Capital Campaign Consultant Costs: An Essential Guide

If you’re considering a capital campaign, you’re probably already thinking about how a campaign consultant might fit into your future. You might have anxieties about the cost of a consultant and how to pay for it. You may also wonder what type of consultant you need and how to find the right partner.

It can feel a little overwhelming.

That’s why we’ve compiled this guide to capital campaign consultant costs. Below, we’ll cover all the different ways that consultants work, what and how they charge for those services, and what you can expect in terms of broad price ranges.

Quick Links — In this post, you’ll get the skinny about developing your campaign plan through the following points:

• Capital Campaign Consultant Costs: First Steps
• Budget Benchmarks for Capital Campaign Consultants
• Different Capital Campaign Consulting Models
• Campaign Consultant Payment and Billing Structures
• The Right Model at the Right Time
• Contracting for Success

You can use this guide to begin budgeting for your own campaign.

Capital Campaign Consultant Costs: First Steps

The trickier questions, such as “what type of consultant do I need?” and “how do I find the right partner?” require more nuance. As a starting point, consider taking a step back to think about what you want from your effort (in addition to reaching your financial goal)!

For example, look at:

• Capacity – do you have the help you need to meet annual goals, or is more support essential regardless of a campaign?
• Budget – what portion of your campaign goal can you invest in the fundraising process?
• Campaign expertise – do you have staff members with campaign expertise?
• In-house skillsets – what are your team’s strengths and gaps?
• Post-campaign future – what’s your vision for the development function within your organization after the effort?

Understanding your priorities and needs now (and revisiting them if and when things change) will help you put together the best consulting package for your organization at each step of your campaign.

Budget Benchmarks for Capital Campaign Consultants

It’s a good idea to take a long view on budgeting, which helps put campaign spending into perspective. As a nonprofit industry benchmark, campaign-related expenditures are expected to total in the neighborhood of 5-10% of the campaign’s goal.

For example, if your capital campaign goal is $10MM, you can realistically expect to spend as much as $1MM on campaign-related expenses. Some organizations will roll that up into the campaign goal, resulting in a $11MM campaign goal. Fortunately, most donors understand the need to spend money to raise money.

This 5-10% includes more than just hiring outside help; it includes things like the cost of events, marketing materials, additional staff and internal resources (like software or prospect research). The cost of a consultant as a percentage of the goal would certainly only be in the single digits, but can still represent a large expense; perhaps larger than your organization has spent in off-campaign years.

While investing $1 million in running a $10 million campaign might feel like a lot, it’s actually an impressive ROI. The bottom line is that every campaign needs a budget, and your campaign costs — including consulting support — should come out of that budget.

Different Capital Campaign Consulting Models

As you contemplate the needs of your organization, it also helps to bear in mind that every campaign needs two distinct things:

1. Close guidance from someone with deep campaign experience.
2. Boots on the ground to get the work done.

Some consultants provide high-level advice and guidance, while others provide high-level advice while also assuming a full range of work, from leading committee meetings to writing proposals and sending the last thank you letter in the public phase.

Some consultants are well-versed in all phases of a campaign — pre-campaign assessments, feasibility studies, quiet phase, and stewardship — and some specialize in particular disciplines and campaign components. So, to use a food analogy, you’ve got plenty of choices, from a take-away buffet to a multi-course culinary experience.

The Advisory Approach to Campaign Consulting

To dive a little deeper, on one side of the consulting model spectrum you have an “advisory” model. In this model, the consultant provides guidance and the organization implements that guidance. Staff lead the project with experts by their side, building confidence in the process.

When an organization takes this consulting route, note that their campaign often still needs additional “boots on the ground” to get the campaign work done. To meet that need, many nonprofits choose to invest in their own team by hiring additional staff for the period of the campaign (and they allocate both expenses to the campaign budget along with their campaign advisor).

Oftentimes these organizations will use the runway of the campaign budget to work these additional staff positions into the long-term operating budget.

Pros:

• Internal capacity is built from the ground up and often lives on in the organization well past the campaign’s conclusion

Cons:

• Additional staff time might be required to handle the workload

The Full-Service Approach to Campaign Consulting

On the other side of the spectrum is a “full-service” approach. In this model, the consultant or firm brings not only expertise but also does hands-on work.

A member of the consulting team may join your office full or part-time and carry out tasks that advance your study or campaign, like scheduling meetings, conducting interviews, managing prospect lists, writing materials, training volunteers, producing reports, and more.

Pros:

• Can push the campaign forward at a very rapid pace
• Checks the boxes of expertise and boots on the ground in one solution

Cons:

• Very expensive
• Hard to find a right-fit partner where both needs (deep expertise and strong implementation) are met equally well
• No internal capacity built over the long term (i.e. the consultant leaves)
• Consultant owns the campaign more than the staff does
• Oftentimes the person implementing the campaign work is not the person with the deep campaign expertise; the person with the deep expertise comes in just for big meetings

One other aspect of this topic to look out for — some consultants specialize in specific phases of a campaign. Pre-campaign planning, the feasibility study (which we’ll discuss more below), the quiet phase (soliciting gifts), and the public phase and campaign wrap-up.

