If you’ve been reading anything about
AI lately, you’ve probably been reading the same buzzwords over and over again…
“game-changing,” “transformative,” “revolutionary”, “efficiency”.
But here’s the problem as I see it…
Most of these articles on AI have been focussing on the potential rather than real, actionable steps.
They all promise that AI will redefine the way
NonProfits work but rarely explain how to use it in a practical, step-by-step, everyday setting.
This article will be different (I hope).
I’m not here to sell you a vision of AI as some futuristic, magic solution.
Instead, I’ll be focusing on real, actionable ways that AI… specifically
Microsoft CoPilot and ChatGPT… can help NonProfits empower their fundraising efforts now… today.
No jargon. No vague promises. Just clear, practical tips you can use straight away.
Whether you’re looking to write better donor emails, personalise outreach at scale or automate time-consuming tasks, AI is already capable of handling much of the heavy lifting.
The challenge isn’t understanding AI’s potential… it’s knowing how to apply it effectively without losing that human touch that makes your fundraising so successful.
So let’s skip the hype.
I’m going to walk you through the specific ways AI can help boost your fundraising, with real examples, step-by-step guidance and ready-to-use AI prompts.
If you’ve been wondering how to make AI work for you… you’re in the right place.
Crafting Better Fundraising Campaigns
Not that your fundraising campaigns aren’t great already, I’m sure.
Let’s face facts though, every campaign lives and dies by how well it resonates with your donors and if we’re honest, writing compelling emails and social media posts takes a lot of time and effort.
But I’m willing to bet your time is already stretched pretty thin?
That’s where AI tools like Microsoft CoPilot and ChatGPT come in. They help generate, refine and personalise content in minutes, making it much easier to reach more potential donors without having to sacrifice quality.
Using AI To Write Engaging Donor Emails… In Minutes
Emails remain one of the most powerful tools in NonProfit fundraising. But writing dozens of personalised, engaging and effective emails for different donor groups can be overwhelming.
I’d recommend using AI to help speed up the process by:
- Generating email drafts tailored to different donor cohorts
- Rewriting existing copy to make it more persuasive
- Suggesting subject lines and CTAs that drive donations
- Ensuring a consistent tone that aligns with your NonProfit’s voice – You can do this easily by asking it to look at, and model responses based on your website or tone of voice doc.
How to Use ChatGPT or CoPilot to Draft Donor Emails
Instead of staring at a blank screen, try this:
- Start with a clear AI prompt. The more specific, the better. Use the GCSE acronym – Goal, context, source and expectations.
- Refine AI-generated content. AI can provide a solid draft, but small tweaks will make it feel more personal as the AI will learn from within the conversation what you’re trying to achieve.
- Use AI to create variations. Test different subject lines or CTAs to see what resonates best with your audience.
Prompt Ideas for Different Types of Fundraising Emails
And of course, I promised you some actionable tips from this article so here’s some readymade prompts you can use in ChatGPT or CoPilot to get a head start on your emails:
For first-time donors:
“With the goal of leaving them pre-disposed to donating more in the future, write a warm, engaging email thanking a first-time donor for their support to [insert charity name and URL]. The email should explain the impact of their donation and encourage them to stay involved with instructions on how they can do that.”
For recurring donors:
“Generate an email update for recurring donors with the goal of ensuring they maintain their repeat direct debit, sharing a success story that highlights how their contributions are making real world differences thanks to [insert charity name and URL]. Please include a personal thank-you and a soft ask for continued support.”
For a year-end fundraising campaign:
“Create a compelling year-end fundraising email that emphasises urgency, impact, and a donor match opportunity. Keep it heartfelt but action-driven.”
For lapsed donors:
“Write a re-engagement email for donors who haven’t given in over a year with the goal of them setting a direct debit back up. The email should be friendly, appreciative and include an update on the organisation’s latest impact, as well as how a new donation from them would accelerate that impact.”
How To Tweak AI-Generated Content To Maintain Authenticity
AI is great for creating drafts but adding that ‘human touch’ will always be essential.
I tend to start by personalising the content at hand… include donor names, references to past contributions or specific details that make the message feel tailored. Much of this can be easily done through your marketing automation software.
You can make sure the tone is conversational by adjusting any overly formal or robotic phrasing so it sounds natural and engaging; in fact, you can (and should) instruct CoPilot or ChatGpt to do this for you.
Emotion has always been key in fundraising, so make sure you incorporate gratitude within your storytelling but also a sense of urgency to strengthen the connection with your mission and your donors.
