What Swissfundraising does

Swissfundraising is the professional membership association for fundraisers in Switzerland, founded in 1994 and headquartered in St. Gallen. It represents approximately 1,100 individual members — both employed and self-employed fundraising professionals working in Swiss nonprofit organizations — and is governed by a 5–9-member elected committee with day-to-day operations run by a 12-person secretariat led by Director Isabel Schorer. The association operates as the central professional body for the Swiss fundraising sector, providing the 'Fundraiser BR' professional registry (Berufsregister) credential, ethical guidelines with a sanctions regime, and the only national flagship conference SwissFundRaisingDay at Kursaal Bern (~400 attendees, with simultaneous German-French translation).

The organization's product portfolio spans professional education (10–12 day seminars per year, regional Erfa-Treffs in Basel, Bern, Luzern, Zürich and Romandie, monthly TalkingTuesday online sessions), the annual Swissfundraising Award (with the 'Franca' trophy), the Direct Mail Panel benchmarking tool (60+ participating NPOs, sponsored by Swiss Post), the annual Spenden- & Imagebarometer research study (with DemoSCOPE and 40+ NPOs since 2015), the Dienstleister:innen-Verzeichnis (service provider directory with 70+ companies), the annual Spendenmagazin newspaper supplement (joint with Stiftung Zewo, reaching 1M+ readers via NZZ am Sonntag, Sonntagszeitung, and Le Matin Dimanche), and a job portal. The recently launched Integrale Kommunikationsanalyse (INKA) and KI-Leitlinien (AI Guidelines) extend the offering into NPO advisory services and technology governance. Underlying technology is a membership website (operated technically by TalentWerk AG), a dedicated DM-Panel application hosted in Switzerland by Klub der guten Seiten GmbH, and a YouTube channel (SwissfundraisingTV).

Swissfundraising's business model is a classic professional-association revenue stack: recurring individual membership fees (CHF 150–540/year across three tiers), event fees (CHF 40–900 across conferences, seminars, and regional meetings), advertising and sponsorship (SwissFundRaisingDay main/co-sponsor packages CHF 2,500–8,000, banner advertising, Spendenmagazin placements up to CHF 20,000 with Zewo discount), job portal listing fees (CHF 250–300), service provider directory subscriptions (CHF 300–900/year), and project-specific sponsoring (notably Swiss Post for the DM-Panel). Multi-member organization discounts, free internship postings, and reduced rates for retirees, students, volunteers, and small NPOs (under CHF 250,000 annual donations) broaden access. The organization is a registered association (eingetragener Verein) under Swiss civil law, audited by BDO St. Gallen, and is member of the European Fundraising Association (EFA).

Name

Swissfundraising

Legal name

Swissfundraising

Website

https://swissfundraising.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Swissfundraising is the professional membership association for fundraisers in Switzerland, founded in 1994 and serving roughly 1,100 individual members. It operates the 'Fundraiser BR' professional registry, the annual SwissFundRaisingDay conference, benchmarking tools, training seminars, and a service provider directory across German- and French-speaking Switzerland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Federated Giving Organizations (e.g., United Way-type) (BPAGAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

Keywords

• Fundraising association
• Nonprofit membership
• Professional development
• Fundraising research
• Donor benchmarking

