By R. Michael Patterson, CFRE
When I talk to development professionals at nonprofit organizations about how to encourage their constituents to make a planned gift, I’m always asked: “What kind of brochures do we need?”
My answer: You don’t need any. There’s a better way.
For years, brochures and pamphlets have been a staple of any gift planner’s arsenal. Covering an array of topics, they are utilized to respond to inquiries, take on visits to leave with prospects or even set on a table during an event or meeting.
When I first began as a planned giving officer, I couldn’t get enough brochures, and filled a cabinet with a library of them on every imaginable topic in planned giving. When I visited with prospects, I would carry a nice assortment so I would be prepared to leave sufficient material behind on a wide variety of subjects.
That was then. Now, after a couple of decades in the field of planned giving, I’ve reached the conclusion that nearly no one reads brochures and thus they are largely ineffective. Time after time, when I would call to follow up the brochure I had sent, the prospect would tell me, “I haven’t looked at it yet.” And that always meant, “And I never will.”
In today’s busy world, even your older prospects, those most prone to considering or making a planned gift, don’t have the time or inclination to wade through a dozen or more pages of gray text describing the intricacies of a charitable remainder trust or other such instrument.
So I have a better idea, one that will save you time, money (!), and impart the basic information to your prospects in an inviting format they will read and understand.
Here’s what you do: Think of the two or three most popular types of planned gifts your organizations receive. In most cases, bequests will be No. 1. Then think of a few basic questions your prospects might have about a bequest.
For example:
- What is a bequest?
- What are the different ways I can remember you in my will?
- What is your legal name and address?
- I already have a will…but can I change my will after it is written?
- Can I add you without the expense of having an attorney draft a new one?
Type these questions on your computer, answer them in two or three sentences, print out a few copies on your letterhead (keeping to one page, if possible), and you’ve got the perfect handout for your prospect. To make your handout complete, attach a response form, and a return envelope.
This simple format provides you with Q-and-A handouts that address most questions your constituents ask, and saves your organization hundreds of dollars in the cost of brochures that are destined to gather dust on your shelves or lost under a pile of catalogs on your donor’s desk.
If you don’t feel confident in thinking of the questions and providing the correct answers, seek competent fund-raising counsel to help you develop them.