How to Fundraise with AI for Nonprofits

As technology evolves, there are new ways nonprofits like yours can take advantage of advancements to save time and raise more money. At the forefront of these new technologies is artificial intelligence (AI). AI for nonprofits can be a real game changer in the fundraising landscape. From navigating donor data to finding the most effective ways to communicate, AI for fundraising can be applied to many aspects of your organization to help lift some of the burden of changing the world. 

• What is AI? 
• How can charities use AI? 
• How do you use AI for fundraising? 

What is AI?  

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a computer science field aiming to create programs capable of mimicking cognitive functions and automate tedious tasks. There are various approaches to AI that each serve different purposes. The three main types of AI you should know about: 

1. Generative AI are programs that can use your input to create new content, from images to texts to music. One of the most popular generative AI programs is ChatGPT, which aims to provide human-like responses. 

2. Traditional AI encompasses rule-based programs that are programmed to perform specific tasks. These systems follow predefined instructions without the ability to learn from new data. 

3. Machine Learning (ML) is a type of AI focusing on the development of algorithms which allow the program to learn and improve over time. It can automatically recognize patterns, make decisions, and improve performance based on the data it receives. 

How can charities use AI?  

AI for fundraising helps charities streamline operations and optimize donor engagement so you can increase your efforts to raise money for your cause. However, there’s one crucial thing to remember when using AI: don’t input any sensitive information into public AI platforms! This is to ensure the privacy of both your and your donors’ information.  

AI tools for fundraising 

When it comes to AI for fundraising, there are many tools that can help you succeed in your mission. Some fundraising software, such as Qgiv and DonorSearch, offer AI tools to help you with your fundraising strategy without leaving their platform. For example, Qgiv provides AI to help your organization write peer-to-peer emails, as well as other donor communications. On the other hand, DonorSearch provides AI to analyze donor data to look for potential major donors. There are also other fundraising automation tools which can help you schedule and plan your different fundraising campaigns. 

Besides AI created specifically for fundraising, you can also check out these other AI tools to save time: 

• ChatGPT. One of the easiest AI tools for nonprofits to get started with is ChatGPT, a chatbot powered by OpenAI. ChatGPT can help you create content, come up with fundraising ideas, and assist with event planning to support your organization’s mission. While ChatGPT isn’t designed specifically for fundraising, its tools are easy to learn and can be used for free. It also has paid versions that can offer more tools for your nonprofit to use.  
• Other chatbot AI. There are a couple other chatbot AI you can use, including Google Gemini (formerly Google Bard) and Jasper AI, which can provide responses to prompts, as well as advanced analytics and insights for strategic decision making. 
• AI-enhanced editing tools. Additionally, there are also AI-enhanced tools your organization can take advantage of to supplement skills you don’t have expertise in. For example, both Canva and Adobe offer AI editor options which can assist your team in creating better graphics and other content for your campaigns.  
• AI Writing Assistant. Grammarly is another program that has AI options to help you polish your donor communications. 

How do you use AI for fundraising? 

Because AI is so diverse, there are many ways you can use it to boost your fundraising efforts. Here are some key ways AI tools can help your nonprofit!  

Donor insights and management  

Using artificial intelligence for donor insights and management can help your organization connect with your donors better. AI is able to analyze your donor data and use that data to predict future giving patterns. This enables you to personalize your outreach efforts for more effective donor engagement by reaching out when donors are most likely to give again.  

AI is also great at identifying prospects through algorithms that can pinpoint potential donors for your organization. DonorSearch, a nonprofit software, helps you screen donors to assess wealth indicators, philanthropic history, and affinity towards specific causes to help you identify potential major gifts. 

You can also use AI to automate your database organization! AI algorithms can integrate and categorize your donor data into your assigned donor segments for targeted campaigns. These algorithms analyze donor characteristics, preferences, and behaviors to ensure a more data-driven approach to fundraising.  

Data analysis  

AI is a great tool for enhancing your data analysis across your organization. This analysis can be used to discover valuable insights and make informed decisions about your fundraising strategy. One of AI’s key abilities is recognizing patterns and trends within your database by sifting through the data to identify similarities, anomalies, and patterns that would take your team too long to find manually.  

