Turn the Four-Stage Record into CRM Pipeline Stages
This lesson operationalises C1 L9’s Four-Stage Bequest Record inside the CRM, translating enquiry, interest, disclosed intention and realised into six usable pipeline stages with entry rules, exit triggers and reporting limits.
Listen to the lesson
The framework already exists. This lesson builds the operating version.
C1 L9, “Record the Signal, Not the Fantasy,” owns the Four-Stage Bequest Record: enquiry, interest, disclosed intention and realised.
This lesson does not re-teach that concept. It turns it into a CRM structure a fundraising team can actually use.
The problem is that most databases need more granularity than four broad labels. “Interest” can mean a donor clicked a gifts-in-wills email, asked for wording, attended an information session, or said they are seeing a solicitor next month. Those signals should not be treated as identical, but they also should not be converted into forecastable income.
A good CRM stage does three things.
It defines what evidence is required before a record enters the stage.
It defines what action the organisation should take while the record is in that stage.
It defines what must not be reported, assumed or escalated from that stage.
That last part is often missing. A stage label is dangerous if it only sounds positive. “Warm legacy prospect” might encourage action, but it does not tell finance whether the record belongs in a forecast, whether the donor has given permission for recognition, or whether the bequest officer has any reason to believe a will has actually been updated.
The Facts Pack supports restraint here. Australian sources cluster around only 6.5–8% of wills actually containing a charitable gift, while roughly a third of Australians say they would consider one. Wishart and James also found that bequest intentions are volatile; people can add, remove or change charitable gifts as circumstances shift. The pipeline therefore needs stage movement without false certainty.
The six-stage model below is not a new theory of donor decision-making. It is the CRM implementation of C1 L9.
The six operational CRM stages
Use these six stages to implement the Four-Stage Bequest Record in the CRM. Rename them to fit your system if needed, but keep the entry rules and reporting limits intact.
- 1 Stage 1 — Information enquiry C1 L9 parent stage: Enquiry. What it means: The person has asked for information, clicked through to request a pack, contacted the charity for legal name or ABN details, or responded to a campaign asking for gifts-in-wills information. There is not yet enough evidence to say they are actively considering a charitable gift. Entry evidence: A webform, reply card, email, phone note, event question or adviser request showing that the person wants general information. What to record: Date, channel, source campaign, information requested, information sent, permission to contact, and whether the request came directly from the donor or through an intermediary. What it looks like in use: “Stage 1 — Information enquiry. Webform submitted 3 August 2026 after gifts-in-wills email. Donor requested general brochure and correct legal name/ABN. No statement of intention. No gift type, amount, will update or solicitor details disclosed.” Default action: Send the requested information using approved materials. Include the organisation’s full legal name, ABN and DGR status if relevant. Include the independent legal-advice boundary. Do not: Attach a gift value, probability score, recognition status or forecast amount. Exit trigger: Move to Stage 2 only if the donor gives a stronger values signal, asks for a more specific conversation, attends a deeper information session, requests wording in context of their own planning, or otherwise shows active consideration.
- 2 Stage 2 — Values interest C1 L9 parent stage: Interest. What it means: The person has shown more than curiosity. They have expressed a connection to the cause, a future-facing concern, a personal or vocational motivation, or a wish to keep hearing about gifts in wills. They have not yet indicated that they are taking estate-planning action. Entry evidence: A donor note, email, survey response, event comment, conversation record or mailing response showing cause connection and willingness to receive further gifts-in-wills material. What to record: The donor’s actual words, motivation, permission, preferred channel, and the next appropriate administrative review date. What it looks like in use: “Stage 2 — Values interest. Survey response received 17 August 2026. Donor wrote: ‘I care most about keeping independent journalism alive for people who come after us.’ Requested occasional gifts-in-wills updates by email. No will action disclosed.” Default action: Add to the appropriate gifts-in-wills communication stream if permission exists. Set a review date. Make the motivation visible for future stewardship reference without turning it into pressure. Do not: Describe the donor as “intending,” “confirmed,” “pledged” or “included in will.” Exit trigger: Move to Stage 3 only if the donor connects the interest to their own will-making or estate-planning process.
