FAQ’s for Individuals & Families

Our services are designed for donors making $50,000+ in annual charitable contributions. If you're giving less than this amount, we're happy to recommend resources that may be more appropriate for your situation.
For the Strategy Session, we can typically schedule within 2 weeks. For DAF Setup and Annual Check-Ins, we begin within 1-2 weeks of your decision to move forward.
That's exactly what our initial conversation is for. We'll discuss your situation and recommend the best fit. There's no obligation to move forward.
We work with clients across the United States. All sessions can be conducted virtually, though we're happy to meet in person when possible.
Excellent! We coordinate with your existing advisors rather than replacing them. Most financial advisors appreciate having a philanthropy specialist to collaborate with on your charitable giving strategy.
Absolutely. We can help you to discover new organizations based on your criteria. This is the fun part!
Definitely. We have experience working with philanthropists of all levels. From basic cash donations to the complexities of a private (non-operating) foundations, we can assist with your needs.

FAQ’s for Family Foundations

Family foundations have unique governance structures and multi-generational considerations. We help align board members around shared values, develop grant-making strategies that reflect your family's legacy, and create systems for engaging next-generation members. Our approach honors both your foundation's formal requirements and your family's philanthropic vision.
Absolutely. We conduct comprehensive reviews of your grant-making criteria, due diligence processes, and impact measurement systems. Many foundations benefit from an outside perspective to identify opportunities for greater effectiveness or to refine their focus areas. We provide actionable recommendations that respect your foundation's history while positioning you for greater impact.
This is one of the most significant strategic decisions a foundation makes. We facilitate conversations with your board to explore the implications of each approach, including tax considerations, family engagement opportunities, and community impact. We help you think through timing, asset allocation, and how to maximize your foundation's legacy regardless of which path you choose.
We don't provide legal or accounting services, but we work seamlessly with your existing advisors. We focus on strategy, governance, and impact—helping you make better grant decisions and strengthen your foundation's effectiveness. We're happy to coordinate with your legal and financial teams to ensure all strategic recommendations align with compliance requirements.
For foundation strategy work, we typically begin with a discovery session within 2-3 weeks. Governance reviews and grant-making assessments usually unfold over 2-3 months to allow for thorough board engagement. We customize our timeline to your foundation's meeting schedule and decision-making processes.
We work with family foundations at all asset levels, from those just established with $1M+ to large foundations with $50M+ in assets. Our services scale to your foundation's complexity and budget. Whether you're a small family foundation run by volunteers or a larger foundation with staff, we tailor our approach to your needs.
Yes! Next-generation engagement is critical for foundation longevity. We design programs that introduce younger family members to philanthropy in meaningful ways—from junior board positions to family learning experiences. We help you create pathways for involvement that honor different interests and engagement levels while maintaining your foundation's mission.

FAQ’s for Nonprofit Organizations

Absolutely. Many organizations start with training and add presentations or consulting later. Or combine a presentation for your board with training for your staff.
Our training is ideal for organizations with budgets of $500K-$5M. Our consulting works best for organizations with $1M+ budgets and dedicated development staff. Presentations work for any size organization.
Training and presentations can typically be scheduled within 4-8 weeks. Consulting engagements begin within 2-4 weeks of signing the agreement.
While we can't guarantee specific dollar amounts since fundraising depends on many factors, our consulting clients typically see 25-50% increases in DAF giving volume within 90 days. We provide proven strategies and hands-on support to maximize your success.
Our training is specifically designed to be accessible and effective for smaller organizations. If your budget is under $500K, we recommend starting with training. Organizations with very limited development capacity may want to start with a presentation to test DAF donor interest.
Perfect timing. DAF gifts are excellent for campaigns. Our consulting includes campaign-specific strategies for attracting multi-year DAF pledges.
We work with nonprofits nationally. Training and consulting are available virtually. Presentations can be virtual or in-person with travel expenses applying for national in-person engagements.
We require 30 days notice for training or presentations. Consulting agreements include clear milestone commitments. Contact us to discuss your specific situation.