Finally, test and refine this approach by running multiple A/B tests with different subject lines and CTA’s to see what resonates best and feed this back into the AI for later iterations.
“The last time we sent this kind of email, this was the best performing subject line / CTA / subject matter, so please base future responses to my next query on that information.”
Generating Social Media Posts That Will Actually Convert
Modern NonProfits rely on social media to amplify their message, attract new donors and engage their community, but consistently creating fresh and engaging content across multiple platforms can be a challenge.
AI streamlines that process by generating post ideas aligned with campaign goals, crafting platform-optimised captions, suggesting effective hashtags to boost visibility and even creating scripts for short fundraising videos or supporting imagery.
Using AI to Draft Compelling LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram Posts
With that in mind, here’s some helpful prompts to get you started:
For LinkedIn –
“With the goal of increasing supporter buy-in to your mission, generate a LinkedIn post that highlights a recent success story from [insert NonProfit name]. Keep it professional yet inspiring, and include a call-to-action for donations.”
For Facebook:
“Write a Facebook post encouraging people to donate to our upcoming campaign. Use an emotional appeal and include a strong CTA. Keep it under 150 words.”
Or
“Write a LinkedIn post thanking our donors and sharing a success story in under 200 words.”
For Instagram:
“Create an Instagram caption for a fundraising campaign post. It should be short, engaging, and include relevant hashtags to [insert sector / cause here].”
Or
“Give me five creative Instagram captions for a fundraising campaign about providing clean water. Make suggestions on the visuals I’ll need to make the post as successful as possible.”
For X:
“Write a tweet promoting our latest campaign, using no more than 280 characters. Include urgency and a donation link.”
AI Tools To Help Generate Images and Videos
Words alone are rarely enough to capture attention. Visuals will always play the most crucial role in making your fundraising story stand out.
Fortunately, AI can now assist in creating engaging images and videos (though admittedly there’s still a lot of room for improvement).
Tools like Canva’s AI Design Tool can help generate donation-focused social media templates, while DALL·E by OpenAI and Adobe Firefly allow NonProfits to create unique images based on text prompts, with Firefly even offering custom branding options.
For video content, platforms like Synthesia enable AI-generated videos featuring virtual presenters, Runway ML provides AI-assisted editing for compelling donation appeals and Lumen5 transforms blog posts or scripts into shareable social media videos, making it easier than ever to create impactful visual content.
It’s worth noting however, whilst text based generative AI has seen mass adoption, there can still be pushback on AI generated ‘art’ so it’s important to understand how this type of media will go down with your donor base.
Improving Donor Engagement And Retention
Getting that first donation is just the beginning… the real challenge has always been keeping donors engaged so they continue to give over time.
The good news?
AI is great at this and can make the process easier by personalising communications, automating engagement and providing instant donor support without adding to your team’s workload.
AI-Powered Personalisation… With No Extra Work
We all know how important personalisation is to fundraising. It makes donors feel valued, making them much more likely to donate again… but manually tailoring emails and outreach for every donor is also impossible at any kind of scale.
AI can be used to analyse your donor’s behaviour, segment your audiences and automate personalised messaging to ensure that each donor receives the right message at the right time.
How to Use AI to Segment Donors Based on Giving Patterns
AI can analyse donor data in
Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM (or other platforms I suppose… but they won’t be as good) to automatically group donors based on:
- First-time donors – Need an engaging welcome and a reason to give again
- Recurring donors – Need updates on their impact and appreciation messages
- Lapsed donors – Need re-engagement campaigns with incentives to return
- Major donors – Need personalised stewardship and high-touch engagement
How to Use AI for Segmentation:
- Ask Copilot to summarise donor trends. For instance, try this prompt: “Analyse our donor database and identify the top three trends in giving patterns over the past year.”
- Use AI-powered CRM insights to suggest the best outreach for each segment by prompting Copilot to: “Generate a donor re-engagement strategy for supporters who haven’t given in 12 months.”
- Personalise your outreach. CoPilot can generate donor personas to help tailor messaging for all your identified cohorts. Example prompt: “Describe the motivations and challenges of a recurring donor who donates £20/month with examples of what messaging will most resonate with them to keep them donating.”
Automating Personalised Thank-You Messages and Updates
Saying thank you is one of the simplest yet most powerful ways to improve donor retention, but many NonProfits still struggle to send timely, personalised messaging.
AI will streamline that process by automatically generating thank-you emails that are customised based on a donor’s contribution amount and giving frequency, ensuring each supporter feels valued.
