Unlocking the pot of gold in legacy giving discusses barriers to legacy giving and how to address them. Key barriers include: family first preferences, uncertainty around personal finances and mortality, a lack of will writing, and concerns about how donations are spent. To increase legacy giving, charities need to acknowledge family, provide practical examples, target households without children, respect boundaries around finances, and address concerns about donation spending. Addressing these barriers could help unlock greater potential in legacy gifts.

1. Content slide
Unlocking the pot of gold in legacy giving
Michele Madden and Caterina Violi
October 2011
Tel: 020 7426 8888
Email: caterina.violi@nfpsynergy.net
Web: www.nfpsynergy.net

2. A complex process “A lot of people don’t like to talk
about death, that’s why my
parents didn’t leave a will”
“You can’t really say a certain Female, 65-75, Birmingham
amount because you don’t know.
You could end up giving
everything to the charity because
you’ve spent all the money and “Making wills is all
then the family has nothing.” about family”, Male,
Female, 55-65, London London
“I did it to include
charity because I
always keep hearing “I haven’t got
how much goes on that sort of
admin and how much money” Male,
actually sort of gets 55-65, London
there.” Female, London

3. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

4. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Own mortality
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

5. Attitudes and barriers
• 2 Mindsets: Non-fearful, Fearful
• Waiting for the „right time‟
• Value and dangers of unspoken conversations
• Light-heartedness and humour
• Superstition
• Starting conversations about own death and dying
• Initiating conversations with another person
5

6. What can we do?
• Writing a will can bring up difficult emotions for people
• Lightness of tone and humour
“Death is not a bright thing but at the same time talking about it hasn’t got
to be all that sad... It’s important to let people know that they can be
cheerful about it…I don’t think it’s all got to be morbid.”
• Showing an understanding of people’s experiences and recognise
the need for reassurance
• Content that resonates with their experience can help turn abstract
concepts into reality
6

7. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Personal finances
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

8. Uncertainty and planning for the future
• We are living longer
• Consumer confidence today may also be affecting long term
decisions
• A more debt prone society
8

9. Younger generations are more likely to be affected by
uncertainty about personal finances
100%
16-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Not being able to manage personal Having difficulty paying your mortgage Being unable to assist your children
debts (e.g. loans and credit cards) or rent financially as they grow up
Please indicate how worried you are that the following might happen in the future Agree stongly + Agree
Base: 1,008 adults 16+, Britain.
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Nov 10, nfpSynergy

10. Money and life-stage
Net household income
£4,000
All expenditure
£3,500 Essential expenditure
£3,000
£2,500
£2,000
£1,500
£1,000
£500
£0
16-19 20-23 24-26 27-30 30-32 33-35 36-42 43-47 48-52 53-56 57-60 61-65 66-75 75+
Source: BHPS / The Future Foundation

11. Talking about personal finances – money is a
private matter
I often talk to my friends and family about money and personal finances
52%
49%
44% 41%
35% 37%
33% 32% 32%
30%
26% 24% 26%
Male
Total
Female
65+
AB
DE
C1
C2
16-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
“I often talk to my friends and family about money and personal finances” Agree+Agree Strongly
Source: NS&I/The Future Foundation/nVision
11 Base: 1,049 respondents aged 16+, UK, 2009

12. Talking about personal finances – money is a
private matter
Definitely not Probably not Not sure Somewhat acceptable Very acceptable
Ask you to let them know
if you have or intend to
-19% -29% 17%
leave the charity a gift in
your will
Ask about how much you
have left to them in your -41% -29% 6%
will
-100% -80% -60% -40% -20% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
“How acceptable would you find it for a charity you support to do the following?”
Base: Those without a legacy or a will who would consider one, 530 adults 16+, Britain
12 Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul 11, nfpSynergy

13. What can we do?
• Remember that unsettled financial times affect us all
• Target people at the optimal point of their life for being asked 55+
without alienating them
o Being careful not to add to their feeling of being overwhelmed by
communications about death/dying
• Respect boundaries when it comes to asking people about their
intention of leaving a legacy

14. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Writing a will
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

