Hot Takes on Trends in Nonprofit Consulting with Jess and Cindy

The last four years have just been this inundation of online learning education. Even myself, I feel full to the brim with knowledge. It's like, I can't learn one more thing. I just need this done. So if you're not doing some sort of done-for-you service and you're having a 2024 on the struggle bus, I challenge you to consider what you could do for people at a high price - Jess Campbell

Hot Takes on Trends in Nonprofit Consulting with Jess and Cindy

We see behind the scenes of a LOT of nonprofit consulting businesses. On today’s podcast, we’re talking about trends that we are seeing for those who are finding success this year.

Discover how narrowing your niche and building strategic relationships can unlock a steady stream of ideal clients. Learn the power of offering "done-for-you" services to provide immense value while commanding premium prices.

Key Highlights:

• Understand the importance of specializing in a specific niche to position yourself as the go-to expert and attract clients seeking your unique expertise.

• Master the art of networking and relationship-building to cultivate a loyal following of raving fans who actively refer business your way.

• Explore the rising demand for "done-for-you" services that alleviate the burden on overstretched nonprofit leaders and justify higher investment.

• Gain insights into crafting irresistible "done-for-you" offers that provide tangible results while freeing up your clients' time and resources.

• Hear real-world examples and success stories from consultants who have implemented these strategies to skyrocket their revenue and impact.

00:04:10 Success Story: Kel Haney's Niche Approach

Kel Haney's success story is highlighted, focusing on her niche approach in fundraising, networking, and surpassing revenue goals by being super niche and well-networked.

00:06:17 Trend: Rise of Done For You Services

The trend of offering 'done for you' services in response to the saturation of online learning is discussed, emphasizing the value of providing services instead of just teaching for success in the industry.

00:09:55 The Importance of One-to-One Clients in Nonprofit Consulting

Starting with one-to-one clients before transitioning to group programs is crucial for managing client expectations and building relationships for long-term success in nonprofit consulting.

00:11:45 Emphasizing the Power of Email Newsletters

Email newsletters are highlighted as a key marketing tool for building relationships, nurturing clients, and showcasing personality in nonprofit consulting.

00:12:52 Building Know, Like, and Trust Through Email Newsletters

Email newsletters play a significant role in establishing trust with clients, leading to quicker positive responses and opportunities for business growth in nonprofit consulting.

00:13:42 The Importance of Explicitly Asking for Business

Explicitly asking for business, showcasing how you can help, and requesting referrals are crucial steps in expanding your client base in nonprofit consulting.

Find Us Online:  https://www.confessionswithjessandcindy.com

Connect with Cindy:

Cindy Wagman Coaching: cindywagman.com

Fractional Fundraising Network: fractionalfundraising.co/

LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/cindywagman

Connect with Jess:

Out In the Boons: outintheboons.me

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jesscampbelloutintheboons/

Transcript:

[00:00:00 - 00:00:03]
Welcome to the Confessions podcast. I'm Cindy Wagman.

[00:00:03 - 00:00:11]
And I'm Jess Campbell. Where two former in house nonprofit pros turn coaches and consultants to purpose driven organizations.

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After years of building up our separate six figure businesses from scratch, we've thrown a lot of spaghetti at the wall and lived to see what sticks.

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We're on a mission to help other nonprofit coaches and consultants looking to start or scale their own businesses past the six figure mark by pulling back the curtain.

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Whether you're still working inside a nonprofit and thinking of one day going out on your own or you've been running your consulting business for years, you understand that working with nonprofits is just different. We're giving you access to the business leaders who serve nonprofits as their clients. You know, the people who truly get it.

[00:00:51 - 00:01:10]
No more gatekeeping, no more secrets. This podcast is going to give you an inside look at what running a successful, successful nonprofit coaching and consulting business looks like. Basically, we're asking people how much money they make, how they get paid, and what has and hasn't worked in their businesses.

