As you know, The American Council on Gift Annuities (ACGA) recently announced a new gift annuity rate schedule, effective January 1. For a detailed explanation of this new schedule, go to http://www.acga-web.org/. Also, a good summary can be found on the PGCalc site here and here.

As usual, there has been an unreflective stampede with some vendors hawking postcards urging donors to act now before rates go down in January. We think this is a bad idea. Practically speaking, there is simply not enough time to design, print, and mail postcards and allow donors sufficient time to make a decision and complete a gift before December 31.

More importantly, such a promotion is potentially deceptive. Although the rate reductions in the new schedule are significant, what is not mentioned in most accounts is that the corresponding charitable deductions are also significantly higher. So, should donors hurry to take advantage of higher rates now? The responsible answer is "it depends" on whether the donor is willing to trade a lower annual payout for a higher charitable deduction.

Here are two examples:
GIFT #1: a $25,000 gift annuity based on the life of a single annuitant age 75.
GIFT #2: a $100,000 gift annuity based on the joint lives of two annuitants, age 80 and 75.

The bottom line is that it is not immediately obvious what the best course of action is without some discussion. Even though the new annuity rates are lower in the new schedule, they are still much higher than conventional returns on fixed rate instruments anyway.

In any case, if you wish to notify your donors of this change promptly and economically, we recommend a personalized email campaign, which we would be happy to expedite for you for a very modest fee. Those of you who are familiar with our planned giving email marketing and other electronic services know that these are high quality emails, custom designed for your specific needs.

For more information or to start your email campaign, please contact Allison Keech Sanka, Director of Operations and Internet Services, today.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

What do high unemployment, economic stagnation, and accelerating wealth and income disparities mean for fundraising?

Here is Sam Caldwell's short answer from his recent keynote address at Planned Giving Day in Philadelphia:

• Increased reliance on (and competition for) first quintile donors for major outright gifts.
• Decreased reliance on the lower four quintile donors for major outright gifts.
• Increased reliance on soliciting and counting revocable deferred gifts, especially in campaigns.
• Increased reliance on "loyals" as a critical deferred giving constituency.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Most of us who live in Bequest City are fairly fluent in the native tongue. While some of us have a working knowledge of the language (marketers like me) and others are extremely proficient, we've all been known to toss around terms like "IRA beneficiary designation" and enjoy lively conversations about deferred gift annuities.

As much as we like to jabber about charitable bargain sales, we have to remember that when we leave Bequest City, it's time to communicate with the citizens who live outside of the city limits, AKA "people who live in the real world."

Our donors.

Our donors aren't sitting at Starbucks with their best friend, enjoying a Pumpkin Spice Latte and having a big old chat about the best way to leave a legacy. They're not going for a walk on their favorite nature path while listening to a "Benefits of donating appreciated securities" podcast on their Ipod.

They're just not.

That's why, when we send them things (in the mail, via email, using mental telepathy), we try to create something that speaks to them - not us.

We talk about the great things that happen when they make a planned gift and we show them how simple it is. We talk about the benefits to them - and their favorite cause. We talk about planned giving in terms of today - and not tomorrow, when our readers are dead. We make the connection between the planned gift and the REASON they may want to consider this type of gift.

And we are always, always thinking about new ways to illustrate that connection.

In a very recent post on the Impatient Optimist blog of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation website, Melinda French Gates writes about why she's decided to Twitter. Melinda says Twitter is a way for anyone to be a philanthropist - that spreading the word about a cause is unto itself "philanthropy."

And therein we hear Ms. French Gates' fantastic definition of PHILANTHROPY:

"Most people associate philanthropy with great wealth. In my mind, philanthropy is not about the money. It's about using whatever resources you have at your fingertips and applying them to improving the world. If you are passionate about helping humanity, then you can get creative about the ways to do so."

Melinda French Gates, thank you. This is such a great way to talk about planned giving. It's not about the money. It's about being creative and using the resources at hand to improve the world.

That's philanthropy.

That's planned giving.

Improving the world. Helping humanity.

One IRA beneficiary designation at a time.

Posted by: Claire Meyerhoff, Editorial Director, the Planned Giving Company

It finally happened. The IRS discount rate has dropped to the lowest level in recorded history-1.4% for October. While we can still use an AFR of 2.2% through October, we need to face the fact that 1.4% could be coming up on the dial soon if the rate stays where it is for two months. What would a 1.4% AFR mean? In a word, the lowest split interest gift deductions of all time. How low are they? Well, let's put it this way-they are so low that many of the current ACGA recommended payout rates, freshly revised on July 1, have to be adjusted downward manually in order to pass the 10% test. For example, single life gift annuities with payments deferred to age 65 fail the 10% test all the way up to age 57 at current ACGA rates.

Here are the calculations:

It looks like the ACGA will be having another rate session soon. That is not to say that gift annuities aren't still a good deal for donors. Everything is relative. Where else can you get such high fixed income returns with tax-favored income? And, don't forget that low rates mean low risk for your gift annuity pool, so if you can get your donors to look beyond the fading deduction, lock in as many as you can. When rates go up, you'll be glad you did. In the meantime, low discount rates are SUPER for charitable lead annuity trusts because they allow donors to leverage a much larger wealth transfer to their heirs tax-free. Review my CLAT article and talk to your high net worth donors about this special opportunity.

Having trouble sleeping? Ambien not an option?

Pick up a planned giving "newsletter" and start reading.

Since the beginning of time, or at least since nonprofits started marketing CGA's, many OWAB's (orgs with a budget) decided their loyal donors would like to receive a "newsletter" featuring "articles" about wills, trusts, bequests, annuities ("...when the contract ends") and other ways to give while dying. The only thing is, these newsletters are missing one crucial type of content...

News.

The idea of making a bequest is not news. It's a concept. The fact that your organization does great work is not news - it's your organization's job. Lengthy "stories" about a donor who "wants to give back" accompanied by a grainy photo is not news. It's a feature (barely). The title "Donor Story" is not a headline. It's a category.

So what is news?

News is worthy of a headline. News is new. News is timely. News is something happening, or has recently happened, that affects people, the environment, people, the economy, people, and more people. Sometimes, news is quirky. If a guy is digging up a dead tree in his backyard in Atlanta and strikes a metal box holding $150,000, that's news. It's not big news but it's news, whether you like it or not.

When a person reads a news story, they think, "wow" or "oh no" or "that is so important, more people should know that" or "that's crazy!" or "I have to tell people about this" or "really? I didn't know that!" They should not yawn and fall asleep.

Is planned giving worthy of an entire newsletter devoted to planned giving news?

If you show readers a stock photo of happy seniors accompanied by an article called "How to benefit Madeup College Through Tax-Wise Gifts" - you're not delivering news. You're sharing information. Now, if you're truly entrenched in PG, you may counter by saying, "but, that article does fit your last criteria for news...the reader would think, 'really, I didn't know that!'"

They might. But they definitely wouldn't think it with an exclamation point.

It takes work to find and present news.

If you've read this far, you're probably looking for a new way to spread the word about your planned giving strategies. You may be worried there isn't any news in your previous/current/forthcoming newsletter. You may be thinking, "I have no news."

