It’s 25 years since our first analysis of legacy giving, when we were commissioned by a group of 13 major charities to produce 20-year forecasts of UK legacy incomes. After 25 years of presenting market Read more…
Imagine a world where you could capitalise on existing mass participation events and use them to raise some serious funds for your cause. And this without you carrying any of the risk or event running Read more…
It’s 2019 and every fundraiser has heard about legacy fundraising. Every fundraising director or manager knows that legacy fundraising is part of a balanced and successful fundraising mix. Research, analyses and forecasting predicts that legacy Read more…
As a fundraiser from the UK it has been really upsetting for me to watch how many UK fundraisers have been reacting to the negative press that is focused on charity fundraising. Fundraising consultant Mark Read more…
I’ve stayed out of the current relationship fundraising debate, a little unsure what to say that I haven’t said many times already in the past 20+ years. But I found myself wondering why hasn’t the Read more…
Please turn yourself into your Grandmother. This might be hard if she is no longer with us. I only met one of my Grandmothers and she was run over and killed by a Rolls Royce Read more…
108 people die every minute That means during the IFC (if it is a typical three days) that 466,560 people will die. I hope I am not one of them. I also hope you are Read more…
Those responsible for the governance of non-profits are often our worst enemies when they could be our best friends. (I am referring to volunteer leaders) Let me quote a poem from a great British poet Read more…
“How can I ask others to give to a cause I believe in, if I do not give to it myself?” responded one fundraiser. I give “to support the mission and to be a role Read more…
Definition of WORTH (with apologies to the Oxford English Dictionary for a few VERY minor changes – but only in the example sentences) Adjective 1: equivalent in value to the sum or item specified. “A Read more…
When I say I am 60 (only just) I wonder what your reaction is? He bloody looks it? He should retire? Richard you still have one third of your life ahead do not stop now! Poor guy? Or, go for it Richard the best part of your life has only just started?
Perhaps your reaction might be: I must read this blog: his life experiences and his fundraising experience must be AWESOME. Who could know more?
So, make your mind up. Your attitudes to ageing can make or break your performance: average gift values, loyalty, donor happiness and most importantly the final gift – the legacy.
Are you ageist? Or an Age Ambassador?
Do you think Old is cold or Old is gold? (more…)
Call me stupid, dear friends, call me stupid but I despair of some big charities. I am about to call communication departments of some large charities stupid and I think for very good reasons. PLEASE Read more…
The New Lexicon of Fundraising; Part 2 Change your words, change your mind, change your outlook, change your actions and change the world. In this second challenge piece on the words we use to describe Read more…
Legacy fundraising can be a tough job… along with the difficulties colleagues, including other fundraisers, often have in really understanding how this area of fundraising works, there can be the constant pressure to measure KPIs Read more…
Welcome to the second edition of the Annual Dutch Fundraising Growth Awards! Ok, not really an award show, but we’re gonna talk about Dutch market figures, fundraising growth and ranking the best fundraising organizations. And Read more…
You are a fundraiser, and therefore you like numbers, right? Next month the Dutch Central Bureau of Fundraising (CBF) will publish their annual figures. In this post I’ll give you a sneak preview on the Read more…
“Father Time is not always a hard parent, and, though he tarries for none of his children, often lays his hand lightly upon those who have used him well; making them old men and women inexorably enough, but leaving their hearts and spirits young and in full vigour. With such people the grey head is but the impression of the old fellow’s hand in giving them his blessing, and every wrinkle but a notch in the quiet calendar of a well-spent life.”
Charles Dickens
Connecting with our most loyal and senior supporters can be the most inspirational thing we do in our career as a fundraisers. It is such a privilege to meet and learn from people whose bodies are aging, but who, as Charles Dickens says, have hearts and spirits that are young and full of vigour.
Today I am going to share with you a little bit about what we are doing in my organization to develop a robust Planned Giving program. (more…)
This is my third blog for 101fundraising and while other may prefer to write about theories of giving. I like to write more about technical things that, hopefully, can immediately help you.
In my previous blogs, I talked about “drip-drip” marketing for legacy fundraising and about organising a legacy event. Now, I want to discuss how using a “personal touch” can help legacy fundraising
In Indonesia we have a phrase ‘Tak kenal maka tak sayang’— which means “if you don’t get to know people, it’s impossible for you to care for them.” And with legacy fundraising, personalisation can be a VERY important factor.