It can also help create personalised impact reports that highlight the tangible difference a donor’s support has made, using past donation history to add meaningful context. Beyond just expressing gratitude though, AI could suggest thoughtful follow-up messages to keep donors engaged, whether through updates on ongoing projects, invitations to events or personalised appeals that align with their past contributions.
By making donor appreciation more efficient and impactful, AI can help strengthen long-term relationships and encourage continued support.
Prompt Examples For Writing Donor Appreciation Letters
For first-time donors:
“Write a warm and heartfelt thank-you email for a first-time donor who contributed £50. Mention how their donation supports [specific project] and invite them to stay involved.”
For recurring donors: “Generate a thank-you message for a monthly donor who has been supporting our organisation for one year. Express gratitude and share a success story tied to their ongoing contributions.”
For major donors: “Draft a personalised thank-you letter for a donor who gave £5,000. Highlight the direct impact of their gift and offer an opportunity to meet with our leadership team.”
For lapsed donors: “Create a re-engagement email for a donor who hasn’t given in 18 months. The email should thank them for their past support, share a recent success story, and include a gentle ask to donate again.”
Bonus Tip: Integrate AI with your CRM to automatically trigger thank-you messages after a donation is made!
Chatbots For Instant Donor Support
Donors often have questions before making a gift or need help with the donation process itself.
Instead of relying solely on staff, AI-powered chatbots can provide 24/7 donor support, answering common queries instantly.
Modern chatbots — like those powered by Microsoft Power Virtual Agents and Copilot —can handle tasks such as:
- Answering questions about how donations are used
- Helping donors choose a giving amount
- Providing technical support for online donations
- Directing donors to the right team member when needed
- Plus much, much more.
How to Get Started:
Getting started with AI-powered chatbots begins with identifying your most common questions from donors.
By asking Copilot to review past emails, live chat logs and FAQs, it’s easy to pinpoint recurring inquiries such as how donations are used or whether contributions can be made in someone else’s name.
Once those key topics are identified, Copilot (or other AI’s) can then once again assist in generating clear, helpful responses to ensure donors receive accurate and timely information.
For example… a chatbot can be trained using AI-generated responses to common questions, creating a seamless and efficient support system. However, it’s essential to set up a smooth handoff process for more complex queries, ensuring that donors can easily connect with a human representative when needed.
This balance between automation and personal interaction helps maintain donor trust while improving response times and engagement.
How To Train AI’s To Handle Common Donor Inquiries
Training AI to handle common donor inquiries effectively requires continuous refinement and real-world input.
Instead of relying on generic answers, the best approach is to use actual donor conversations to teach the AI, ensuring responses feel relevant and genuinely helpful. As the chatbot interacts with supporters, regular adjustments should be made based on donor feedback, fine-tuning its responses to improve accuracy and engagement.
To maintain a natural and approachable tone, it’s important to keep the language conversational, avoiding robotic or overly formal phrasing that might feel impersonal.
Before rolling it out publicly, testing the chatbot with real donors allows you to identify any weak spots and make necessary improvements.
By treating AI as an evolving tool rather than a set-it-and-forget-it solution, a NonProfit can ensure their chatbot remains a valuable resource for donor support for a long time to come.
Example Donor FAQ Prompts for ChatGPT
- For donation tracking: “Generate a chatbot response for a donor asking how to check their donation history.”
- For tax receipts: “Write a chatbot response for a donor who needs a tax receipt for their recent gift.”
- For impact updates: “Create a chatbot response for a donor who wants to know how their donation is making a difference.”
Automating Time-Consuming Fundraising Tasks
Fundraising teams are often stretched thin, juggling multiple tasks with limited resources.
AI can’t replace human passion and relationship-building… but it can take over time-consuming admin work, like analysing donor data, generating reports or even drafting grant proposals… Letting your teams focus on what really matters: engaging supporters and driving impact.
Turning Data into Actionable Insights
Fundraising isn’t just about asking for money
It’s about understanding the psychology of who gives, why they give and when they’re most likely to give again.
AI-powered tools like Copilot in
Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM can help you analyse donor trends, predict giving patterns, and refine your fundraising strategy.
Using Copilot In Your CRM To Analyse Donor Trends
Using a tool like Copilot in your CRM will unlock valuable insights into donor behaviour, helping any NonProfit make more informed fundraising decisions.
An AI will analyse donor trends and identify the most engaged supporters, predict which lapsed donors are likely to give again and determine the most effective times of the year for fundraising efforts.