Here's the good news. You have news! You just need to know where to look and how to position the information you have. Make it current. Make it quirky. Give your readers some hard information and give it perspective by adding a quote from an expert. Give your readers a glimpse of something from "behind the scenes." Show them something they haven't seen before. Write real headlines that tease the story, not throwaway titles. It takes some work to find the angle. Your donors deserve real news, so think about them as an audience rather than a constituency who will read anything you send them.

Most importantly, turn a critical eye to your planned giving newsletter and ask yourself:

"Is this a newsletter, or is it a snoozeletter?"

###

Posted by: Claire Meyerhoff

Claire Meyerhoff is the Editorial Director at the Planned Giving Company. In a previous life, she worked in news -- writing for CNN, reporting for XM Satellite Radio, and anchoring newscasts at radio stations large and small. If you'd like to see a recent example of how Claire turned planned giving information into news, call The Planned Giving Company and ask for a copy of a PG NewZine.

###

There are many factors that donors have traditionally considered in making estate-related gifts. One of those factors, the estate tax, has effectively disappeared from the equation for all but 1% of Americans. Why? Because the 2010 Tax Act set the newly re-unified gift and estate tax lifetime exemption amount at $5 million per person, $10 million jointly, and the maximum marginal rate at 35%. Since 80% of planned gifts are bequests and less than 1% of tax payers have taxable estates, the estate tax is now pretty much irrelevant to 99% of testamentary giving. It's all about loyalty now. Pure, undiluted loyalty. If you weren't focused on loyalty in your planned giving program before, it's time to put on your loyalty glasses. Another interesting outcome of the campaign against "death" taxes is that there's no longer any substantive difference between leaving a bequest to a 501(c)(3) tax deductible charitable organization versus a 501(c)(4) non-tax deductible lobbying organization. Look for a major increase in estate-related giving to partisan organizations and causes in the coming years.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

This past Memorial Day weekend, my brother Matt decided that we should renovate the shed that sits on our Mom's property at the shore. On a hot and sticky early summer morning, 8 of us arrived to get the project done in a few hours. Well, I got there a little late (hoping all the work was done by then) and my brothers had already started the project. Matt was the "foreman" on the project. The things he can do with a circular saw would impress any seasoned carpenter. Immediately he said, "grab a hammer and get busy." I thought we were just going to patch a few things, slap on some fresh paint and be on the beach by 2:00. No such luck.

After about half an hour of organized chaos I realized:

• I am not really sure what our objective is. "Sprucing up the shed" clearly means different things to different people working on the same project.
• We have too many people on this project. The shed is only 10' x 10'. And some people are standing around looking for something to do.
• We'll be lucky if we get on the beach before Labor Day!

I yelled up to my brother on the roof, "Matt, what are trying to accomplish here? Are we tearing this thing down to the foundation? What is our plan? Why don't we spend a few minutes planning and making sure that everyone involved knows what they are going to do? Do we really need 8 people on this project?"

Another story with a similar outcome: a friend of mine runs a successful software company. He is a brilliant guy who has worked incredibly hard to build his business. For the first several years he was a one-man show. He did all the selling, marketing and administrative work himself. Like many entrepreneurs, he really didn't have any documented processes in place. He did things his way and wasn't able to articulate how he did it. Eventually, he decided the only way to get his business to the next level was to add more people. So he started hiring more and more salespeople. But guess what? His sales were not increasing, and he was actually losing business. He was still trying to run his business the way he did when it was just him. Everyone was doing their own thing. There was no structure or process in place and no one was accountable for their work.

The lessons in both these scenarios are simple:

• Whether you are doing a home renovation project, running a business or managing a development office, you need to have processes in place that everyone follows.
• Adding more bodies does not always produce more or better results especially when there is really no clear plan or vision of what everyone needs to accomplish.
• The right processes can not only build efficiency, but customer loyalty as well.

As for a model, think of Starbucks. Whether you go to a Starbucks in Philadelphia or in Seattle, your experience is consistent and efficient. Everyone there has a purpose; there are lots of people behind the counter, but they all work together to churn out $5 coffees and lattes at impressive speed. Everyone follows the same process, and both you and they know what to do and expect in the transaction. It's a model of economy in efficiency, a well-oiled machine on both sides of the counter. The miracle of their process is that it allows for personalization as well. If you're a regular, they always know your name and your regular drink. Even in a large chain, it's blowing the doors off bureaucracy in that they use efficiency processes to allow more personal contact and service. The two can co-exist, and it keeps customers coming back for more, again and again.

So how can this apply to planned giving? That's easy; the model transfers over well. In planned giving and development, process is more than how you record a gift or update the donor record. Because planned giving is based on loyalty and repeat giving, "bringing them back" is critical. A large piece of this is how the donor interacts with you; much like how the barista interacts with the customer at Starbucks by remembering her name and regular drink. Secondly, the process must make giving a gift easy. This is the efficiency part.

Some good questions to ask yourself: How can you make the processes in your department more efficient and consistent? What are your fundraisers saying to prospects and donors? Is it consistent, or does everyone do their own thing? Can you set up your office to run as smoothly as the Starbucks? An efficiency makeover might just be in order.

If your problem is getting more done with fewer people, think about taking a look at your process and how it works with your current staff. More hands don't add value unless there is a plan for what those hands will do and produce. Taking a little time upfront to properly plan processes can save time, money and bring in more gifts in the end.

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

The Planned Giving Company is dedicated to earth-friendly business practices. In addition to only printing on Forest Stewardship Council Certified paper for our direct mail pieces, our company is a member of the Sustainable Business Network and Sam is on its board. We are very proud of these affiliations and our support of green and ecologically aware initiatives cross into everything we do at our office. We work hard to reduce, reuse and recycle whenever possible in our daily life at the office.

Here are some measures we've taken to make our office greener, more eco-friendly and to ensure that we leave a smaller carbon footprint on the earth:

