Winnipeg, MB - March 26, 2003 - The first annual PlannedLegacy Donor Recognition and Campaign Fundraising Awareness E-Survey (PDF) achieved both an exceptional response rate and a high quality of respondents. The survey was delivered via e-mail and the Internet to an in-house opt-in mailing list of 1300 non-profit professionals.

An 11 per cent response rate resulted in 140 completed surveys, the bulk of which came from Development Directors, Planned Giving Directors and Executive Directors. Respondents also had the option of selecting more than one job title or area of responsibility and many chose to do so.

Survey responses represented a wide variety of non-profit sectors led by healthcare, education, faith/religion, human services, community foundations and arts and culture. Survey respondents were given the option of indicating that they worked within more than one non-profit sector. A small number of respondents chose multiple sectors.

Donor recognition was rated as an important component of fundraising efforts by 92 per cent of respondents and rated as very important by 55 per cent of respondents. Despite the fact that 92 per cent of respondents rated donor recognition as an important component of their fundraising efforts, only 25 five per cent of respondents said that they allocated more than $20,000 annually for their recognition budget.

A wide variety of donor recognition methods were cited, with the use of emerging and interactive technologies such as the Internet, interactive kiosks and plasma displays indicated by 20 per cent of respondents.

A significant proportion of respondents suggested dissatisfaction with their current donor recognition systems.

Fifty-six per cent of respondents said that the major drawback of their current donor recognition system was its inability to attract new donors. This was followed by over 30 per cent of survey respondents who voiced dissatisfaction with their current system's inability to grow and its overall effectiveness.

The use of digital communications delivered via the Internet, e-mail, interactive kiosks and plasma displays has now become commonplace in campaign promotion budgets, accounting for 16 per cent of total promotion methods.

Ninety-one per cent of respondents agreed that interactive technologies were being used to create campaign awareness, enhance recognition systems and communicate with contributors, and 75 per cent of respondents indicated that the use of such technologies would have a positive impact on their fundraising efforts.

Budgetary constraints were cited as the major challenge to overcome when implementing new technologies, followed by lack of human resources.

In summary, the survey results indicated that interactive digital technologies have secured their place among preferred campaign promotion and donor recognition methods, due to their ability to attract new donors and increase the overall effectiveness of fundraising initiatives, but that more money was required in fundraising budgets in order to take advantage of such technologies.

Click here to view the PDF file of the Donor Recognition and Campaign Fundraising Awareness Survey with included graphs.

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For more information, please contact:

Harv Mock
VP Sales and Marketing
PlannedLegacy Inc.
Ph: (204) 943-3923 Ext. 306
Toll Free: (866) 882-3580
E-Mail: solutions@plannedlegacy.com
Web: http://www.plannedlegacy.com

About PlannedLegacy

PlannedLegacy is an industry leader in the development of interactive donor recognition systems and capital campaign promotion systems for non-profit organizations.

Specializing in the design and development of interactive multimedia recognition displays, digital signage networks, interactive exhibits and multimedia presentations, PlannedLegacy also creates traditional recognition displays, donor walls and photomurals, which can be easily integrated with interactive components to provide a more sophisticated level of recognition and promotion.

Clients include a wide range of prestigious organizations such as the U.S. Air Force Memorial Foundation, Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Glens Falls Hospital, Altru Health Foundation, St. Boniface Hospital Foundation, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and more.

A full-service company, PlannedLegacy provides all components required to implement enhanced contributor recognition, campaign promotion and organizational awareness, including software, hardware, consulting, design, multimedia programming and an easy-to-use Web-based content management system.

PlannedLegacy was originally formed in 2001, after four years of testing and practical research into the use of interactive technologies such as touch-screen kiosks, plasma displays and LCD screens, to help non-profits increase awareness for their capital campaigns, planned giving initiatives, fundraising projects and donor recognition programs.

Located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, PlannedLegacy's interactive multimedia displays can be found in educational institutions, hospitals, healthcare facilities, religious organizations, community foundations and prestigious private clubs throughout North America.