FAQ’s for Financial Advisors

We complement your services rather than competing with them. You remain the primary financial relationship, and we provide specialized charitable giving expertise that enhances your value proposition. Most financial advisors appreciate having a trusted partner who can dive deep into philanthropic strategy while they focus on wealth management. We always coordinate with you and keep you informed.
While many advisors understand basic charitable vehicles, we bring specialized CAP® expertise in complex giving strategies, tax-efficient structuring, and multi-generational legacy planning. We help your clients think strategically about their entire philanthropic portfolio—not just one-off gifts. This frees you to focus on investment management while ensuring your clients receive sophisticated charitable planning.
We're open to various collaboration models. Some advisors prefer direct referrals for specific client situations, while others like co-facilitated planning sessions. We can also provide white-label educational content or present at client appreciation events. Let's discuss what would work best for your practice and your clients.
Clients giving $50,000+ annually who want more strategic impact, families navigating wealth transfer with charitable components, business owners planning liquidity events, and anyone with complex assets they'd like to donate (private company stock, real estate, cryptocurrency). We're especially valuable when clients express frustration that their giving feels reactive rather than aligned with their values.
Our fees are project-based or retainer-based depending on the scope of work. For individual client engagements you refer, we charge the client directly—you never pay us. We're transparent about our fees with both you and your clients. Many advisors find our services actually strengthen client relationships and retention, making the investment worthwhile for their clients.
While DAF strategy is a specialty, we work with all charitable vehicles—private foundations, charitable trusts, direct giving, and hybrid approaches. We help clients choose the right vehicle(s) for their situation and often recommend combinations. Our goal is optimal philanthropic design, not promoting any single structure.
We start with a conversation about your practice and the types of clients who might benefit from charitable planning. We can provide referral guides for your team and make ourselves available for quick consultations when questions arise. When you refer a client, we conduct a discovery session, develop recommendations, and keep you informed throughout the engagement. Your relationship with your client always comes first.
Yes. As a CAP professional, we're held to fiduciary standards in our advisory work. We provide objective guidance focused solely on your client's philanthropic goals, with no product sales or commissions. This aligns perfectly with your fiduciary role in financial management.