• Retire old tech. We've gone through our "retired technology" pile in our storage room and tagged items for an upcoming computer and electronics recycling event in our county. To find a recycling center or event near you, visit earth911.com.
• Use recycled products. I've been a longtime believer that in shopping, your dollar is your vote. Buying recycled copier paper, pens and sticky notes sends a message to the manufacturers that recycling and recycled products are important. We try to do this whenever possible.
• Keeping it digital. We try to keep documents digital. We don't print unless we need to, and we're all pretty diligent about reusing and recycling paper.
• Use the other side. Everyone has a pile of paper at their computer that has already been printed or copied on one side to use again. I make scrap paper notepads by cutting up paper into quarters and clipping one end with a small binder clip.
• Make it easy to recycle. We all are very committed to recycling any waste we possibly can. We have several recycling receptacles set up around the office and we have recycle bins under our desks. We recycle everything we can from ink cartridges, cans, containers and packaging from food and office paper. We just became an official battery recycling station; an easy and inexpensive program we implemented for under $75 a year.
• Junk mail reduction. We received so many random catalogs in the mail and never even looked at them; they went right into the trash. Over the last few months, as they come in, I've called and asked to have us removed from the mailing lists. It takes 1 minute and really works; we used to get 1-2 catalogs a day and now we get maybe one every 3 weeks. For more information on unsolicited commerical mail reduction (NOT non-profit mail), visit the FTC's website for tips.
• Water ways. Instead of bottled water, we installed a new water cooler/dispenser that is hooked directly to our water line. It filters the water and has an instant heater on it for tea and hot cocoa. Switching from water bottle delivery saves resources on gas for the delivery, plus no more plastic bottles. And the water tastes just as good as the bottled version.
• Green cleaning. We use biodegradable/natural soaps and dish washing products in our office kitchen. We buy them as we need them in small quantities, so it's easy for us to do. We use refillable soap containers in our restrooms and buy soap in bulk. The quality and accessibility of these natural cleaning products has really improved in the past few years, and the prices have gone down, so they are affordable for most office budgets. Next up: asking our office cleaning service to use natural cleaning products and biodegradable trash bags.
• Dispose of the disposables. We use real silverware, plates, bowls, coffee mugs and cups at the office. Everyone has brought in their favorites, extras, strays and old mugs to use at the office. This could be considered excessive, but having personally committed to not using paper napkins at my home, I bring my own cloth napkin in my lunch bag. All these steps help reduce unnecessary trash going into our landfills, and keeps old kitchen items out of the landfills.
• Paper or plastic? The best option is neither. Each of us keeps a compact reusable shopping bag at our desks for lunch hour shopping, so we don't accumulate unnecessary plastic and paper shopping bag waste.
• Energy saving measures. We turn off the lights when we leave at night. It seems logical, but so many offices keep the lights on at night unnecessarily. Our building owner is installing LED lighting. If you've ever been here for a visit, you know our space used to be a gallery, so the lighting is all spotlighting pointing at the wall. We can't wait for our new LED lights, which we hope will be installed by the end of the summer. The thermostat is on a timer, which adjusts the temperature by a few degrees at night. More than a small shift and the system will have to work overtime to make the environment comfortable the next morning.
• Sharing reduces waste. We all try to share and pass along magazines, kids' toys and clothes and other things (moving boxes even!) we're finished with that others might like. One of the benefits of being just a few people who enjoy working together is that we all know what the sharing and reusing opportunities are!

Because we are a small company, we have control over our operations processes. While larger organizations may not have this flexibility, why not ask your HR or Operations executive if some of these processes can be implemented? It never hurts to ask; even one more green practice at your organization will make a difference in what we leave behind on the earth. For more information on going green at work, here are some useful resources:

• Treehugger: How to Green Your Work
• The Green Office and LetsGoGreen.biz (use code FRIEND for 25% off at checkout): green supplies to lessen your company's footprint.
• Chico Bag makes reusable shopping bags that fold into themselves in a tiny pouch. You can get them printed with your organization's logo.
• Earth 911: 8 Ways to Green your Office.
• Greenstrides' green office tips.
• For more information about how trash pollutes our oceans, visit the website of our client, the Ocean Conservancy.

Have any of your own stories, tips or suggestions on going green at the office? Please share them in the comments!

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

A new American Council on Gift Annuities (ACGA) rate schedule goes into effect on July 1. The new recommended rates include some important changes to the basic assumptions behind the rate calculations. The effect of these changes is to reduce the risk profile of the rate structure. For example, a new requirement was added that the present value of the residuum be at least 20% of the gift amount. In addition, adjustments were made to the life expectancy table based on an actuarial study by the Hay Group, the total return assumption was reduced from 5.5% to 5.0%, the youngest single-life rates were lowered to make sure they pass the 10% test at all discount rates at or above 3.0%, and the interest factor on deferred gift annuities was lowered from 4.5% to 4.0%.

So, how do the new rates compare with previous rates? Changes in immediate payment gift annuity rates are relatively modest and mixed-some went up and some went down. Almost all deferred rates went down because the interest factor for the deferral of payments went down. For a detailed analysis of the rate changes, visit the PGCalc website. In the meantime, remember two things:

1. The ACGA rates are maximum recommended rates and should be negotiated down at every opportunity (see below for more on this)
2. With low interest rates and a more conservative rate structure, this is a great time to lock in lower-risk annuities into your pool.

Always negotiate gift annuities.

One of the most powerful ways to permanently reduce the risk profile in your gift annuity pool is to stop automatically offering the ACGA recommended rate and start negotiating the payout rates. The ACGA rate is a maximum recommended rate. I negotiate every gift annuity down at least a full point whenever possible. How? I offer donors a side-by-side comparison gift illustration. The first column reflects the ACGA maximum recommended rate and the second column reflects a rate that is at least 1% lower. I say "at least" because I see no real reason why anyone should be receiving more than 6% or 7% payout on a charitable gift in this interest rate environment, no matter what age they are. If the ACGA recommended maxiumum rate is 8% (a single annuitant age 83), I might propose 6% as an alternative amount. The point is, make an attempt to negotiate the rate down to what might be considered a reasonable payout in this low-interest rate environment.

I explain to the donor that we would be willing to pay the maximum recommended rate, but that he or she could help ensure that the charity receives a gift at the end of the contract by accepting a slightly lower payout rate. After all, I say, their goal is to leave a gift to the charity. I point out that the lower rate yields only a small difference in the quarterly payment and provides them with a much higher income tax deduction-often appealing to donors. In any case, where else can they get such a high guaranteed fixed rate with income that is part tax free? Some donors insist on the ACGA rate and I do not object. But others gladly accept the lower rate. It's a great way to build a low-risk, high residuum pool - one gift at a time.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Remember last month, we discussed how the better we relate to others, the better results we will get from our interactions with them? Whether it's asking them for a donation, looking for a job or asking them out on a date, the more closely you can match their communication styles the better your odds.

We talked about better ways to relate to and quickly build rapport with others. Now, let's dig a little deeper. Did you know that everyone has a dominate sense or preference on how they like to receive and process information? We can break it down into 3 categories:

1. Visuals: Visuals are people who well, are more visual. They need to see things in writing or on paper. They can often be quick and impatient people. They tend to wear brighter colors, their facial expressions and gestures tend to be more animated. They like fun, action, adventure! For a visual, seeing is believing. Show me the money! They may use phrases like:

"Do you see what I am saying?
"Let's what and see what happens."

When you are dealing with someone who you think is a visual, make sure you show them the messages you are conveying. Put things in writing, print out documents, charts, graphs in full color and hand it to them. Use phrases like, "I see what you mean" and "how does that look to you?"

2. Auditories: These folks tend to be more dominant in listening. In fact they are generally, great listeners, they tend not to interrupt people when they are speaking. They love conversations. They may be strong-willed. Auditories may use phrases like:

"Sounds good to me."
"I hear what you are saying."
"Does that ring a bell?"

When dealing with auditoires, let them talk, don't interrupt them. Be prepared to have longer conversations with them. They may prefer you to explain something over the phone or in person rather than in an email.

3. Kinesthetics: These lovable folks tend to be more touchy feely. They are more sensitive. It's okay to gently touch them on the arm when greeting them or shaking their hands. They will often not speak as much as an auditory or visual. Kinesthetics will use phrases like:

"Let's touch base."
"How does that feel to you?"
"That makes sense to me."

Kinesthetics will respond better when you are sensitive to their needs. Be nurturing, take your time with them. They love face-to-face visits and meetings.

