Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of nonprofits do you work with?
Why should I hire a consultant rather than bring on a new staff member?
We work with established service-based or research-based nonprofits that want to grow their fundraising efforts. Past clients have included conservation groups, international development initiatives, civil society groups, education programs, museums, traveling choirs, youth programs, art schools, and dozens more.
We do not specialize in forming nonprofits or advising organizations under three years old without a history of performance, family foundations, faith-based institutions, lobbying groups, political campaigns, hospitals or universities. Each of these groups has special considerations and approaches best served by a specialist in those fields.
Do you guarantee an increase in revenue?
While we guarantee to provide each prospective donor with a quality, timely, bespoke proposals, guarantee deliverables that will thrill and excite your community, and guarantee your staff will be better equipped for future fundraising efforts, we unfortunately cannot guarantee an immediate increase in fundraising revenue since that is impacted by the client’s relationships, community reputation, donor’s available funds, up-to-date data, the political climate, and many more factors outside of our control.
How much do your services cost?
We understand that each nonprofit has unique goals, challenges, and budget considerations. To provide the greatest flexibility, we offer three pricing structures.
Deliverable-Based Pricing. For projects with a clearly defined scope and outcome—such as fundraising assessments, strategic plans, grant proposals, campaign materials, or donor communications—we provide a fixed project fee. This approach gives you cost certainty and clear expectations from the outset.
Hourly Consulting. Organizations seeking guidance, coaching, training, or support for specific fundraising and development initiatives can engage our services on an hourly basis. This option is ideal for short-term needs, occasional strategic counsel, or open-ended collaborations.
Retainer Partnerships. For nonprofits looking for ongoing fundraising leadership and support, we offer monthly retainer agreements. Retainer clients benefit from dedicated consulting time, regular strategy sessions, and continuous partnership to help advance their fundraising goals and organizational mission.
Because every engagement is tailored to the needs of the organization, pricing varies based on the scope of work, timeline, and level of support required. We are happy to discuss your needs and provide a customized proposal after an initial consultation.
We are a small nonprofit with limited resources. Can you still help?
While we are not able to volunteer services or work on a contingency basis, we do offer various pricing models to accommodate almost any budget. Let us know your budget up front, and we’ll put together a proposal that works for both of us.
What results have you secured for past clients?
Few nonprofits can justify hiring a staff member without funds to cover their salary and benefits. A consulting firm like us can help get that initial seed planted so your organization can sustainably grow your staffing numbers.
Additionally, the reality of day-to-day fundraising can leave little time and energy for strategic planning, research, database clean-ups, or writing creativity. As a result, information can get missed, proposals rely more often on copy and paste rather than tailoring, and ultimately, money is left on the table. Consultants, like us, can provide the support, information, and insight that existing staff can benefit from.
Alternatively, grant cycles can lead to periods of increased workload at specific times of the year. Bringing on a consultant to support during those times, rather than hiring a staff member, can ensure you have adequate support when needed and that funds aren’t wasted when they're not.
Finally, in the name of trying to keep expenses low, many nonprofits hesitate to invest in development staff, donor systems, strategy, and relationship building- the very things that create sustainable growth. You simply cannot grow impact while starving the function responsible for funding it. Bringing in new perspectives, fresh language, and expert ideas can revitalize a stagnant department, increase efficiency, and share best practices for long-term growth.
It’s rarely an either-or situation, but consultants can be a valuable partner alongside staff in fundraising and development.
Created communications plans engaging members and publicizing existing efforts, driving small donations and a 10x increase in click rates of e-mail communication to donors.
Led donation drives, end-of-year giving campaigns, and Giving Tuesday outreach, resulting in thousands of new leads for follow-up.
Guided transitions from select major donors (90/10/0) to one with diverse revenue (40/30/30), reducing reliance on a few unstable relationships.
Created organizations’ first grant calendars, LYBNT and SYBNT records, donor engagement plans, and fundraising strategies.
Raised an organization’s individual donor retention rate from 19.9% to 40.5% in one year.
Coordinated logistics, planned fundraising events, and in one instance, secured $200,000 of sponsorships above the original goal.
Designed content for website redesigns, annual plans, and internal documents used in fundraising, including one-sheets, donation forms, thank you note templates, tax receipts, creating cohesive messaging and branding, and an elevated profile for organizations.
Coordinated, drafted, and assisted in the design of proposals for over $121 million in government funding secured for a single organization.
Created a development guide for a department in transition so new staff would be able to have direction from their first day in the office.
Transitioned donor databases, making sure clean, consistent, and usable data went into the new system with relevant notes and donor history readily available for the entire organization’s use for years to come.
And much more! What can we do for you?