Headquarters

HQ city

St.Gallen

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: Annual membership fees from ~1,100 individual members in three tiers: standard CHF 290/year (without Berufsregister), professional CHF 540/year (with Berufsregister), and reduced CHF 150/year (for retirees, students, volunteers, small NPOs). One-time registration fee of CHF 150 for Berufsregister.
2. Event fees: Revenue from annual conference (SwissFundRaisingDay: CHF 380 members / CHF 650 non-members), day seminars (CHF 500 members / CHF 900 non-members), TalkingTuesday sessions (CHF 40 members / CHF 70 non-members), and Erfa-Treffs (CHF 40 members / CHF 70 non-members).
3. Job portal fees: Job postings charged at CHF 250 for members and CHF 300 for non-members per month-long listing. Internship postings are free.
4. Service provider directory: Service provider listings charged at CHF 300 (up to 3 competencies), CHF 450 (up to 6 competencies), or CHF 900 (up to 10 competencies) per year, plus CHF 150 for bilingual listing. Auto-renewed annually.
5. Website advertising / banners: Banner advertising on website homepage: CHF 200/week or CHF 400/month or CHF 4,000/year for members; CHF 250/week, CHF 600/month, or CHF 6,000/year for non-members.
6. Sponsoring: Swiss Post sponsors the Direct Mail Panel. Corporate sponsors for SwissFundRaisingDay (main sponsors CHF 8,000, co-sponsors CHF 4,500, exhibitors CHF 2,500/year). Project-specific sponsoring also accepted.
7. Spendenmagazin supplement advertising: Advertising placements in the annual Spendenmagazin supplement published in NZZ am Sonntag, Sonntagszeitung, and Le Matin Dimanche. Full-page ads range from CHF 5,000-16,000 (German-speaking), CHF 2,000-8,000 (French-speaking), with 50% Zewo discount on standard rates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Swissfundraising is the professional membership association for fundraisers in Switzerland, founded in 1994 and based in St.Gallen. It provides individual membership with optional Berufsregister credentialing, professional development through seminars, Erfa-Treffs, TalkingTuesday sessions, and the annual SwissFundRaisingDay conference. The association also offers the Direct Mail Panel benchmarking tool, Spenden- & Imagebarometer research study, a service provider directory, the annual Spendenmagazin newspaper supplement, and a job portal for Swiss NPO fundraising roles.

Product overview

Swissfundraising is Switzerland's professional association for fundraisers, founded in 1994 and based in St. Gallen. The organization serves approximately 1,100 individual members and offers a portfolio of member services including professional education (seminars, Erfa-Treffs regional meetings, TalkingTuesday online sessions), the annual SwissFundraisingDay conference, the Swissfundraising Award, the Direct Mail Panel benchmarking tool, the Spenden- & Imagebarometer annual research study, a service provider directory with over 70 listings, the annual Spendenmagazin advertising supplement, and AI guidelines for responsible technology use. The organization operates primarily as a membership-based professional association rather than a software product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 60 organizations use Direct Mail Panel for benchmarking their direct mail operations against aggregated market data
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• European Fundraising Association (EFA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEFA is a network of national fundraising organizations in Europe. Swissfundraising is a member, providing its members with reduced rates for conferences of sister organizations belonging to EFA (including DFRV, FVA, and AFF). Members also receive the Fundraizine publication from AFF.
• Swiss Post (Die Post / La Poste)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSwiss Post is the main sponsor of the Direct Mail Panel tool, enabling the annual fee to remain at CHF 300 (a reduced rate). Swiss Post has supported this benchmarking tool for many years, making it accessible to Swiss nonprofits for comparing their direct mail operations against market benchmarks.
• Stiftung ZewocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZewo is the Swiss certification body for public-benefit organizations that collect donations. Swissfundraising and Zewo jointly publish the annual Spendenmagazin supplement in leading Swiss newspapers. Both organizations jointly vet nonprofits eligible to advertise in the supplement, requiring adherence to Swissfundraising ethical guidelines and Zewo standards.
• ZHAW School of Management and Law – ZKM (Zentrum für Kulturmanagement)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerZKM is a center for cultural management at ZHAW dealing with fundraising management in research and continuing education. Since 2004, ZKM has contributed to the qualification and professionalization of fundraisers through current, scientifically grounded, and practice-oriented continuing education programs. Since 2008, ZKM has also conducted scientific research on fundraising topics. Swissfundraising members receive preferential rates for ZHAW courses.
• VMI (Verbandsmanagement Institut – Institute for Association Management)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVMI is an institute at the University of Fribourg dedicated to scientific and interdisciplinary research, teaching, and consulting in nonprofit organization management. Swissfundraising members receive preferential rates for VMI fundraising management education programs.
• Haute école de gestion de Genève (HEG)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeneva School of Management offers a certified fundraising training program. The CAS Fundraising enables participants to develop strategic competencies for effective campaigns across different donor segments. Swissfundraising members receive preferential rates for HEG courses.
• Fundraising-MagazinminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGerman-language specialist magazine covering social marketing, donation sector, and foundations. Listed as a media partner of Swissfundraising, providing members with free subscriptions.
• persönlich magazineminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSwiss communication magazine. Listed as a media partner providing members with 10 free issues per year.
• DemoSCOPEminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwiss market research company commissioned to conduct the Barometer of Donations and Image study in cooperation with over 40 Swiss nonprofits since 2015. Study results are representative of the Swiss population aged 15+ by language region.
• BDO (St.Gallen)minorOthersBDO St.Gallen serves as the statutory audit authority for Swissfundraising, elected by the general assembly to verify annual accounts.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• European Fundraising Association (EFA): Umbrella network of national fundraising organizations across Europe of which Swissfundraising is a member. Not a direct competitor; rather a strategic partner that aggregates the peer associations listed above and coordinates cross-border member benefits (Fundraizine, reciprocal conference rates).
• Resource Alliance: International nonprofit focused on fundraising and resource mobilization capacity-building (operator of the IFC Congress referenced in Swissfundraising's award prize). Adjacent rather than directly competitive; relevant as an international convening partner and a potential threat in the high-end conference/training segment.
• Stiftung Zewo: Swiss certification body for public-benefit organizations collecting donations. Functions as a close operating partner (joint publication of Spendenmagazin, joint ethical vetting of advertisers) rather than a competitor. Together with Swissfundraising, Zewo effectively defines the operating standards for the Swiss NPO sector.

