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I hear that the estate tax was repealed on January 1, 2010. What happened? What should I be telling my planned giving donors? Did this take away the main reason for donors to do estate planning?

Scott Janney
Scott Janney

What has Congress done?  (Or how could they just sit by and do nothing?)  I hear different versions of this question from a wide variety of people.

One article on a planned giving website starts with, “It’s an extraordinarily uncertain time …”  One boilerplate publication sent by nonprofits ends with, “… the estate tax litigation over 2010 law may last for the next decade.”  Some people in our profession may be trying to fan the flames of hysteria.  Do you want to be one of them?  Does hysteria encourage anybody to put together a good estate plan?

Here’s the short version of what happened, in plain EnglishRead more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on February 1st, 2010 | 1 Comment »

Make Your Planned Giving Newsletters Work

The days of the traditional, “place-my-logo-and-name-at-the-top,” canned-content planned giving newsletters are over.  Prospects in the ‘60s may have responded to them, but not anymore — they have all passed away long since. Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on January 27th, 2010 | No Comments »

Make a bigger ask and ask often.

We hear it all too frequently; “I don’t want to mail my prospects too often because
I may annoy them.”

If you are that sensitive, perhaps you should not ask them for donations at all. Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on January 27th, 2010 | No Comments »

Beware of Your Prospect. She’s Avoiding You.

She’s busy. She has bills to pay. The family reunion is coming up and her husband’s got the flu. There’s a fourth grandchild on the way. Their ferret’s now a surprise mother of six… Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on January 21st, 2010 | No Comments »

While you were busy preparing your planned giving marketing materials, your competition was busy too… visiting your prospects.

This blog post is a shameless ad for our services.

Download “ready-to-go” planned giving content … newsletters, solicitation letters, e-brochures, columns, tips and much more… all in Microsoft Word editable format.

Visit: store.plannedgiving.com or call (800) 873-9203.


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on November 28th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

“We’re Not Sending a Year End Appeal This Year.”

What’s scarier than your 401k statement? Writing a year-end appeal to your donors and supporters in this economic climate, that’s what.

Some of my non profit friends are telling me that they’re not putting a year-end letter in this year’s budget. They know donors are experiencing a cash crunch, and they don’t want to make them feel even more jittery. Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on November 15th, 2009 | No Comments »

Cutting Back on Marketing?

From Cheryl, in Ohio: “Our Director is telling us to cut back our planned giving marketing program. My instinct is to tough it out.  I have to justify my budget and could really use some support.” Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on November 12th, 2009 | No Comments »

No So Smart

We recently heard of a non profit mailing out its annual report with a notice inside that read “In an effort to keep our costs low and use our resources to provide more food, we have reduced the size of our Annual Report. Please go to our website for a list of donors, volunteers and community partners.”

Now come on, how can you make this mistake? This type of thinking is a common form of scarcity mentality that many non-profits have to shake off! Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on November 5th, 2009 | No Comments »

No One Googles Unitrusts First Thing in the Morning

Practice thinking like your prospect.

Who are they? What do they care about? What are their hopes, fears, dreams? What are their deepest desires? Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on November 2nd, 2009 | No Comments »

Thinking of Taking Your Non-Profit’s Newsletter Online? Think Again.

Over 72% of Americans prefer their information via US mail. However, the best way to communicate is through online and offline integration. Read more »


Category: Planned Giving Marketing on October 30th, 2009 | No Comments »