Affinity Connection
Affinity Connection is a boutique consulting firm that designs and executes alumni, nonprofit, and faith-based fundraising campaigns using a proprietary E=MC² emotional-connection methodology, primarily serving Greek alumni groups, education foundations, and small-to-mid nonprofits in the United States.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersState College, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Affinity Connection does
Affinity Connection is a privately held, founder-led boutique consulting firm headquartered in State College, Pennsylvania, that provides fundraising strategy, storytelling, and donor-engagement services to mission-driven organizations, alumni interest groups, education foundations, faith-based charities, and athletic nonprofits. Established in 2000 (and tracing its lineage to the 1972-founded Stewart Howe Alumni Association), the firm operates remotely with a small specialist team of approximately nine named staff covering writing, project management, strategic content, data and analytics, digital editing, graphic design, and administration. The company's core intellectual property is its proprietary E=MC² (Emotion = Meaning × Connection²) methodology, which it positions as a tested formula for driving 10x donor growth and unlocking fundraising results; the founder, Greg Woodman, personally 'quarterbacks' enterprise-level engagements.
The firm sells through a founder-led direct sales motion, offering free consultations as the entry point, and generates revenue through three primary streams: monthly retainer engagements priced at $3,500-$5,200 (over typical 12-18 month campaign windows), percentage-of-goal pricing at approximately 6% of campaign goal (versus ~15% in the traditional lead-gift-officer model), and a la carte services such as wealth screening ($800-$2,500), website development ($1,000-$2,500), and campaign communications ($15,000-$40,000 per year). A secondary DIY Campaign Support model allows clients to execute campaigns with volunteer-led solicitations while Affinity Connection provides project management, training, and back-office support. Documented client outcomes include a 500% increase in annual fundraising at Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown, $2M+ raised by Chi Psi Michigan in under 14 months, a $3.4M Sigma Nu Georgia Tech capital campaign, and 27 consecutive years as Penn State's top Greek fundraising organization for Alpha Tau Omega.
Affinity Connection's technology posture is minimal by design: the firm is described as a services firm rather than a software platform, with no proprietary application, API, integrations, or AI/ML capabilities disclosed. Its competitive differentiation rests on founder reputation (Greg Woodman's track record transforming Airwalk to a $200M brand), content library and thought leadership (blog, eBooks, video trainings, gated success catalogs), and a turnkey specialist team that small nonprofit and alumni boards cannot replicate internally. The company is bootstrapped, with no institutional investors, no M&A activity, and no disclosed revenue figures, suggesting a stable but unscaled operating profile.
Affinity Connection firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Affinity Connection
- Legal name
- Affinity Connection
- Website
- https://affinityconnection.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Affinity Connection is a boutique consulting firm that designs and executes alumni, nonprofit, and faith-based fundraising campaigns using a proprietary E=MC² emotional-connection methodology, primarily serving Greek alumni groups, education foundations, and small-to-mid nonprofits in the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Affinity Connection industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Nonprofit Fundraising Consulting
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (541810)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Festival & Live Entertainment Brand Partnerships (MPAAAGAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Brand Partnerships & Endorsement Agencies (MPAIAGAF)
Keywords
Where Affinity Connection is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- State College
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Affinity Connection business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others
Revenue model
- Strategic Consulting & Campaign Management: Monthly retainer-based consulting services including campaign management, strategic planning, growth strategy activation, and ongoing coaching. Fee structures range from $3,500-$5,000 per month for full-service campaign support, or $3,800-$5,200 per month for organic friend-raising approach over 12-18 months.
- Percentage-of-Campaign Consulting: Fees calculated as approximately 6% of final campaign goal for the friend-raising approach. For traditional lead gift officer model, fees are approximately 15% of the goal.
- A la Carte Services: Individual services including website development ($1,000-$2,500), wealth screening ($800-$2,500), campaign communications ($15,000-$40,000 per year), and content creation. Annual fund support at $10-$15 per member per year.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Organic Friend-Raising Approach |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Traditional Lead Gift Officer Model |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | DIY Campaign Support |
| Unit Pricing | One time/ perpetual license | Wealth Screening |
| One time/ perpetual license | One time/ perpetual license | Website / Landing Page Development |
| Subscription | Annual | Campaign Communications & Content |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels6 records
Affinity Connection product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Affinity Connection is a boutique growth strategy and storytelling firm that helps mission-driven organizations, nonprofits, and alumni interest groups grow fundraising revenue through emotional connection. The firm applies a proprietary E = MC² (Emotion = Meaning × Connection²) methodology across campaign management, strategic consulting, content creation, donor database management, wealth screening, website development, and event support. Services are delivered through both full-service campaign management and a DIY support model where volunteers execute solicitations under firm guidance.