- 3 Stage 3 — Active consideration C1 L9 parent stage: Interest. What it means: The person is actively considering a gift in their will or preparing for estate-planning action, but has not disclosed that the charity is included in a current will. Entry evidence: The donor says they are updating a will, meeting a solicitor, comparing gift options, discussing the idea with family, requesting approved wording for personal planning, or asking what details a solicitor would need. What to record: What planning action is underway, what information was requested, what information was provided, what the donor is not ready to discuss, and the next administrative follow-up boundary. What it looks like in use: “Stage 3 — Active consideration. Email received 21 August 2026. Donor wrote: ‘I’m seeing my solicitor in September and want to take the correct wording with me. I’m still thinking about whether this is right for me.’ Approved wording sent. No gift confirmed. No amount or percentage disclosed. Follow up by email in six months unless donor contacts earlier.” Default action: Provide correct organisational information and approved general wording. Record exactly what was sent. Schedule a respectful review date. Do not: Treat the record as a disclosed intention. The donor is considering, not confirming. Exit trigger: Move to Stage 4 only if the donor says they have instructed a solicitor, decided to include the charity, or taken a clear step toward inclusion but has not confirmed the gift is in the current will.
- 4 Stage 4 — Disclosed intention in progress C1 L9 parent stage: Disclosed intention. What it means: The donor has said they intend to include the charity, have asked a solicitor to include the charity, or are in the process of updating their will to include the charity. The charity still does not have confirmation that the gift is in the final current will. Entry evidence: The donor’s words indicate intention or instruction in progress: “I have asked my solicitor,” “I intend to include,” “I am adding,” or “I want the gift included when I update my will.” What to record: The exact words, whether the will update is complete or incomplete, whether any wording was shared, privacy limits, recognition permission, contact preferences, and the reporting status. What it looks like in use: “Stage 4 — Disclosed intention in progress. Letter received 2 September 2026. Donor wrote: ‘I have asked my solicitor to include your organisation when we update my will.’ No confirmation that update is complete. No wording, amount, percentage or solicitor details provided. Donor asked for no phone contact. Exclude from income forecast.” Default action: Acknowledge privately. Send correct organisational information if useful. Set a review date that respects the donor’s contact boundary. Do not: Call it confirmed. Do not attach value. Do not ask for estate details unless the donor has invited that conversation. Exit trigger: Move to Stage 5 only if the donor clearly states that the charity is now included in their current will, or provides current will-clause information voluntarily.
- 5 Stage 5 — Disclosed current inclusion C1 L9 parent stage: Disclosed intention. What it means: The donor has said the charity is included in their current will, or has voluntarily provided current clause information. This is still not income. It is a stronger living-pipeline record. Entry evidence: A donor statement such as “you are included in my will,” “my will has now been updated,” or voluntary sharing of clause information. The charity does not need a copy of the will to use this stage, and should not pressure the donor for one. What to record: Exact donor words, date, channel, any gift type disclosed, any wording volunteered, what remains unknown, privacy and recognition permissions, and whether the donor wants ongoing contact. What it looks like in use: “Stage 5 — Disclosed current inclusion. Phone note, 15 September 2026. Donor said: ‘My will has been updated and your organisation is now included.’ No amount disclosed. Gift type not disclosed. Donor happy to receive annual private updates by post. No public recognition permission. Exclude from income forecast.” Default action: Record the stronger disclosure without inflating it. Align administrative scheduling to the donor’s permission and the relevant stewardship rhythm owned by C1 L10. Do not: Treat the gift as guaranteed, assign it to budget-year income, assume family support, or assume the donor wants recognition. Exit trigger: Move to Stage 6 only after the charity receives an estate notification and the record leaves the living pipeline for Course 3’s estate-administration process. If the donor later says they have changed their will and removed the gift, move the record out of the active bequest pipeline and retain an accurate history.
- 6 Stage 6 — Realised / closed to living pipeline C1 L9 parent stage: Realised. What it means: The living-pipeline stage is closed because the matter has moved into, or completed, the post-death estate-administration domain owned by Course 3, “After the Will Is Read.” This stage exists so the CRM does not leave deceased or realised records sitting in the living pipeline. Entry evidence: Use this stage only according to the organisation’s Course 3 workflow. At minimum, there must be an estate notification or confirmed internal handover into estate administration. Final closeout happens only once Course 3’s process has produced the information needed to mark the record realised and remove it from forecast. What to record: Handover date, Course 3 workflow reference, living-pipeline closure date, forecast removal, stewardship suppression, and any data-hygiene action needed. Do not use this lesson to manage estate administration, restricted-gift review, legal-identity risk, family-provision concerns or gift-acceptance judgment. What it looks like in use: “Stage 6 — Realised / closed to living pipeline. Estate notification received and handed to Course 3 workflow, 4 November 2026. Living pipeline closed. Suppress from living donor stewardship. Remove from pipeline forecast. Estate administration, legal identity checks, restriction review and family-risk escalation handled under Course 3.” Default action: Close or suppress the living-pipeline record according to the CRM rules. Keep the record from appearing in active stewardship, prospect lists or pipeline forecasts. Do not: Run estate administration from the bequest pipeline. Course 3 owns that work. Exit trigger: No living-pipeline exit trigger. This is the terminal administrative stage for the living pipeline.
