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The Future of Pro Bono Financial Planning

Help launch the first online pro bono platform, developed with behavioral economist Dan Ariely, so that many more underserved people can work with a financial planner.

Issue Area: Pro-bono financial advice     |     Campaign Type: National (United States)

$26,715

donated towards $187,500 campaign goal

55

campaign supporters

-1031

days to go

Your donation is considered tax-deductible.
AdvisersGiveBack.org has submitted all the necessary, paperwork for 501(c)(3) nonprofit status.

Our Story

 

AdvisersGiveBack.org exists to ultimately bring pro bono financial planning to millions of Americans. 

Our mission is quite simple:

We want underserved individuals to have access to trustworthy, expert financial guidance, where cost is not an issue.

Unlike the medical profession, financial planning does not have a way to efficiently and effectively reach the pro bono clients who need the most help. When there is a natural disaster, doctors are deployed to the frontlines to treat patients, and there is infrastructure in place so doctors can help the patients with the greatest need. The financial planning profession needs this same level of infrastructure to start helping many more people.

 

Problems we address

 

Traditional pro bono events can be challenging to organize, inconvenient for clients and planners, as well as difficult for advisers to provide on their own due to regulatory and liability burdens. Additionally, pro bono organizations aren’t set up for remote delivery and many find that the set up and maintenance of critical infrastructure can be problematic.

Moreover, there are a host of factors contributing to the financial challenges faced by Americans. One difference between Americans that are financially secure and those who are insecure, is that those most at risk cannot afford access to a financial planner who can understand their situation, come up with personalized actions for them to take and then guide them on making progress towards their financial goals.

 

Who's involved

AdvisersGiveBack.org is a fintech nonprofit started by Matt Iverson-Comelo and developed with noted behavioral economist Dan Ariely and his team of experts at Duke University. Matt and Dan have been collaborating on fintech products for over 10 years.

AdvisersGiveBack.org’s board of directors is made up of industry experts, as well as financial planners who support pro bono programs in their communities.

 

 

Key Benefits

Thanks to AdvisersGiveBack.org, pro bono financial planning is now more:

  • Convenient, so you and your staff can volunteer for as little as one hour at a time, when it works for your busy schedule.
  • Impactful, as a behaviorally-designed program guides clients on taking the next step and achieving long-term change.
  • Efficient, since your dedicated AdvisersGiveBack.org assistant supports your clients, freeing you up to focus on creating the plan.
  • Rewarding, with success stories updating you on the progress your clients are making.

 

 

How the program works

Unlike pro bono events, AdvisersGiveBack.org provides volunteering financial planners with a dedicated assistant so that your volunteer time has the greatest possible impact for clients. Additionally, pro bono clients complete a behaviorally-designed four-week program where they typically talk to their planner twice for about 30 minutes total (though as a volunteer, you'll get to set your meeting duration).

After the initial four weeks, clients work on additional longer term challenges in the Sustain phase of the program and can reach out to your dedicated assistant whenever they have a question or need help.

 

Help make it happen

Depending on whether you're a financial services professional, in leadership at your firm or willing to advocate for your financial services company to support our mission, you can play a critical role in making AdvisersGiveBack.org a success.

And being the end of the year, now is a great time to support a 501(c)(3) nonprofit building the future of pro bono financial planning.

 

Ways to support

Here are different ways we can thank you for supporting this campaign:

 

 

 

 

Why We’re Crowdfunding Development

After the successful completion of the pilot program, AdvisersGiveBack.org is now focused on engaging the financial services community around our mission to provide underserved households expert financial guidance, where cost is not an issue.

We're grateful for the strong support we're already receiving from pro bono clients, advisers, wealth management firms and financial services companies. By crowdfunding our growth with tax-deductible donations, we can rapidly accelerate the timeline for building the features and infrastructure that are needed to successfully scale up after our successful pilot program. With the urgent need to address the racial and gender wealth gaps, as well as assist people struggling due to the pandemic, we don’t have 6-12 months to wait while we fill out grant applications and hope that some foundation believes in our mission.