Product overview
Affinity Connection is a boutique growth strategy and storytelling firm that offers a comprehensive suite of fundraising and marketing services for mission-driven organizations, nonprofits, and alumni interest groups. The core offering centers on their proprietary 'friend-raising' methodology (E = MC² formula) combined with strategic storytelling to create emotional connections that drive donations. Services include database management, content creation and distribution, campaign development (annual funds and capital campaigns), website design, event support, and wealth screening. They operate both as full-service campaign managers and through a DIY support model where volunteers execute solicitations under their guidance. The company was established in 2000 and was previously known as Stewart Howe Alumni Association (founded in 1972).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Alumni Fundraising Programs
Quantifiable outcome
- 10x donor growth achieved using E=MC² emotional connection methodology
- +9 more outcomes
Companies that use Affinity Connection
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Affinity Connection technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Affinity Connection partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Affinity Connection competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TrueSense Marketing: TrueSense Marketing specializes in direct response fundraising for nonprofits, including donor acquisition, renewal, and lapsed donor reactivation. Overlaps with Affinity Connection's donor engagement, database management, and direct mail capabilities.
- Lipman Hearne: Lipman Hearne is a marketing and branding agency specializing in nonprofit and higher education clients. Direct overlap with Affinity Connection in mission-driven marketing, branding, and audience engagement strategy.
- Mal Warwick Donordigital: Mal Warwick Donordigital is an integrated fundraising agency serving nonprofits with direct mail, digital, and strategic fundraising services. Comparable in donor communications, multi-channel fundraising campaigns, and nonprofit-focused service mix.
- BWF (formerly Bentz Whaley Flessner): BWF is a fundraising and nonprofit consulting firm providing campaign counsel, development planning, and analytics services. Competes with Affinity Connection in capital campaigns and major gift fundraising for nonprofits and educational institutions.
- GlynnDevins: GlynnDevins is a marketing agency serving affinity groups, membership organizations, and senior living communities. Comparable in audience engagement strategy, content-driven marketing, and serving membership-based organizations.
- Pursuant: Pursuant (formed from the merger of Russ Reid and other agencies) is a fundraising and donor engagement agency combining strategic consulting, data, and direct response fundraising. Direct competitor in nonprofit fundraising marketing with overlapping service offerings.
- Alexander Haas: Alexander Haas is a fundraising counsel firm focused on capital campaigns, major gifts, and feasibility studies for nonprofits and educational institutions. Closely comparable to Affinity Connection's strategic fundraising consulting focus.
- The Lukens Company: The Lukens Company is a direct response fundraising and marketing agency for nonprofits, with capabilities in donor acquisition, membership programs, and multi-channel fundraising campaigns. Comparable in nonprofit direct marketing and donor engagement focus.
- Campbell & Company: Campbell & Company is a national fundraising consulting firm that helps nonprofits plan and execute capital campaigns, annual giving, and major gift programs. Comparable to Affinity Connection in delivering end-to-end fundraising strategy and counsel to mission-driven clients.
- CCS Fundraising: CCS Fundraising is one of the largest fundraising consulting firms in the US, providing campaign management, development counsel, and strategic fundraising services to nonprofits - a direct competitor in the same fundraising consulting category Affinity Connection operates in.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Affinity Connection social profiles
Digital presenceAffinity Connection financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Affinity Connection leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Affinity Connection funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Affinity Connection M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Affinity Connection
What does Affinity Connection do?
Affinity Connection is a boutique growth strategy and storytelling firm that helps mission-driven organizations, nonprofits, and alumni interest groups grow fundraising revenue through emotional connection. The firm applies a proprietary E = MC² (Emotion = Meaning × Connection²) methodology across campaign management, strategic consulting, content creation, donor database management, wealth screening, website development, and event support. Services are delivered through both full-service campaign management and a DIY support model where volunteers execute solicitations under firm guidance.
Is Affinity Connection a public or private company?
Affinity Connection is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Affinity Connection founded?
Affinity Connection was founded in 2000. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Affinity Connection based?
Affinity Connection is headquartered in State College, United States, in the North America region.
How does Affinity Connection make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Strategic Consulting & Campaign Management is the primary driver. The others are percentage-of-Campaign Consulting and A la Carte Services.
Who are Affinity Connection's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TrueSense Marketing, Lipman Hearne, Mal Warwick Donordigital, BWF (formerly Bentz Whaley Flessner), GlynnDevins, Pursuant, Alexander Haas, The Lukens Company, Campbell & Company and CCS Fundraising.
Does Affinity Connection have an API?
No public API is recorded for Affinity Connection.
What industry is Affinity Connection in?
Affinity Connection's product category is Nonprofit Fundraising Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAGAF, Festival & Live Entertainment Brand Partnerships, with a secondary code of MPAIAGAF, Brand Partnerships & Endorsement Agencies. Its NAICS code is 541810 and its SIC code is 7311.