However, if you find the right partner, it’s always best to keep them through the entirety of your campaign.

Campaign Consultant Payment and Billing Structures

Just as there are multiple consulting models, so too are there multiple ways in which they may charge you.

In general, you can expect one of the following billing models:

• Hourly – some consultants charge an hourly rate, which can range from $150 to $500+ per hour, depending on their experience and the complexity of the work.
• Monthly – monthly retainer fees typically range from $2,500 to $30,000+ per month, depending on the consultant’s level of involvement, the size of the campaign, and the services provided.
• Flat Fee – for specific deliverables (e.g., conducting a feasibility study, creating a case for support, or planning campaign events), consultants may charge a flat fee.

Be on the lookout for consultants who charge a fee based on a percentage of the campaign’s fundraising goal (e.g., 5-10% of the total). Many nonprofit industry organizations, such as the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), shun this model as it conflicts with ethical fundraising practices.

Regardless of the frequency of billing, be sure that you fully understand the contract that you may agree to with the consultant. What happens, for example, if you want to part ways mid-campaign? What happens if a deliverable isn’t up to your standards or expectations?

Having open and honest conversations with your prospective consultants can avoid headaches down the road. And if your prospective consultant isn’t transparent with you in terms of their terms, you may want to look elsewhere.

The Right Model at the Right Time

Of course, there are many points on the spectrum between full-service and advisory approaches, and most individual consultants or teams can tailor their services to meet an array of needs. It’s probably pretty clear that there’s not one right answer and different approaches suit different groups.

The feasibility study phase in a campaign is particularly important, though, and all organizations ought to think carefully about what role a consulting partner might play during that all-important phase.

Common Flat Fee: The Feasibility Study / Planning Study

Because the feasibility study comes early in a campaign, some consultants center the initial contract or agreement around this specific deliverable—even if they intend to continue working with you after the study.

This flat fee may or may not be derived from their hourly or monthly rate, or run concurrently with those rates.

Either way, don’t be surprised to see quotes in the five-figures for a feasibility study.

A consultant’s expertise can be especially meaningful during a feasibility study. Someone who has been involved with many campaigns will know what questions to ask and how to interpret data. There are two models for how a consultant might support your organization during this phase of your campaign.

1. An Outsourced Feasibility Study Model

In this model, the consultant prepares all the Feasibility Study materials and interviews potential donors without staff involvement.

Pros:

• Consultant-led studies tend to happen quickly, and they require far less resourcing from staff.

Cons:

• The consultant — not the organization’s leaders — builds relationships with donors; limited or no transparency when it comes to interview specifics. As a result, organizations sometimes feel beholden to the consultant for ongoing guidance when it comes to donor strategy.

2. A Guided Feasibility Study Model

In a guided model, the consultant provides expert training and guidance so that staff and other organizational leaders are empowered to interview donors and build relationships directly. The consultant analyzes findings in partnership with the organization’s leaders and guides the goal-setting and report writing process based on his/her years of expertise.

Pros:

• Relationships between donors and organizational leaders are significantly strengthened.
• Full transparency exists between donors and organizational leaders.
• Staff and other internal leaders develop a life-long skillset in having done the study with expert guidance.

Cons:

• Requires a time commitment from staff.

Contracting for Success

While there are many consulting options, there are some things that should always be considered when making an agreement.

• Any consultant asking to be paid a percentage of what the campaign raises is waving a big red flag. This type of compensation compromises your consultant’s integrity and rewards unethical behavior. It should be avoided.
• As you review contracts, it’s natural to focus on the big items — hourly or monthly fees and expectations — but look at the little things, too. If your consultant will be traveling, for example, ask how expenses and meals are covered. It might seem like a minor issue, but it can add up over time. With video conferencing now a normal part of our lives, is it really necessary that your consultant travel to see you?
• As you think about consultants, you’ll want to look at the other parts of your campaign budget as well. Materials, events, and travel expenses can be areas where you might either save or spend. The past few years have also taught us that the project budget, especially if it involves a new building or major renovations, should include cushions for inflation and supply chain issues. Having a realistic overall budget will help you understand what kind of investment in consulting makes sense.
• If you’re concerned about campaign costs, you might seek out a funder that specializes in capacity-building which might be used to fund support staff, volunteer training, technology upgrades, and marketing efforts that can advance a campaign.

Bottom Line — Take Time with Your Decision

To sum up, deciding about a campaign consultant isn’t a one-time, all-or-nothing choice. It can be a series of choices depending on your priorities and the stage of your campaign. The time you devote to understanding your needs and putting together the right internal and external team will be well spent.

Each campaign is an important stage in the life of your organization, and thinking about everything you can get out of it — not only funding but also a more expert team and closer relationships with board and donors — will help you make informed choices.