Disclaimers

Do you provide tax or legal advice?
No. While we provide general information about tax implications and legal structures for charitable giving, we are not CPAs or attorneys. Our role is to help you understand your philanthropic options and coordinate with your existing tax and legal advisors. We always recommend consulting your CPA for specific tax advice and your attorney for legal matters. We're happy to work alongside your other professionals to ensure coordinated advice.
Can you guarantee results from my charitable giving?
While we provide strategic guidance grounded in best practices and proven methodologies, we cannot guarantee specific outcomes from your philanthropic investments. The impact of charitable giving depends on many factors including the quality of recipient organizations, external circumstances, and how strategies are implemented over time. What we do guarantee is our commitment to providing sound, professional advice to increase the likelihood of achieving your goals.
Who makes the final decisions about my giving?
You do. All final decisions regarding your philanthropy remain yours. We provide recommendations and guidance, but we do not have authority to commit you to any course of action without your express approval. For donor-advised funds, final grant authority rests with the sponsoring organization, though they typically honor donor recommendations. For private foundations, your board retains decision-making authority.
What if my financial or personal situation changes?
Please inform us of any significant changes to your financial situation, family circumstances, or philanthropic goals. Our recommendations are based on point-in-time information, and tax laws and personal circumstances evolve. While we have no ongoing duty to update previous recommendations unless engaged to do so, we encourage periodic reviews to ensure your strategy remains aligned with your current situation.
How do you protect my confidential information?
We maintain strict confidentiality of all financial and personal information you share. Documents are stored securely, and information is used solely for the purposes of your philanthropic planning. We will not share your information with third parties without your written authorization, except as required by law. If you authorize us to coordinate with your other advisors, we only share information relevant to that coordination.
Do you guarantee specific fundraising results?
No. While our training and consulting are designed to increase DAF giving based on proven strategies, we cannot guarantee specific dollar amounts or donor responses. Fundraising success depends on many factors including your organization's mission, existing donor relationships, market conditions, and how consistently you implement the strategies we recommend. What we do guarantee is our commitment to providing sound, professional guidance to maximize your success.
What if the strategies don't work for our organization?
That's what our discovery call is for. We assess whether DAF fundraising strategies are appropriate for your organization's size, mission, and capacity before we begin. If during our engagement we determine that certain approaches aren't working, we adjust our recommendations. Our consulting includes regular check-ins to measure progress and refine strategies. We're committed to your success and will work with you to find approaches that fit your unique situation.
Are you fundraising consultants or do you provide legal/financial advice?
We are nonprofit capacity-building consultants specializing in donor-advised fund fundraising strategies. We do not provide legal advice, accounting services, or comprehensive development consulting beyond DAF strategies. We focus specifically on helping you understand DAF donor behavior, create effective messaging, and build systems to attract and steward DAF gifts. For broader development planning, legal compliance, or financial matters, we recommend working with appropriate specialists.
What if we don't implement everything you recommend?
We understand that nonprofit teams are stretched thin. Our recommendations are designed to be practical and scalable to your capacity. You don't have to implement everything at once. We prioritize strategies based on your bandwidth and resources, helping you phase implementation over time. However, results are directly tied to implementation—the more consistently you apply the strategies, the better your outcomes will be.
Will this replace our existing development efforts?
No. DAF fundraising strategies complement your existing development work—they don't replace it. We help you add DAF-specific approaches to your current fundraising mix and integrate DAF messaging into your existing donor communications. Most organizations find that improving their DAF strategy actually strengthens all their donor relationships by demonstrating sophistication and donor-centricity.
Do you provide legal or investment advice?
No. While we provide general information about charitable structures and governance best practices, we are not attorneys or investment advisors. We focus on philanthropic strategy, governance, and impact—not legal compliance or asset management. We work alongside your attorneys, accountants, and investment advisors and are happy to coordinate with them to ensure your philanthropic strategy aligns with your legal and financial framework.
Can you guarantee our grants will achieve specific outcomes?
No. We provide strategic guidance to maximize the likelihood of impact, but we cannot guarantee specific outcomes from your grantmaking. The effectiveness of philanthropic investments depends on many factors including grantee execution, external circumstances, and proper measurement systems. What we do provide is research-backed strategies, thorough due diligence frameworks, and impact measurement guidance to help you make the most informed decisions possible.
What if family board members disagree with your recommendations?
That's not only normal, it's healthy. Our role is to facilitate productive conversations and present options, not to dictate decisions. When board members disagree, we help structure the discussion, clarify trade-offs, and explore creative solutions that might bridge different perspectives. Your board retains full decision-making authority. We're here to inform your choices, not make them for you.
Who has final authority over our foundation's grantmaking?
Your foundation's board of directors retains all legal authority and fiduciary responsibility for grantmaking decisions. Our recommendations are advisory only. If you have legal restrictions in your governing documents, trust agreements, or founding documents, those supersede any guidance we provide. We work within your foundation's existing legal and governance framework.
How do you handle confidentiality for family matters?
We maintain strict confidentiality regarding all family and financial information. Family governance discussions, succession planning, and interpersonal dynamics shared with us remain confidential. We will not use your foundation's name or identifying information in marketing materials without your written consent. Any case studies or references would be anonymized unless you specifically authorize otherwise.
Do you replace our role as primary financial advisor?
Absolutely not. We complement your services rather than competing with them. You remain the primary financial relationship, and we provide specialized charitable giving expertise that enhances your value proposition. We always coordinate with you and keep you informed throughout any client engagement. Think of us as your philanthropic specialist—similar to how you might work with an estate planning attorney or CPA. We handle the deep-dive philanthropic strategy while you maintain the overall client relationship and wealth management.
How do you charge for services?
Our fees are project-based or retainer-based depending on the scope of work. For individual client engagements you refer, we charge the client directly—you never pay us. For advisor partnerships where we provide ongoing support to your practice, we charge you an annual retainer that covers multiple clients and educational programming. We're completely transparent about our fees with both you and your clients upfront. There are no hidden costs or surprise charges. Many advisors find our services actually strengthen client relationships and retention, making the investment worthwhile.
Can we get references from previous clients?
Yes, though we protect client confidentiality carefully. We can connect you with other financial advisors who use our services and can speak to their experience working with us. For specific client engagements, we'll only provide references with the client's express written permission. We're also happy to provide case studies (with identifying information removed) that demonstrate how our philanthropic guidance has enhanced advisor-client relationships and supported comprehensive wealth planning.
Do you earn commissions on charitable products?
No. We earn zero commissions, referral fees, or incentive payments from any charitable giving product, platform, or organization. We don't sell DAF accounts, insurance products, charitable trusts, or any other financial instruments. Our compensation comes solely from advisory fees paid directly by clients or advisor partners. This means our recommendations are based purely on what's best for your client's philanthropic goals, not on what generates revenue for us. We operate as fiduciaries, with our clients' best interests as our only consideration.
What if we want to white-label your services?
We're open to discussing white-label or co-branded arrangements depending on the nature of the partnership and your practice's needs. Some advisors prefer to present philanthropic planning as part of their comprehensive service offering, while others are comfortable introducing us as a specialized partner. We can adapt our approach to fit your business model and client communication preferences. Let's have a conversation about what would work best for your practice.
How do you protect confidential client information?
We maintain strict confidentiality of all financial and personal information shared with us. We use secure document storage systems, encrypt sensitive communications, and limit information sharing to what's necessary for philanthropic planning purposes. We will not share your clients' information with any third parties without written authorization from both you and your client. If you authorize us to coordinate with other advisors on your client's team (estate attorneys, CPAs), we only share information relevant to that specific coordination. Client information is never used for marketing purposes without explicit permission.
What's your cancellation or termination policy?
For project-based engagements, we require 30 days written notice if you or your client wish to terminate before completion. You'll be billed for work completed to date. For annual partnership retainers, either party can terminate with 60 days written notice. We'll prorate the final billing period and ensure a smooth transition of any active client work. Our goal is always to maintain positive professional relationships, and we handle transitions professionally and with minimal disruption to your clients.

Frequently asked questions.

Disclaimers

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