Building Relationships

I found an exceptionally good article today in Inc. magazine from January 2011. Click Here!  If you don't like clicking or the link doesn't work, cut and paste this address http://www.inc.com/guides/201101/how-to-build-better-business-relationships.html. 

Not only does Darren Dahl give great tips on building better relationships, but he gives great tips on how to incorporate these tips in your work routine.  

Bequest Thinking

  Phyllis Freedman is the author of The Planned Giving Blogger (www.smart-giving.com/plannedgivingblogger) and a planned giving consultant. Go to her blog, choose the bequests catagory, and look for the post "New Research Enlightens".  It highlights a presentation by Dr. Russell James in which he describes what is going on in the brain when people consider making a bequest.  Sometime ago, I realized that donors don't wake up in the middle of the night thinking, "I have just got to put a bequest in my will for the benefit of United Way."  Rather it is their passion for impact that wakes them up and the bequest serves as a means.  Phyllis highlights Dr. James' theories about the connections people make between the stories of their lives and a good donor story from someone else who has already taken the next step with a bequest to support their cause. There looks to be quite a few good posts worth reading, so bookmark this one. 

I couldn't resist adding this picture of Lake Erie at sundown from the back of the house in Bratenahl, Ohio where I wrote this post.  I continue to experiment with BlogTouch and so far so good.

PPP

PPP is the national organization for planned giving.  Formerly the National Committee on Planned Giving (NCPG), PPP is dedicated to the promotion of charitable gift planning through research, education, advocacy, community dialogue and the setting of standards and best practices in philanthropic planning.  The website at www.pppnet.org is home to a wealth of information including the Valuation Standards for Charitable Planned Gifts.  This answers the question of how do you count planned gifts received by your United Way in your campaigns. 

PPP is also the gateway to your local Planned Giving Council. Many areas host these organizations dedicated to furthering planned giving in local communities.  In Birmingham, I am a member of the Alabama Planned Giving Council along with other planned giving professionals, CPAs, estate planning attorneys, and financial advisors.  Our website is found at alabamaplannedgiving.org.  The Planned Giving Council in your area is a good way to link up with other professionals who will help you get started with your own program.

5 Easy (and Good) Steps to Start a PG Program

Starting a Planned Giving program at a small (or any size) United Way can be a rather daunting task.  There are any number of "How-to" resources that can leave you with that glazed over look and the absolute certainty that it will never work.  Don't give up!  Today I came across a really good blog post that makes it all seem possible.

Go to The NYSARC Blog and there you will find an article by their development consultant, Judi Taylor Cantor, well worth reading.  Planned Giving doesn't have to be complicated and Judi's article illustrates this idea so well.  It might be a while before you are ready to offer your donors Charitable Gift Annuities (step 5), but when you reach that point, remember the United Way Worldwide Charitable Gift Annuity program as well as United Way Life.  These 2 programs offer your United Way all the benefits without many of the administrative  headaches.  Finally Judi's concluding comments on patience should be taped to everyone's wall and read daily.

The entire website is also excellent and a few minutes spent following the links will offer even more valuable resources for starting your program.  There is a link on the right side of the page that will take you to more of The Fundraising Files written by Judi.

  

Crescendo Interactive

I will readily admit from the very beginning that we are Crescendo customers and I really like their resources - and there are a bunch.  The company is out of California and you can find their website at CrescendoInterative.com.  It would take way too long to go through all they do and I would hate to deprive you of the chance to spend sometime exploring their website, but I will point you in the direction of 2 of their tools worth considering.

The first is The Planned Giving Blog by Kristen Schultz Jaarda.  Kristen is the Senior Vice President and an Estate Planning attorney.  Her blog focuses on social media and its many uses in promoting planned gifts, but you will also find a wealth of information on specific vehicles.  You can access her blog directly from the Crescendo webpage, friend her on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter. 

The second is GiftCollege.  If you want to know about bequests and trusts, real and personal property gifts, and just about any other type of planned gift that some donor could possibly even think of giving to United Way, GiftCollege will teach you all about it.  These are online courses with reading materials, lectures, and even quizzes.  The last time I checked, there were over 100 online courses you can take through GiftCollege and if you are really obsessive compulsive, you can earn your certification as a Certified Gift Planning Associate (CGPA) and then as a Certified Gift Planning Professional (CGPP).  I went for the whole enchilada and it was well worth the very low cost.  I now am quite confident that I can handle gifts of fine artwork, closely held stock, and dairy cows!!!

I am sure there are other companies that offer similar products that may be just as good.  However, Crescendo is what I know so if anyone wants to offer a review of another similar service, just let me know.

More Retreaded ideas yet to come!

David