Why are planned giving newsletters getting less response?
Marketing noise: every day the average prospect is inundated with over 3000 marketing messages. In a large city, it’s over 5000. A battle is being fought for the eyes and ears of the world, and in most cases the enemy is an overstuffed mailbox.
Planned Giving Mass Emails (or Spam?)
Some vendors advocate sending out “weekly generic emails” to prospects and financial advisers. “Stay in their face,” they say..
Counting Your Website Hits? The Real Scoop.
Most in philanthropy are not that tech-savvy. And if one does not understand the basics, it’s much too easy to go down a misguided path by taking advice from someone not as much interested in his or her institution’s long-term interest.
Use It Or Lose It: Charities that Limit Giving Options Limit Donations
A few weeks ago, I was approached by a charity with a donor who, at the end of 2021, had just retired from farming. That means he has a harvested grain crop in the bin, which has yet to be sold to produce taxable income. But because he is no longer farming, he will not receive tax deductions this year for expenses such as seed, fertilizer, and fuel. As a result, he will have a pile of taxable Ordinary Income to report for tax purposes when he sells the grain, with no offsetting deductions. He really doesn’t need the income this year because he sold some machinery. He would like to spread the grain profits out over his lifetime for tax and cash flow purposes. I offered to help him set up a CGA funded with 45,000 bushels of corn. At a market price of about $6 per bushel for corn, that translates into about $270,000 of funding for a CGA. At his age (80), that will produce a 6.5% income ($17,500 per year) which will be taxed as Ordinary Income as he receives it annually. This means it will be taxed in a much lower bracket than if he had sold all the corn outright in a lump sum. The donor was ecstatic at being able to repurpose his grain to produce a nice retirement income stream for himself while also creating a future legacy gift for one of his favorite charities. Farmers are traditionally “land rich and cash poor,” so this strategy really came in handy for him. The unique thing about this case is that the farmer had been trying for eight months to work with another charity that accepted only cash and marketable securities. They had no clue how to fund a CGA or a CRT with grain, so he became very frustrated. What’s my point? As Baby Boomers continue to retire, there are several charitable planning tools that can help them in their planning to solve problems and create substantial planned gifts for their favorite charities, rather than enhance the government’s coffers. The charities that “get it” and have the capabilities to implement these charitable tools will flourish. The ones that don’t will suffer. Johnne Syverson, CFP, AEP, CAP, is the executive director of the Charitable Giving Resource Center. Category: Sustainability
It’s Easy To Find Success — You Just Have To Know Where To Look
By Dennis Haber It seems to be one of those fundamental laws: If there’s air travel involved, there’s a good chance you and your luggage will go your separate ways. So, I wondered, If you go to a lost and found when your luggage is lost, where do you go when YOU’RE lost? When your performance is subpar and you don’t know what to do next, do you ask others, “Have you seen the real me? I’m lost.” Of course you don’t. Creation, Not Discovery Successful people never “find” themselves. They go deep inside and create themselves. The tool of POTENTIAL is very useful toward this end. That is why it is important to embrace this fundamental truth: Everything in life exists in POTENTIAL. Those who understand the power behind POTENTIAL will have a lot more success than those who choose to ignore the influence they actually have over events and ways to respond to those events. The potential mindset shift is so powerful it gives you the ability to see life through different “sets of eyes.” Choose to Make a Choice In life, you always have a choice. You can be intimidated when another colleague sets a record (a massive major gift, perhaps, or a game-changing bequest) or be inspired by it. You can let your hopes and dreams be thrown off course when someone rains on your parade, or you can become more careful to whom you listen. You can be stopped by an obstacle or be ready for a comeback, having been setup by that setback. You always have a choice to react or respond. The potential to be better and get better is a choice that YOU make. After all, it is your potential. Those who refuse to focus on and use the power of potential will never see fresh opportunities. When you waste opportunities to connect with and influence donors and prospective donors, you will not get to ask them calibrated questions that could deepen the relationship and get your organization that gift. FOR EXAMPLE, YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO ASK: What was the best gift-giving experience you ever had, and what made it so good? Are you aware how much of an impact your generous gift could make? Let me show you what we could accomplish with your help. What would you have to see to consider getting more deeply involved with us? Likewise, you will not help yourself modify your attitude, change your efforts, and enhance skillsets that together could positively affect and greatly benefit your business, personal, and family life. If you don’t use the power of potential, you will never get to ask 3 essential questions that can help you go deep and create the new YOU: What do I do to inspire others? What do I do that frustrates others? What do I not know about my SELF that everyone seems to know? What’s Your Kryptonite? Getting feedback from those you trust will provide an important characteristic baseline, enabling you to enhance relationships, tackle problems, learn new things and promote accountability. Only when you become aware of your kryptonite can progress beget even more progress and success. Again, life is never about finding your SELF. It’s about creating and re-creating your SELF. This thought is so important that I urge you never to forget it. See the reaching in your mind. Because it’s all in your mind. Your next chapter and next story are based on your next move. Capture that thought and turn it into action. Because it’s your thought, your response is between you and your mind. Again, you determine how to use your potential. You can be average, above-average, or phenomenally successful. It’s your move. Category: Sustainability