So, there are 3 styles that we all tend to fall into. Most of us are more than one style. What style do you think you are?

Okay, have you figured out what movie the title of this article is from? Ghostbusters. It's from the scene where the guys show up at the library and are sneaking around trying to locate who or what is causing all the gooey mess. In this case, the phrase combines words that both an Auditory and a Kinesthetic might use. Of course you would never say that, but it does bring the point home? See what I am saying?

Try this stuff out. See if you notice any difference and email me with your observations.

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

Partnered with direct mail, a calling program, social media and other marketing vehicles, email marketing is still a low-cost and effective way to initiate contact or follow up on a planned gift conversation. Following are 10 tips for making your email marketing as effective as it can be. While most aren't revolutionary, they are tried-and-true tactics we use here at The Planned Giving Company in our planned giving emails for clients, as well as in our own company marketing.

1. Go Straight to the Point. Before you design and write your marketing email, determine what your communication goals are (information to be communicated and what action is desired) and what success measurements you will put in place. As you craft and build your email, ensure that the content does everything it can to meet these goals and measurements, as efficiently as possible.

2. Less is More. Break up text-heavy emails with images and shorten text blocks with enough copy to get the reader interested enough to click links to read the rest of the article on your website.

3. Smartphone Friendly Design. Of those who have Smartphones (currently 50% penetration), nearly 80% read their email on their phone, so it's critical to make sure the emails you send are easy to read on a phone. The best way to do this is by testing your email on several different platforms.

4. Email on Time. Reading email is a habitual activity. Many people put their email reading aside and schedule time out to go through emails. To mirror this behavior, emailing on a predictable schedule, and sticking to that helps ensure that reading your email becomes habit as well.

5. What Time and Day? To each his or her own, but in the research we've done and from our experience as an email marketer, sending email marketing earlier in the day, and in the earlier part of the week earn better open and read rates.

6. Read vs. Open Rates. For planned giving emails, often, click-through is not the be-all-and-end-all. While "open" rates are important, "read" rates are, in our opinion, among the most critical metric to look at in an email campaign. This is because for the email to be "read" the email needs has to stay open 5 seconds or longer, so that some or all of the information in the email has had an opportunity to be communicated.

7. More Links Mean More Clicks. If click-throughs are your ultimate goal, put more links in your email: graphical and text. Based on experience and research, more links bring more clicks.

8. Every Email is a Marketing Opportunity. Why not consider your personal and work emails, which get forwarded, replied to, and printed, a marketing vehicle? One of our clients, Bob Harrison from the Anne Arundel Medical Center Foundation in Annapolis, MD uses his email signature as an opportunity to market easy ways to make a planned gift. In the signature of every email is this message: "The AAMC Heritage Society invites you to include the Anne Arundel Medical Center Foundation in your will or trust, or otherwise provide a legacy to support the future of healthcare in our community by completing a Change of Beneficiary Form naming us as a beneficiary of a part or all of a bank account, brokerage account, certificate of deposit, retirement plan or life insurance policy. Thank you!"

9. Do I Know You? To avoid confusion and possible deletion, in your "from" field, consider including your organization's name. Giving context to a stranger's name in the "from" field increases the likelihood of an email being opened and read.

10. Email Management Tools are Critical to Success. Skimping on an email management tool can impair success and delivery; in addition, do make sure your email manager is CAN SPAM compliant (e.g. they don't have the required unsubscribe link and physical mailing address of your organization). If you're in the market for an email management tool, we recommend Listrak for medium to large non-profits (please tell them we sent you!) and Constant Contact or Mail Chimp for small nonprofits or startups. While we do not recommend sending mass email through Outlook, a tool we have found to help manage our personal business mailings is Easy Mail Merge. Easy Mail Merge allows you to send batches of personalized emails from an Excel spreadsheet or your Outlook database. The program sends them one at a time so they do not activate spam filters.

As always, feel free to contact us if we can help you with your planned giving marketing campaigns.

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

March is here, so now is the time to "march forward" with plans to market your planned giving program. Whether you plan to launch a new direct mail campaign or just tweak your website, keep in mind that your marketing is only as good as the STORIES you tell. Are you still only talking about tax laws and annuity rates? Your donors are overloaded with "information" every day, and those facts, figures and statistics can get lost.

So what should you "talk about" in your planned giving marketing?

Real stories about how planned gifts transform lives. Does your community center have new handicapped ramps thanks to a bequest? Tell that story! Interview a woman who LOVES the new ramps and find out the real meaning of "all access." Tell your readers how the donor simply put "handicapped access" in his will. That's your story. All you need after that is a super-quick, "how would you improve our center?" then tell them how easy it is to make a bequest.

Where should you look for stories? How do you use them in different marketing pieces? Do you know how to tell a story in 50 words or less?

If you'd like to learn a whole lot more in little time, join the March 30th webinar "Storytelling for Fundraisers" hosted by Nonprofit Marketing Guide, featuring Claire Meyerhoff, the Planned Giving Company's Editorial Director.

When it comes to reaching donors, postcards are truly in a class of their own. The best ones arrive in style, gracing your mailbox with a burst of shiny color, bold graphics and snappy copy. A good postcard is something of a miniature billboard with a bit more hard information and it tells a story in a clean, no-nonsense format. I love them, and so do thousands of organizations.

As a company who does a lot of postcard marketing, we're impressed by creative ways to use postcards. Here's a new twist on using postcards to market your nonprofit; put your entire annual report on one postcard. Just imagine! No endless pages of copy, charts and more charts. How would you say SO MUCH in SO LITTLE space? The "annual report on a postcard" format is a fierce challenge for even the most daring content producer and would certainly send at least one board member fleeing in fear. Yet it is a most intriguing idea. Wasn't my idea, though. For that, I have to hand it to my good friend, colleague and Magic Keys Radio co-host, Kivi Leroux Miller of Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com.

Here's her blog post that got me thinking about the incredible, the amazing concept of... a nonprofit annual report on a postcard.

Posted by: Claire Meyerhoff, Editorial Director

Part I
As fundraisers and salespeople, we are in the relationship building business. The faster we can develop strong relationships with donors and prospects the more effective we will be. A big part of building relationships is being able to relate to people, making them feel comfortable and building trust quickly. One of the best ways to do that is to build rapport. Rapport is a connection or bond we make with people.
Who are you most likely to make a connection with? Someone who is just like you or someone who is very different and with whom you have little in common with? Well of course it's the person you feel is most like you. In fundraising and selling, prospects like dealing with people who are most like them. Someone they can relate to. Someone they can trust enough to reveal their emotions and feelings. And the more we can get donors/prospects to communicate on an emotional level, the better results we get.
There is behavioral science called Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) which among many things, enables us to communicate better with others and goes well beyond what we say. How we say it and how we present ourselves when we say it (non -verbal communication) means much more than the actual words we use. Let me show you what I mean.

• What we say (the words we use) account for 7% of our communication
• How we say it (our tonality) accounts for 38%
• Our physiology (body position, movement) accounts for the 55%

I mentioned earlier that people like to hang out with, do business with and connect with people they have things in common with. One way to create that connection is to match our communication style with the other person in all three areas. Let's take a look at how we can do that.

