The Helen Brown Group

What The Helen Brown Group does

The Helen Brown Group is a Watertown, Massachusetts-based prospect research and fundraising intelligence consulting firm founded in 2005 by Helen Brown and operating as The Helen Brown Group LLC. The firm serves nonprofit organizations — spanning higher education, healthcare, arts and culture, social services, environmental, and international humanitarian organizations — with three primary service lines: Data Insight (analytics and wealth screening), Dedicated Consulting (retainer-based research partnerships functioning as embedded extensions of client advancement teams), and A La Carte Reports (on-demand prospect intelligence). All service revenue is delivered by a distributed team of approximately 30+ senior consultants, most of whom are former in-house prospect research directors and analysts from institutions such as Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, the University of Chicago, Wharton, the Met, and major teaching hospitals.

The firm's underlying technology is intentionally lean: a proprietary database product called DAFinitive®, marketed as the only searchable database for donor-advised fund information, is the firm's only true software asset and the only meaningful lever for scaling beyond consultant hours. Beyond DAFinitive, the operating model relies on curated research resources, a wealth lists library, and specialized human research methodologies rather than proprietary AI, ML, or platform infrastructure. The business model mixes subscription/recurring revenue from dedicated consulting retainers with project-based professional services revenue from a la carte reports and data insight engagements, supplemented by emerging DAFinitive subscription revenue; pricing is custom and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is sales-led and direct, supported by content marketing (The Intelligent Edge weekly newsletter, active blog, the 2013 Wiley-published reference book 'Prospect Research for Fundraisers'), LinkedIn presence, and ongoing conference speaking and NEDRA faculty roles that compound category authority in a narrow professional niche. In 2024, founder Helen Brown sold the firm to Melissa Bank Stepno, a 25-year industry veteran and former Apra president, who now serves as President & CEO while Helen Brown continues as Special Advisor.

Name

The Helen Brown Group

Legal name

The Helen Brown Group LLC

Website

https://helenbrowngroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Helen Brown Group is a US-based prospect research and fundraising intelligence consultancy, founded in 2005, that serves nonprofit organizations across higher education, healthcare, arts, and humanitarian sectors with dedicated consulting retainers, on-demand research reports, data analytics, and the DAFinitive® DAF donor database.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Prospect Research and Fundraising Intelligence Consulting

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Philanthropy & Foundations Advisory (Donor-Advised Funds, Endowments) (FSAAABAH)

Keywords

• Prospect research consulting
• Fundraising intelligence services
• Nonprofit donor research
• Wealth screening assistance
• Prospect management consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Watertown

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dedicated Consulting / Retainer Services: Ongoing retainer engagements providing prospect research, prospect management, due diligence, and data insight as a fully integrated extension of the client's team. Recurring revenue model.
2. A La Carte Research Reports: Actionable, on-demand research reports delivered to clients as needed, providing specific prospect intelligence on a per-project basis.
3. Data Insight Analytics: Data analytics services including wealth screening, donor conversion and upgrade analysis, and prospect identification delivered as discrete service engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Helen Brown Group is a prospect research and fundraising intelligence consulting firm that delivers retainer-based dedicated research, on-demand a la carte prospect reports, data insight/wealth analytics, and wealth screening assistance to nonprofit organizations. It also offers DAFinitive®, its proprietary searchable database for donor-advised fund information, which the firm describes as the only such database in the market. Services are positioned as an embedded extension of each client's development team, supporting prospect identification, donor cultivation, campaign planning, and due diligence for organizations of all sizes and missions.

Product overview

The Helen Brown Group is a prospect research and fundraising intelligence consulting firm founded in 2005, operating as a services-based consultancy rather than a software platform. Its core portfolio consists of three primary service lines — Data Insight (analytics), Dedicated Consulting (retainer-based research partnerships), and A La Carte Reports (on-demand research) — supplemented by Wealth Screening Assistance, Analytics Services, and the proprietary searchable database DAFinitive for donor-advised fund information. The firm also publishes The Intelligent Edge as a weekly newsletter/editorial brand and maintains a Resource Library of curated research links. Together, these offerings form a concierge research model in which skilled analysts supplement or staff a nonprofit's prospect development function.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DAFinitive®: The only searchable database for information about donor-advised funds (DAFs), operated by The Helen Brown Group.

