Why Focus on Legacies Today?
Why Focus on Legacies Today?
Why Focus on Legacies & Gift Planning Today?
Are you tired of the endless struggle to generate revenue for operational needs?
Or exhausted from the roller coaster of dependency on government and foundation funding?
Sustainable Funding
Legacy and other gift planning programs offer a key opportunity for sustainable funding. And one major benefit is cost-effectiveness.
An Excellent Source of Unrestricted Funds
Planned gifts provide a source of unrestricted funds to support core operation costs, support that is difficult to get through grants or government support.
The much-heralded intergenerational transfer of wealth, while not necessarily reaching the predicted $41 trillion over the next few decades in North America, nevertheless is happening. Triillions of dollars will change hands from one generation to the next. Connect to updates from the original authors of the groundbreaking report, Paul Schervish and John Havens of Boston College.
In Today's Economic Situation It Is Particularly Important to Focus on Legacy and Gift Planning programs
Never has there been a better moment to convert best intentions into action.
Even organizations with well-established fundraising programs are turning or returning their focus on gift planning.
In 2008, three-quarters of the largest gifts received by charities came from bequests, whereas in the previous year all the biggest gifts were made from living donors. (Chronicle of Philanthropy, "Philanthropy 50").
Keep up to date with the economic situation from the non-profit viewpoint by following the Non-Profit Recession Watch blog.
You Don't Have to be an Expert Yourself
You don't have to be an expert on charitable remainder trusts or other exotic forms of planned gifts in order to make a healthy start in basic gift planning. In fact, good gift planning is as much about communications and marketing as it is about the technical side of fundraising.
It's All About Storytelling
Gift planning involves communicating vision and passion to your donors, who in turn will make a significant gift from assets rather than income, which is what gift planning is all about.