Creating Continuity within the Dynamics of Development

Development professionals have always moved around, but this year it’s happening like never before. Long-time fundraisers are retiring, and the less seasoned ones are looking around for change after Covid. How can your nonprofit hold on to their people? And how can you ensure that your planned giving program sticks around even if your planned giving person doesn’t? 

Planned giving can be an overwhelming job; it’s an area in which it is sometimes tough to measure results and evaluate performance. How do you know if your efforts are working? Legacy gifts don’t come in on a schedule that neatly fits into goal-setting calendars. But your planned giving program doesn’t have be a weight around the necks of the development staff.  

A good planned giving program should make the job easier.  

People working in planned giving are less likely to jump ship if they feel supported and if they feel that the expectations of their job are reasonable.  

Rather than trying to find a few golden needles hidden in the giving haystack, our vibrant approach to legacy giving will:  

• Determine which donors are the best prospects for gifts in the will and other legacy gifts.  
• Keep a continuing conversation going in the background with those donors on your behalf.  
• Supply an excellent list of leads for your staff to follow up on. 
• Provide team training for everyone who might use those leads. 

Even better, when a staff retirement rolls around, all the relationships from years of effort won’t walk out of the building with the retiree. The program keeps running as usual, while all of the data and training is ready for the next person. 

Canopy supports the work and makes it much, much easier. At the same time, if the key planned giving person takes another job, Canopy isn’t going anywhere, and the conversation with your donors won’t miss a beat.