Are donors still giving during the pandemic? Two weeks ago, Gallup released the results of a poll of Americans about their charitable giving since the novel pandemic hit in March. The good news is that 66% say they do not plan to change the amount they give to charity in the coming year, and 25% say they plan to increase their contributions. (Just 7% …
Keep Talking To Your Donors: Fundraising Strategies During The Coronavirus Pandemic
During the 2008 Great Recession, I was Senior Director of Development for the non-profit State Fair of Virginia. As the Dow crashed, we did what we could to tighten up operations, but being in the middle of a major capital campaign we were in the unenviable position of having to keep up the solicitation and donor relationship-building. Stock gifts stopped …
The Problem with DAFs
Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) have become a convenient solution for donors to make large, single-year tax deductible charitable contributions, while also directing charitable gifts for years to come. Changes to the tax code in 2016 raised the bar on itemized deductions, making DAFs even more attractive to individuals seeking to make tax-beneficial gifts. Despite the tax benefits, DAFs have their …
Leadership is the Key to Campaign Success
A capital campaign in which I was involved years ago was chaired by a 95-year-old real estate developer with a passion for steeplechase horse racing. He was an apt leader, and he had made a personal commitment of $2M to the campaign for a horse facility. With his help, we set a meeting at the horse farm of a “friendly competitor” …