Imagine you’re planning a capital campaign. Between running feasibility studies, developing your case for support, creating campaign communications and organizing your team, you quickly become overwhelmed. How can you get everything done successfully while still managing programs, building relationships with donors and fulfilling your mission?
That’s where a fundraising consultant comes in. A fundraising consultant can be an enormous asset to a nonprofit, but, like almost all good things, consultants come with a cost.
Don’t let these costs deter you! The benefits of working with a fundraising consultant who truly fits your nonprofit are priceless. We’ll cover everything you need to know about the costs of hiring a fundraising consultant so that you can budget for this service properly.
Specifically, we’ll answer these frequently asked questions:
How much do nonprofit consultants cost?
Fundraising consultant fees vary depending on your project’s scope and complexity. It’s difficult to pinpoint exact numbers because the range is so wide, but most charge between $100 and $250 an hour and up to $1,000 to $2,500 per day.
In Summary: Nonprofit consulting fees vary depending on your project’s scope. The best way to anticipate costs is to think realistically about the support you need and speak to potential consultants.
What goes into the costs of hiring a fundraising consultant?
Fundraising consultant fees are determined based on three key factors: the services provided, the extent of your project and your organization’s needs and experience level. Let’s explore each of these elements in detail.
Services provided by the consultant
Fundraising consultant fees can vary based on the type of service you need. Consultants offer services like:
- Strategic planning. Fundraising consultants can help your organization align its goals with its values and develop a comprehensive strategic plan. These experts will help you collect stakeholder insights, lead a productive strategic planning retreat and compile findings into a cohesive document.
- Fundraising solutions. Identifying opportunities and successfully soliciting support requires a thorough understanding of why donors give. Nonprofit consultants can often help organizations navigate strategies for maximizing their fundraising dollars, from marketing matching gifts to conducting capital campaign feasibility studies.
- Staff and leadership development. To run successful campaigns, your nonprofit needs a strong foundation. Fundraising consultants can work with your staff, board members and leaders to sharpen their skills and fine-tune their internal processes for better fundraising results.
Ultimately, consultants can help nonprofits with a wide range of fundraising needs, from campaign pre-planning to staff training to board member strategy development. However, these services will vary in price.
The extent of your project
The more intensive your project is, the more expensive it will be. For example, hiring a nonprofit consultant for a one-day board retreat will cost much less than hiring one to plan and guide your team through a capital campaign.
Even if you hire a consultant for a specific task (such as a feasibility study), it’s important to anticipate your expenses by thinking realistically about all the areas where your nonprofit may require support. This is where having a good partner makes all the difference.
After all, what’s most important is finding a nonprofit consultant who’s the right fit for your organization: someone who can work well with your team, understand your nonprofit’s unique needs and offer sustainable solutions to your problems.
Your organization’s needs and experience level
Newer nonprofits or organizations running a campaign they’ve never hosted before may have higher fundraising consultant costs than more established, experienced nonprofits. They may require more time and guidance from their consultant, leading to higher fees.
Talk to a handful of potential consultant partners to understand how they’d address your needs and what they would charge for their work. You may find that, even if a certain consultant charges more, you may be more comfortable with their approach and understanding of your mission than any other prospective partner.
How do you calculate consulting rates?
There are three general ways that a nonprofit consulting firm may bill your organization for a project. Let’s look at each in detail:
- Flat fee: A flat fee is a fixed payment for a project within a defined time period, with specific deliverables. For example, a nonprofit may pay a flat fee for a consultant to create a case for support or to execute a board retreat.
- Retainer: A retainer fee is an upfront, recurring charge for larger, long-term projects. A nonprofit may pay a monthly retainer fee for a consultant’s help throughout a capital campaign, for example.
- Hourly: An hourly fee is usually paid to consultants for simple projects that don’t require a lot of time or involvement from the consultant. For example, a nonprofit may pay an hourly fee for weekly check-ins or coaching.
It’s important to understand how you’ll be billed before you hire a nonprofit consultant and sign a contract. After all, the better you can budget for your nonprofit consulting fees, the easier you’ll be able to justify the expense to the key figures who matter most (i.e., your board, your development committee and even your donors!).