Regional players

• Philanthropy Australia: Australian national peak body for philanthropy and fundraising, with a membership, events, advocacy, and research model comparable to Swissfundraising. Operates in a different geography but is structurally analogous and serves as a useful international comparator for membership growth and certification strategy.
• Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft der Freiwilligenagenturen (bagfa): German national association of volunteer agencies — not a fundraising association but a closely related nonprofit-sector membership body serving volunteer management in Germany. Comparable membership-association governance model in a neighboring market, useful for benchmarking operational structure.

Direct peers

• Deutscher Fundraising Verband (DFRV): Germany's national professional association for fundraisers, with the closest structural similarity to Swissfundraising: membership tiers, annual conference, continuing education, regional groups, and ethical guidelines. Serves a much larger addressable market in the DACH region and is a sister organization within the European Fundraising Association.
• Fundraising Verband Austria (FVA): Austrian national fundraising association, EFA sister organization, with the same membership-association structure serving the German-speaking fundraising community. Comparable scale and offering mix (membership, certification-adjacent credential, events, training).
• Association Française des Fundraisers (Fundraising France / AFF): France's national fundraising professional association, also an EFA sister organization with a directly comparable model (individual membership, annual conference, continuing education, sector awards, ethical charter). Direct relevance to Swissfundraising via shared Francophone audience and Zewo's trans-border work.
• Institute of Fundraising (UK): The UK's national professional body for fundraisers, with a longer-established and broader offering (membership, certification, policy advocacy, sector research, events). Closest analogue in size and maturity; relevant for benchmarking governance, credential design, and advocacy frameworks.

Broad incumbents

• Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP): The largest international association for fundraising professionals, headquartered in the US with global chapters. Operates the Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential, which competes conceptually with Swissfundraising's Berufsregister. Acts as a broader incumbent in the same professional standards space.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/SwissfundraisingTV/videos
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/swissfundraising

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 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 Swissfundraising