Check-in with Legacy Donors Ages 50+ Annually to Retain Planned Gifts

Des Moines Has Me Wanting to Return to Iowa

Eric Heininger, CFRE, MBA and the Mid-Iowa Planned Giving Council graciously invited me to provide an updated version of a presentation I shared at last November's annual National Association of Charitable Gift Planners conference in Chicago.

🌪 During a tornado, no less, one that later attracted national attention (5.21.2024), together with members we reviewed findings from research on giving and how to take advantage of market opportunities for all types of organizations. 

📜 *** One finding (Russell James, 2017, Texas Tech) that keeps reeling in my head is centered around the relatively new insight from 3,000 surveyed: 

👵🏽 50% of donors over 50 years of age will remove an organization from their estate plan within ten years without some routine stewardship at least within a three-year period. 

===> Seems like common sense, no? 

📔 However, much of the other literature including that from James suggests that 80 to 85% of donors keep an organization in their plans throughout their lifetime.

✨ Perhaps the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive. 

⏩ A solution seems to suggest a stewardship practice with planned giving donors to check in at least every two years on their intentions for how they wish for their gift to be invested is one possible way to mitigate the erosion of the pipeline, no?

Meanwhile, I'm taking my other half to Iowa next year for a weekend.