AI tools for nonprofits can also use this data to predict future trends and potential challenges providing you an opportunity to prepare for the future. AI can offer potential options based on its analysis to help you make decisions for a more successful fundraising strategy.  

To better plan your fundraising campaigns, AI can help you determine the best times to target appeal to donors. It can also evaluate your campaigns and programs to find the most successful strategies for you to use to fundraise more efficiently. 

Content creation  

Content creation is also simplified by AI for fundraising. AI provides easy ways to personalize your content to better appeal to your supporters. Using generative AI can help you create tailored emails, social media prompts, donation appeals, and more. It’s important to remember these prompt best practices when using AI content to ensure the best results:  

• Proofread the work 
• Fact check any information 
• Check for plagiarism 

If you don’t have an expert graphic designer, AI can also help you edit any photos or videos you plan on using for your campaigns. These tools help you enhance visuals, apply filters, or suggest alternative compositions, which can speed up the editing process. This helps you deliver impactful content across your organization. 

Chatbots and virtual assistants  

One of the best uses of AI for nonprofits is the use of chatbots and virtual assistants to help automate tasks. Chatbots can help you with your donor communications by providing more personalized and detailed responses to your supporters’ questions. Chatbots can support you by troubleshooting issues, offering solutions, and helping guide your supporter through different forms. These chatbots can also help you create templates for different types of messages to help you save time. 

Scheduling is also simplified by virtual assistants because they can access your teams’ calendars to propose optimal meeting times and manage appointments. These virtual assistants can also help you with repetitive tasks, such as data entry, basic lists, and information retrieval to help you focus on more complex tasks.  

Volunteer management  

AI tools for nonprofits can help you optimize your volunteer management processes. Matching volunteers with the best roles is easy to do using AI algorithms to analyze skills, preferences, and availability. These algorithms are great for scheduling your volunteers efficiently and reducing scheduling conflicts. This helps improve your volunteers’ experience and maximize the impact of their contributions. 

AI can also be used to automate your communication with volunteers by sending reminders and information for the volunteer activities. AI tools for nonprofits can also answer common volunteer questions and maintain consistent engagement with your volunteers to make them feel appreciated. You can also develop your training materials for your volunteers that are tailored to your volunteers’ learning preferences to ease the learning curve. 

Cybersecurity  

AI can also help you enhance your cybersecurity measures with advanced techniques for monitoring and predicting behavior patterns to block potential cyberattacks. AI algorithms can help you sift through data to identify anomalies and potential threats before they get a chance to attack your system. By establishing a baseline of normal behaviors, an AI program can detect possible malicious activities and respond before they escalate.  

Additionally, there are AI-enhanced third-party bot detection programs to provide a defense against automated cyber threats. For example, Qgiv uses a third-party AI-enhanced bot detection system to prevent card testing fraud on donation forms. These tools are able to recognize patterns that bots follow and block potential threats to protect your donors’ sensitive information.  

Event planning  

The event planning process can also be simplified by artificial intelligence for nonprofits. AI algorithms can create unique event ideas by analyzing data, trends, and supporter preferences that align with your event’s mission. It can also create event planning templates that help you plan more efficiently while automating budgeting, scheduling, and other repetitive tasks. You can even use AI to transcribe your event planning meetings into searchable documents to ensure you don’t miss anything in your recordkeeping.  

AI tools can also automate your event marketing by streamlining social media scheduling, email campaigns, and audience targeting which can help you save time while still tailoring your marketing efforts to the supporters that would enjoy the event. Personalize content and design branded graphics using AI tools to simplify the creation of your necessary event materials. 

Final thoughts  

Artificial intelligence for nonprofits provides a world of possibilities for increasing your fundraising efforts. Your organization can harness AI to maximize your donor communication, learn more about donor insights, and automate your event planning and content creation. Embracing AI may seem scary, but used properly, it can streamline your fundraising strategy and help you make a meaningful impact. 

Additional resources  

To learn more about AI tools for nonprofits, check out these additional resources. 

• ChatGPT Prompts for Nonprofits: Get Started Today [Samples]. Use these prompts to effectively use ChatGPT. 
• You and Artificial Intelligence (AI): A Nonprofit’s Guide to Understanding and Getting Started with AI. Check out this eBook to help you get started on your AI journey.  
• How to Work Smarter, Not Harder with Fundraising Automation. Learn more about time-saving automations with this guide.