This Is The problem
Small and mid-size teams are stretched thin, juggling too many prospects and not enough time. Larger consulting firms are expensive, slow-moving, and rarely give your fundraisers the hands-on coaching they need.
At Forward Fundraisers, we partner with organizations to:
- Build prospect strategies that actually move donors forward
- Prepare and support real solicitations
- Write case statements and proposals donors want to read
- Create accountability and momentum week after week
- Integrate AI tools that make fundraisers faster and more effective
No fluff. No theory.
Just practical coaching that leads to closed gifts.
Pathway Generator
Create a Pathway to a Gift that visually tells the donor’s journey and can be shared with colleagues who partnered to help make the gift possible.
Free eBook
Pathways to Philanthropy is a story-driven book for fundraisers who want to deepen relationships, secure transformational gifts, and grow with confidence.
Online Courses
Efficient Major Gifts is a comprehensive, four-part course designed to elevate your team into top-tier fundraisers.
Fresh Articles
- Your Board Just Met. Now What?
If you manage a university board, you already know that the meeting itself is not the work. The meetings are obviously important, but if engagement only happens three times a year around a conference table, you’re not doing it right. Board members don’t just want to attend meetings. They want to contribute. And after every… Read more: Your Board Just Met. Now What? - Maximizing 1:1s with Major Gift Officers: A Focused Coaching Prompt
I believe great fundraising leadership happens in high-quality coaching conversations. The 1:1 meetings between manager and fundraiser should help drive performance, create clarity around priorities, and keep momentum moving on open proposals. Rather than spending time on status updates alone, the goal for managers should be to ask questions that help our fundraisers think strategically… Read more: Maximizing 1:1s with Major Gift Officers: A Focused Coaching Prompt - Use AI for Relationship Mapping to Unlock Your Next Big Donor
If you want access to top donors, relationship mapping has to be part of your fundraising strategy. Relationship mapping is the process of utilizing the professional and personal networks of your board members, staff, and existing supporters to uncover paths to new prospects. There’s no substitute for a trusted introduction. A cold email might get… Read more: Use AI for Relationship Mapping to Unlock Your Next Big Donor - How I Use AI to Read Every Visit Report (Without Actually Reading Them All)
As a manager of frontline fundraisers, there’s one task I know I should be doing and almost never have enough time for: reading visit contact reports. These are the reports fundraisers enter into the CRM after meeting with a prospect. They’re often detailed, multiple paragraphs long and there are a lot of them. Reading every… Read more: How I Use AI to Read Every Visit Report (Without Actually Reading Them All) - The AI Prompt That Finally Made Fundraiser Metrics Useful
Every Monday, I receive a spreadsheet with the metrics for all the fundraisers on our team. It’s filled with columns of goals, visits, asks, closes, and percentages. But most fundraiser metrics reports don’t actually help managers manage. You glance at the numbers, look for where fundraisers are behind on their goals, and then give feedback… Read more: The AI Prompt That Finally Made Fundraiser Metrics Useful
⛊ Client Testimonial
“Working with Forward Fundraisers was a game-changer for our major gifts campaign. Their expert coaching helped us secure a $100K gift and other critical early commitments, while their structured, collaborative approach kept us focused and on track. Unlike other consultants, they provided fair, flexible, and actionable guidance that simplified the process, made major gifts feel achievable, and delivered incredible value.”
Patrick Slevin
Austin Soundwaves Executive Director