Rick’s Profession:
Helping Small Charities Raise Funds They Would Not Otherwise have Access To

Zeitlin is the founder and President of multiple business entities that for many years performed professional fundraising services for charities and non-profit advocacy organizations. Zeitlin’s companies would conduct community outreach on behalf of many charities over a broad spectrum of causes including law enforcement, veterans, children’s health and welfare and other health-related causes. Zeitlin typically received a compensation of 80-90% on his telemarketing and fundraising efforts for these charities. It should be noted that his compensation level was always recorded as required with the various relevant state agencies for complete and total transparency. While this percentage of compensation may seem high, it is actually standard for the industry and reflects what is needed to offset the substantial costs of constantly evolving telephone technology, intensive and time-consuming labor, and the high overhead all businesses need to successfully telemarket and help charities reach their goals. Contrary to what some less informed detractors claim, Rick’s compensation levels of 80-90% relate to gross revenue, not profit.

Importantly, as upheld by rulings of the US Supreme Court, there are no federal or state guidelines or restrictions on how much professional fundraisers can charge for their work. Such decisions are strictly between the professional fundraiser and the charity he or she represents.

Importantly as well, overwhelmingly, Rick’s clients are happy with his work because he meets or exceeds their expectations and helps them advance their missions by raising funds they would not have access to any other way. His client longevity rate is among the highest in the industry.

Like most hard working, self-made Americans, Rick Zeitlin has never been in any sort of legal trouble. Indisputably, his companies have always complied with relevant financial reporting guidelines. As will be made clear throughout this website, and as Rick fights back against an overly aggressive federal government, Zeitlin credibly believes that he is being targeted for political reasons by an overzealous federal government seeking to justify its “value” by harassing and intimidating successful small businessmen whose work does not conform to big government’s own self-proclaimed high ideals.

These government and agency actions have been aided by increasingly hostile and sensationalist media coverage. The Tampa Bay Times and Politico and the Daily Beast are among those who have sought to vilify Rick (and others in his field) through highly inaccurate articles that badly distort the facts. Such shoddy and intentionally misleading reporting sets the standard for others in government and in the media seeking to advance their own agendas by vilifying an honest, self-made businessman.

About Professional Fundraising Consultants

Political and charitable fundraising by telephone is not a new phenomenon. Established and “respectable” for-profit and non-profit organizations have been utilizing telemarketing for decades. In particular, smaller charities without big endowments or large government or corporate grants or large fundraising staffs utilize PFRs (professional fundraisers) to advance their missions. In recent years however, the political climate has soured significantly with regard to charities and PFR’s. Various federal and state government agencies have initiated arbitrary and politically motivated crackdown campaigns targeting charities and PFR’s. Though these campaigns ostensibly target charities that are perceived as ‘scam’ charities, in many cases, these campaigns target lawful, legitimate charities and their principals because the charities are viewed as disfavored. State attorney generals have been especially keen on prosecuting charities and fundraisers to obtain “popcorn headlines” and strong arm them into settlements to benefit the state financially. In some cases, unpaid volunteer charity board members have been sued by state government to punish board members and charities they don’t like.

Rick’s primary way of servicing his clients was through an extensive system of cost-intensive, highly sophisticated telemarketing centers that rely on soundboard expertise. Zeitlin’s clients promote or advocate for a wide variety of causes and they have found that telemarketing is the most significant and sustainable source of income for their organizations. From a cost efficiency and productivity point of view, Rick’s clients have determined that working with his company is the most effective way to reach their objectives and fund their advocacy programs, rather than hiring a full-time, in-house development director, undertake expensive and inefficient direct mail programs, or chase highly competitive and time consuming government or corporate grants.