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| Path: Main Street : Resources & Library : Research Articles : Feature Article |
Innovative program defies conventionAugust 15, 1995; Canadian FundRaiser
A ground-breaking program has burst onto the Canadian gift planning scene. Legacy Leaders Inc., the brain-child of Rob Brown - Artsmarketing Services Inc. and Tom Taylor - CanadaDirect, is a fully staffed and funded planned giving marketing program that offers customized programs for a wide range of non-profit organizations. "Legacy Leaders is a process, not a product," says Brown. "It's a system that makes it easier for potential donors to participate in an endowment program." The extensive marketing program was created together with ITT Hartford Canada (previously Abbey Life Insurance) and input from over twenty of Canada's top planned giving professionals. Three test campaigns have been completely funded by ITT Hartford. The three partners have made a joint investment exceeding $500,000.
Commonly held belief shattered
A major difficulty in the gift planning arena is the inability of charities to provide timely, personal and effective responses to inquiries generated through awareness-building campaigns. Ken Ramsay is Director of Special Gifts for the United Church of Canada, a charity boasting one of the most sophisticated planned giving departments in the country. Although armed with a specially trained national consulting staff of seven, it would take over 300 years to complete the one hour personal visits with each of the 750,000 donor members who currently give to the church. The Legacy Leaders Program has not only provided an ideal opportunity to solve the dilemma, but in the process it has shattered the commonly held belief that gift planning solicitation must take place on face to face visits.The endowment insurance program was developed in direct response to a multitude of charitable needs and concerns expressed during a year of meetings. Legacy Leaders offers completely customized programs for each organization. Full awareness, marketing and staffing support is provided; all program aspects are handled by fundraising professionals and donor confidentiality is assured. Designed by CAGP members with broad-based practitioner input, it also offers guaranteed issue --- no donor will be turned down, and there are no medical questions or exams. Charities are named as irrevocable beneficiaries and the lowest possible cost is offered to the donor. In the event of a payment default by the donor, there is full return of all donations to the charity or there is an option for the charity to complete payments or accept a lower benefit.
The policies will be underwritten by ITT Hartford Life Insurance Company of Canada. The Company (rated seven out of eight by Canadian rating firm, Trac) has domestic assets under management of $125 million. The company is owned by US based Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company - rated A++ by AM Best, Aa2 by Moody's, AAA by Standard & Poor's and Duff and Phelps. Both companies are ultimately owned by the ITT Hartford Group, a major international corporation based in Delaware with world-wide assets of $120 billion. In addition, all Canadian insurance policies are convered to a maximum of $200,000 by Compcorp Deposit Insurance. Legacy Leaders policies, which range from $5,000 to $100,000 are therefore fully protected.
Insurance is only a very small component of a planned giving program, and Legacy Leaders is first and foremost a fundraising program, so the product is not offered in isolation. Brown adds, To be effective, the entire gift planning program has to be shown. Ethically all options must be presented to every donor. The program fits the bill. Since the charities actually collect the premiums and issue the receipts, ITT Hartford pays them 5% for administration-generating much needed revenue.
The first test program, designed for the United Church of Canada, is called The Special Gifts Leader Program. Awareness was created by ads that appeared on the back page of The Observer, a publication distributed to 150,000 donor/members. Full colour posters with 'Take One' coupons strategically located in test congregations, and inserts placed in Sunday Bulletins for three consecutive weeks were bolstered by Ministers speaking about the program. Special gift consultants in the test areas sent out 3,500 personalized letters along with full colour brochures that outlined all the planned giving vehicles available.
Recipients were advised that someone would follow up to answer their questions. Amazingly, only 40 asked not to be contacted. "Initially we projected that 15% would request a personal proposal, and we felt we were optimistic in hoping that 3.64% would end up making a gift of some kind. Of the 2,427 individuals contacted (the remainder were unavailable) 37% requested a personal proposal and some 22% have already made a gift of insurance, annuities or have confirmed a new bequest, said Brown. ITT Hartford is so impressed with initial test results they have added funding for marketing to 40,000 new names --- an increase in their original commitment of 15,000. Ken Ramsay predicts that the program will generate over $100 million during the next three years.
A second test program designed for the Toronto Humane Society is launched in August. Called Forever Friends, the program kicks off with a 2-page advertorial; a street, vet and animal hospital poster campaign; special inserts for the organization's direct mail campaign and a video spot to add to cable TV's adopt-a-pet segments.
The third test charity, TV Ontario (TVO) will follow in October in conjunction with their 25th anniversary celebrations. TVO has created a new children's educational programming endowment fund, and there is some discussion about including an educational savings plan component.
Other product applications are in the offing with one university about to launch a capital campaign by declaring significant commitments by their board and staff. They will be announcing full face value life insurance policies as irrevocable gifts. A major children's charity is developing a program called A Parent's Love is Forever. For a small monthly gift over a 5 year period, children's sponsorships will be endowed in perpetuity. By all accounts, Legacy Leaders appears poised for success. The program should be ready for expansion to other Canadian charities as early as this fall.
For more information call Rob Brown at (416) 941-1041, ext 224.
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