It can also assess past campaign performance to highlight what strategies have worked best, allowing organisations to refine their approach and maximise future success.
By leveraging AI-driven analysis, NonProfits can move beyond guesswork and develop data-backed strategies that strengthen donor relationships and boost fundraising results.
How to Get AI-Driven Donor Insights in CoPilot:
- Ask CoPilot to summarise donor trends. Example prompt: “Show a report on donor retention rates over the past three years and highlight key trends.”
- Identify your most engaged donors. Example prompt: “List the top 20 recurring donors who have increased their giving in the last year.”
- Predict future giving. Example prompt: “Based on past giving patterns, which donors are most likely to give during our year-end campaign?”
AI-Driven Reports To Help Refine Fundraising Strategies
AI-powered reports can simplify fundraising analysis by turning complex donor data into clear, actionable insights.
Instead of manually sorting through spreadsheets, a NonProfits could use AI to generate visual reports on donation trends, evaluate the success of past campaigns and segment donors based on giving behaviour.
By asking AI targeted questions, such as comparing engagement levels across recent campaigns or identifying areas for improvement, organisations can refine their strategies with data-driven precision.
This allows fundraisers to make smarter decisions, optimise future efforts and ultimately drive more effective donor engagement.
Example ChatGPT Prompt for AI-Generated Reports: “Summarise our last three fundraising campaigns. Compare donation amounts, donor engagement levels and social media response. Suggest key improvements for our next campaign.”
AI-Powered Grant Writing Assistance
Writing compelling grant proposals takes time, research and strategy (plus it can be a bit boring and repetitive).
AI will speed up the process by generating structured drafts, suggesting persuasive language, and ensuring proposals align with grant requirements.
How to Use AI to Draft Grant Proposals Faster
AI won’t craft a winning grant proposal on its own, but it will significantly speed up the process by assisting with key elements.
It will draft sections such as the introduction, objectives and impact statement, providing a solid starting point that can be refined with a human touch.
It can then also analyse grant guidelines to identify key funder priorities, ensuring proposals align with what decision-makers are looking for.
Plus… it can improve clarity and conciseness, making complex ideas more compelling and easier to understand.
Whilst human expertise remains essential, tools like Copilot can streamline the writing process and enhance the overall quality of grant applications.
Step-by-Step: Using Copilot or ChatGPT for Grant Writing
- Start with an outline. Example prompt: “Create a structured outline for a grant proposal requesting £50,000 to support a youth mentorship programme.”
- Draft key sections. Example prompt: “Write an impact statement for a grant proposal that explains how this funding will improve access to education for underprivileged students.”
- Refine and improve readability. Example prompt: “Rewrite this grant application summary in a more engaging and persuasive way.”
The Limitations of AI in Grant Writing (and How to Fix Them)
AI can be great at helping you with grant writing by generating content but will fall short when it comes to the human insight and storytelling needed to create a compelling, fundable proposal.
To overcome that limitation, the NonProfit should always add personal stories and real data to ensure originality and authenticity.
AI-generated content should also be carefully reviewed to confirm it aligns with the specific requirements of each grant, as generic responses wont meet funders’ expectations, and worse… will be seen as ‘AI’ and judged as such, as there is still bias to this type of content you need to avoid.
Finally, refining AI drafts with a human touch is essential, as funders will quickly spot proposals that feel overly generic or impersonal. By combining AI’s efficiency with human creativity and strategic thinking, nonprofits can create stronger, more persuasive grant applications.
Final Thoughts
AI isn’t a magic solution that’s going to instantly boost donations, but when used strategically, it can be a powerful tool.
By automating admin-heavy tasks, NonProfits can save valuable time, whilst AI-driven personalisation can strengthen donor engagement.
It also provides useful insights that help refine fundraising strategies, making campaigns more targeted and effective.
For those new to AI, starting small makes the transition much easier.
Simple tasks like using ChatGPT to draft donor emails or social media posts, leveraging CoPilot in your CRM to analyse donor trends or setting up an AI chatbot to handle frequently asked questions on a donation page will quickly demonstrate AI’s potential without overwhelming your team.
Looking ahead, I think we all know AI is going to keep evolving, offering even smarter donor insights, more predictive fundraising strategies, deeper personalisation and probably more that we’ve not even thought of yet.
But… the heart of fundraising will always be human.
AI is here to assist, not replace, the relationships and connections that drive successful giving. Now it’s your turn. How will you use AI to make your fundraising smarter and more effective?
