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.”
Practice Thinking Like Your Prospect
Practice thinking like your prospect. Who are they? What do they care about? What are their hopes, fears, dreams? What are their deepest desires?
Your Enemy is an Overstuffed Mailbox
Have you ever wondered why your planned giving newsletters are not getting a good response? Because chances are they are not even getting read.
There’s No Secret. It’s Common Sense Planned Giving
“People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamp post; for support rather than illumination.” (Mark Twain)
Age-Based Marketing: Rest in Peace
After a long and fruitful life, Age-Based Marketing is dead. Cause of death? The New Economy, youthful Baby Boomers and just plain old age. Once upon a time, Americans marched a predictable path: From high school to college to career to marriage to family to retirement and then the golf course in Florida. That’s all […]
It’s Now Or Never: A Seven Point Planned Giving Action Plan
Many development officers are wondering where to focus their efforts during these uncertain times. Whether times are good or bad, the answer may surprise you: It’s planned giving.
Treat Your Prospects Like Donors, and Your Donors Like Friends
People give when they are ready to give, not when you are ready to sell (i.e., “ask”). So, just because your lead is not ready to buy (donate) today, doesn’t mean they aren’t important. That’s why we develop relationships.
Get the Year End Going
Helping your donors meet the December 31 tax deadline means that you can plan on staying longer and doing more than just about everyone else — except for your office’s gifts processor. So plan a nice rest in January (Isn’t there a planned giving conference in the Caribbean, then? There should be…) and get ready for the year-end sprint.
Why Most Planned Giving Marketing Fails
“Response rates from newsletters are down! Attendance at my annual seminar is way off…” fundraisers tell us.
Find Your Audience, Then Find Your Money
It’s my experience that your audience is the single most powerful and most important element in the mix. If your marketing campaign is to get results, whether you use direct mail, print pieces, or e-mail, you must first make certain that the right audience is getting your message. As I see it, finding the right audience determines 60 percent of the outcome.