Hi,
I can only comment from the point of view of someone interested in a pro-bono logo work. It worked really well and the project is super happy with the result.
Since we were asking for pro-bono work, we were careful to make clear this is not just a way for us to save money so our salaries can be higher or to invest in a company that we could later resell. A few years later I’m happy to say that we kept this promise.
We were also patient because the designer had other obligations and squeezed time to work on the when she could. The overall process took about three months.
Last but not least, to showcase a successful pro-bono work, with the permission of the designer, the logo was submitted in this forum for comments. And, as you can see from the thread, it got a valuable improvement as a result.
I hope that helps