Year-end giving appeals are often poorly planned and executed. The best time to begin is between July and September, and making sure that you have a series of “touches” and not just one mailing planned.
The congregation sighs and settles in for what the pastor knows is actually their least favorite Sunday. “Please take a look at the insert in your bulletin,” he continues. “You’ll see that we didn’t meet our budget again this year.” His audience knows where this is going: The church is struggling to accomplish its mission, but the congregation is not pulling its weight in terms of monetary contributions.
I am often asked, “Viken, do planned giving newsletters work?” Yes they do, but it is the wrong question to ask.
Again and again, Dr. Russell James found that formal and technical terms reduce the chances that a prospective donor will be interested in making a planned gift. And we’ve been saying that since 1998. Yet, many nonprofits still do not take the advice.
Planned giving productivity. It’s not about learning calculators, CRUTs and CRATs. Here are 5, simple helpful tips for you career — and mental health.
Recently, an IT functionary at a large Midwestern institution convinced the Development team to produce their planned giving website in-house. It took them 8 months.
Planned gifts are not always deferred. Some provide immediate cash, some come in sooner than you think, and here are a few tips to accelerate them.
“Direct mail is too expensive,” you say. Well, fine. Use something cheaper that does not work nearly as well.
“Oh, you’re one of those people who care about the black squiggly marks,” the Director of Development told me.
You can’t believe how hard it is for people to be simple, how much they fear being simple. They worry that if they’re simple, people will think they’re simpleminded. In reality, of course, it’s just the reverse. ~ Jack Welch, CEO, General Electric
A direct mail campaign that’s not so vanilla. Only in the for-profit world. Would you have had the stomach for it?
A donor can donate a house, get a deduction, live there for life, and receive an annuity from the donation for life. Hmm … does not sound right.