[00:01:11 - 00:01:27]
Listen in as these leaders share their insights, their numbers, and the good, the bad, and the ugly. When it comes to building a nonprofit coaching or consulting business, we're going to empower you to make the power moves that give you the income and freedom you set out to create from day one.

[00:01:28 - 00:01:30]
You ready? Let's go.

[00:01:31 - 00:01:32]
Hey, Jess.

[00:01:32 - 00:01:34]
Hi. We're back.

[00:01:34 - 00:01:52]
We're back. And actually, this is. We just. We're calling this episode a quick and dirty episode. Cause, full disclosure, we're running out of time and we need some episodes, so we're just batching them here. But it's all. It's gonna be a good one. Cause it means we have to get super focused. So, yeah.

[00:01:52 - 00:01:56]
So what we wanna talk to you all about today is trends.

[00:01:56 - 00:01:56]
I.

[00:01:56 - 00:02:02]
Both Cindy and I are watching everything. Like, I would agree.

[00:02:03 - 00:02:04]
We're watching you.

[00:02:04 - 00:02:43]
And this is your reminder that, like, we can't see what you don't put out there. So for folks who are maybe a little less, like, online or on email or whatever, like, we can't see what you're doing. But we do want to talk about what we've seen going on that's really working. Because especially in the build better communities win channels, the folks that are sharing wins. There's a theme, and so we want to talk about it, especially because this year has been so darn weird. We don't want to gatekeep the things that we think are really helping these folks succeed. All right, go first.

[00:02:43 - 00:04:09]
Okay, so I'm shouting out to one of my clients who's going to be on the podcast soon, Kel Haney, who is, she started her business less than a year ago, and we started working together almost immediately. And what I love about what Kel is doing, there's two things. One is she is like super, super, super niche. Like, she knows exactly. Like, she's owning a space, which I thought was really hard to do in fundraising in this day and age. But she has her really unique offer, which is phone based relationship building for mid level donors to increase giving. Um, she has great results. The five minute ask. Yeah. And. But what's really working for her is a. The niche. And when we started working together, and she'll say this when we talk, but she had like, a laundry list of things she wanted to do. Write a book, host a podcast, build an email list, build a LinkedIn following, all those things which are important. But where Kel has focused her time is on relationship building, which, again, is aligned to her business. But relationship building. I was like, I need you to network. I need you to talk to people, be in front of people. She lives in Portland, Maine. She lives on a little island, Vega island. Yeah. She go, are you going to visit her?

[00:04:10 - 00:04:11]
I want to.

[00:04:11 - 00:04:14]
Yeah. You were supposed to go to Maine, and I think it's canceled. It's postponed.

[00:04:14 - 00:04:15]
Delayed.

[00:04:15 - 00:04:16]
Delayed.

[00:04:16 - 00:04:24]
I don't really want to go to the east coast, no offense to the east coast in like July and August, like when California is so nice, like showing off.

[00:04:24 - 00:04:30]
Yeah, fair enough. But I wouldn't go to Maine any other time. So anyways, that's another story.

[00:04:30 - 00:04:31]
No, like September.

[00:04:32 - 00:05:18]
Sure, sure. Yeah. But what? So she was, I just said, meet with people. Just meet with people. Get to know them. Start talking about what you're doing, get their feedback. And honestly, that is how she's closing. Not just clients, but like bigger ticket clients, trainings, a whole bunch of stuff. Yeah. And then also she has her, like, introductory offer and then sort of a longer retainer offer. So her first goal for this year was $50,000 in revenue. And it's July, June, and she's already, I think she just surpassed that. And now her goal is 100,000 for the year. So what she will do super, super, super niche and really, really networked.

[00:05:19 - 00:05:36]
And I mean, I'll just say it again, I associate major gifts or asks or phone and I think, hell, like, there is no other person. And I just, for folks out there trying to do a lot, and hey, I was that person for like, the first six years of my business, you're.

