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PLANNED GIVING is the SUPERSTAR of Fundraising
Here are 5 important points about the SUPERSTAR power of PLANNED GIVING.
Point #1: Planned Gifts are MAJOR
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
Point #1: Planned Gifts are MAJOR
A bequest or other planned gift is typically the LARGEST a donor will ever make - an estimated 200-300 times larger than a donor's biggest gift to date. The research of Dr. Russell James III shows once a donor includes a nonprofit in their will, their annual gifts increased by an average of $3,171.
POINT #2. Massive POTENTIAL
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
Point #1: Planned Gifts are MAJOR
In the next twenty years, baby boomers are expected to donate $12 trillion to nonprofits - with 80% through bequests and other planned giving. Wow! Let that sink in - 80% of this great transfer of wealth to nonprofits is powered by the SUPERSTAR of fundraising!
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
In the wonderful world of planned giving we know EVERYONE can be a philanthropist! Your donor thinks they have to be loaded to do something BIG, but the good news is - EVERYONE can be a philanthropist with the SUPERSTAR power of planned giving.
POINT #4. Serious STRENGTH
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
POINT #3. EVERYONE is a "philanthropist"
When your nonprofit has a solid planned giving program - it sends a crystal clear message. Your funders - donors, grant makers and foundations - see that your organization is building a foundation, is committed to fundraising best practices - and knows you are serious about the future.
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
According to various experts, planned giving is the King and Queen of ROI - the HIGHEST Return On Investment of all types. Per $ spent, your nonprofit will raise more money through bequests and other planned gifts than annual, major and other types of fundraising. That's royally high ROI
BONUS POINT. Now you know
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
POINT #5. Planned giving is ROI Royalty
Now that you know the SUPERSTAR POWER of planned giving, how will you help your nonprofit reach and engage your longtime, loyal supporters? If you'd like to chat about it, reach out and set up a complimentary call.
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"You must be an expert" & OTHER MYTHS
Our myth blaster experts set the record straight
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Are Planned Gifts MAJOR GIFTS in a different package?
Give this a think.
Every fundraiser loves a major gift.
But have you looked for major gifts in a different style of packaging? That just might be your major gift disguised as a planned gift.
Whether you're a major gift officer on a nice-sized team or a one-person development shop, you're likely under immense pressure to close major gifts and uncover new major gift prospects.
But many a fundraiser is leaving major money on the table by not learning more about planned giving and offering planned gift ideas to donors. These are major gifts, too.
Real estate is a major gift.
Charitable Gift Annuities and other types of life income gifts are major gifts.
Scholarships/endowments with deferred components. MAJOR.
In the nonprofit fundraising world, there are tons of articles about how to ask donors for a major gift or planned gifts. Conferences and webinars steer us towards sessions about one or the other and sometimes about "blended gifts."
But your donors aren't reading those articles or attending those meetings. And they don't think of themselves as "donors."
They're people who care about your cause, and the "how to make a gift" isn't as important as the "why they make the gift."
They don't know they can make a major gift. Show theym they can, with a planned giving strategy.
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DO
Dive into our planned giving DOs
Our Planned Giving DOs
DO take that money on the table.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
DO understand your legacy donors.
Are you leaving big money on the table? While it's always important to bring in major gifts, chasing that 50k gift may take months or years. In the meantime, an entire community of your prospects who -are updating their estate plans and NOT including your org. Why? Because you never asked. Ever. They never saw anything about gift planning in your e-news, you never sent them a personalized communication about how a bequest could create a scholarship. They never heard anything about it.
DO understand your legacy donors.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
DO understand your legacy donors.
When was the last time you took a look at your database and a list of supporters who have already self identified as making a gift in their will or trust, named your org as a beneficiary of a retirement plan or life insurance, or any other type of deferred gift? What do you know about them? What is their overall giving history? Find out why they decided to trust your nonprofit organization and you'll certainly find clues and keys to uncovering more planned giving supporters.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
Do your board and staff understand the massive potential of bequests, other deferred gifts and gifts of non-cash assets? Do they know about the power of Donor Advised Funds and Qualified Charitable Distributions from IRA's? Have any of your orgs board members made a planned gift of their own - do they know how to talk about their gifts so others will follow their lead? A one-hour, friendly information session AKA training goes a long way!
DO make your Legacy Society sparkle.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
DO share the magic of planned giving.
A Legacy Society is more than a list of names in the back of an annual report. It's dyanmic entity communicatubg trust in your org and provides social proof that leaving assets to a favorityecharity is a really good idea. How are your current Legacy Society donors stewarded? When was the last time they heard from your org? Starting or refreshing a Legacy Society will help your organization define how you move forward with your planned giving goals. Does your Legacy Society have a personality - it should.
DO consider "small-batch" outreach.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
There's an old saying in the marketing field - "if you try to reach everyone - you'll reach no one." How does your open rate look for emails from your organization? Not just all emails, fundraising emails, too. Your boss might say "let's mail to everyone," but in planned giving, another old marketing saying holds true - "spray and pray" marketing doesn't lead to leads. Consider a small-batch marketing strategy where you idenitfy a segment of loyal donors, and do a small-batch, highoy personalized mailing to them.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
And finally (firstly) DO get in the game.
If a supporter thinks about updating her will and googles your org with "put in my will" or something similar, where would they land? Do your donors know your org is "in the plannnd giving game" or not? Do you offer sample bequest language on your site? Are there regular articles or other content about your org's Legacy Society and the people who have your org in their long-term plans? Believe it or not, your supporters might not think your org ACCEPTS bequests, real estate and other non-cash gifts.
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Invest in Growth
Planned giving is worth the investment
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Planned giving MUST HAVE's
They're pretty simple
What are the (very simple) MUST-HAVES of Planned Giving?
We often hear planned giving is for "later." It's not a requirement - it's a "nice to have."
Nope. Not a "nice to have."
Planned giving is a MUST-HAVE.
If you have longtime, loyal supporters, an active planned giving program is a MUST-HAVE. If your nonprofit downplays the importance of legacy giving you're leaving thousands - possibly millions - on the table.
But that can all change if you focus on the MUST-HAVES of planned gving.
1. Practical Plan
Your org needs a plan. Doesn't have to be complex. It states where you are, where you want to go & how to get there.
2. Readiness
Readiness is staff & board alignment, having your legacy society in shape. Web content, print materials, gift intention form, legacy preference form, key messaging are readiness.
3. Outreach
In planned giving, we reach out with face to face asks, via existing communications channels like social media, e-news, newsletters & a profile at events.
We've worked with nonprofits of all sizes & shapes.
We can help yours, too.
