Seven Questions for Better Understanding.

Unfortunately, many nonprofits do not have a planned giving program. It is easy to put planned giving on the back burner because of limited time and resources.

The good news is many of your donors will leave a gift in their will to support your cause if you ask and make it easy. You can do both of those things. 

Take a look at the list above. Which of these actions would be the easiest to implement in the next six weeks? Write it down and do that! Then, take another step in the following six weeks. Commit yourself to action (not just thinking about it) and keep moving forward until you have a planned giving program that honors your donors and positions your nonprofit for a healthy future. 

Great! Looks like you understand the importance of planned giving, and, more importantly, you are taking action!

Look at missing pieces of your strategy to date.

If you want to regain momentum, which of these is low hanging fruit? A quick win can motivate you, your team (if you have one), and your board to do more.

If you've got some momentum, which of these components either builds on an existing strength or has the potential to take your program to a new level? 

 

Wow! All the things and maybe more.

The challenge for you is to maximize the impact of each of your actions. As an overachiever, you are probably on top of this already, but break down each element of your planned giving strategy.

How can you do this better?

How can you increase the impact of each?

Where do you need to increase investment to (1) shore up the weaker points and/or (2) build on your strengths? 

What does that investment look like? Hiring? Training? New tech to facilitate planned gifts? Other resources?

Where can you get the same impact for less money, allowing you to free up resources for other investments? 

 

Awesome!

You are in the minority of nonprofit leaders addressing one of the most significant barriers to receiving gifts from wills - the fact that nearly 70% of American's simply don't have one! That number goes up to 80% when the question is "Do you have an updated will?"

No will = no gift. This is a two-fold tragedy. Most of your donors do not have a will to protect their families or make their wishes known. And, most of your donors haven't had an adequate opportunity to leave your cause a gift. 

Recognizing this, many of the country's largest and most respected nonprofits offer their donors a free, online will-creation tool. These tools largely automate planned giving and give you hard data to gauge your progress. 

Consider Good Raising. It is a high quality, online will-creation tool designed by attorneys and valid in all 50 states. It is also very cost effective for nonprofits of all sizes. (It was created out of frustration with existing products and their high costs.) See www.goodraising.com.  

 You could be missing out.

One of the most significant barriers to receiving gifts from wills is the fact that nearly 70% of American's simply don't have one! That number goes up to 80% when the question is "Do you have an updated will?"

No will = no gift. This is a two-fold tragedy. Most of your donors do not have a will to protect their families or make their wishes known. And, most of your donors haven't had an adequate opportunity to leave your cause a gift. 

Recognizing this, many of the country's largest and most respected nonprofits offer their donors a free, online will-creation tool. These tools largely automate planned giving and give you hard data to gauge your progress. 

Consider Good Raising. It is a high quality, online will-creation tool designed by attorneys and valid in all 50 states. It is also very cost effective for nonprofits of all sizes. (It was created out of frustration with existing products and their high costs.) See www.goodraising.com.  

Depending on the study, the average bequest is $80,000 - $110,000. 

No bequests? This is true of most nonprofits, but it doesn't have to be true of yours!

Consider using an online tool to automate planned giving. An online will-creation tool makes it easy for your donors to leave a gift. For you, it makes planned giving as easy as that "Donate" button on your website. 

Congrats on those bequests! They are a testimony to your impact and the appreciation of your donors. 

Depending on the study, the average bequest is $80,000 - $110,000. 

Continue reaching out to your donors and making it easy (not a hassle) to leave you a gift in their will. Consider an online will-creation tool to make it easy for your donor to leave a gift, while automating planned giving for you.

If you know someone is leaving you a substantial gift, ask if they would be willing to share their "why." As you share their story, this will inspire others to do the same. 

Congrats! Your average is higher than normal.  

Your success is a testament to your impact and your focus on donor care. 

Continue reaching out to ALL your donors. Some nonprofits only focus on perceived high net-worth individuals in their planned giving program. This is a mistake, because our perceptions are frequently wrong.

Teachers are the third most likely profession to have millionaires in their ranks. Among millionaires, only 31% had ever earned over $100,000 annually and only 15% had ever held a senior management position. Among our passionate stakeholders, we simply don’t know who has the means to leave a substantial gift in their will.

Every donor deserves to be asked to leave a gift in their will, and we owe it to our donors to make the process easy (not a hassle). Consider adding online tools that facilitate giving. These tools reduce the expense, time, and frustration of completing a will. 

Gratefully, no. 

Completing a will compels the will-maker to think through what matters to them and where they want to make a difference. Once they include your nonprofit in their will, they increase annual giving by an average of 78%.

They are also twice as likely to give a "major gift" of over $10,000.

