How can you forecast fundraising revenue for a legacy society?

Wait, forecasting when people will die?! That is the main reason folks don't like telling us that we are in the will... ... I think the best option is to do as I was taught decades ago: take those estate gifts that have been verified (life insurance, wills, etc.), guestimate a value (and indicate so if it is a guestimate), and discount it to prevent value based on the life expectancies. Also have a section for all legacy club members that you do not have verification and place a guestimate if leadership needs something. Last, take realized legacy gifts over the past 3-5 years, look for a trend (such as "10% growth year-over-year") and multiply your final guestimate by 1.10 to get a forecast.

Legacy donating is a monster of its own in my opinion as the word legacy is almost anonymous with the past however there comes the point where the people who were of that past I no longer present so the question becomes how do you attach to pieces of a puzzle with one common thread we should be the mission statement. Also by providing and creating several levels of pledges for different motivations and ability to give. creative in terms of how the org traditionally raise money and how you could possibly tweak or all together develop. This potentially can naturally invigorate those familiar with the levels of frequency and expectations but also draw attention as change normally does. Lastly, I'm a fan of formal events or even happy hours.

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Think about it: would you pitch mountain climbing gear to a beach bum? Of course not! So, we segment these legacy donors, building strategies that resonate with each group. Bonus points for using surveys, interviews, and maybe even focus groups to gather this intel – gotta go straight to the source! But it's not just about demographics, friends. We want to understand their "why". What makes them tick? What inspires their generosity? Knowing their motivations helps us create messages that spark that giving flame and turn "maybes" into "hell yeahs!" And here's the secret sauce: once you know who they are and what makes them tick, you can predict how likely they are to fulfill their promised gifts.

Legacies often begin with smaller donations and lower membership levels from lesser known donors in the community. Personal connectivity advancing opportunities through special invitations without an "ask" attached shows the value perceived isn't just what's received. “Bring A Friend Along” to experiences or events without extra charge as a special ”thank you” is a win-win for the organization to be given first hand contact with individuals of similar interests.Forecasting is understanding your goal developing the ways and means not always obvious and expected.

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You can't. You can see and forecast trends, but even then, there are usually wild variations. While you cannot forecast results, you can definitely engage in practices that are proven to increase those results. But you still cannot predict results with any certainty or value for any particular year.

In addition to all this - which is really standard by now, create pro-active legacy campaigns with detailed reporting. After 3 years you will be able to persuade accounts to use formulas where they become more confident in anticipating annual legacy revenue. You need accounts on board for this (in my experience!).

Diversify your fund portfolio. Dont put all your eggs in 1 basket is damn true. Forecasting cannot be alone in isolation - it has to be with Founders/ Trustees/ Department leads and also people in ground - as planning comes with execution

The events of the last 4 years have provided the opportunity to review existing practices and renew actions. An important factor is to put the beneficiaries in the center to conduct impact assessments of existing services and identity their unmet needs. Based on this review, approach fund raising with the mindset of educating to create advocates and ring fence programmes to attract sustainable fundings.