Planned Giving

Straight talk about major, mid-level and legacy gift fundraising to help you be a better fundraiser

Finally revealed, a profile of the ideal major gift officer

Thanks to the Education Advisory Board, we now know what the ideal major gift officer looks like. Their Advancement Forum sought to understand what makes… Read More


Almost four years ago I declared: "The Fundraising Pyramid Is DEAD!"

Recently I was reminded of a blog post I wrote four years ago that got a lot of attention. Some of the reactions were not so kind…. Read More


Do major gift and planned gift staff need "sales managers"?

Huh? Sales managers? But we don’t sell anything! Actually, you do! You’re selling value. Any exchange of money occurs because a person sees value in… Read More


Fundraising metrics: you have to see them to believe them

I always hated when my staff sent me an Excel file showing our astounding growth. You might be thinking, “Why would you hate getting an… Read More


Should your donors be given a chance to "tip" your organization?

Are you confused by that headline? Here’s what I mean: I think it would be interesting for us to test allowing donors the opportunity to decide… Read More


Your 3-step plan to get 100X more revenue

Most money is not cash. According to the Wall Street Journal, people put their wealth in lots of places, but not in liquid assets. The chart… Read More


If asking for donations makes you uncomfortable, read this now!

Recently I was asked the following: “The whole idea of the ‘ask’ is very uncomfortable to me. How can I become more comfortable with it?”… Read More


Are you a technician or a facilitator?

The flow chart below makes me very uncomfortable. Here’s why: Science and experience have led me to realize that a donor’s objective is usually, first and foremost,… Read More


Consider using the word "consider" more often

Consider this. “Consider” is a very powerful word for fundraising. “Would you consider a gift in the amount of $25,000 to help fund this project?”… Read More


Most fundraisers use email the wrong way

Every marketing channel needs to be optimized and employed properly. Sadly most fundraisers are using email the wrong way. Email should NOT be used primarily… Read More


4 things you need to know to qualify your major gift and planned gift prospects

What follows are the 4 things you need to know in order to close more gifts faster: 1. Who has the capacity to give 2…. Read More


Finally, we’re releasing the HIPPO killer!!!

The HIPPO is the highest paid person in the office at the time when a decision needs to be made. HIPPOs tend to be far… Read More


What you should know about your high net worth volunteers?

Great volunteer opportunities and experiences are essential for your nonprofit (as discussed before). Here’s what the data shows your high net worth volunteers are looking for! Having… Read More


Why go to Amazon when you can get it here for free?

Each year my amazing staff grab the best, most popular blog posts from the prior year to create a book for our readers.  At last, the… Read More


The 4 levels of donor commitment according to Mal Warwick

For those of you who are new to the field, Mal Warwick played a tremendous leadership role in fundraising and direct marketing. In his book… Read More


14 things you must know about your donors to win major gifts (including planned gifts)

Here are 14 things you must know about your donors if you want to raise major and planned gifts (13 of which can be obtained from… Read More


Do we really need science to help us raise more money?

Thanks to scientific research, we now know conclusively that giving to others makes us feel good about ourselves, which in turn, makes us happy. But… Read More


See what happens when donors and board members switch a few words

One day a long time ago I was in a board meeting talking about raising money and a member said the following: “The only time… Read More


Why you don't need to update your planned giving web pages as much as you might think

A longstanding misconception has been spread around for too long. Your planned giving web pages don’t need to be updated “with the latest tax laws.”… Read More


How to discover planned gifts using interns because you can't afford a telemarketing firm

1. Make sure the intern cares about your mission 2. Have the intern view videos, read reports and talk to program staff (and beneficiaries) so… Read More


Why You Should Stop Emphasizing Tax Savings When Promoting Planned Gifts

A well-known speaker once led the opening presentation at the ACGA Annual Symposium right in my backyard— Baltimore, Maryland. In his presentation, he mentioned that… Read More


3 big reasons why some fundraisers should not critique creative

Recently one of our beloved clients critiqued something we thought she should do by saying, “Well if I saw that envelope I’d throw it in the… Read More


Top 10 reasons why donors like taking donor surveys

Here are the top 10 reasons why donors like taking donor surveys: 1. They want to be perceived as (or see themselves as) a helpful… Read More


4 things pizza and major gift fundraising have in common

A while back I wrote a blog post that included 5 best practices for delivering progress reports to major donors (sometimes including legacy gift supporters too)…. Read More


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