gift payment. Instead, it is a tracking record that helps staff monitor whether a donor’s gift may be eligible for a match, whether the match is expected, and whether follow-up is needed.
Potential matching gifts may be created automatically by Slate when a received gift meets an employer’s matching gift policy criteria. They can also be added manually when staff identify a potential match that was not created automatically.
For more information about matching gift setup, matching gift policies, automatic matching, and fulfillment, refer to the full Matching Gifts article.
What appears on the Potential Matching Gifts subtab
On a donor’s record, the Potential Matching Gifts subtab displays potential matching gifts associated with that donor.
Each potential matching gift is connected to an originating gift: the donor’s original received gift that may qualify for a company match.
Potential matching gifts are used for tracking and follow-up. The actual fulfilled matching gift, if received, is entered separately as a gift on the company or foundation record.
How potential matching gifts are created
Potential matching gifts can be created in two ways.
Automatically
When automatic matching gifts are enabled, Slate evaluates qualifying received gifts to determine whether they may be eligible for a company match.
If the gift qualifies based on the donor’s employment information and the company’s matching gift policy, Slate creates a potential matching gift on the donor’s record.
The potential matching gift appears on the donor’s Potential Matching Gifts subtab and can be reviewed or updated by staff.
Manually
Users with permission to update giving records can also add a potential matching gift manually from the Potential Matching Gifts subtab.
To add a potential matching gift manually:
Open the donor’s record.
Select the Giving tab.
Open the Potential Matching Gifts subtab.
Select New Potential Matching Gift.
Select the originating gift.
Select the matching gift policy.
Review or update the match amount and other details.
Save the record.
Manual entry is useful when staff know a donor’s gift may be eligible for a match, but Slate did not create the potential match automatically.
Reviewing and updating a potential matching gift
Select a row on the Potential Matching Gifts subtab to open the potential matching gift details.
Staff can use the potential matching gift record to review information such as:
The matching gift policy.
The expected match amount.
The current status.
The associated fund, campaign, appeal, or opportunity.
Notes or other details.
As staff learn more about the match, they can update the potential matching gift to reflect the current expectation.
For example, a potential matching gift may begin with a status such as Potential and later be updated to another status, such as Expected, Matched, or Not Expected, depending on the institution’s configured statuses and workflow.
Updating the status helps advancement services, donor relations, and gift processing teams track which matches require follow-up and which are no longer expected.
Fulfilling a potential matching gift
A potential matching gift is fulfilled when the company or foundation sends the matching gift payment.
The fulfilled matching gift is entered as a received gift on the company or foundation record. During gift entry, staff can select the potential matching gift in the Fulfilling field to connect the company’s payment back to the donor’s potential match.
After fulfillment, staff should review the potential matching gift and update its status if needed. Fulfillment does not necessarily replace the need to manage the potential matching gift’s status according to institutional workflow.
Summary
The Potential Matching Gifts subtab provides a record-level view of possible company matching gifts connected to a donor’s received gifts.
Use this subtab to review automatically generated potential matches, manually add potential matches when needed, and update each record’s status as the match moves through the institution’s workflow. The actual company payment is entered separately on the company or foundation record and can be linked back to the potential matching gift through fulfillment.