At first gl
ance, Annual Giving and Planned Giving may appear to be polar opposites. Annual Gifts are for immediate use, can (and do) come in all sizes, and are often pooled together with the gifts from other community members to maximize their impact. Planned Gifts are often directed to endowment, usually have minimum gift requirements, and include vehicles designed to enable donors to expand their individual impact beyond what could be achieved via an outright gift. And while anyone can make an annual fund gift, those eligible to give certain types of planned gifts must fall within certain age groups based on tax laws or institutional crediting policies. Larger fundraising shops frequently have different staff members responsible for soliciting these two types of gifts.
These types of giving complement each other, securing resources for today and for tomorrow and allowing donors to maximize their impact at your organization by doing both. The expertise of the staff working in these two areas can be very complementary, too. I recently had the opportunity to chat with Joe Tumolo, CEO of Gift Planning Development, LLC, about some of the opportunities that exist for Annual Giving and Planned Giving to support and reinforce each other’s efforts. Our conversation touched on topics including direct marketing and segmentation, understanding our shared constituents, and partnering to shape solicitation strategies and culture. When fundraisers find ways to work together across areas, we make our institutions even stronger, today and into the future.
I invite you to view or listen to our discussion by clicking the image below:
Tammie L. Ruda