What We Say
We can use words that the other person uses or can relate to. If your donor/prospect tends to use certain phrases, you can use those same phrases when you communicate with them. For example, your donor may use a phrase like "Win-Win." Well at some point in your communications, you can throw that phrase in there. If your donor is a golfer you can use metaphors like "let me tee it up for you."

How We Say it
You can match your tonality to that of your donor/prospect. If your donor is a stock broker from Manhattan, he or she may tend to talk fast and a little louder. You can match his or her tonality by speaking faster and louder as well. If your donor or prospect is from the south and speaks slower and softer, you too can speak slower and softer. If you were to mix those two styles up can you see how impatient the New York stock broker might get, and how southern donor might feel intimidated or suspicious?

Our Physiology
When visiting face to face with someone, you can match their posture or their mood. If your donor/prospect is leaning back in their chair in a relaxed position, lean back in your chair. If they are coming across a bit hurried and impatient, get to the point, lean into them. Quick note: have you ever spoken to someone who is all business? They are not really interested in small talk and just want to get down to business? Well, make sure you match their style. Leave the small talk for your "touchy, feely" donors and prospects.

Now, matching the communication style of others may seem fairly subtle. Does it always work? I am not sure but it's easy to try, and after you do it a while it becomes second nature. At that point it requires very little extra effort. Sometimes it's the little things that make a big difference.

Next month, in part 2 of this topic we'll explore ways to take this concept to next level and to explore how people have different preferences when it comes to communication and building rapport.

*Are you wondering about the title of this blog? It's from a popular movie in the 80's. In part 2, I'll explain how it relates to all this NLP stuff.

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

Planned giving marketing taglines and copy should always strive to tell a brief, heart-based story that creates a "picture" in your mind. Pictures make you feel and feelings drive planned gifts. So, instead of "Invest in the future at XYZ Charity. Include us in your will or trust" make it something like "It costs $3 a day to feed Jane Doe and her family. How would you feel if you could make sure Jane and her family ate a decent meal every day?" Something like that. Story telling is really a key concept in marketing. Here is our Editorial Director, Claire Meyerhoff, on story telling...

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

Still sending those boring certificates or form letters as a recognition gift to your new planned giving society members? Time to get creative. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

1. Give them a set of LifeLegacy Cards, a boxed set of elegant, durable cards inviting reflection on some of the essential elements in a person's life. Created by Susan Turnbull of Personal Legacy Advisors, this handsome set of thirteen cards provides a nearly effortless route to genuinely rewarding conversations with family members or friends. You can even choose your color scheme and brand them to your institution. Price: $12.95 each/box of 10.

2. Give them a set of leather-covered solid brass coasters with a 1¼" die-struck emblem in the center. Comes with a handsome hardwood stand. At brass-coasters.com, it's a $370 set-up fee; $14.20 per @ Qty 50 plus $13.00 per wood stand.

3. Give them a unique work of art-a hand-crafted ceramic tile plaque by Karen Singer of Karen Singer Tileworks, creators of the most stunning and unusual donor recognition walls anywhere. Or, if you are in a campaign, create a beautiful hand-crafted Karen Singer tile recognition mural and give each donor a replica tile framed in hardwood-a keepsake for life.

4. Invent a gift that reflects your mission, like the wonderful hand-crafted walking sticks with inlaid logo given by Natural Lands Trust to each of their planned giving donors.

Send us your creative ideas and we'll publish them in the next eNews, our planned giving email newsletter.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

"A goal without a plan is just a wish"
-Larry Elder

It's that time again. Have you written out your goals for 2011? There is something very powerful in writing out your goals with a plan of how you are going to achieve them. I am all about keeping it simple. We all know we should write goals and update them on a regular basis, but we get busy. Not having them in black and white can enable us to "drift away" from those goals sometimes.Here is a 5 step, easy way, to develop and realize your goals.

1) Dream it up and Dream Big
Take out a piece of paper. Write down the following headings (come up with more if you think of them):

• Family
• Relationships
• Business
• Health
• Material
• Spiritual

Now start to dream up what you would like to accomplish in each category and write it down. Don't worry about how you are going to do it, just start writing and think BIG! Most of us don't dream big enough because we are afraid we are not going to accomplish it. As Donald Trump said "As long as you are going to be thinking anyway, think big!"

2) Prioritize.
Assign a number (1,3 or 5) to each goal. For the goals you want to achieve this year, put a 1 in front of them. For a goal you'd like to achieve in 3 years, put a 3 in front and for 5 years, a 5.

3) Why do I want it?
Underneath each goal, write a sentence or two on why you want to achieve that goal.
Ex: " I want lose 15 pounds because I feel so much better about myself and have more energy."
" I want to go to Disney this year because spending time with my family is what brings me the most satisfaction."

4) Keep them visible and affirm them.
Now that you have your goals, you need to refer to them on a regular basis and affirm them. Put them where you can see them on a daily basis. Some people think that positive affirmations are just mumbo jumbo and don't work. Well if we can control out thoughts, why not think about positive things? Instead of going through our day thinking about how tough the economy is and all the bad things going on, why not think about good things? It does not require any more energy. So on a daily basis, affirm your goals to yourself (and others).

Here are some examples:

• I have a marriage others are envious of.
• I am raising $1,000,000 in planned gifts this year.
• I love fundraising and I am the best.
• I am in the best health and shape of my life.

Try it; it works!

5) Update & Upgrade
As the year progresses, and it looks like you are on track to achieve a goal, bump it up. So if it is July, your goal is to raise $1,000,000 in planned gifts this year and you're more than half way there, bump it up to $1,250,000. What's the worst that could happen? I'd bet my next pay check you'll end up making it or coming really close!

Well there you have it. Forget New Year's resolutions. Set goals instead. You'll be amazed at what you achieve!

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

After a protracted period of constipation, Congress finally did something. In fact, Congress did a lot of things, including passing a new tax law, The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010.

The new law:

• Extends the charitable IRA Rollover provision for two years (click here to download our handy-dandy IRA Rollover Toolkit);
• Extends the current federal individual income tax brackets through 2012 (10%, 25%, 28%,33% and 35%);
• Extends the current capital gains and dividend tax rates through 2012 (0% for 10% bracket and 15% for all others);
• Repeals the itemized deduction limitation through 2012;
• Sets the federal estate tax exemption at $5 million per person, $10 million per married couple, and the top tax rate at 35% for estate, gift, and generation skipping transfer tax through 2012.
• Reunifies the estate and gift tax rates into one graduated rate schedule again;
• Patches the Alternative Minimum Tax at a higher income level;
• Allows the executor of a deceased spouse's estate to transfer any unused estate tax exemption to the surviving spouse without a credit shelter trust or other planning tools; enacts various other provisions.

Read the full text of the Job Creation Act of 2010.