Products and services

• Dedicated Consulting Retainer-based research and prospect management partnership providing nonprofit organizations with a dedicated research consultant integrated into their team on an ongoing basis. Deliverables include prospect research, prospect management, due diligence, and data insight delivered as an embedded extension of the client's development function.
• A La Carte Reports On-demand, task-specific prospect research reports delivered to nonprofit clients on a per-request basis, providing actionable donor and prospect intelligence without an ongoing engagement. Each report focuses on specific prospect questions as scoped per client request.
• Data Insight Data analytics and wealth insight service focused on discovering, converting, and upgrading donors and prospects for nonprofit clients. Includes donor conversion and upgrade analysis, prospect identification, and segmented portfolio strategies.
• Wealth Screening Assistance Advisory and hands-on support for nonprofit organizations conducting donor wealth screenings, including data preparation, vendor selection, result interpretation, and strategic integration into portfolio management.
• DAFinitive® The only searchable database for information about donor-advised funds, developed and offered by The Helen Brown Group. Enables clients to find DAF donors, fund names, areas of interest, and more — providing a unique data asset unavailable elsewhere in the market.
• Analytics Services Fundraising analytics consulting covering research department audits, research department training, and customized analytics solutions for nonprofit clients.
• Research Department Audits and Training Structured audits of a client's prospect research function, alongside training programs to upskill client research staff, helping nonprofit organizations build or improve in-house research capacity.
• Customized News Alerts Customized news and philanthropy-trigger alerts tailored to a client's prospect and donor list, enabling development teams to receive timely information about named individuals relevant to their portfolio.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clients report exceeding fundraising goals as a result of HBG's prospect research, due diligence, and data insight services.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• WealthEngine: Wealth analytics and prospect research data platform. Provides data-driven tools that compete with parts of HBG's data insight and wealth screening services.
• Kindsight: Wealth screening and prospect research data platform for nonprofits (formerly iWave). Emerging player providing technology-driven, data-led alternatives to traditional prospect research consulting.
• DonorSearch: Wealth and philanthropic data provider offering prospect research and screening tools for nonprofits. Emerging player competing in the prospect intelligence and screening space.
• Windfall: Wealth data platform with applications in prospect research and donor identification. Emerging player offering technology-driven wealth intelligence increasingly used by nonprofit fundraising teams.

Direct peers

• Factary Ltd. UK-based prospect research and fundraising intelligence consultancy, explicitly referenced in HBG founder Helen Brown's board affiliations. Direct competitor in the same niche of nonprofit prospect research and DAF/grantmaking research.
• ResearchPoint: Blackbaud's prospect research services arm providing prospect identification, wealth screening, and ratings for nonprofits. Direct competitor combining technology with human-delivered prospect research services.
• Alexander Haas: Fundraising and campaign consulting firm serving nonprofits, including prospect research and campaign counsel. Direct competitor in the nonprofit fundraising consulting space with similar institutional client base.
• Veritus Group: Major-gifts fundraising services firm offering prospect research and donor cultivation support for nonprofits. Direct competitor focused on major-gifts prospect research similar to HBG's Dedicated Consulting.

Broad incumbents

• Blackbaud: Public software company (NASDAQ: BLKB) serving nonprofits with CRM, fundraising, and prospect research tools. HBG's incoming CEO previously worked at Blackbaud. Broad incumbent with overlapping capabilities across the fundraising intelligence stack.

Others

• Apra International: Professional association for prospect development researchers; HBG leadership has deep involvement (board service, awards, conference faculty). Not a competitor but a key ecosystem participant shaping the prospect research profession.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-helen-brown-group-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Helen Brown Group