Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) are charitable giving accounts established by financial institutions (such as Fidelity, Vanguard, or Schwab). Donors received an immediate tax deduction when the DAF is established. The financial institution administers the DAF, and the donor recommends grants to charitable organizations. DAF giving has increased every year since 2009. According to the National Philanthropic Trust’s 2023 DAF Report, total giving from DAFs topped $52 billion in 2022, a 9% increase from the previous year.

If you are not promoting DAF gifts in your fundraising campaigns, it’s time to start. Here are a few tips to make DAF giving easy for your donors:

• Screen your file to identify donors with DAFs. This will allow you to send targeted appeals asking for a DAF gift. Even if you don’t have DAF donors identified, consider sending a targeted DAF campaign (print or email) to donors giving $250 or more.
• Add a DAF check box on all reply forms: “I will recommend a grant from my Donor Advised Fund (DAF). The fund name is ____________.”
• Add DAF widgets through a firm such as Give Chariot or DAF Direct to your website and make it easy for donors to find them.
• Make sure you have back end processes in place to properly manage DAF gifts as well. How will these gifts be tracked back to appeals? What to do if the donor name is not on the gift?