Tag Archives: planned giving

Cracking the Books on Failure & Shortcomings

Businessman with face pressed against wall, profile, close-up

I recently have seen charities willing to disclose outcomes that are less than flattering, and I applaud them. I hope it’s the beginning of a trend. I wonder if it grows out of the pressure from regulators for mandatory transparency and increased accountability from the sector.

My awareness was first raised by Stephanie Strom’s coverage of FailureFaire, sponsored by The World Bank. Charity:water’s video “Live Drill: It Doesn’t Always Work,” about a failed project in Central African Republic came to me shortly after, as did the Case Foundation blog post “The Painful Acknowledgement of Coming Up Short.”

Ms. Strom and I discussed openness about failure on the August 27th broadcast of Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio. As she explained, it’s been almost unheard of among nonprofits, probably because they fear a donor backlash. Presumably, the conventional wisdom goes, no donor (or donor nation) wants their name and money associated with an unsuccessful outcome. But no less than The World Bank and Case have gone very public. The charity:water video was a celebration of its fourth anniversary.

Not all disclosures are willing and voluntary. The Seattle Foundation website now discloses its data and research on almost 700 local charities, in a user-friendly format. It’s open to any visitor to their Giving Center without registration.

I see simple honesty and I admire it. I hope we see more of it. I have faith in donors and I believe the vast majority will accept a straightforward outcomes assessment that is accompanied by a sensible plan for what to do next.

Broken Link in Chain

Charity:water has long been recognized for its culture of accountability, but its video nearly boasts about the trying failure–as CEO Harrison assures donors the quest for clean water in that village will continue. As the title hints, Jean Case’s post is a refreshingly heartfelt account of how, “Reality doesn’t always play out like the business plan calls for.”

I think a lot about regulatory oversight and there’s no question charities face a considerable amount brought on by federal and state authorities. We have the intense IRS Form 990; the Red Flags Rule from the Federal Trade Commission; state privacy protection laws; state charitable gift annuity regulations; and state Charity Registration requirements for solicitations, to name but a few.

Meanwhile, watchdog groups like Charity Navigator and Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance are revamping their analyses and a few, including GuideStar, may standardize their reporting format, as reported by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. Many nonprofits adjust practices to achieve high ratings or “approved” status.

Might our culture of involuntary disclosure and forced accountability be stimulating charities to voluntarily trumpet shortcomings?

Surf Your Planned Giving In 5 Steps

Ocracoke53/120701 -- Boogie boarding on Ocracoke Island, North Carolina.


This summer’s vacations on Block Island, RI and Belmar on the New Jersey shore gave me a chance to watch surfers. They ride just ahead of breaking waves, staying in front of the cresting water. I’ve been in Planned Giving for 13 years, and I’ve been thinking: how can you surf your Planned Giving program and stay ahead of it?  I’ve got five ideas.

  • Have a fat pipeline of new prospects. Use direct mail reply devices to get people to self-identify as being interested in including your nonprofit in their estate plan, or wanting additional information on how to do it. These people are your newest prospects. Train all your fundraisers to identify prospects and bring them to you so you can work together to cultivate a planned gift. Fundraisers include your CEO, vice presidents, board and volunteers who are on the front line of the service you deliver. You want as many people as possible knowing the fundamentals of Planned Giving, sharing basic information with potential prospects and feeding leads back to you. When I teach our clients, we cast a wide net within the organization to bring in anyone who has contact with possible planned gift prospects.
  • Unburden yourself from distractions. Look critically at the time you spend that isn’t related to identifying prospects, cultivating prospects to become donors, closing gifts, and stewarding donors. These are your most relevant activities and they best enhance your value to your employer. When you’re not engaged directly in this work, you are distracted. What distracts you? Pro bono committee work; compliance filings; additional assigned duties; additional duties you volunteered for; office gossip; internal reporting; office politics; or other things? Whatever your distractions, get yourself out of as many as possible. You’ll be a more effective fundraiser and more valuable to your organization, which helps secure your future there.
    Businessman Surfing on Conference Table

  • Get out of the office. With more time to spend on relevant work, use it to meet prospects and donors. Fundraising is a relationship business, whether Annual Fund or Planned Giving, and the strongest relationships are built on face-to-face meetings. I previously had something to say on the value of meetings. Having a monthly goal will help. Get out of the office and meet people!
  • No excuses. Uncertainty around the estate tax. Recession. No direct IRA giving. Obama’s deduction cap proposal. I read about it and people tell me, how so many things are working against planned gift fundraising. There are legitimate reasons why you might not raise as much this year as you did last year or before. But I also read, and people tell me about, nonprofits that are still raising money and fundraisers who close gifts. Did you see the $100 million gift to Human Rights Watch this month? (HRW is a former client, but I had nothing to do with that gift.) Even if you can’t match last year’s giving, don’t give in to the excuses. Stay active, focusing on your most important activities (above).
  • Use social media. Use among the 50+ set is rising steeply and that has promise for Planned Giving. I am intrigued by the possibilities.