That’s why we are asking you, the people that AdvisersGiveBack.org is designed to serve, to support our campaign with a tax-deductible donation.

 

Risks

No project is risk-free, and as with most projects, our biggest risk is timing.

Fortunately, we’ve already run a successful pilot with pro bono advisers and have identified several key areas to improve both the adviser and client experiences, while scaling the program. A few experienced fintech product and software development contractors have started building essential features so that we can serve 1,000 pro bono clients per month and we’re betting that AdvisersGiveBack.org’s vision is compelling enough that firms will enthusiastically support this much-needed work. We don’t want to have to stop building because we’ve run out of money, so please consider making a tax-deductible donation today.

We’re confident about our estimated launch date of January 2021, but unforeseen events can and do happen — especially during these uncertain times. While we can’t always change our circumstances, we can and will promise to communicate transparently and frequently with you every step of the way.

 

Our Successful Pilot
What We're Building
Our Timeline
FAQ

AdvisersGiveBack.org

AdvisersGiveBack.org is a nonprofit on a mission to provide many more underserved individuals with access to trustworthy, expert financial guidance, where cost is not an issue.

Support 

Donate without a reward

Support the AdvisersGiveBack.org for no reward, just because it speaks to you and you believe in it.

Donate without a reward

Financial Professional

Make a tax-deductible donation of $100 or more to support pro bono activities and become eligible to volunteer when it launches.

Includes:

  • A huge thank you from our team and a special appreciation award
  • Your name on the AdvisersGiveBack.org “Wall of Thanks”
  • Updates on key milestones as well as client success stories
  • A co-branded presentation deck and event planning package to promote AdvisersGiveBack.org in your community (when the time is right)

Estimated Delivery
January 2021

Limited to 500 people

Wealth Management Firm

Make a tax-deductible donation of $500 or more to support pro bono activities and be one of the very first to get to volunteer when it launches.

Includes:

  • A co-branded landing page to promote in your community
  • Digital buttons for your website
  • A huge thank you from our team and a special appreciation award
  • Your company’s name on the AdvisersGiveBack.org “Wall of Thanks”
  • Updates on key milestones as well as client success stories
  • Access to presentations with insights on building trust at scale and driving client behavior change
  • A co-branded presentation deck and event planning package to promote AdvisersGiveBack.org in your community (when the time is right)

Estimated Delivery
January 2021

Limited to 150 firms.

Financial Services Company

If you'd like to support our mission of providing underserved individuals with access to trustworthy, expert financial guidance, please contact us.

In addition to appreciation for your support, we can provide:

  • Research-backed insights on building trust at scale and driving client behavior change
  • Opportunities to co-promote our service to diverse stakeholders

Your donation is considered tax-deductible.
AdvisersGiveBack.org has submitted all the necessary, reviewed paperwork for 501(c)(3) nonprofit status.

Join us and make a difference.

This campaign was started to provide underserved individuals with trustworthy, expert financial guidance, where cost is not an issue. AdvisersGiveBack.org seeks to address the racial wealth gap and to support low- and moderate-income households working to achieve their financial goals. Additionally, AdvisersGiveBack.org makes it easy and convenient for financial advisers to give back by meeting with pro bono clients through our platform and promoting the service in their communities.

With your tax-deductible donation, you can help us achieve our goal of $187,500 to fund development of the platform by Tuesday, June 1, 2021 1:59 PM PST.

OUR CAMPAIGN

Support our charitable vision of creating a scalable platform that connects advisers giving back with people seeking help with their money.

AdvisersGiveBack.org is based on insights from behavioral experts at Duke University and designed to ultimately help millions of Americans achieve their financial goals. Please make a tax-deductible donation today.

Support our campaign.

ABOUT AdvisersGiveBack.org

AdvisersGiveBack.org is a nonprofit on a mission to provide underserved individuals with access to trustworthy, expert financial guidance, where cost is not an issue.

CONTACT

490 43rd Street
Suite 350
Oakland, CA 94609

[email protected]

(510) 306-7494