15. Views on writing a will
• Lack of understanding about wills
• Increasingly complicated lives
“It‟s something that we keep saying we‟re going to get round to and we
haven‟t…We‟ve both been married before, we‟ve got children from our marriages
and I think it‟s very important now that we do something about it … my children
or his children could miss out completely.”
• Don‟t leave a mess behind
“You don‟t have an obligation to provide for your offspring and increasingly they
don‟t want you to anyway. I think the biggest obligation one has is to not leave
them a mess”

16. Over a third of the UK public has made a will, with the
likelihood of having done so sharply increasing among
over 55
82%
69%
50%
43%
41% 39% 42% 41% 40% 39%
42%
40%
36%
34%
32%
27%
15%
4%
Male
DE
C1
C2
Sep 06
65+
Jan-10
Jul 07
Jul 08
Jul 09
Jul-11
16-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
AB
Female
“Have you made a will?” Yes
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain.
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul-11, nfpSynergy

17. Views on leaving a legacy
• You have to be rich
• The image of legacy givers among „cold‟ audiences
• Concern that legacy may have to be re-written
• The idea of leaving a percentage, or residuals, is difficult to grasp
• Leaving an item of value to a charity
• Considerable confusion about technicalities and legalities

18. Although there is potential to increase legacy giving,
the public remain uncertain about it
Would consider leaving a
legacy, 26%
Don't know, 28%
Would not consider
leaving a legacy, 45%
“Would leaving a gift to charity in your will be something you might consider?”
Base: Those who have not made a will or have not included charities as beneficiaries in their will, 957 adults, 16+ Britain.
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul 11, nfpSynergy

19. Legacy giving remains relatively low, although
higher among recent and regular donors
Have not
Have
informed
informed
the
the
charity
charity
62%
38% 60%
31%
6%
3%
Have left a legacy in Have not left a legacy Have not made a will Prefer not to say
their will in their will yet
“Have you included any charities as beneficiaries in your will?”
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul-11, nfpSynergy

20. Scepticism about a charity paying for their will to be
written even if under no obligation of including a
legacy
Yes definitely, 5%
Definitely not, 26% Yes probably, 16%
Probably not, 22% Not sure, 32%
“If a charity you support offered to pay for your will to be written, no obligation to include a legacy in your will, would you
be likely to take up their offer?”
Base: 1035 respondents 16+, Britain.
20
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul-11 , nfpSynergy

21. What can we do?
• Find non-threatening ways to help inform and engage
o Awareness of the importance of making a will, but a general lack of
knowledge, and a resistance to „interference‟ in the process
• Target the right age group with the right message
• Neutral language to educate and engage people in the idea of
leaving a legacy
• Getting people to understand the differences between various ways
of leaving a legacy – use case studies to illustrate

22. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Family first
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

23. A preference for leaving the estate to the family is the
main reason for not considering leaving a legacy
I'd rather leave my estate to my family 52% 21%
I'm not sure how much money will be left when I 14% 36%
die
I haven't thought about including a charity in my
9% 31%
will
I have supported charities throughout my
8% 30%
lifetime Main reason
I don't think charities should ask for this type of Other reasons
5% 28%
support
My legacy would not make a difference 3% 24%
I'm not planning on making a will 5% 21%
A legacy is expensive / difficult to arrange 1% 22%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
“Please look at the list below and tick the box that most closely represents your MAIN reasons for not leaving or
considering leaving a legacy to charity” Main reason+other reasons
Base: All not leaving or considering leaving legacy to charity (687) among 1,000 adults, 16+, Britain.
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul 11, nfpSynergy

24. Family first
• The majority of the public agrees that
charities need to acknowledge this
when asking potential legators for a
gift
• Salience of this barrier increases with age
• While uncertainty about how much money will have when they die is a stronger
barrier for younger age groups
• Those who do not have children are more likely to have included
charities as beneficiaries in their will

25. Households without children are on the increase
as a proportion of the population
100%
Other with
90% dependent children
80% Other without
children
70%
Lone parents
60% households
50% Couple with
children
40%
Couple without
30% dependent children
20% Single female
10%
Single male
0%
1991 2002 2004 2006 2008 2013 2023 2033
Projection of number of households in England, by household type 2010 forecast based on 2008 data
Source: Department for Communities and Local Government/nVision
Base: England