What does loyalty mean for your upcoming comprehensive campaign? To put it bluntly, "everything." The old capital campaign model is great for outright gifts, but it is completely wrong for deferred gifts. Why? Because it is based on capacity, not loyalty. Loyals make over 90% of planned gifts, but only 6% of Loyals have wealth indicators. That means that most planned giving donors are NOT major gift prospects. The capital campaign model does not address this group in any way. The new endowment campaign model does. Start by identifying all the Loyals in your database (our PGFinder tool is still the only screening tool on the market that does that). Pull out your Loyals with wealth identifiers for face-to-face solicitation. Your non-wealthy Loyals will be about 20% of your total database, so there is no way you will be able to solicit them face-to-face. That's where our PGCall Program comes in. For more on how to segment your Loyals, read our October eNews. Here's what the new model looks like for the endowment segment of your campaign:

We'll expand on this in future issues of the eNews. Stay tuned! In the meantime, look for an announcement of a major webinar by Sam Caldwell on how to conduct a campaign using this "new" model. Email us if you want to be invited. You won't want to miss it.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Social media's place in our society is solidifying as adoption increases. While the top online activities are still email and search, social media* adoption and usage is growing at lightning pace, particularly among older demographics. In fact, the fastest growing segment on Facebook is the 55+ market.

While it has many uses in marketing, for planned giving purposes, it is an excellent medium by which to acquire, cultivate and retain loyal donors, the most likely to make planned gifts. While it remains unknown how likely you are to secure a single planned gift directly through social media contact, it's a fantastic addition to your planned giving marketing toolbox!

Because the purpose of planned giving marketing is as much relationship building as it is education and solicitation, social media allows your organization to communicate in a professional, yet relatable way to your most passionate supporters, who are eager for information that fuels their excitement for your organization. Social media communications can strengthen the bonds with your loyals by creating an ongoing, personalized, direct dialogue. Because the relationship with your loyals continues to build, these exchanges between your organization and your loyals psychologically validate past gifts and can inspire future ones.

Social media is yet another way to keep in touch with your donors. While it won't ever replace a phone call or face-to-face meeting, it's an efficient and inexpensive way to continue the dialogue with your organization's loyal supporters and increase the frequency of contact.

Check this planned giving blog for future articles on social media marketing strategies and tactics for non-profits, and how it can help your planned giving strategy.

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

• The "Big 4" of social media are: Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and blogs.

As you know, most states require charitable organizations to register with a state agency before they can solicit funds from residents for any purpose. Admittedly, enforcement of these statutes has been uneven over the years and compliance has been spotty at best. However, in their continuing quest for revenue and regulation, many states are now aggressively pursuing enforcement. As we wrote last month, it's getting serious out there. If you are not registered, it's time to do so.

Unfortunately, each state has different requirements and procedures for registration, and the task of registration can be overwhelming for most charities. To help you navigate this regulatory jungle, Chris Henderson, our Compliance Officer, has developed a handy-dandy new charity registration tool.

Current clients can find this new tool on the Client Center of our website (if you have forgotten your username and password email us). Click on "Charitable Registration" to see all of the states grouped by compliance category (the 11 states where registration is not required, the 36 states that accept the Unified Registration Statement, the 16 states where educational and health care institutions are exempt, etc.) and to download a spreadsheet that details state-by-state requirements with links to each state's charitable registration website. If you are not currently a client, email us to receive the spreadsheet. For a list of providers who will register you for a fee, see the article referenced in our June eNews.

Special note: As a national provider of planned giving marketing and consulting services, The Planned Giving Company is registered as Fundraising Counsel in all applicable states. We commit substantial resources annually to maintaining our regulatory compliance. It is part of our commitment to you. If you are not a Planned Giving Company client, check to make sure your vendor is registered in all states in which you solicit or you could be subject to substantial fines and penalties.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

The 2001 Tax Act will sunset on January 1 unless Congress overcomes its partisan gridlock and actually does something. Right now, it's a giant game of political "chicken" and "uncertainty" is the watch word.

If the lame duck Congress does nothing, the law's sunset provision will kick in on January 1 and things will revert to 2001 levels-a $1 million per person exemption and a 55% top marginal rate. As the old adage goes, "a decision not to cut the grass is a decision to let the grass grow." Other options on the table: 1) make the 2009 rates (45%) and exemption ($3.5 million per person) permanent, an approach that the Obama administration favors, or 2) make the 2010 rules permanent, thereby eliminating the estate tax, as the Republican leadership would like to do. No one has a clue what the outcome will be. The advisor community is completely flummoxed and frustrated by the gridlock on this issue. Planning has ground to a halt. Everyone is watching and waiting. Unfortunately, this may include donors who are considering Charitable Lead Trusts and other arrangements where the estate tax is a crucial part of the calculation. We will keep you posted on any breaking news on this important issue.

Email marketing is a timely and cost-effective way to keep your organization in the hearts of your donors, especially your most loyal ones. Offering an opportunity to inform, enlighten, educate, and connect with your most enthusiastic loyal donors, email marketing should be a critical piece of your multi-pronged planned giving marketing strategy.

While it's getting a lot of attention in the press, social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs) has not replaced email. Because it has such a high use rate (nearly 100% of internet users, which now is 75% of Americans,) email works wonderfully in concert with social media, as well as your planned giving direct mail and outreach marketing campaigns. It's one more way to connect with your most loyal donors.

Following are 10 tips for marketing planned giving to your organization's most loyal donors via email.

1. Design emails with smart phones in mind. Clean layout with crisp photos works best. We test our emails on multiple email clients as well as Blackberry and iPhone platforms.

2. Clarify the sender. The organization's name should be in the "From" field - simply a person's name might elicit a delete if they don't recognize it right away. An alternative is to put both the sender's name and the organization's name in the "From" field.

3. With subject lines, less is more. Consistency is another cue to let the recipient know who the email is from and the value of the content inside. To make the most of this, limit subject lines' length to 40 characters and use consistent structure from deployment to deployment to signal who the email is from and what the most interesting content is inside.

4. Also, with content, less is more. Email content should be brief and include links to your website for more information. Typically 3-4 topics of fewer than 60 words with "read more" links engage the reader and encourage visitation to the website for more interaction.

5. Include a firm call-to-action. Whether it's a response or click, encourage a dialogue through email. Encourage more interaction with your organization by linking to social media, websites and encouraging direct response.

6. Incent or give them something in the email. Whether it's an exclusive piece of news, an offer, freebie, download, or special benefit from your organization, the reward benefits you both in terms of building loyalty. If you can't do this every email, a few times a year can re-energize readership.

7. Include all required information in your footer. Unsubscribe link (one click is best,) organization's name and physical mailing address, and phone number should all be included in every communication. If you want to learn more about email marketing compliance, visit the FTC website.

8. Timing is everything. In general, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday in the first half of the day (being aware of time zones) are the best days and times to send email. Open rates decline as the week goes on, and drops off severely on the weekends. However, what works for most may not for your organization. Test different days and times and stick to those that earn the best open/read rates.

9. Beef up your loyals email list. With each call or visit, ask permission to add them to email lists. On direct mail reply cards, add in a checkbox so they can be added to your PG email list. Ensure you have permission to email your loyals by opt-in, not just opt-out.

10. Combat list churn. Typically 30% of email addresses become unreachable each year, so it's important to keep lists updated and healthy.

Visit our website for more information on planned giving emails, or contact us.

