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Between managing mission-related programs and planning fundraisers, nonprofit professionals are used to keeping multiple plates spinning at all times. But what if you could hand off certain responsibilities entirely? Would you jump at the chance, or worry about things getting done right?
This is the opportunity (and challenge) that AI and automation tools have introduced into the nonprofit sector. While many AI tools, including free platforms, have tremendous potential to help nonprofit professionals manage their workflows, the implementation of these tools presents ethical and practical concerns.
To help your nonprofit understand AI and make informed decisions about integrating it into your workflows, this guide will review three ways these tools are transforming the nonprofit tech space.
Reduced Administrative Work
Many aspects of nonprofit work require a human touch, such as working with patients receiving treatment or having meaningful one-on-one conversations with major donors. However, tasks that require creativity, empathy, and critical thinking often also demand more effort to execute effectively. This is where AI and automation tools come in.
When it comes to AI and nonprofit software, many vendors retain their core product features and offerings, but add an AI tool to handle repetitive administrative tasks, including:
- Note-taking. Meetings are essential for running any organization, and proper notes ensure meetings result in action. AI tools can automatically transcribe meetings held online via popular communication platforms like Zoom. Plus, if reading a transcript is still too time-consuming, AI features can create condensed summaries of recorded meetings.
- Supporter communication. Chances are, your nonprofit often sends out the same few messages to supporters over and over again. Email automation tools have existed for a long time in the nonprofit sector, allowing organizations to set up triggers that result in automated emails. With AI, automated supporter communication has only increased, such as 24/7 chatbots that can answer frequently asked questions and even perform basic tasks for supporters, like adjusting their recurring giving amount.
- Scheduling. For nonprofits that keep busy schedules, AI can help keep things organized by sending appointment reminders, identifying times all participants can meet up, and even facilitating self-service appointment creation for program participants.
If there’s any repetitive task you find yourself doing every day, there’s a good chance an AI tool might be able to do it for you. For example, you might explore human services software that sends program participants automatic appointment reminders, records and summarizes meetings with participants, and automatically pulls up relevant forms for each participant.
Content Generation
Popular AI tools like ChatGPT are generative AI engines. These types of tools use the data they are trained on to create content.
When it comes to leveraging these tools, it might be tempting to ask the latest platform to simply write all of your donor communications for you. However, this can lead to generic messages that might not connect with donors.
To use content generation tools effectively, try following these best practices:
- Use specific prompts. The more specific and detailed the prompt you give an AI tool, the more specific and detailed its response will be. For example, instead of inputting “Write a donor thank you letter,” you might ask an AI tool to “Write a thank-you letter template that can be used for mid-level donors who give to an animal rights nonprofit.” You can also provide AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini with documents about your nonprofit to ensure it captures your branding.
- Use AI to outline, not write. While AI writing is fast, it’s rarely the best way to get a heartfelt message across. Donor relationships rely heavily on building an emotional connection and establishing your nonprofit as a respected organization in your field, so it’s often best to use AI primarily as a tool for outlining and brainstorming.
- Fact check. Text-based generative AI engines are called large language models because they analyze vast amounts of text and try to predict the word or phrase that logically follows the preceding one. As a result, AI is known to occasionally “hallucinate” facts or misinterpret a statement cited in a source it provides. Ensure you always fact-check all AI content before sharing it.
When using content generation tools, look for nonprofit-specific AI platforms. Some software vendors have experimented with creating AI assistants and generative tools that are trained specifically on documents and materials relevant to nonprofit-related concepts, like fundraising best practices, capital campaigns, and major donor cultivation. While you should still follow the tips outlined above when using these platforms, they are likely to be more knowledgeable about your nonprofit’s work.
AI-Powered Analytics
AI tools excel at pattern recognition. Long before the rise of ChatGPT and other generative AI engines, nonprofit software has featured analytics tools that can assess your data, forecast future outcomes, and provide actionable recommendations. This might involve determining when to make your fundraising pitch to a major donor or identifying supporters who might become long-term donors with proper stewardship.
Of course, AI-powered analytics tools can only provide accurate insights if they have accurate data. Heller Consulting’s guide to AI for nonprofits advises nonprofits to ask themselves these three questions about their data:
- What data do you have to work with? The more data points you have, the more specific, detailed, and accurate your AI analysis will be. For example, say you are trying to predict how donation rates may change in the coming year. If you only provide your AI tool with information from the previous year, it will likely assume there will be no change, as it only has one data point. However, if you provide it with data from the past five years, it can spot trends and provide insights.
- How clean is your data? Incomplete, outdated, or false information will hamper both a human and an AI’s ability to analyze data. Before feeding data into an AI tool, follow data hygiene best practices, such as removing duplicate entries, updating old information, and ensuring data is as complete as possible.
- Where is your data? If you use multiple data collection tools, take the time to compile all of their information into one organized source. This ensures that your AI analytics tools get a full picture of your nonprofit’s operations and also make finding information easier for your human staff members.
When assessing AI analytics tools, look for ones with strong security and privacy policies. While you should always be cautious about feeding any sensitive information into an AI tool, ensure you only leverage platforms that will not make permanent records of the data you provide or use the information for commercial purposes.
Advances in AI have dramatically changed nonprofit technology in just a few short years. Start exploring AI tools to discover how your nonprofit can benefit and employ best practices to ensure your AI implementation is smooth, ethical, and organized.
