Better fundraising
starts with
understanding people.
Not more tactics. Not more pressure. We bring you strategies that are proven to work in real fundraising environments — grounded in research into human behavior, and ready to put into practice.
Three Ways to Work Together
Each engagement is built around one goal: improving the quality of the interaction between your fundraisers and donors — so your results improve, and so does the experience of doing the work.
The Donor Psychology Audit
Focused engagements for specific challenges. Each one applies behavioral and psychological insight to a defined problem — and leaves your team with something they can act on immediately.
Examples include:
Donor Relationship Accelerator Workshop
A half-day or full-day workshop for development teams — translating behavioral psychology research into practical shifts in how they approach donor conversations, asks, and stewardship. Immediately actionable.
Major Gifts Strategy Sprint
A focused 2–3 week engagement to assess and sharpen your major gifts approach — prospect prioritization, relationship strategy, and ask sequencing — through a philanthropic psychology lens.
Case for Support Development
A psychology-informed case for support that speaks to donor identity and motivation — not just organizational need. Built on an interview process with leadership, donors, and staff.
Board Giving & Engagement Training
A workshop for boards on the psychology of generosity — why people give, what gets in the way, and how to have better donor conversations. Shifts board culture from obligation to genuine engagement.
Ideal for teams with a specific challenge they need to solve now — a campaign, a stalled major gifts program, a board that isn't engaged.
A research-grounded diagnostic of the psychological dynamics shaping your donor relationships — scored, synthesized, and translated into a clear action roadmap.
What’s included:
Stakeholder interviews
Data & materials review
Full scored audit report on six peer-reviewed research frameworks to evaluate every dimension of your donor relationships
Prioritized action roadmap
Executive debrief session
30-day follow-up call
Timeline: 4 - 6 weeks
Focused Engagements
Ongoing Strategic Partnership
Clarus takes on a limited number of advisory clients each year. For those organizations, it's an ongoing strategic partnership — not a retainer in name only, but a real working relationship that gets sharper the longer it runs.
What’s included:
Ongoing access to Deanna as a strategic thought partner
Monthly advisory calls
Asynchronous support
Real-time guidance as fundraising challenges evolve
Ideal for leaders who want more than occasional consulting — a trusted strategic partner who knows their organization deeply and stays invested in what happens next.
“Working with Deanna has been one of the most valuable investments I've made in this work. I needed more than a consultant. I needed a thought partner who could help me work through donor engagement strategy, major donor cultivation and year-end giving in a way that made sense for my capacity.”
Ann Van Zee
Development & Communications Manager
Center for Conflict Resolution
“Deanna helped us see new possibilities with the donors we already had, and brought us new donors who'd never been part of our work before. The result is fundraising that feels grounded in relationships, not just asks. If you're looking for ideas on how to build strong relationships with your donors, it's worth talking to her.”
Garrett Webster, Sr.
Executive Director, Kansas City
Youth Guidance
Clarus is honored to work with…
