Like cell phones, social media and text messages, acronyms have taken over our lives. But we had planned giving acronyms long before the birth of texts.
For instance, everyone in our field knows what a CRAT is. But maybe you didn’t know it can also stand for:
- Certified Rational Addictions Therapist
- Civil Rights Action Team
- Carnitine Acetyltransferase
- Center for Rehabilitation and Abolition of Torture
I’ve had fun with this before in my article CRATs, CRUTs, CALCs, CRAPs. But something struck me this weekend. How come we do not use acronyms for “donor relationship talk?”
For example, here’s a typical greeting we could use:
“LOL, JD. What’s up, man? IMHO you should consider gifting stock. You did buy lo, right? So give hi. YOLO to leave a legacy.”
(IMHO — In My Humble Opinion; JD — Juris Doctor; YOLO — You Only Live Once)
or maybe:
“Hey nOOb, IDK if you’ve heard about a bequest, but it’s a DIY solution to planned giving. IOW, you don’t need a lawyer.”
(nOOb — newbie; IDK — I Don’t Know; DIY — Do It Yourself; IOW — In Other Words).
Think about it! Instead of donor meetings, we could just send texts filled with planned giving acronyms to prospects. There are over 1,500 chat abbreviations — the possibilities are almost endless. The simplest one is “?” — I have a question. My favorite one is: SNERT — Snot Nosed Egotistical Rude Teenager (but don’t expect me to tie that into planned giving).
You know, I think I’m going to roll out a new product to add to our toolkit: Donor Abbreviations for Texting, or DAFT.
JK (just kidding)
p.s.
This post is SSIF (So Stupid It’s Funny — like Monty Python and Mr. Bean, two of my favorite skits).
p.p.s.
If you want to learn about CRATs, get our Pocket Guide. Over 4000 sold. It covers every gift plan you can think of such as:
- Appreciated Securities
- Gifts of Retirement Plans
- IRA Rollover (QCD)
- Mineral Rights
- Bequests
- Life Insurance
- Qualified Distributions
- Real Estate
- Annuity trusts
- Lead trusts
- Bargain Sales
- Pooled Income Fund
