28. Dr Claire Routley – Talking to supporters about leaving a legacy

I recorded this interview with Dr Claire Routley, an expert in expert legacy fundraising, in early March 2020. The subject of our conversation was legacies. In particular, we explored some of the reasons people choose to leave a gift in their will; why many charities fail to talk about this subject to their closest supporters; and tips to help you talk to your own supporters about this fantastic way of supporting. Since early March, during the pandemic, inquiries to will-writing services have gone dramatically up. For this, among other reasons, Claire recently told me that the subject of having more conversations, in an appropriate way with your closest supporters, is as relevant as ever. That said, clearly, charities are also right to have been cautious and sensitive in making decisions about whether to promote legacy appeals during this crisis. If you’re interested in understanding and weighing up the ethics of legacy fundraising in an emergency, I’m pleased that Claire and her colleagues at Rogare, the excellent fundraising thinktank, are soon to publish a report on this very subject. To request a free copy, you can contact Claire via her website – www.legacyfundraising.co.uk or via twitter. And if you’d like more powerful strategies to help you raise funds during the pandemic, then do check out my new free E-book: Power Through The Pandemic – Seven ways to raise money with major donors, corporates and trusts, even now. You can download it for FREE here: www.brightspotfundraising.co.uk/power If you want to share this episode – thank you!! – or get in touch, Claire and I would love to hear from you – we’re both on Linked In, and on twitter Claire is @claireyJaneR and I’m @woods_rob. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to Claire, and I hope you find this conversation helpful too.