iWave for Nonprofits: Leading Prospect Research Platform
Spending countless hours manually researching major gift prospects with incomplete data? iWave aggregates wealth, philanthropic, and biographical information from 44+ vetted sources into unified 360° donor profiles with AI-powered capacity scoring. Trusted by fundraising professionals for 16 consecutive quarters as the top-rated fundraising intelligence solution, iWave helps you identify the right prospects, understand their giving capacity and interests, and build relationships that lead to transformational gifts.
What iWave Does
Struggling to identify which supporters in your database have major gift capacity? Tired of relying on gut instinct and incomplete information when planning your cultivation strategy? iWave is a comprehensive prospect research platform now part of Kindsight that transforms how nonprofits identify, qualify, and cultivate major gift donors. Unlike basic wealth screening that provides only surface-level financial indicators, iWave delivers deep intelligence by combining wealth data, philanthropic history, business relationships, and mission alignment into unified donor profiles.
The platform solves a critical challenge facing development teams: making strategic decisions about where to invest limited time and resources. When you search for a prospect or upload your donor list, iWave instantly enriches every record with data from over 44 vetted sources, including property ownership, business affiliations, foundation board memberships, political contributions, and past charitable giving to other organizations. This comprehensive view helps you understand not just whether someone has capacity, but also their philanthropic interests, giving patterns, and likelihood of supporting your specific cause.
What sets iWave apart is its ability to screen companies and foundations in addition to individual donors, a unique capability no other prospect research tool offers comprehensively. The platform uses AI-powered scoring customized to your organization's priorities, generating capacity, affinity, and propensity ratings that update in real-time as new data becomes available. This means when a prospect changes jobs, joins a new foundation board, or makes a significant gift to a similar organization, your intelligence is automatically refreshed so your development team always has the most current information for strategic conversations.
Best For
Organization Size
- Small to large nonprofits with active major gift programs
- Organizations with donor databases of 500+ contacts
- Nonprofits prioritizing quality intelligence over high-volume lists
Best Use Cases
- Major gift prospect identification and qualification
- Capital campaign planning and prospect pipeline development
- Foundation and corporate prospect research
- Board recruitment and engagement strategy
Ideal For
- Development Directors and Major Gift Officers
- Prospect Research Professionals
- Executive Directors planning strategic fundraising initiatives
- Database Administrators managing donor intelligence
Key Features for Nonprofits
360° Donor Profiles from 44+ Data Sources
Comprehensive intelligence aggregated from the industry's most trusted providers
iWave pulls together wealth indicators (real estate, stock ownership, business holdings), philanthropic data (foundation board memberships, political contributions, past giving), biographical information (education, career history, family relationships), and business connections into a single unified profile. This eliminates the need to manually piece together information from multiple sources, saving 10+ hours per week on prospect research.
AI-Powered Customizable Scoring
Intelligent capacity, affinity, and propensity ratings tailored to your mission
Unlike rigid scoring systems, iWave's AI analyzes wealth, philanthropic behavior, business relationships, and mission alignment to generate customized scores that reflect YOUR organization's priorities. The platform learns what matters most to your fundraising strategy and weights factors accordingly, whether that's foundation leadership, alumni status, geographic proximity, or specific cause interests. Scores automatically update as new data becomes available, ensuring your prospect pipeline always reflects current donor capacity and engagement.
Company and Foundation Screening
The only tool that comprehensively screens organizations, not just individuals
iWave is uniquely capable of researching corporate prospects and private foundations with the same depth as individual donors. Search for companies by industry, size, location, and giving history to identify potential corporate partners. Screen foundations to understand their giving priorities, board composition, grant amounts, and application processes. This comprehensive organizational intelligence helps you build multi-channel fundraising strategies that include individual, corporate, and foundation revenue streams.
Real-Time Data Updates
Dynamic intelligence that refreshes automatically as prospects change
Traditional wealth screening provides a static snapshot that quickly becomes outdated. iWave continuously monitors changes in donor capacity, philanthropic activity, business affiliations, and engagement indicators. When a prospect joins a new foundation board, changes employers, purchases significant real estate, or makes a major gift to a similar organization, iWave automatically updates their profile and alerts your team. This ensures cultivation strategies are always based on current, accurate intelligence.
iWave Appends Data Enrichment Service
Automatically fill gaps in your donor records with verified contact information
Keep your donor database current without manual data entry. iWave Appends matches your existing records to its comprehensive database of addresses, emails, and phone numbers, automatically adding missing information and correcting outdated contact details. Using USPS-verified NCOA (National Change of Address) data and address standardization, the service reduces returned mail and ensures you can reach supporters through multiple channels. This is particularly valuable for lapsed donors who may have moved or changed contact information since their last gift.
