Why BetterStreet
BetterStreet's goal is to make it easier to help people experiencing homelessness, addictions, and deep poverty.
Building and operating a project that helps people experiencing homelessness, addiction, and deep poverty is hard. We believe that, with the right support, any community can build better services for the unhoused. To help with this, BetterStreet brings professional services to the street sector, allowing you to focus on doing what you do best - building your program and helping the people right in front of you.
We offer a suite of services focused primarily on the Consulting, Training, Fundraising, Social Media Management, and Research. We also specialize in the creation of tiny home communities.
Why aren’t you a non-profit?
The short version is that the real work of BetterStreet is to bring the tools and discipline of the private sector into the task of helping people. Condo developers get consultants to help make their lives easier, why shouldn't shelters get the same thing?
Being a consultancy forces us to always be innovating, taking risks, and trying new things to help clients solve problems. If we stop being useful, we stop getting paid and can’t pay our rent - so we REALLY want to continue to be useful.
We’re so serious about this, there is a clause built into our consulting contracts which stops us from getting too comfortable. Basically, it’s a zero day cancellation policy. If any organization we’re working with decides that we are not providing value, they can end the agreement on the spot. No terms, no notice, nothing. We’re gone.
This forces us to continuously prove our value and solve new problems, but it also incentivizes us to always help new groups get off the ground. As clients grow and mature, they have less need for our support. That's completely natural and something we want to see. It also forces us to constantly launch, mentor, and grow new projects which - in the middle of an unsheltered crisis - feels like a very good thing.