[00:05:36 - 00:05:39]
Like, hey, here's a list of ten things I can do for your.

[00:05:39 - 00:06:08]
Because you can. Because you can. But I think it's just in the last, like, 18 months where if, like, you think email, you think, Jess, at least that's my goals. And. And I think there is so much value in that because, I mean, I can think of ten consultants right now, and I couldn't associate. I couldn't do that. Word association. And so if you can't do word association with that, probably time to niche a little bit.

[00:06:08 - 00:06:14]
I feel like that should be a game show. Nonprofit consultants, word association and how.

[00:06:16 - 00:06:17]
Okay, I have another trend.

[00:06:17 - 00:06:20]
Yes. Who are you seeing and what's the trend?

[00:06:20 - 00:07:25]
Okay, so my trend is done for you services. So the last four years has just been this in inundation. Is that the right word of online learning, education. And even myself, I feel full to the brim with knowledge. It's like I can't learn one more thing. I just need this thing done. And so if you are not doing some sort of done for you and you're having a 2024 in, like, a little bit of the struggle bus, I challenge you to maybe consider what in your world, what in your offer, what do you teach that you could actually just do it for people? Yeah. And do it at a high price. Like, it is a premium service to have the work just off someone's plate. And so I just. Yeah, I see people out there just doing, like, a lot of the teaching and wondering while they're falling flat. And it's like, it's not. Because what you're teaching isn't important. It isn't good.

[00:07:25 - 00:07:26]
Good.

[00:07:26 - 00:07:43]
You're not a great person teaching it. It's just people are maxed out and they just need it done. And the truth is, and this is the question I've been swirling around. Like, not everyone wants to learn or get good at doing everything. Like, exactly. They just want it done.

[00:07:43 - 00:09:13]
Sometimes it adds to the burden of our sector of, like, trying to squeeze out as much value from every single person in house. I mean, I'm so one of our friends. We've seen this with Tanya Bhattacharya has. She still does some of the teaching, but, oh, my goodness, her business is transforming because she's introduced a high ticket done for you. And it is game changing. Yeah. And what I'm seeing with fractional fundraising, like, I hate to say this because I want to be sensitive. Like, it is a hard year for a lot of people. But the fractional fundraisers that I'm working with, they're getting clients. They're getting clients quickly because it is done for you. And I've heard people say, well, you know, I don't want to go into an organization, do something for them for a bunch of times for a period of time. And then when I leave, they don't have the capacity. And I understand that, but right now, the work just needs to get done. And you can teach, but if you teach and they're not doing or implementing what you teach, that's also not good for them. Totally. So I have been recommending, like, these higher ticket, like, done for you or done with you services, because I do think organizations are strapped when it comes to human resources even more than money. And if you can not only do something, but do it well and take the mental load off of the executive director chef's kiss, you're. You're doing good work.

[00:09:14 - 00:09:53]
I agree. So, yeah, we're recording this in the summer. I think Q three, Q four is going to be hopefully, a resurgence. I think that we're going through a bit of a lull right now. So if you can Jerry rig an offer, too, or if you're having these calls with clients and you don't currently offer something that can just be taken off their plate, like, maybe consider that. And again, if you're like, I don't want to work with clients. You don't have to do this forever. This is. We're just trying to get through 2024 people. So just try it out and see how it goes and charge a premium and get through this year and then see.

[00:09:53 - 00:09:53]
Yeah.

[00:09:54 - 00:09:55]
And then go back and, in fact.

[00:09:55 - 00:10:41]
Like, one of the things that we've talked about before, about a while ago, is, like, so many nonprofit consultants, when they're starting out, they have these, like, done for you clients, but then they'll grow a group program or think that they're known for their group program. And so oftentimes, we don't see that even these really successful people who are running group programs still have one to one clients. And I think that does a disservice to the space around managing people's expectations. Most people, if they're early in the first five years of their business, I would say if they're making money, they have at least some one to one clients, because you cannot start out just one to many. It just.

