Planned giving is an important source of revenue for nonprofits, case but many organizations lack the technology to make the best use of their opportunities. In this article, we wanted to highlight how donor software may strengthen your ability to grow planned giving at your nonprofit. And, we will take a look at how the right donor management software can help you and your donors achieve your philanthropic objectives.
Yes, Donor Management Software can make a difference
Planned giving has traditionally been defined as the gift that an individual makes near the end of his or her lifetime. More than 90% of planned giving takes the form of bequests, but there are plenty of other vehicles including annuities, trusts and gifts of stock or property. Planned giving basically refers to any gift that requires more thought and effort than just writing a check.
Relationships:
Whatever the vehicle, planned giving is based on personal relationships. By selecting donor software that helps strengthen relationships over time, you’ll have the support you need to reach out to donors every step of the way. The basic tenants of customer management is about developing relationships. Donor Management software should have the ability to help you store demographic information about donors, track giving history and participation, perform basic activity management, and help you communicate more efficiently throughout your process with donors.
Identifying and Targeting prospects:
Sadly, organizations often don’t know that their donors have made a bequest until they receive a notification letter from an estate attorney after the individual is deceased. Keep in mind that people who make planned gifts are not necessarily major donors. They’re more likely to be people who make frequent gifts over a long time period. A good donor software for nonprofits can help you analyze giving history so you can recognize them sooner.
Personalizing cultivation strategies:
At the very least, you want to stay in touch with people who you know have included your organization in their will. You can use software to zip sort them for visits when a staff member is in the area. You may also want to send them special materials like event invitations and greeting cards which can be segmented via a good donor database system.
Managing complex information:
Automation will also help you with segmentation to tailor your solicitations to the donor’s profile. Mid-career professionals may be starting to think about their wills. Elderly widows may appreciate the income from an annuity. At the same time, you’ll want to track which marketing campaigns are most effective so you know how to allocate your resources. Email marketing solutions and even more advanced marketing automation software can help automate even the most complex giving campaigns.
If you are seeking a solution or would like to visit about options, please Contact us for help in finding the exact software automation needed to achieve your mission. Until then, keep SmartThoughts in mind.