In the WWF Network, globally, we have 24 national offices that have a legacy program. (more…)
I recently asked to some colleagues if they were running specific fundraising campaigns during the summer. Most of them answered they are not! Business as usual seems to be the moto. Worst, some programs are put on hold during the holidays. How can they be wrong? At the end of July, European cities get emptier than ever since kids are out of school and families are on vacation.
But my own experience of being a fundraiser has always been associated with very busy summer months: the period from June to mid August reminds me only to work hard, fully dedicated to analyse first semester’s result and to close planning for the upcoming semesters. On the operational side, I can remember only two tests run in July and August. But what if there was a real potential for fundraising during this time of the year?
I’m writing this on the one-year anniversary of my move from Toronto to London, so you’re reading this one year after I started my career as a professional fundraiser, and what a lot has changed during that time. I’ve gone from fundraiser in theory, to fundraiser in practice; blogger, to paid writer (ha!).
But there’s another difference that has been developing more recently and at the IoF National Convention last week, it finally hit me – I’ve fallen madly, deeply, head-over-heels in love with legacy gifts.
This may come as a surprise to those who knew me in Toronto because I used to be quite vocal about my distaste for this field of fundraising. I thought it was dull, cold, and frankly it bored me half to death when we studied it in school (pun intended). (more…)
Earlier this year we interviewed 10 senior fundraisers in the Dutch Market to ask them if the economic turmoil changed their opinion about the fundraising potential in their market. And, if any, where they saw fundraising opportunities.
The question is: Where is the money? And how to get it? (more…)
This is my second blog post for 101 Fundraising and, just like my first blog, the inspiration was coming from a presentation that I attended late last year. [Yes, I steal ideas from others! Don’t judge!].
My job in WWF is to build a knowledge system for WWF’s legacy fundraisers. One of them is to organise a virtual presentation about legacy fundraising. This presentation was one of them and it’s about the recipe of success for legacy event. It was presented by Sarah Cunningham who is legacy marketing manager for WWF UK. [I already have permission from Sarah to use her presentation as my blog sources. Thanks Sarah!]
So, let’s get cracking! Sarah presented how she prepared the legacy events as if she cooked a recipe for dinner. I like the idea of it since a legacy event is not a fast-food standardized product, but more likely to be a customized and adaptable dish. It needs to be personal. (more…)
‘De typische erflater: Een alleenstaande vrouw van ongeveer tachtig jaar zonder kinderen. Het laatste testament is een paar jaar oud en in dit testament staat, meestal samen met een aantal andere doelen, jouw organisatie opgenomen. Voorwaarde om in het testament genoemd te worden is uiteraard wel dat de potentiële erflater bekend is met jouw organisatie. Of beter: een relatie heeft opgebouwd als donateur, vrijwilliger, zelfs medewerker’.
Dit profiel komt de gemiddelde nalatenschapfondsenwerver geregeld tegen in boeken, in masterclasses en onderzoeken. Voor een kansrijk nalatenschap programma lijkt het dus noodzakelijk om je op deze doelgroep te richten, en dan na gemiddeld vier tot tien jaar een stijging in inkomsten uit nalatenschappen te merken.
Maar: richt je je dan op die miljoenen mensen buiten je database, omdat die groep veel groter is, of beperk je je tot de mensen van wie je zeker weet dat er al een relatie bestaat, namelijk je eigen achterban?
Een kleine speurtocht op de websites van nalatenschappenexperts Henk de Graaf en Arjen van Ketel leert mij dat beide wegen kunnen leiden naar (meer) inkomsten uit nalatenschappen. Dat is goed nieuws! (more…)
“Recently a charity asked me if I had put them in my will. I was astounded and felt insulted by this question. After the conversation I immediately went to my notary and changed my will. I deleted all three of the charities that were in there. My kids are once again the only beneficiaries.”
I posted this quote on Twitter about a year ago, after a ‘kitchen table’ conversation with one of the major donors of a charity I work for as a consultant. The conversation was part of a feasibility study for a major gifts and legacies program. A fellow fundraiser has asked me to blog about the subject.
Well, here are my thoughts. (more…)
Last week the Central Bureau Fundraising (CBF) in The Netherlands released their 2010 overview of fundraising (read it in Dutch or the English Google translation). Most news about these figures is about general market trends, or growth compared to last year, but never ever really gives you an insight you can work with as a fundraiser. But it’s always interesting to have a closer look, because we can learn more from these figures.
I’m always particularly interested in the organizations that are showing growth figures over a longer period of time, because it shows consistent good performance.
I focused my little analysis on the top 50 fundraising organizations in 2010. In 2006 they raised €760M and in 2010 the same group of organizations raised €936M. This group consists of charities that all raise more than €5M. (more…)