[00:10:41 - 00:10:42]
No, the math.

[00:10:42 - 00:10:44]
Profitably. Yeah.

[00:10:44 - 00:10:47]
Yeah. The math does not math. No. Yeah. Okay. Do you have any more?

[00:10:48 - 00:11:45]
I have more examples of those, too. I mean, I talked about this like the one to one type sales as well because like, you know, relationship building, I do think like between email and one on one and networking and building those relationships are the two best ways to get clients. Like building your email list takes a little bit more time. It's not as profitable, but the high ticket. The clients that you want that are paying 1520, $50,000 for work, they're not coming from like a launch or anything like that. They are coming because they know you or they've been referred to by someone they really trust. So I would just, with all the marketing trends and stuff like that, this is not new, but I think it's so important right now, focus on those relationships because that's where, that's where you're going to be successful.

[00:11:45 - 00:12:52]
Yeah, I agree. The last thing that I'll say I'm bullish on, and it's something I actually don't see in a lot of nonprofit consultants, is email newsletters. As Cindy mentioned their it can take some time to build an email list, but I'm talking about like the actual content of an email newsletter. In fact, I'm currently running a bundle and I like to send updates and I can literally tell when someone sends a newsletter out about an offer because it's just like Spike. And maybe we should talk about this in general because I unfortunately see a lot of consultants doing email just absolutely wrong in terms of like nurturing and storytelling and delivering their personality, which is such a bummer because I know that they're putting effort into this marketing channel. So maybe we'll have to have another episode on newsletters. But I really do think that like, I'm bullish on newsletters. I'm all business.

[00:12:52 - 00:13:42]
Yeah, I'm overhauling mine in part due to inspiration. You as my inspiration. But I mean, tied to that, which again, I think could be a different conversation, is your newsletter does build no like and trust a hundred percent. It makes it so that when people do work with you, they're quicker to say yes. And this is online with e newsletters and also with the networking and building relationships, you also have to ask for business. And that is potentially a bigger conversation. But really quickly, like letting people know. And again, this goes back to the nation, how you help, what it is you do and what your capacity is for new clients and giving them the opportunity to either say yes or introduce you to other people requires you to explicitly ask for that.

[00:13:42 - 00:13:55]
Going back to what I said, like, people don't know what they can like, read, see hear about, like, exactly. No one's out there just wondering, oh, I wonder about so and so. Like, no, everyone's busy and head down.

[00:13:55 - 00:13:56]
Yeah, yeah.

[00:13:56 - 00:14:13]
So. And I really. I'm. I am the first admit I'm not the greatest at asking for business shit. I'm, like the worst. But. But on the flip side, I really appreciate when people let me know that that's what they're looking for in me, because I love to be helpful.

[00:14:13 - 00:14:20]
Yes. Oh, that is a. I feel like that. Two follow up conversations, one on emails, one on asking for.

[00:14:20 - 00:14:22]
Let us know. Let us know what you want more about.

[00:14:22 - 00:14:28]
What else should we talk about? All right, that's our quick episode. We'll see you next time.

[00:14:28 - 00:14:29]
Bye.

[00:14:32 - 00:14:43]
Thank you again for listening to the Confessions podcast for nonprofit coaches and consultants. If you enjoyed today's episode, which I sure hope you did, you can show your support in one of three ways.

[00:14:43 - 00:14:51]
Number one, post a screenshot of this episode to your Instagram Stories or LinkedIn profile and Tag Cindy and I so we can repost you.

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Number two, share this podcast with a fellow nonprofit coach or consultant.

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And number three, leave a positive review on Apple Podcasts that we can continue to grow and reach new listeners.

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And, of course, make sure you subscribe so you can get the latest and greatest interviews as they drop every Thursday.

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And to our fellow nonprofit coaching and consulting friends, remember, or an open book. And here to answer your burning biz questions.

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See you next time.