Fundraising Pipeline¶
The pipeline tracks your deals from first contact through commitment. It's your forecasting tool — when leadership asks "what's our expected commit this quarter?", the pipeline has the answer.
Pipeline Stages¶
Your fundraising pipeline has 10 stages, moving left to right:
| Stage | What It Means | What Happens Next |
|---|---|---|
| Prospecting | Researching the target, no outreach yet | Find the right contact, prepare your approach |
| Initial Contact | First outreach — email, call, or introduction | Get a response, establish the relationship |
| Discovery | Initial conversation, learning about their interests | Qualify the fit, understand their allocation plans |
| Meeting Scheduled | A formal meeting is on the calendar | Prepare materials, confirm details |
| Meeting Held | The meeting happened | Log notes, identify next steps |
| Proposal Sent | You've sent pitch materials or a formal proposal | Follow up, answer questions |
| Negotiation | Discussing terms, commitment size, timing | Address concerns, refine the ask |
| Committed | They've given a verbal or written commitment | Document commitment, begin paperwork |
| Closed Won | Funds received, deal complete | Celebrate, maintain the relationship |
| Closed Lost | They passed or declined | Log the reason, revisit later if appropriate |
Two halves of the pipeline
Everything left of "Meeting Held" is about getting the meeting. Everything right of it is about closing the deal. Different motions, different urgency.
Using the Pipeline View¶
GHL Guide: Understanding Pipelines
- Click Opportunities in the left sidebar
- You'll see the Kanban board — each column is a stage, each card is a deal
Moving a Deal¶
Drag and drop: Grab a card and drag it to the next stage. The system timestamps when it moved.
From the record: Click any opportunity card → change the Stage dropdown.
Creating an Opportunity¶
GHL Guide: Creating Opportunities
- From the Opportunities page: click + Add
- Or from a contact/company record: click Add Opportunity
- Fill in:
- Name — A clear label (e.g., "Kaiser Permanente - Fund VII")
- Stage — Where they currently are in the pipeline
- Value — Expected commitment amount
- Expected Close Date — When you think this closes
- Contact — Link to the relevant person
- Company — Link to the organization
- Save
Opportunity Records¶
When you click into an opportunity, you'll see:
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Stage | Current position in the pipeline |
| Value | Expected commitment amount in dollars |
| Expected Close Date | Target date for closing |
| Contact | The person driving this deal |
| Company | The organization |
| Notes | Deal-specific notes and history |
Pipeline Best Practices¶
Update in real time
Don't batch pipeline updates for Friday. Had a meeting? Move the card. Got a soft commit? Move the card. The pipeline should reflect reality at any moment.
When to create an opportunity:
- You've identified a real prospect with a specific potential commitment
- Not every company needs an opportunity — start one when there's a concrete deal to track
When to move stages:
- Move forward when a clear milestone happens (meeting booked, meeting held, materials sent)
- Move to "Closed Lost" honestly — it keeps your pipeline clean
When to update the value:
- As you learn more about their capacity, update the expected amount
- A realistic pipeline is more useful than an optimistic one
Pipeline Reporting¶
The pipeline gives you quick answers to key questions:
| Question | How to Answer |
|---|---|
| What's our expected commit this quarter? | Sum the values in the Committed column |
| How many active deals do we have? | Count cards in stages between Discovery and Negotiation |
| What's stuck? | Look for cards that haven't moved in 2+ weeks |
| What did we close this year? | Filter Closed Won by date |