Today we’re adding TrueDeceased  to The Agitator Toolbox. This easy-to-use tool enables you to go online and quickly—and without charge – get an overview of who on your database is deceased.

When The Agitator first announced our Data Liberation Crusade and asked what low-cost data services were needed, reader Ann Kensek told us, “My Data Dream would include a database where I could find names of those who passed away. Not only could we send a sympathy note/card to spouses/ family of deceased donors, but we’d be able to avoid mailing to John and Jane Doe if one or both of them died.”

“In a perfect world, we would always know John and Jane were our John and Jane and not someone else with the same name, and we could download the info right into our donor database, which would automatically make the correct changes.

Ann went on to describe the onerous process so many fundraisers face. “We read the local papers for Obits, and can find info in local annual Town Reports and by calling churches. But all that searching and comparing to our list is time consuming and the data changes all the time. And, we inevitably miss some people, especially those who move away.”

Problem Solved

Once again, our partners at TrueGivers have come up with a quick, accurate and low-cost solution.  It’s called TrueDeceased, and for just $50 you can not only identify donors or those in their households who are deceased, and for the next six months you’ll receive free updates weekly.

Better yet as an Agitator reader, you can go online and get your organization’s or your client’s  organizations’ TrueDeceased Report (check out a sample here) absolutely free. This will let you know the number of deceased among your records even before you spend the $50 to update your files.

TrueDeceased joins TrueNCOA (which enables organizations –regardless of size—to update donors’ addresses for a flat fee of just $20) and TrueAppend (which lets organizations profile their donor database free of charge and append key demographic and lifestyle information for pennies per thousand records). Together, or on their own, each of these tools delivers cost-effective data solutions to fundraisers.

The Importance of Deceased Donor Information

In his post on feedback Nick noted that the top donor complaints fell into the category of “Do You Know Who I Am?”  A whopping 14% of respondents – lapsed donors – cited the fact that the organization did not know the donor being addressed was dead!

In fact, the fallout from just one mismanaged interaction can produce shock waves. Can you think of a bigger motivator for a negative response than to address a solicitation to a deceased individual?

How about an even more cringe-inducing phone call when a gift officer asks “How’s Bob doing?” only to find out Bob passed away in March of 2016?

Jenny Walton of  Bloomerang notes in 3 Reasons Fundraisers Should Invest in Deceased Donor Processing that “cost of such a data service typically starts around $500, and is well worth the investment.” Here are three reasons why:

1) Don’t annoy surviving family members.

Jenny rightly notes that a key benefit of using deceased suppression data is “Not annoying a surviving family member” She continues:

“Removing deceased individuals from your mailing list can save you the embarrassment of appearing insensitive to a surviving spouse or household member. It’s highly doubtful that those individuals would notify organizations (for profit or nonprofit) that the member of your mailing list had passed away … and it’s unfair to have that expectation.

While it’s always true that our donors have busy, full lives, it’s especially important to be mindful of this in the weeks and months following someone’s passing. This data gives us fundraisers an opportunity to be sensitive, intentional, and proactive. As Nick discusses in his post, that’s an easy goal for us to meet that donors notice and remember.

Beyond saving face, deceased suppressions also save you money in the short and long-term.

2) Save Money

Jenny continues with a discussion on cost savings.

“While saving money on direct mail campaigns comes second to the point above, it should not be overlooked, especially if you perform multiple direct mail campaigns each year.

“Let’s say you invest $500 in the data service. At four mailings per year, with a cost of $0.49 per mailing, you would only need to remove about 250 names to fully (hard) cost justify the expense (if you have a large, old list that has never been cleansed).

“However, don’t let not breaking completely even on the hard costs keep you from investing in the service. Not annoying even a few donors makes it worth while, and can even open doors to additional stewardship opportunities.”

[Editor’s. Note:  Jenny is using an estimated cost of $500.  Thanks to the Agitator Data Crusade, TrueDeceased costs only $50 and you get weekly updates.]

3) Share Gratitude and Condolences

Finally, Jenny drives her points home with the claim that deceased suppression data offers “a final opportunity to show appreciation (and more).

“Learning that a dedicated and engaged donor has passed away should trigger a lot of activity for you as a fundraiser, especially if you have data on members of their household.

“Sharing your condolences with a surviving family member is an amazing stewardship opportunity. Make time to let them know how much you appreciated their support over the years, while including its tangible outcomes. They may not even be aware, and there’s no greater gift than communicating that legacy.

“Who knows? That spouse, partner, son or daughter may continue supporting you in honor of their dearly departed.”

Into the Weeds

For the detail-inclined reader here’s a summary of what TrueDeceased  does:

• Identify and suppress records using donor name (including nick names), current or historical addresses, emails, and/or phone numbers
• Match confidence details including: household, individual, and address changes
• Missing, duplicate, and invalid data analysis
• Free automated weekly updates for 6 months after initial file processing
• Individual record lookups and real-time screens at the same low rate as bulk processing
• Additional data sources included for no extra charge:  Social Security Death Index (SSDI) and opt-in data (where available)

Visit this page to see how to get started immediately. You’ll be done in minutes, and it won’t cost you a dime to see how many records in your database should be suppressed because of death.

Their website also has helpful links, like their Frequently Asked Questions section, as well as a video demonstration for Getting Started with TrueDeceased

If you have questions or need help just the friendly TrueDeceased  team of technologists, product managers, and client services folks at support@truedeceased.com.

Just tell ‘em you’re an Agitator reader.  They’re standing by to help you.

Roger