That’s what I’ve got for surfing your planned gift program and staying ahead of the wave. (I was not watching surf boarders solely from the beach, but also while I body surfed the same waves. I’ve got bruises from the boards to prove it. Next post: Avoiding surf boards in your Planned Giving program.)

Social Media & Planned Giving

Portrait of a senior woman holding a mobile phone and smiling Model Release: Yes Property Release: NA

NPR reports that penetration of social media among those 50 and over nearly doubled in just the past year. It’s still only at 42%, but it’s rising very steeply. That has implications for Planned Giving.

To be sure, you need to know your constituency. If it does not reflect the national trend, you don’t want to allocate time to an initiative that can be very time consuming. Your Facebook page and Twitter stream need constant attention–if you’re going to do them right–and proper social media practice goes well beyond those best-known sites. I leave the details of inaugurating a nonprofit social media presence to more august thinkers.

If social media has deeply penetrated your 50-and-over constituents, your Planned Giving program can ride that wave. There’s potential for sharing testimonials that will engage others; hosting webinars on financial and estate planning; reconnecting classmates at all education levels; virtual donor recognition; coordinating direct mail with web content; and lots of other creativity. Much of your pre-existing online presence may be appropriate for your PG constituency, and you can make them aware of what you offer in ways you might not have in the past.

I’m really interested in ideas you have, or things you’re already doing, with social media for your Planned Giving prospects.

Taxes Don’t Motivate

Deductions, Taxes and Tax Day


Donors are not primarily motivated by taxes when they make their giving decisions. Rich, middle, or poor, we all have other considerations and motivations that trump the tax code’s financial incentives. This New York Times piece by Judith Warner, “The Charitable-Giving Divide” explores those greater influences.

I have always believed the Obama proposal to limit charitable deductions for high earners will not have the devastating impact on charitable giving that many predict. The decrease will be small and temporary.

History has shown that giving rebounds within a few years of depression, recession and tax code changes, then continues its gradual rise.

Best Prospect Research Comes From The Prospect

The Association of Prospect Researchers in Advancement met recently, and a hot topic was the May Wall Street Journal article, “Is Your Favorite Charity Spying On You.” The article didn’t portray prospect research in the best light, suggesting it’s a furtive, unseemly practice. The Chronicle of Philanthropy covered APRA’s reaction. The Journal focused on finding new prospects through research, and The Chronicle cites stats on new donors found for a campaign. I’m interested in a different kind of prospect research. The kerfuffle (a word I’ve always liked) gets me thinking: The best prospect research I’ve obtained and seen has come from the prospect themselves. No research site or algorithm can substitute for a shared meal and conversation between a prospect and fundraiser. You don’t have to meet over a meal, but I prefer it for several reasons.

You’re sharing the table and the meal. Sharing is a good place to start when the discussion is around a charitable gift–the sharing of the prospect’s money, contacts and/or time with an organization they love. Office distractions aren’t as plentiful in a restaurant. I always silence my cell, because I really don’t want to disturb our meal, and I’m hoping my dining partner will do the same. (Many do, some don’t.) Our timing is controlled by a neutral party, our server, and is familiar to both of us. We know the waitstaff will come at appointed times and we know when we’ll be left alone for long stretches. Our shared understanding of the meal ritual furthers our conversation. That’s a sufficient dining digression.

Nothing beats talking to a person when you want to get to know them. And get to know things about them. Prospects are people, not research projects (I’m not implying prospect researchers think of them that way), so have conversations with them. I’ve talked about children, spouses and siblings, wealth, asset mixes, CEOs and fellow trustees, worries, loves, illnesses, professions, boats, homes, economic forecasts, fears, vacations, country club fees, other charitable interests and estate plans. After technical expertise, the skills I most desire in a fundraiser are listening and conversing.

After a meal with your prospects, you should be rushing to write your notes, which go into your prospect report, to get channeled to your prospect researcher for analysis and thought. That’s the best prospect research, much better than any data points you can buy.