26. What can we do?
• Acknowledge the importance of family
• Re-iterate that even a small gift can help and that it won‟t take
away from the family
• Give people a practical example of how this may work in practice
o RAC calculator
o Case studies
• Target households with no dependent children which are on the
increase
• Particularly couples without children as they tend to be more
affluent

27. Understanding the key barriers and how to address
them
Choosing the cause and the charity
Choosing the
cause and the
charity
Family first
Writing a will
Personal
Finances
Own
mortality

28. Concerns about how much money goes to the cause are
likely to matter even more for legacies than other forms
of fundraising
64%
What the public estimates charities spend What the public considers acceptable
37% 38%
27%
21%
15%
Cause Fundraising Administration
“Thinking about the three different types of expenditure- „administration‟, fundraising and the „cause‟, what would you
consider an acceptable percentage of the average charity's income to be spent on…” Mean scores
28 Base: 1003 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul 10, nfpSynergy

29. Choosing the cause and the charity
• No clear consensus as to whether the public would prefer charities
to spend their legacy in precise ways
o a substantial minority feels they would like to have some control over
how their legacy is spent
• Both these potential barriers are likely to be exacerbated by the
nature of legacy giving – which implies that donors will not be
around to be able to „check up‟

30. A core minority would prefer to have some control over
how legacies should be spent
Definitely not Probably not Not sure Slightly agree Strongly agree
I would like to specify the broad
30% 33%
area of work it would support
I would trust them to spend the
money where the need was 36% 26%
greatest
If they could not use the gift as I
specified I would want the charity
26% 22%
to check with my loved ones about
how to use it
I would like to specify exactly how
26% 20%
it will be used
-100% -80% -60% -40% -20% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
“To what extent do you agree with the following statements?
Base: Those without a legacy or a will who would consider one, 530 adults 16+, Britain
30 Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jul 11, nfpSynergy

31. Leaving a gift to multiple causes
• Most people don‟t think of leaving gifts in will to multiple charities
• Tied to perceptions that a legacy gift is a one off, often very large
donation
 I give to so many charities, I don‟t know how to make [a legacy] worthwhile
for any one charity, because I can‟t leave a great deal...that‟s my dilemma.
• This may mean they don‟t give at all
• If they are going to leave a legacy to only one charity, it will
probably be one which is closest to their own situation or
experiences

32. Personal life events are a trigger for supporting
Disability and Health charities in particular
Events in my life led me to decide certain causes were important to me
I feel strongly about a number of issues so I looked for charities that address these
58% 57% 57%
55%
53%
50%
48% 47%
45% 45% 46% 45%
43%
42% 42% 42%
40% 41%
39% 38% 37%
32%
Disability Health & Hospices Cancer Older people Animals Children and EnvironmentHomelessness Overseas aid Rescue
medical young people and and social and services
(excluding conservation welfare development
cancer)
“Q4a/b. When you think about your favourite charities, which category do they fall into?/ When you think about your
favourite charities and causes, please indicate which statements represent how you came to support them?”
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain.
32 Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Jan/Jul 10, nfpSynergy

33. Disability and health charities are among causes
receiving the highest amounts of legacy giving
Other Charitable purposes
Sport/recreation
Religious Activities
Relief of poverty
Overseas famine/relief
Medical/sickness
General Charitable Purposes
Education/training
Economic/community dev
Enviro/Conservation/Heritage
Disability
Arts/culture
Animals
Accomodation/housing
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 £ 000s
Source: Charity Financials, downloaded Aug 2011

34. What can we do?
• Making sure there‟s no reason not to give to your organisation
• Being around at the right time with appropriate tools and messages
• Making your organisation the first choice (or one of the first choices)
by building a lifetime relationship with potential donors
• Demonstrating what legacies can achieve (and have achieved) so as
to reassure people that the money is appreciated and will be well-
spent
o Focus on building trust so that gifts are more likely to be unrestricted

35. Your legacies shopping list

36. ...but you still need to ask
• For a core group of people, one of the most common reasons for
not having left a legacy (together with family and uncertainty future
finances) is that it simply hasn‟t occurred to them and they have
either not noticed being asked or haven‟t been asked
(Remember a Charity Ad)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyYjU8rF1HU
36

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