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

The Planned Giving Company was the first to identify financial loyalty over time as the key indicator of propensity to make a planned gift. Our database contains millions of donor records and tens of thousands of actual planned giving donors and their giving histories. Here are some key facts:

• 41% of PG donors give 10+ consecutive years to the annual fund of the charity they eventually benefit. What about the other 59%? Most of them give loyally, but non-consecutively. Running a consecutive years giving report will only give you about 40% of your best prospects. You'll need our prospect identification tool, PGFinder™, to identify the other 60%. By the way, PGFinder™ has 91.3% average predictive accuracy across market segments, meaning it captures 91.3% of an institution's actual planned giving donors when we back-test it.

• 77% of PG donors make 15+ gifts to the annual fund of the charity they eventually benefit. Fifteen is a magic number. Once someone reaches 15 gifts, he or she becomes 8-10 times more likely to make a planned gift than the rest of the file.

• Only 6% of PG donors are wealth ranked. That means that 94% of PG donors are NOT major donor prospects. Most PG donors can't afford to make an outright gift of any substantial size to your capital campaign. But they will make an asset transfer to you through their estate or with the help of a life-income gift that is 200-300 times their largest annual fund gift.

So, when it comes to planned giving, take off your age and capacity glasses and put on your loyalty glasses. This is no mere theory. Now that we have been calling up to 5,000 "loyals" at a time in our PGCall™ program for almost three years, we can say with absolute certainty that contacting anyone but a loyal for a planned gift is a suicide mission. When we call prospects with high scores in other methodologies based on demographic factors like age and capacity, but who are not on our loyalty grid, we get a 0% response rate. That's right-zilch, nada, goose egg. When we call loyals from our PGFinder™ list, we get an average response rate of 15%. The jury is in. Demonstrated financial loyalty is the only indicator with strong predictive value in identifying planned giving prospects.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Most states have laws regulating the solicitation of funds for charitable purposes. Charities are required to register with a state agency (usually the state Attorney General's Office) before soliciting the state's residents for contributions. Vendors who assist charities in planning or executing their solicitations are also required to register. For more about Charitable Solicitation laws, read our June eNews. In their relentless quest for revenues and things to regulate, the states are getting very aggressive about enforcement.

As part of the compliance process, we ask our clients to complete several forms regarding Charitable Registration to make sure we are all in compliance with the varied rules and regulations of the individual States and to ensure our clients are informed of the potential issues that may arise if they are not registered. Many states require that we submit a copy of your contract with us if we mail to any addresses in that state for you. We ask you to complete our Client Advisory form to notify us if there are any states where you are not registered. When you complete the Client Advisory indicating you will not be mailing to a particular state, we do not submit your contract to that state. If you do not tell us to exclude a state where you are not registered, you may be contacted by the Attorney General of that State. Some states will withhold approval of The Planned Giving Company's registration if any of our clients are not registered in the state. We understand that our recent requests for completion of charitable registration forms may have seemed excessive and bothersome to some of you. Please know we are only trying to prevent a bigger nuisance for you. We don't want you to receive any of those letters from the Attorney General 's office.

FAQ's

Do charities have to register only when they are mailing solicitations through an outside vendor?
No, even if you mail cards or letters in-house that can be construed as solicitations, you are required to register your charitable organization in accordance with the laws of each state on your mailing list. This includes annual giving requests and even emails in some states. The language defining "solicitation" in the Model Law is very broad. You can access this document here. If just one recipient of your mailing contacts the Attorney General and your organization is not registered, you are potentially liable for serious fines.

Why do we have to register? We are an exempt educational institution.
Many states exempt educational institutions from registration, but some states require them to register in order to receive exempt status. Some require you to renew this registration annually. Michigan does not consider an educational institution to be exempt UNLESS they are certified by the Michigan state board of education. Check the requirements for each state on your mailing list here.
This site provides links to each State's charitable registration offices. You can gather all the needed information pertinent to your institution.

We are a religious entity. Do we have to register?
Technically, no. If your organization is a religious entity (such as a church or synagogue) or an integral part of a religious entity and you are not required to file a Form 990, you may be exempt from registration. Please consult your attorney to determine this. If you do qualify as a religious entity, please inform us in writing (email is fine). We will not submit your contract if we receive this written notification from you.

Is registration for charitable solicitation the same thing as gift annuity registration?
No. This is a common misconception. Registration to issue charitable gift annuities is a completely different and separate process from registration to solicit contributions.

Posted by: Brenda McCracken

What to do toll collectors do?

They sit and wait for people to bring them money. Now we all know what's happening to Toll booth collectors...

They are being replaced.

Ask yourself "Am I a toll collector? Do I keep myself busy in the office relying on people to bring me money? Perhaps waiting for Major gift officers to bring me planned giving opportunities? How many times a day do I pick up the phone to initiate a new gift planning opportunity?"

In his book the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey talks about the 7th habit as "Sharpening the Saw." We need to continually sharpen our saws. Our saw is the tool we use to bring revenue (gifts) in the door. Reading and going to seminars about the latest tax law changes is important. When was the last time you read a book or went to a seminar on communication or psychology?

Let's face it. A good part of what we do in sales or fundraising requires having great people skills. So as part of your ongoing professional and personal development consider working in these areas:

• Asking better questions: Ask questions and you'll get better answers.
• Being a better listener: Genuinely listening to people without distraction.
• Influence people. Influence, when done ethically and morally, is a powerful tool.
• Choosing more effective words: Read How to get your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less by Milo O. Frank.
• A deeper understanding of what motivates your donors: Need I say more?

So keep your saw sharp and when change is thrust upon you you'll be ready and better qualified than the other applicants to handle anything that comes your way.

May you always be in the EZ Pass Lane...

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

We're used to segmenting our lists on the basis of capacity for capital campaigns. What would it look like to segment by loyalty for an endowment campaign? Here's the grid:

1. Wealthy Loyals - Approximately 6% of planned giving donors are wealth-ranked. Solicit them face-to-face for combination outright and deferred gifts. They can make all the difference in your campaign. You can identify them by running a match between wealth ratings and your loyals list in your database. Or ask us to identify them with our WealthMatch add-on when we run PGFinder on your database. Add the longest consecutive year donors from Group 2 below to this group for face-to-face solicitation, but solicit them for deferred gifts only.

2. Non-Wealthy Loyals - Most loyals cannot afford to give you an outright gift of any substantial size for your capital campaign. However, they will make an asset transfer to you at death or with the help of a life income gift during their lifetimes. These gifts are typically 200 to 300 times the size of their largest annual fund gift. This group typically comprises about 20% of your total solicitable database--too many to solicit face-to-face. Do not solicit this group by direct mail. Solicit them by means of a carefully crafted planned giving calling program, like PGCall. Only 41% of them give consecutively. Most of the rest give loyally but non-consecutively. You will need PGFinder to identify this group.

3. Wealthy Non-Loyals -This group is small in number and there is little chance that any of them will ever make an estate or deferred gift to you. However, they might make a major outright gift to endowment or program. Solicit them face-to-face only.