43% is great, but the real answer is even better! 

Completing a will compels the will-maker to think through what matters to them and where they want to make a difference. Once they include your nonprofit in their will, they increase their annual giving by an average of 78%.

They are also twice as likely to give a "major gift" of over $10,000.

Yes!

Completing a will compels the will-maker to think through what matters to them and where they want to make a difference. Once they include your nonprofit in their will, they increase their annual giving by an average of 78%.

They are also twice as likely to give a "major gift" of over $10,000.

We wish, right?! 

Completing a will compels the will-maker to think through what matters to them and where they want to make a difference. Once they include your nonprofit in their will, they increase their annual giving by an average of 78%.

They are also twice as likely to give a "major gift" of over $10,000.

It's even better.

Surprisingly, the average gift in a will is 3X a donor's TOTAL LIFETIME giving! 

It is less surprising as we consider our own circumstances. None of us are sure what the future holds and most of us are concerned we may not have enough money to support ourselves in our old age. Among other reasons, this holds us back when giving.

We can afford to be more generous in our will because many of those reasons no longer apply. 

Surprisingly, yes, the average gift in a will is 3X a donor's TOTAL LIFETIME giving! 

It is less surprising as we consider our own circumstances. None of us are sure what the future holds and most of us are concerned we may not have enough money to support ourselves in our old age. Among other reasons, this holds us back when giving.

We can afford to be more generous in our will because many of those reasons no longer apply. 

All donors deserve our appreciation and care. 

When a donor leaves a gift in their will to our nonprofit, they are communicating a depth of commitment that deserves reciprocation. Consider:

• With their permission, tell their story and highlight the reasons for their elevated commitment. 
• Recognize legacy givers by creating a special donor society in which they are a member. 
• Involve them wherever possible. Invite them to tour your facility or participate as a volunteer.
• Make sure they continue to hear stories of impact. Deliver some of these in person and over the phone.
• Let others express thanks. If the beneficiaries of your work can communicate their gratitude, let them. Make it personal - not "hey donor," call them by name. 
• Make sure others in your organization (staff and board members) connect to the donor as well. You should not be the only connection they have to the organization. You may not always be there. 
• Never stop. Many nonprofits fail to maintain connection as time passes and this is a failure to adequately care for donors. 

Great!

All donors deserve our appreciation and care. 

When a donor leaves a gift in their will to our nonprofit, they are communicating a depth of commitment that deserves reciprocation. Consider:

• With their permission, tell their story and highlight the reasons for their elevated commitment. 
• Recognize legacy givers by creating a special donor society in which they are a member. 
• Involve them wherever possible. Invite them to tour your facility or participate as a volunteer.
• Make sure they continue to hear stories of impact. Deliver some of these in-person and over the phone.
• Let others express thanks. If the beneficiaries of your work can communicate their gratitude, let them. Make it personal - not "hey donor," call them by name. 
• Make sure others in your organization (staff and board members) connect to the donor as well. You should not be the only connection they have to the organzation. You may not always be there. 
• Never stop. Many nonprofits fail to maintain connection as time passes and this is a failure to adequately care for donors. 

You are not alone!

One of the great frustrations in planned giving is that it's difficult to measure success, especially in the short term. Gifts from wills often come as a surprise to nonprofits and elicit regret for missed opportunities to express thanks and care. 

Many nonprofits have used their newsletters, website, and social media to encourage donors to notify them of designated bequests. Some have also included a brief online form to facilitate gathering this information. These are great steps.

When a nonprofit offers an online will-creation tool, this is an additional opportunity to secure hard data. Unless the will creator chooses to remain anonymous, the nonprofit will have the donor's contact information and, in products like Good Raising's, the amount of cash gifts and an estimate of percent-of-estate gifts. When the will creator chooses to remain anonymous, the nonprofit still has data on the  the gift.

A large majority of users allow their contact information to be shared with the nonprofit. 

Congrats! You are definitely ahead of most. 

One of the great frustrations in planned giving is that it's difficult to measure success, especially in the short term. Gifts from wills often come as a surprise to nonprofits and elicit regret for missed opportunities to express thanks and care. 

Many nonprofits have used their newsletter, website, and social media to encourage donors to notify them of designated bequests. Some have also included a brief online form to facilitate gathering this information. These are great steps.

When a nonprofit offers an online will-creation tool, this is an additional opportunity to secure hard data. Unless the will creator chooses to remain anonymous, the nonprofit will have the donor's contact information and, in products like Good Raising's, the amount of cash gifts and an estimate of percent-of-estate gifts. When the will creator chooses to remain anonymous, the nonprofit still has data on the  the gift.

A large majority of users allow their contact information to be shared with the nonprofit.