Three Ways to Use AI in Fundraising
Growing up in the ’90s, I was just a bit too young to really appreciate the .com boom. My family got our first home computer in 1998, and I put it to very important use: Barbie paint-by-number coloring pages and endless AOL Instant Messenger chats with my high school friends… at least when the landline wasn’t tied up.
The internet started as a novelty, just something fun to tinker with. But it quickly became essential for everything from shopping to socializing to running a business.
I can only imagine that adults navigating the .com boom back then felt a lot like we do navigating the Artificial Intelligence era today. AI is still new enough that people are experimenting, testing limits, and playing. But just like the internet in the ’90s, it’s on track to become a tool we won’t be able to imagine living without, especially for nonprofits looking to stretch resources and increase their impact.
Once you experiment with small, high-impact tasks, AI quickly becomes a trusted assistant and likely, your new favorite staff member since it’s “always on” and mostly free.
As a nonprofit CEO, here are three practical ways you can use AI to reclaim hours in your week and redirect your energy toward what matters most: inspiring donors, leading your team, and growing your mission.
Use AI to draft grant proposals
Before: Staff spent 10–12 hours drafting each grant, pulling together program details, stats, and narratives.
After: What used to take that long can now be drafted in under an hour using a free AI tool like ChatGPT. Feed it your program details, past proposals, and key impact data, and you’ll have a solid first draft for your staff to edit and refine for accuracy.
Pro Tip: Always use the same ChatGPT account for drafting grant proposals so it retains and repurposes information you only had to enter once. You’ll save even more time that way!
Brainstorm fresh campaign ideas
Before: Brainstorming fundraising campaign ideas could take days and yield just a handful of usable concepts.
After: AI can help you develop creative directions quickly. A simple Google search no longer just gives you links; it provides AI-generated summaries of relevant campaigns. For example, I recently searched for fundraising ideas for a nonprofit with regional offices across the U.S., and Google’s AI search engine provided an overview of campaigns other locations have run. Even if your nonprofit doesn’t have multiple locations, you can explore organizations with a similar mission to generate helpful ideas.
Pro Tip: Use AI for initial idea generation to see what others are doing, then bring in your team’s creativity to refine and implement. Austin Kleon calls it “stealing like an artist.”
3. Enhance Visuals and Presentations with AI
Before: Creating polished slides or graphics could take hours of trial-and-error with layouts, fonts, and colors.
After: Tools like PowerPoint Designer or Canva Magic Design use AI to suggest layouts, color palettes, and image placements based on your content. You simply add your text and images, and AI generates multiple design options instantly and for free!
Pro Tip: I use PowerPoint even more often now for design because of how great the suggested options are. You can create a more cohesive brand appearance for presentations, reports, and social graphics. It may look like you spent hours to get this professional, but in just a couple clicks - voila!
If these three AI approaches are already in your regimen, congratulations! You’re ahead of the curve compared to many CEOs I meet. If not, pick one and try it today. The point is to free up your time so that you can focus on advancing your organization’s mission. With you at the helm, leverage every resource, especially AI resources, so that your impact on the community can leave an even greater legacy.
One Last Thought:
At Jenni Craig & Co, we help nonprofit leaders like you turn ideas into action. From strategic planning and campaign development to integrating AI and automation, we provide the tools and guidance to free up your time, amplify your impact, and focus on what matters most. Curious what this could look like for your organization? Just send us an email to start a conversation.