4. Non-Wealthy Non-Loyals -This group has neither loyalty nor capacity. It is highly unlikely that they will make either a major outright or a deferred gift. Solicit them in the participation phase at the close of the campaign by mail or phonathon.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

While unemployment remains disturbingly high, equity markets are posting strong gains. What's going on out there with planned gifts? We're seeing a fall-off in gift annuities (we think folks who typically do gift annuities have been more heavily affected by the recession), fairly strong activity in bequests (they cost nothing now), solid activity in charitable remainder trusts (higher net worth donors are benefitting from a strong rebound in the equity markets), and light to no activity in gifts of real estate (depressed values) and charitable lead trusts (high net worth donors are waiting to see what happens with the estate and capital gains tax). While many institutions are reporting shortfalls in their annual giving and major gifts programs, our PGCall program continues to yield outstanding results in deferred gift solicitations. Let us know what you see by posting in the comments.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Well, it's official. The IRS monthly discount rate dropped to 2.0% for October, tying the previous record low reached in February, 2009. Welcome to the ground floor. The highest available rate for use in valuing charitable deductions for split interest gifts funded in October is 2.6% (the August rate). If the discount rate stays at 2.0% in November, the highest available rate will be 2.4% (the September rate). Nowhere to go but up. Oops. How about sideways? We're betting on sideways for awhile.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

In case you haven't noticed, the IRS discount rate went down again this month. In fact, it looks like it might be headed for the ground floor. The rate dropped another two tenths of a percent in September to 2.4%. We're closing in on the historic low of 2.0% reached in February, 2009. At this point, the highest available rate donors can use to value the remainder interest of a life income gift donated in September is 2.8% (the July rate). For a little perspective, the highest available rate three years ago was 6.2% (August 2007). So, how do we measure the impact of the declining discount rate on donors and charities?

Continue reading...

Despite falling rates (see above), we are mystified as to why more charities do not market deferred gift annuities to their younger donors. Tax-free accumulation of principal makes deferred gift annuities relatively low risk for the charity and very beneficial for the donor. For high income earners over 40 who are maxing out on their retirement plan contributions, a deferred or flexible payment gift annuity is a great way to set up a supplemental retirement plan and benefit your charity at the same time. We love deferred and flexible payment gift annuities! Benefits include: an income tax deduction now; guaranteed annuity payments beginning when you choose; tax-free build-up of principal that translates into bigger payout rates later (if you don't like the rates now, you sure are going to like them later!) and the satisfaction of making a long-term gift to your charity. Flexible payment gift annuities have an added benefit: donors can choose when to begin payments from a list of beginning dates in your contract.
So, why are so few charities writing deferred and flexible payment gift annuities? Beats us. We urge you to take a closer look. Here are some marketing tips and suggestions:

• Get one of your high income earning younger donors to do a flexible payment gift annuity and become a poster child to encourage others to do the same.
• Do age segmented mailings to younger loyals featuring the benefits
• Feature deferred and flexible payment gift annuities in electronic communications to your younger donors. Special note: due to falling discount rates, you should probably make the lower age limit of deferred gift annuities 45 to make sure they pass the 10% charitable deduction test.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Tired of traditional planned giving newsletters? Ready for something entirely new? With multiple channels of marketing and media competing for attention these days, and "mail" taking digital and paper form, we thought the old planned giving newsletter could use a makeover and some enhancement. Well, what we came up with is a totally new approach. In fact, it is so revolutionary that we had to invent a new term to describe it--the "NewZine."

Think part newsletter and part trendy magazine. Says PG NewZine Executive Editor Claire Meyerhoff, "The PG NewZine incorporates the best elements of the old-school newsletter and the stylish design of a magazine into a fresh, new way to communicate with your donors." Presented in a visual way to thoroughly, yet simply explain complex planned gifts, the design is modern, incorporating eye-catching typefaces and headlines that visually guide readers through it. Its content is chock-full of PG tips and trends, designed to both educate and intrigue your donors about the opportunities and options of planned giving. Its short, easy-to-read pieces written in a donor-centric, informal style work because the editorial is written for the reader, not just by the experts. Because of the flexible layout, the PG NewZine offers ample opportunities for personalized features, like interviews with your staff.

And, the PG NewZine is the ONLY planned giving newsletter that is specifically designed to address the needs and interests of your loyal donors - those who are most likely to make a planned gift. Adds Claire, "One great feature that works well in this format is to add a personalized message to really connect your organization to your loyals; for example, inviting loyals to campus for lunch and a visit to talk about planned giving opportunities."

Want to learn more about the PG NewZine or see a sample? Contact us today!

Posted by: Allison Keech Sanka

If you want a successful planned giving program, take off your "capacity" glasses and put on your "loyalty" glasses. Start rewarding and encouraging loyal patterns of giving with a "true blue" society-a special recognition society for donors who have given 10 or more consecutive years. Remember,"15" is a magic number. When a donor reaches 15 consecutive years or 15 gifts to the annual fund, he or she becomes six to eight times more likely to make a planned gift than the rest of your loyals and infinitely more likely than the rest of your donor file. Make it an elite group. Run a Consecutive Years Given report and set the minimum number of years at a high enough level that it limits your membership to under 100. If you still have too many to list (lucky you!), consider loyalty levels of Silver (15+ consecutive years), Gold (20+) and Diamond (25+). List this group prominently in your annual report and other publications. Have your President or CEO send them a personalized letter thanking them for their years of loyal support. Give them a recognition gift. And, put every one of them on your visit list. They are the best planned giving prospects you will ever have. Here is what Rob Moore, Assistant Head of School for External Affairs at Lawrence Academy says: "The response to our new True Blue Society has been overwhelmingly positive. Not only were our donors extremely grateful for this special recognition, but we now have a defined group that is on a path to making a planned gift. We look forward to talking with each of them individually about including us in their plans, if they haven't already." Email us for a copy of Lawrence Academy's society description and their Head of School's awesome "thank you" letter.

Posted by: Sam Caldwell

Are you keeping a journal to help you plan your life, and your career? We all know we should do it every day but that it's challenging to find time to do. Sometimes, one of the things I struggle with is what to write about. I am finding the best way to come up with content is to ask myself questions. Asking questions opens up all kinds of ideas.

Here is a great set of questions to ask yourself if you ever feel like you are in a rut or just going through the motions. These questions come from Self Development guru, Tony Robbins.

Inspiring Questions to ask yourself:

• What am I most happy about in my life right now? What about it makes you happy?
• How does that make you feel?
• What else?
• What am I really excited about in my life right now?
• What am I most proud of?
• What am I really grateful in my life right now?
• How can I make ___happen, right now and have more fun than ever?
• What can I learn from this?
• What can I notice today, that I have not noticed before?
• What's funny about this that I have not noticed? (in what seems like a bad situation)
• How can I use this situation to create more power to help others and myself?

Posted by: Joe Tumolo

One of the side-benefits of our PGCall™ Program is that we have been able to put our prospect identification system, PGFinder™, to a rigorous test over the last few years. And, it has passed with flying colors. Here's what we've found out: when we call loyals identified through our PGFinder™ system, we get positive response rates in the range of 10% to 19%. When clients require us to call prospects who are NOT on the PGFinder list - i.e. non-loyals who have been identified by age, capacity, or other demographic factors--we get a ZERO percent response rate and numerous hang-ups. There is simply no doubt: loyalty is by far the most predictive factor in identifying planned giving prospects. As the old adage goes, "The best feasibility test is an ask."

Posted by: Sam Caldwell