While he may not have a crystal ball, Sharpe Group’s planned giving guru, Barlow Mann, has decades of experience studying economic trends and their effects on gift planning.
Here he offers sage advice for a successful year based on what he is seeing in the industry.
Charitable gift annuities should be more attractive in the new year. 2024 sees suggested rates recommended by the American Council on Gift Annuities increasing again as well as a rising number of older prospects entering the prime age for gift annuities. If your organization has a gift annuity program, plan a marketing strategy to inform your older donors about this unique gift opportunity.
You’ll maximize your marketing dollars with good data. Do you know who on your list recently died, moved or experienced financial changes? Make sure your donor data is up to date so you can maximize your marketing and communication budget. Plan future communications segmented by updated donor data to reallocate dollars most strategically and effectively. Our Comprehensive Data Services can update your list for age, gender, income, wealth, email and street address, phone(s), marital status, education and if deceased.
“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” —Ben Franklin. Invest in professional development opportunities for new and existing staff to learn the latest techniques for securing gift commitments and avoid missing gift opportunities. Sharpe Group has both in-person seminars and a Virtual Academy for 2024. We can also provide onsite training with a custom curriculum for organizations with larger staffs.
A little “Sharpe” advice goes a long way. Now is the perfect time to meet the challenges of the upcoming year and uncover opportunities that lie ahead by partnering with a Sharpe Group consultant. They can assess whether your planned giving revenue was up, down or flat and determine what worked (and what didn’t) based on your last year’s efforts. Sometimes a third-party perspective can identify both challenges and opportunities that even the most knowledgeable staff and volunteers can overlook because of the urgency and demand of day-to-day tasks.
Barlow T. Mann, JD, is Sharpe Group’s general counsel. He is a recognized authority on developing fundraising strategies that lead to successful programs. Reach out to him at barlow.mann@sharpegroup.org or on LinkedIn.
