How to Raise Planned Gifts by Mail

If you want to know why planned giving has almost unlimited potential for your organization, call a few colleagues and ask them to tell you the first word that comes to mind when you say, “planned giving.” For many, that word will be “complex.” Bingo! Therein lies your opportunity.As Larry Stelter makes clear in his pioneering book, How to Raise Planned Gifts by Mail, most people have it all wrong when it comes to planned giving. Granted, executing a planned gift can be complicated, but that's irrelevant really. Attorneys, financial planners, CPAs – they can and should handle the paperwork.Your job is far simpler … and more pivotal; namely, to instill interest in making a planned gift. And Stelter, who heads the largest planned giving marketing company in the U.S., shows you how to accomplish that and lay the groundwork for closing the gift.And funny enough it all starts with direct mail, whether in the form of personal correspondence, newsletters, customized proposals, or informational brochures. Of course, you can't shower your mailings on the general public. As Stelter points out in the opening pages, “Direct marketers often cite the 60-30-10 formula for determining a mailing's success. Sixty percent depends on the quality of the mail list; 30 percent is based on the content of the appeal; and 10 percent can be attributed to the design or format.” The goal of How to Raise Planned Gifts by Mail, in which Stelter offers a wealth of guidance and real-life examples, is to show you how to double, triple, or even quadruple your planned gift income by putting that proven formula to work.