Seamless CRM Integration
Bi-directional sync with Salesforce, Raiser's Edge NXT, DonorPerfect, and more
Access iWave's intelligence directly within your existing CRM workflow. For Raiser's Edge NXT and Salesforce users, iWave provides particularly deep integration, automatically enriching constituent records with donor scores and key insights without requiring your team to switch between platforms. Changes flow both ways, so updates you make in your CRM are reflected in iWave and vice versa. This eliminates duplicate data entry and ensures everyone on your development team is working with the same current information.
Real-World Nonprofit Use Case
A mid-sized community foundation with 3,500 donors in their database was preparing for a capital campaign to fund a new community center. Their development team knew they needed to identify prospects capable of six-figure gifts, but manually researching each donor would take months they didn't have.
The foundation uploaded their entire donor list to iWave and ran a comprehensive screening. Within hours, iWave enriched all 3,500 records with wealth indicators, philanthropic history, and business relationships from 44+ sources. The AI-powered scoring system identified 127 donors with both major gift capacity and affinity for community development causes based on their foundation board memberships and past giving to similar projects.
The most valuable discovery came from iWave's ability to screen companies and foundations. The platform identified that 18 donors served on boards of private foundations and flagged 6 local corporations whose giving priorities aligned perfectly with the community center project. One prospect who had been making modest $500 annual gifts turned out to be the CEO of a regional construction company and served on two foundation boards focused on youth development and community infrastructure.
Armed with this intelligence, the development team prioritized their cultivation efforts on the highest-capacity, best-aligned prospects. The CEO became a lead campaign donor with a $250,000 commitment that leveraged both his personal capacity and his company's community giving budget. By focusing on the 127 AI-identified prospects rather than attempting to cultivate all 3,500 donors, the foundation raised $4.2 million toward their $5 million goal in 18 months, far exceeding their timeline expectations. The iWave subscription paid for itself after identifying just two major gifts that would have otherwise gone unrecognized in their database.
Pricing
iWave offers flexible pricing options including pay-per-use and subscription plans designed to fit different organizational sizes and research needs.
Starter
- Access to 44+ data sources
- AI-powered donor scoring
- Individual, company, and foundation screening
- Basic CRM integration
Premium
- All Starter features
- Advanced customizable scoring models
- iWave Appends data enrichment
- Priority support
Professional
- All Premium features
- Dedicated fundraising expert support
- Custom API access
- White-glove onboarding and training
Free Trial Offer
iWave offers a free trial when you schedule a customized 45-minute demo with their fundraising experts. New users receive 200 free wealth screening credits to test the platform's capabilities before committing to a subscription.
Schedule Demo & Start Free TrialPricing information is subject to change and may vary based on organization size and needs. Please verify current pricing directly with iWave for the most accurate information.
Nonprofit Discount & Special Offers
Nonprofit Pricing
While iWave does not publicly advertise a standard nonprofit discount, their pricing is specifically designed for nonprofit organizations. The Starter plan at $3,545 annually is positioned competitively for small to mid-sized nonprofits with active major gift programs.
How to Access the Best Pricing:
- Schedule a customized demo with iWave's fundraising experts
- Discuss your organization's size, donor database, and research needs
- Request a quote tailored to your specific requirements
- Ask about any current promotions or nonprofit-specific pricing options
Free Trial Value
New users who schedule a demo receive 200 free wealth screening credits, allowing you to test the platform's capabilities on your actual donor data before making a financial commitment. This trial provides significant value, as you can identify potential major gift prospects and assess whether iWave's intelligence justifies the investment for your organization.
Learning Curve
iWave is designed specifically for fundraising professionals and is notably user-friendly compared to other prospect research platforms. Most users can conduct their first successful prospect screening within 1-2 hours of initial setup.
