PlannedGiving.com - Planned Giving

Or, Planned ­Giving Placed on the Back Burner, Again.

They say that planned giving is being placed on the back-burner because of tight budgets, smaller staffs and not enough time.

Bull. There’s an underlying ­reason that none of us wants to acknowledge. Read more »

Right or wrong? Good or evil? Proper or improper? Just do the right thing! Sounds easy, doesn’t it? But what happens when you run into an “ethical” quandary?

Good Ole’ Granddad

Your organization helps teenagers with substance abuse. One of your board members announces he’s received a large inheritance from his grandfather and is going to donate $50,000 in his grandfather’s name. The local paper discovers granddad made his money from the sale and distribution of alcohol. Your policies and procedures state that all alcohol-related gifts are unacceptable. Read more »

Whoa! Before you press that “send” key, stop and think. You can easily alienate your prospects here. Ready for a quick quiz? Consider the cost of non-responders. Read more »

Measuring website metrics (stats) is not an easy task. It’s also a science the very few can do. Unless you have someone who specializes in metrics, you are not going to get reliable data. Below are some steps that may help.

First, understand that you do need reliable data, and it is easy to end up with misleading data.

“How?” you ask. Read more »

Have you ever asked yourself: Who Are We? (All us fundraisers, that is) …

<<< … and that includes you … >>>

We’re embarking on a survey… with questions that have never been asked before… a survey to discover Who We Are.

We don’t just want to know how many bequests you close, what your operating budget is, or how many people work in your shop. We want to know your personal likes, dislikes, ethics and opinions; whether you prefer beer or wine; if you vote Red State or Blue State; and just how far you’re willing to go to close a gift.

For those of you who are a little sensitive, relax. The survey is completely confidential. Even we won’t know who the respondents are. And looking at some of the responses we’ve received so far, we’re glad we don’t.

Take the survey now.

Keep your planned giving correspondence and marketing materials simple. Prospects won’t respond if they do not understand what you’re telling them. And if you are a lawyer, please read this paragraph twice.

Here are two simple statements that get your point across:

1. You don’t have to be wealthy to make a significant gift.
2. You can make a gift that costs you nothing during your lifetime.

Simple? Read more »

Most of us in planned giving started out doing something else. We were volunteers, annual giving officers, ministers, financial planners, insurance brokers, teachers. Read more »

What fundraiser has not faced a boss who:

1. doesn’t understand how planned gifts work,
2. doesn’t want to learn, and
3. thinks that planned gifts are an “easy out” for donors who should have made an outright gift?

Sorry, but that boss is not going to smack his forehead one afternoon and exclaim spontaneously, “Where have unitrusts been all my life?” Read more »

Did you know that most companies base 80% of their hiring decision on technical skills, yet 85% of turnover is due to behavioral incompatibility? Read more »

Not at all… because your planned giving website is not Time Magazine and your prospects will not re-visit your planned giving pages for the “exciting planned giving news” of the day. Read more »