How to Get Started as a Fundraising Consultant

How to Get Started as a Fundraising Consultant

Many non-profit fundraisers dream of becoming fundraising consultants.  Successful fundraising consultants can earn significantly more than most mid-career development professionals, while also setting their own schedules and avoiding toxic work environments.

There are thousands of independent fundraising consultants working in the field today, ranging from strategy consultants to direct mail copywriters to grantwriters.  While there is lots of opportunity for consultants, it can be hard to get started.  In this article, I’m going to teach you the most important things to focus on if you are thinking about hanging out your own shingle as a non-profit fundraising consultant:

Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty

One of the best things you can do to set yourself up for success as a fundraising consultant is to lay some groundwork before you leave your full-time job and set out on your own.  Author Harvey Mackay calls this “digging your well before you’re thirsty.”  During the 6-12 months before you give your two-weeks’ notice, you should be doing everything you can to build a list of hungry clients who are just waiting to hire you for their projects.

There are two primary ways to accomplish this.

FIRST, ensure that you are making as many contacts in the industry as possible. 

If you want to become a fundraising consultant, you’ll want to have relationships with lots of non-profits, other consultants, board members of local organizations, etc.  Make it your goal to build as many relationships as you can so that you’ll be able to call on these contacts once you set out on your own.

SECOND, dig your well before you’re thirsty and start building an e-mail list and communicating with that list regularly. 

The best way to do this is to start a blog and start writing about your chosen area of expertise (general fundraising, copywriting, grant-writing, online fundraising, etc.).  Get people to sign-up for your e-mail newsletter in order to receive more great content from you (to learn how to do this, click here).  If you are diligent about creating content, you can easily have 500-1,000 people on your e-mail list when you launch your consulting business.

Focus on Project-Based Fees

Many first-time fundraising consultants are tempted to charge an hourly rate.  They figure that this will help them land more clients, who may be more willing to pay $35 an hour than to commit to a $5,000 project.  This is a big mistake.  The best way to build your business and get paid what you are worth is with project-based fees.

Remember, you’re creating real value for your non-profit clients.  If you’re good at what you do, they’ll be able to significantly increase their fundraising revenue by utilizing your services.  Don’t sell yourself short.  Charge what you’re worth, and make it based on value.

If you’re working on a project that will result in an additional $100,000 for your client, don’t charge $25 an hour… instead charge $5,000-$10,000 as a flat fee.  That’s a reasonable amount that will allow you to spend the time you need to make the project a success, rather than trying to rush the project to move on to the next low-paying client.

Add Other Income Streams

One of my favorite books is Multiple Streams of Income. It’s a classic by Robert Allen. When you set out on your own as a fundraising consultant, don’t forget to add in other complementary income streams for your business.  You’re an expert on one or more aspects of non-profit fundraising.  Now, monetize that expertise every way you can.  Of course, working with clients will likely be your primary source of income, but there are several other revenue streams you can add that will multiply your bottom line.

The most popular additional income stream for fundraising consultants is paid speaking.  Many consultants make a nice side income by speaking at conferences and events, as well as by putting on trainings for board members and non-profit fundraising teams.  While it is okay to speak at the occasional conference for free, don’t get caught up in the cycle of speaking at 3 or 4 events every month in return for nothing more than “publicity.”  Charge what your worth.  If the conference doesn’t offer payment to speakers, feel free to say, “no thanks.”

Another great revenue stream you can add to your business is selling information products that teach what you know.  These info products can include e-books, paperback books, webinars, and online classes.  These products represent “passive income” because you can create them once and sell them over and over again.   To learn more about this revenue stream, read Why Passive Income Streams are So Important for Freelancers and Consultants.

And finally, don’t forget about forming strategic partnerships with non-competing vendors. This can be critical as there are many vendors that offer critical services.

The Most Important Thing for Becoming a Successful Fundraising Consultant

I want to leave you with one last tip… and in my mind, it’s the most important thing you need to do if you want to become a successful fundraising consultant.  That one thing is to focus on marketing.  While most new consultants consider themselves consultants first and marketers second, I can tell you that the most successful consultants in the business consider themselves marketers first.  They know that they need to be spending lots of time marketing if they want to sell premium consulting services to premium clients.

If you want to be successful, set aside time each day for marketing.  Every fundraising consultant needs to be out there creating content, networking, making calls, attending conferences, appearing on podcasts, etc.  Constant marketing leads to more clients, which ultimately leads to more revenue for your business.

By the way, if you’re not ready to set out on your own, and are instead looking for a better job in fundraising, be sure to check out our job board. It’s the best place to find new opportunities in major gifts fundraising, planned giving, and more.