In Summary: Fundraising consultants will usually charge either a flat, retainer or hourly fee, depending on the type of project. Understand the fundraising consultant’s fee structure before you sign a contract.
Why shouldn’t we pay our consultant a percentage of the funds raised?
If you’re hiring a nonprofit consultant for a long-term project, like a capital campaign, you may be inclined to offer an incentive-based payment system. For example, some nonprofits wonder if they should pay a consultant a percentage of the funds raised from a campaign.
However, doing so can put your nonprofit in murky ethical waters. In fact, the AFP ethical guidelines advise against it.
Organizations shouldn’t pay a nonprofit consulting firm a percentage of the funds raised because doing so can mislead donors.
Donors want their contributions to go directly to your cause. Using a percentage of their donations to pay a consultant can discourage and alienate your donors, regardless of how much you raise overall.
Plus, your consultant should aim to build sustainable systems and processes that will benefit your organization in the long run. An incentive-based payment system could encourage practices that elicit short-term rewards at the expense of deeper relationship-building.
Focus on sustainable fundraising throughout your organization and pay for a nonprofit consultant through careful budgeting.
In Summary: Paying a nonprofit consultant a percentage of the funds raised from a project can frustrate donors who want their donations to go directly to your cause. Use a traditional payment model instead of compromising your donors’ trust.
What additional fees can arise when working with a consultant?
When budgeting for your nonprofit consultant, it’s important to consider additional fees. These fees will occur sporadically, so anticipating these expenses ensures you have enough funds to cover them.
Additional costs might include:
- Consultant travel: You may have to pay for airfare and lodging if your consultant travels to attend your organization’s events or arrange and pay for transportation to and from your facility or headquarters.
- Incidentals: These might include fees for meals or other hospitality services for your consultant.
- Design and printing: The consulting process might reveal that your organization needs to improve its marketing strategy. This could result in fees for design services and printing costs.
- Event or retreat fees: Part of your consultant’s process might include hosting a retreat or event with a large group of stakeholders, which could require considerable planning and execution costs.
- Implementation costs: Other recommendations made by your consultant might introduce additional fees. For instance, your consultant might recommend transitioning to a new constituent relationship management (CRM) system, which would require you to purchase and migrate to the new platform.
If all of these costs are making you sweat, don’t worry. A nonprofit consulting firm is an investment in your organization, and there are several ways that you can stretch your budget to afford one.
Start by discussing funding priorities with your board. Explain how a consultant can help your nonprofit run more efficiently and effectively so that every dollar you spend is furthering your mission as much as possible.
You may also consider whether any of your major donors would be interested in offsetting project costs to make room in your budget for a consultant. This strategy is especially applicable if you’re considering a new case for support, a strategic plan or a board retreat, as these are aspects of your organization in which high-profile donors have a vested interest.
The key is to prioritize, plan ahead, anticipate costs and frame nonprofit consulting fees so your board and high-level donors understand the importance of these expenses.
In Summary: Your organization may incur additional nonprofit consulting costs throughout the project. Knowing what costs to expect can help you budget for them in advance and seek out supplementary funding sources if necessary.
Now that you understand fundraising consultant fees, it’s time to apply that knowledge to find the consultant who’s right for you.
Take your time with the process. It’s a major investment for your organization, so it’s well worth it to contact multiple options, request proposals and carefully examine your budget to determine the right partner for your strategies and goals.
Looking for more information about how your fundraising consultant can optimize your nonprofit’s strategy? Check out these additional resources:
- Hiring a Fundraising Consultant: 12 Essential Tips. The fundraising consultant hiring process involves much more than assessing fees. Use these 12 tips to make the full process a success.
- Nonprofit Strategic Planning: Complete Guide + 10 Examples. Need to revamp your organization’s strategic plan? Explore how a consultant can help you craft an effective guide to lead your organization.
- 35+ Best Fundraising Consultants to Revolutionize Your ROI. Different fundraising consultants specialize in different areas, from branding to prospect research. Discover the right firm for your organization in this guide.