Staging the same donor without upgrading the record
An animal-welfare charity is cleaning up gifts-in-wills records after importing five years of spreadsheet notes into its CRM. One record belongs to Theo Madsen, a donor who has given four times over six years after adopting two older rescue dogs.
The old spreadsheet has one line:
“Theo — legacy? Loves senior dogs. Sent will pack. Maybe good prospect.”
That line is not enough to stage the record safely.
The bequest officer opens the source documents. There are three pieces of evidence.
First, a webform from 6 March 2026:
“Could you please send me your gifts-in-wills booklet? I’m not ready to do anything yet, but I’d like to understand the options.”
Second, an email from 18 May 2026:
“Thanks for the booklet. I’m talking with my solicitor later this year and want to take the right charity details with me.”
Third, a staff note from 20 May 2026:
“Sent approved legal name and ABN by email. No amount, percentage, clause or will update confirmed. Donor prefers email.”
The tempting CRM move is to stage Theo as “disclosed intention” because there is a solicitor reference.
That would be too strong.
The right stage is Stage 3 — Active consideration.
Theo has requested information, shown cause connection, and connected the enquiry to a future solicitor meeting. But he has not said he intends to include the charity, has not instructed the solicitor to include the charity, and has not confirmed that a will update has happened.
A clean CRM entry would read:
“Stage 3 — Active consideration. Source evidence reviewed during CRM import, 1 September 2026. Webform 6 March 2026: ‘Could you please send me your gifts-in-wills booklet? I’m not ready to do anything yet, but I’d like to understand the options.’ Email 18 May 2026: ‘I’m talking with my solicitor later this year and want to take the right charity details with me.’ Donor connection: adopted two older rescue dogs; interest in senior-animal care. Approved legal name and ABN sent 20 May 2026. Gift information: no stated intention, no confirmed will update, no amount, no percentage, no clause, no solicitor details. Permission: email preferred; no phone or recognition permission recorded. Next action: email private check-in after solicitor-meeting window, no earlier than November 2026, offering updated organisational details if needed. Reporting: include as active consideration; exclude from income forecast; no value or probability score.”
This is not a downgrade. It is an accurate stage.
The discipline is to let the donor’s evidence move the record, not the fundraiser’s hope.
Build the stage rules before you bulk-update records
Before updating existing records, create a one-page stage rule sheet for your CRM. Use the six stages from this lesson and fill in four decisions for each stage.
1. Entry rule:
Write the evidence required before a record can enter the stage.
### Example:
“Stage 4 requires donor words showing intention or instruction in progress. A solicitor meeting alone is not enough.”
2. Default next action:
Write the normal administrative action for that stage.
### Example:
“Stage 3 default action: send requested organisational information, record exactly what was sent, set a six-month review date unless the donor asks for a different timing.”
3. Reporting rule:
Write how the stage appears in reports.
### Example:
“Stages 1–5 may appear in activity and pipeline-health reports. None are included in budget-year income forecasts unless separately governed by an approved finance policy. Stage 6 is closed to the living pipeline.”
4. Prohibited upgrade:
Write the mistake the stage must prevent.
### Example:
“Stage 5 prohibits language such as ‘guaranteed,’ ‘secured,’ ‘booked,’ ‘expected income’ or automatic value assignment.”
Then test twenty existing records.
For each record, ask:
– What is the strongest evidence we actually have?
– Which stage does that evidence support?
– What are we tempted to infer?
– What next action is permitted?
– What reporting use is prohibited?
Do not bulk-update bequest stages from old labels such as “hot,” “warm,” “legacy prospect” or “likely.” Those labels describe optimism, not evidence.
Move a bequest record only when the donor’s words or actions meet the next stage’s entry rule. Do not let enthusiasm, seniority, wealth assumptions or board pressure move the record for them.
What the six stages make possible
The six-stage model gives the CRM enough detail to manage bequest records without re-inventing the Four-Stage Bequest Record owned by C1 L9.
Stage 1 captures information enquiries.
Stage 2 captures values interest.
Stage 3 captures active consideration.
Stage 4 captures disclosed intention in progress.
Stage 5 captures disclosed current inclusion.
Stage 6 closes the living pipeline when the matter moves into, or has completed, the estate-administration process owned by Course 3.
The model is only useful if the organisation respects the entry rules. A stage should tell the next staff member what evidence exists, what action is appropriate, and what reporting use is prohibited.
That is how the pipeline becomes operational without becoming imaginary.