> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.virtuous.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Terms & Definitions Several terms have product-specific meanings which are explained below **Terminology Conventions to Know:** 1. **Project** means different things in CRM+, Raise, and Volunteer. 2. **Volunteer's API uses different field names than its UI** The API uses `project` and `campaign`- the UI calls these *Opportunity* and *Initiative*. \ The API field names will not change. ### Campaign A grouping of fundraising or programmatic efforts. CRM+: top-level grouping of Communications and Segments, **read-only via API**. Raise: surfaces on Donations as the Motivation Code. Volunteer: called *Initiative* in the UI; API field is `campaign`. ### Channel Type The medium for a Communication in CRM+ (Email, Direct Mail, Event, etc.). Required when creating a Communication via the API. ### Communication A specific outreach event in CRM+ tied to a Campaign. Has a Channel Type and one or more Segments. Communications **can** be created via the API even though their parent Campaigns cannot. ### Contact The top-level person or organization record in CRM+. Contains one or more Contact Individuals; every Gift, Pledge, and most other CRM+ records hang off a Contact. ### Contact Individual An individual person within a Contact record. A Contact can have multiple Contact Individuals (e.g. a household with two spouses); one is marked `isPrimary`. ### Contact Method A communication channel (email address, phone number, mailing address) attached to a Contact Individual. ### Custom Collection A user-defined data table in CRM+ for tracking non-donation transactions (purchases, services, ticketed events). Collections must be created in the UI; records inside an existing collection can be managed via the API. ### Custom Field A user-defined field that extends a CRM+ record type (Contact, Gift, etc.). Each Custom Field has a type: text, number, date, dropdown, multi-select, or currency. ### Donation Raise's term for a financial gift recorded against a Donor. The Raise equivalent of a CRM+ Gift. ### Donor Raise's term for a person or organization that has made a Donation. The Raise equivalent of a CRM+ Contact. ### Gift CRM+'s term for a financial gift recorded against a Contact. Includes one-time gifts, recurring gift instances, pledge payments, and reversing transactions. ### Gift Transaction The endpoint and pattern for bulk-importing Gifts into CRM+. Handles Contact matching via Reference Source/ID and is the recommended path over direct Gift creation for any external integration. ### Gift Type The classification of a Gift — `Cash`, `EFT`, `Credit`, `Stock`, `In-Kind`, `Pledge Payment`, `Recurring Gift Payment`, `Reversing Transaction`, etc. ### Initiative Volunteer's UI label for what the API calls a `campaign`. See **Campaign**. ### Motivation Code In Raise, a code that surfaces on Donations to identify the campaign or appeal that generated the gift. Maps to Campaign in the integration with CRM+. ### Opportunity Volunteer's UI label for what the API calls a `project`. See **Project**. ### Passthrough Gift A Gift where one Contact is the legal donor and another receives soft credit. Common pattern for peer-to-peer fundraising and donor-advised funds. ### Pledge A commitment to give a specific amount over time in CRM+. Paid down by Pledge Payments; pledge write-offs are irreversible. ### Premium A good or service given to a donor in exchange for a gift, with an associated fair-market value that affects the gift's tax-deductible amount. ### Project Has product-specific meanings. CRM+: a designation that gifts can be allocated to via `projectCode`. Raise: a fund or destination for donations; gifts can be split across multiple Projects. Volunteer: called *Opportunity* in the UI; API field is `project`. The three are separate concepts in separate systems even though they share the term. ### Receipt Segment A Segment Code applied to gifts for receipting purposes. Can be set at gift time via the `segmentCode` URL parameter on a CRM+ giving form. ### Recurring Gift A scheduled, repeating Gift in CRM+. Created by including a `frequency` value on the first Gift in the schedule. ### Reference ID A string identifying a record in your external system. Combined with Reference Source, lets you look up the corresponding Virtuous record without storing the Virtuous ID locally. See [Using Reference Source & Reference ID](/crm/recipes/reference-source-and-id). ### Reference Source A string identifying the external system that created or sourced a record. Combined with Reference ID, identifies the record uniquely. ### Reversing Transaction A Gift Type used to reverse a previously recorded Gift. Refunds from Virtuous Payments appear in CRM+ as Reversing Transactions. ### Segment A subdivision of a Communication in CRM+. Identified by Segment Code; used to track which appeal variation a gift came from. ### Segment Code The string code for a Segment. Used as a URL parameter on giving forms (`segmentCode=...`) and on Gift records to attribute the gift to a specific Segment. ### Webhook An HTTP callback delivered when an event occurs. All three Virtuous APIs support webhooks with product-specific event catalogs ([CRM+](/crm/reference/webhook-events), [Raise](/raise/reference/webhook-events), [Volunteer](/volunteer/reference/webhook-events)).