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| | A Message from Atul Tandon |
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It's always great when a new year begins. We somehow feel like making a fresh start or correcting whatever we think went wrong the year before. A new year also allows us to set new goals. In our business of fundraising and relationship building, this is very important, because without goals...what are we reaching for?
By now, you should already have a list of goals for yourself. United Way Worldwide, in partnership with the field, is continually creating different products and tools to help reach our goals and benefit our communities. For example, if you had a personal goal of meeting and learning from your planned giving and major gifts colleagues in the field, the Major Gifts and Planned Giving Institute (Jan. 18-20) at the Mary M. Gates Learning Center in Alexandria, VA was the place for you. If you have a personal goal of learning about planned giving in a way that makes it simple and easy to understand and at a pace that is comfortable for you, then you should sign up for the Financial Vehicles for Planned Giving and Endowments virtual trainer. If you have a personal goal of attending learning sessions on relevant topics to your business, hearing intriguing keynote speakers from both the non profit and corporate world, and a chance to network with your colleagues in the United Way System, then you should attend the Staff Leaders Conference (May 5-7) in Orlando, FL.
Goal setting may take some thought and some find their goals, at times, difficult to achieve. But...if you are serious about meeting your goals in 2011, please consider all of the webinars, conferences, and tools that are available to you. UWW wants you and every United Way to succeed and fulfill your goals with passion and perseverance.
--Atul
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Online Fundraising on the National Website - liveunited.org
by Iavor Ivanov
The national United Way website was launched in 1998 and has since represented the United Way brand to a broad range of audiences. With the roll out of LIVE UNITED in 2008, the website was transformed into liveunited.org as an action portal, inviting individual supporters to give, advocate and volunteer. Last fall, United Way Worldwide partnered with seven local United Ways (Vanguard United Ways) and Blue State Digital to co-create an even more powerful national online platform to reach the 70 percent of U.S. adults who do not participate in a workplace campaign and currently have no relationship with United Way. Collectively, local United Ways have about 1.2 million email addresses. We need to grow that number substantially and quickly build more personal, direct relationships with individuals through emails, our websites and in social media.
We've heard questions about what happens to the email contacts and revenue raised on the national website and have put together a Summary and FAQ. Here's a quick overview:
Half of the web traffic to liveunited.org - two million visitors per year - conduct a search using "Find Your Local United Way". As a result, $435,000 was donated directly to local United Ways in 2010. On the national GIVE page, supporters can make a brand choice and donate nationally to advance the common good.
There are several ways for local United Ways to receive all or part of the donations made through the national website:
1. Become aVanguard United Way. As a Vanguard United Way, you're able to leverage online engagement tools, strategies and content in coordination with all other participants using the Blue State Digital suite of tools. Vanguard United Ways automatically receive the contact information of individual supporters captured through the national website. One hundred percent of national revenue raised in assigned zip codes automatically goes to Vanguard United Ways.
2. Participate in the Campaign for the Common Good. Campaign for the Common Good United Ways will have their own action page on the national site with local opportunities to give, advocate and volunteer. One hundred percent of the revenue raised on each customized page will go to that Campaign for the Common Good local United Way (net of processing fees assessed by the pledge vendor the local United Way is using). You are also eligible to receive the contact information of supporters captured on the national website if you sign a relationship management agreement. Based on assigned zip codes, 50 percent of all national online revenue is re-granted back to Campaign for Common Good United Ways.
For more information on the nationwide online engagement platform, please take a look at this FAQ document.
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Working Together for Success: The Planned Giving and Finance Partnership
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 While we spend lots of time on building donor relationships and learning the technical side to planned giving, the area of internal relationships is often overlooked. Early on in my career, I asked a colleague, "What is the single most important thing I need to do in order to be successful in planned giving?" My colleague replied, "Have a great relationship with your finance department."
Our finance department plays a key role in the cultivation, acceptance and stewardship of gifts. What then are the suggestions for building a positive relationship with finance?
1. Engage your finance department in the development and approval of gift acceptance policies. People support what they help create. If they voice concerns and have questions, it is much better to have them voiced early on and not in the final stages of bringing in a planned gift.
2. Develop shared procedures for documenting expectancies. You should engage the finance department in developing documentation for expectancies. This might include having the finance department sign-off on a commitment or letter of intent. Where the ultimate dollar amount for the expectancy is unknown, have an agreement with finance on an amount to project. This will add credibility to the amounts you are projecting and avoid the claim of "funny money".
3. Invite your finance staff to local or national planned giving training. Many of you are affiliated with a local planned giving council or sign up for planned giving webinars. Include your finance staff where possible. Ask them to invite you to training or seminars that might be of value to you.
4. Partner with finance in the completion of the Data Base II report. Too often, the areas seeking planned gift expectancies are ignored. By developing a team approach to completion of the Data Base II you ensure the planned giving sections are completed.
5. Develop a joint plan to update your expectancy file. Perhaps you revisit your expectancies annually and have updated information signed off by finance.
Planned giving success will be enhanced by a positive partnership with your finance staff and volunteers. Investing in that partnership will pay dividends for your planned giving program, your United Way, and your donors.
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An Institute Worth Attending
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In mid January, United Way Worldwide hosted a special  gathering of fellow major gifts, planned giving and resource development colleagues from across the United Way system for the 2011 Major Gifts & Planned Giving Institute. Attendees of the Institute experienced first hand the Mary M. Gates Learning Center at United Way Worldwide. It was a great way to spend 2 ½ winter days in Alexandria, VA learning and networking with each other.
The sessions, both plenary and break outs, focused on such topics as optimizing the Lifetime Donor Value of your Loyal Contributors and Tocqueville Society members, Putting a Zero on the End of Your Ask Using Planned Giving Techniques, and creating the Ultimate Donor Experience to name a few.
As always, this learning opportunity provided a chance to meet experts from outside United Way as well as hear from our peers regarding the great work they are doing in their communities. Having the Institute at UWW provided us the opportunity to bring in various UWW senior leaders to present and participate in our time together.
A special shout out and thank you to the following local United Way professionals who helped facilitate sessions during the Institute:
Caroline Bolvig, Charlene Corlett, Carla Crossno, Maureen Grant Hayes, Kathleen Haverlack, Holly Hoey, Angela Johnson, Maryhelen Kirkpatrick, Katie Rennard, Teri Retzlaff, Kristi Shepard, Deb Squires, Jason Simpson, Lannhi Tran, and Lynne Yontz.
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"The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach."
--Benjamin Mays
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Trainings/Conferences | |
Financial Vehicles for Planned Giving and Endowments - Virtual Trainer On Demand
(Feb 1-Dec 31, 2011)
"As a relative newcomer to planned giving, I was excited to find that this educational tool was available. I was fortunate to have some time recently to devote to the endeavor, and I'm pleased to report that the virtual training is an excellent investment!"
--Pamela J. Amburgy, CPA, Director of Planned Giving, Tulsa Area United Way
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