Don't Count Your Chickens...
This year already we've seen two "knee-jerk" reactions to the influence of COVID19 on Bequests / Gift in Wills, both of which should prompt a considered response but unfortunately has in some cases created some irrational editorials.
Firstly there has been the narrative around speculated falling asset values due to COVID19 and how this going to create a loss of income?
This is presumptuous that a) asset values will continue to be in a negative position for an extended period of time and b) this will coincide with the realisation of receiving 'gift in wills' in the same time-window.
BUT amidst this reporting, the 'panic' reaction highlights a far greater
concern that is very real. That there are too many organisations who are still relying on 100% of their bequests income for operational purposes.
In an ideal situation, organisations receiving assets and not requiring to immediately liquidate them for operational reasons can be held and strategically managed to realise their true value.
If your 'day to day' operations are relying on a certain number of bequests to be realised you are treading a very precarious path.
If that is you, then these current events should see a major policy change/transition. To move towards a significant portion (if not all) untied bequest income to be directed to reserves (an Endowment) and only using an interest component to build or retain the principal.
Secondly, we are hearing many in the sector becoming overly-excited that as a result of COVID19 that there has been a significant “spike in interest, up to 40%, enquires with Solicitors about making wills or indicating that they are supporting charitable causes."
Sure it is encouraging that more people are talking about this....
As for starting to celebrate that a growing number of notifications of gifts
being written into wills is the reasoning for banking on that as future income....well,
what do they say about counting chickens?
For an organisation receiving notification of intent is only the first piece of the puzzle and to assume this will eventuate into $ is an (umm… how to be polite here) a ‘brave’ declaration.
Beyond a donor’s emotional connection to the cause, the other key influencer in who they choose to support is how well an organisation stewards their donor relationships. In reality, some organisations can be good for 2,3 maybe even 5 years, but few have the discipline and more importantly the ‘institutional memory’ to maintain consistent stewardship beyond that time. And in bequests, we’re talking about needing to be good at it for 10,15 years plus.
Add to the fact that a significant, almost 50%, of people change their Will in the last 12-18 months of their lives. It is not how you start the race, it is how you finish and the Gift-in-Will/ bequests race is a marathon, not a sprint.
So while the ‘increase’ in numbers of people indicating their intention or including a gift in Will is positive. The onus is fairly and squarely back on the shoulders of the organisations.
It’s up to you to show your donors you’re a stewardship
superstar not, an income obsessed see-saw!
So make sure your current activities let your donors know...
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How important bequests are for your organisation?
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Why it’s important you know if they have left a gift in their Will to support your cause? (So you can recognise them and say thank you)
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You acknowledge, value, and appreciate your bequestors/ donors?
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Your leadership values those who decide to make a gift in their Will.
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You are consistently brilliant at thanking and managing relationships with them.
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Your desire to build a relationship with them is genuine and not motivated by income
Bequests/ Gift in Wills requires commitment, dedication, and understanding that it is the ‘long game’. To understand that what you do today will be rewarded in 5-7 years. If your organisation has realised that you should have a Bequest / Gift in Wills program or your current program is under-resourced, not delivering or being taken for granted… the journey to transformation can start now.
A good program will have KPI’s, milestones, indicators that you can track success while you wait to see the fruits of your labour.
Bequests as every aspect of fundraising, now more than ever, comes from a focus on ‘creating the best donor/supporter’ experience. If this becomes the primary focus, and you begin to live “ how can you do things better for your donors each and every day”, the dollars will follow.
“Make it your goal to… not be a program of success, but a program of value.”
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