Time to First Value
- Initial Setup: 2-4 hours
Uploading donor data, connecting CRM integrations, configuring basic settings
- First Screening: 1-2 hours
Running your first prospect research session and understanding the data
- Proficiency: 2-3 weeks
Regular use to master advanced features like custom scoring and automated workflows
Technical Requirements
- Basic familiarity with Excel/CSV files for data uploads
- Understanding of fundraising concepts (capacity, affinity, propensity)
- No coding or technical expertise required
- Web browser and stable internet connection
Support & Training Resources
- Customized Onboarding Demo: 45-minute personalized training session with fundraising expert
- Video Tutorial Library: Comprehensive on-demand training covering all features
- Knowledge Base: Searchable help documentation with step-by-step guides
- Customer Support: Responsive support team available via email and phone
- Dedicated Account Support: Professional and Premium tiers include dedicated fundraising experts
Integration & Compatibility
CRM & Donor Management Integrations
- Salesforce: Deep bi-directional integration enriching records with donor intelligence
- Raiser's Edge NXT: Comprehensive integration with automated constituent record enrichment
- DonorPerfect: Seamless data sync and prospect research workflow
- Neon One: Integration for donor intelligence access
- Bonterra: Partnership integration for comprehensive fundraising intelligence
Platform Availability
- Web-Based Platform: Accessible via any modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
- Cloud-Hosted: No software installation required
- Mobile Responsive: Access prospect data on tablets and smartphones
- Multi-User Access: Team collaboration with role-based permissions
Data Portability & Export Options
What You Can Export:
- Full prospect research reports (PDF format)
- Donor screening results (CSV/Excel)
- Capacity and propensity scores
- Contact enrichment data (via iWave Appends)
- Custom screening lists and segments
Data Considerations:
- Enrichment data is licensed from third-party providers and cannot be exported for use outside iWave platform
- Your uploaded donor data remains your property and can be exported at any time
- API access available for Professional tier customers for custom integrations
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Top User Satisfaction: 96 overall satisfaction score, outperforming DonorSearch (66) and WealthEngine (38) significantly
- Comprehensive Data: 44+ vetted sources provide deeper intelligence than most competitors, blending wealth, philanthropic, and relationship data
- Unique Organizational Screening: Only platform that comprehensively screens companies and foundations in addition to individuals
- Real-Time Updates: Dynamic intelligence refreshes automatically as donor circumstances change, keeping your pipeline current
- Strong CRM Integration: Deep bi-directional connections with Salesforce, Raiser's Edge NXT, and other major nonprofit platforms
- Customizable AI Scoring: Intelligent scoring tailored to your organization's priorities, not one-size-fits-all ratings
- User-Friendly Interface: Designed for fundraisers, not researchers, making it accessible to non-technical users
Cons
- Premium Pricing: Starting at $3,545 annually, iWave costs more than entry-level alternatives like DonorSearch, which may be prohibitive for very small nonprofits
- May Be Overkill for Small Databases: Organizations with under 500 donors or infrequent major gift fundraising may not fully utilize the platform's capabilities
- Data License Restrictions: Enrichment data from third-party sources cannot be exported for use outside iWave, creating potential vendor lock-in
- Learning Curve for Advanced Features: While basic screening is intuitive, mastering custom scoring models and automated workflows takes 2-3 weeks
- Requires Clean Data: Effectiveness depends on having well-maintained donor records; garbage in, garbage out still applies
Alternatives to Consider
If iWave doesn't feel like the right fit for your nonprofit's size, budget, or research needs, here are comparable prospect research platforms worth exploring:
DonorSearch
More affordable entry-level option for small to mid-sized nonprofits seeking to identify potential donors based on past charitable activity. DonorSearch focuses on high-volume list generation rather than deep profiling, basing its models on the idea that past giving is the best predictor of future generosity.
Best if: Budget is your primary concern and you need to build out top-of-funnel pipelines quickly with large prospect lists.
Hatch
First-of-its-kind Giving Intelligence Platform providing 70% more data than traditional wealth screening by analyzing philanthropic patterns, interests, and giving affinity. Hatch's Altruistic Intelligence reveals not just who CAN give, but who WANTS to support causes like yours, with AI-powered donor scoring and OpenGiving search to find new prospects outside your database.
Best if: You want to discover hidden gems and prospects who haven't given to your organization yet but show strong affinity alignment.
Windfall
Modern wealth screening platform using AI and machine learning to provide real-time donor intelligence and predictive analytics. Windfall focuses on contemporary wealth sources like startup equity and cryptocurrency in addition to traditional wealth indicators.
Best if: Your donor base includes younger, tech-savvy supporters whose wealth comes from non-traditional sources.
Why Choose iWave Instead
iWave's combination of comprehensive data from 44+ sources, unique ability to screen companies and foundations, top user satisfaction ratings, and deep CRM integrations make it the gold standard for nonprofits prioritizing quality intelligence over volume. If you're managing a major gift program and need accurate, context-rich donor profiles that update in real-time, iWave's premium pricing is justified by the quality of insights and time saved on manual research.
Getting Started with iWave
Here's how to get up and running with iWave and start identifying major gift prospects in your first 48 hours:
Schedule Your Customized Demo (45 minutes)
Visit the iWave website and request a personalized demo with one of their fundraising experts. This session is tailored to your organization's specific needs and includes 200 free wealth screening credits to test the platform with your actual donor data.
Pro tip: Prepare a list of 10-15 current donors you're curious about before the demo so you can see iWave's intelligence on real prospects from your database.
Upload and Enrich Your Donor Data (2-4 hours)
Once you've signed up, export your donor database from your CRM as a CSV file and upload it to iWave. The platform will automatically enrich every record with wealth indicators, philanthropic data, and business relationships from 44+ sources. If you're using Salesforce or Raiser's Edge NXT, set up the bi-directional integration for seamless data sync.
