Online wills are booming in Australia. Over the past three years, more than 40,000 wills have been written via Gathered Here’s online platform and hundreds of charities, NFPs and foundations have embraced them as a valuable fundraising tool. 

Organisations of every shape, size and sector are integrating online wills into their wider bequest programs and it’s no surprise. While traditional wills continue to play a crucial role in the bequest world, online wills offer a range of benefits that traditional wills just can’t match.  

Donor stewardship 

For the first time, gifts in wills managers have widespread visibility on who has included a gift in their will. On Gathered Here, around half of all donors opt to share their information with the organisation (or organisations) named in their will.  
 
Certain sectors see higher average opt-in rates, with some environmental organisations enjoying opt-in rates of up to 70%.  

This information makes stewardship far easier for gifts in wills managers. Ongoing communication can help foster deeper relationships and strengthen the likelihood of a gift remaining in a will until the supporter passes away. 
 
With contact information for many confirmed supporters, organisations also have the opportunity to bring one-off planned givers closer to the cause and transition them into regular givers.  

Revenue visibility 

It’s not just donors that gifts in wills managers have a clearer picture of. Thanks to online wills, organisations can now see detailed revenue forecasts and understand how well online wills are performing for their organisation. 

This helps gifts in wills managers quantify the success of fundraising campaigns and win greater buy-in across the organisation.  

With a clear idea of just how much revenue is being generated from gifts in online wills, bequest teams can lobby for greater investment and the ability to expand or develop existing programs. 

Campaign strategy 

Online wills are also helping NFPs develop more effective and strategic bequest programs. With greater donor visibility, gifts in wills managers can create campaigns that cater to specific demographics.  

With greater visibility across gifts and estimated revenue, they’re also able to identify exactly which campaigns worked and which might need some fine tuning in future. 

The bottom line 

Traditional wills aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. They cater to people with more complex estate needs and there’s no question that they’ll play an important role in bequest fundraising for many years to come.  

However, online wills are revolutionising the space and making life much easier for gifts in wills professionals. With greater visibility across donors, revenue and campaign results, gifts in wills managers are now empowered to make highly strategic, data-based decisions while generating impressive revenue for their organisations. 

Do you have a question for the team at Gathered Here? Email questions@gatheredhere.com.au  

For more information about online wills, visit Gathered Here.  

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