Pro tip: Clean your data before uploading. Remove duplicates, standardize names, and ensure email addresses and addresses are current to get the most accurate enrichment.
Run Your First Prospect Screening (1-2 hours)
Use iWave's AI-powered scoring to identify your top 25-50 prospects based on capacity, affinity, and propensity to give. Review the complete profiles for these prospects, paying attention to their foundation board memberships, past giving to similar organizations, and relationship connections. Export the screening results or sync them back to your CRM for your development team to review.
Pro tip: Start with a small segment, like lapsed donors who gave $1,000+ in the past, to see if iWave reveals hidden major gift capacity you weren't aware of.
Build Your Major Gift Pipeline (Ongoing)
Based on your screening results, create a prioritized cultivation plan for your top prospects. Assign them to major gift officers, schedule discovery meetings, and use iWave's intelligence to personalize your outreach. Set up alerts for key prospects so you're notified when their capacity, affiliations, or philanthropic activity changes.
Pro tip: Schedule a weekly 15-minute review of iWave's real-time updates to catch timely opportunities, like when a prospect joins a new foundation board or makes a major gift to a peer organization.
Need Help Getting Started with iWave?
Setting up prospect research workflows and interpreting donor intelligence can feel overwhelming when you're already managing a full fundraising operation. If you'd like expert guidance implementing iWave, optimizing your screening strategy, or training your development team, we're here to help.
One Hundred Nights offers implementation support for nonprofit technology platforms, from initial setup assistance to comprehensive training and workflow optimization.
Contact Us for Implementation SupportFrequently Asked Questions
What makes iWave different from DonorSearch and WealthEngine?
iWave stands out with a 96 overall user satisfaction score compared to DonorSearch at 66 and WealthEngine at 38. While DonorSearch focuses on high-volume list generation based on past giving history and WealthEngine emphasizes wealth capacity over charitable behavior, iWave blends wealth, philanthropic, business, and relationship indicators from 44+ vetted sources to create context-rich insights. iWave is also the only tool that can comprehensively screen companies and foundations in addition to individuals, and offers AI-powered scoring that customizes capacity, affinity, and giving propensity measures to your nonprofit's specific requirements.
How much does iWave cost for nonprofits?
iWave pricing starts at $3,545 per year for the Starter plan. Premium and Professional plans are available with custom pricing based on your organization's size and needs. iWave offers a free trial with 200 wealth screening credits when you schedule a customized demo with their fundraising experts. Pricing may vary, so it's best to contact iWave directly for the most current pricing information.
Does iWave integrate with my CRM?
Yes, iWave offers powerful integrations with major nonprofit CRM platforms including Salesforce, Raiser's Edge NXT, DonorPerfect, Neon One, and Bonterra. The platform features bi-directional connections that streamline workflows and enrich constituent records with donor intelligence directly within your existing CRM. For Raiser's Edge NXT and Salesforce, iWave provides particularly deep integration with industry-leading scores and analytics automatically synced to your constituent records.
What is iWave Appends and how does it work?
iWave Appends is a data enrichment service that matches your donor data to iWave's comprehensive database of addresses, emails, and phone numbers. Missing or outdated contact information is automatically added to your records using USPS-verified NCOA data and address standardization. This service helps nonprofits maintain accurate donor records, reduce returned mail, and ensure you can reach supporters through multiple channels.
How does iWave's AI-powered scoring work?
iWave uses AI to analyze wealth, philanthropic, business, and relationship indicators from 44+ data sources and generate customizable capacity scores tailored to your nonprofit's needs. The AI-powered scoring system provides predictive analytics on giving capacity, affinity, and propensity, helping you identify the most promising major gift prospects. Scores update in real-time as new information becomes available, including changes in donor capacity, campaign engagement, or philanthropic interests, ensuring your prospect research always reflects the most current data.
Is iWave suitable for small nonprofits or only large organizations?
iWave is designed for nonprofits of all sizes prioritizing accuracy and strategy over volume. The Starter plan at $3,545 annually is accessible for small to mid-sized nonprofits with active major gift programs. Organizations with smaller donor databases (under 500 contacts) or those just beginning prospect research may find the cost prohibitive compared to entry-level alternatives like DonorSearch. iWave is best suited for nonprofits with established fundraising teams who need comprehensive, accurate donor intelligence rather than high-volume list generation.
How long does it take to see value from iWave?
Most nonprofits begin seeing value within the first week of using iWave. Initial setup and data import typically take 2-4 hours, after which you can immediately start running prospect screenings and viewing enriched donor profiles. The platform's intuitive interface and comprehensive training resources mean most users can conduct their first prospect research session within 1-2 hours of setup. To fully leverage advanced features like custom scoring models and automated workflows, expect 2-3 weeks of regular use to reach proficiency.