Note: This guest post is from consultant Shoshana Grossman-Crist. Thank you, Shoshana!

I was recently leading a call with a nonprofit fundraiser in the U.S., an executive director in Kenya, and a foundation officer in Guatemala. We were staring at a jargon-heavy proposal for funding: the kind that makes your eyes glaze over before the second paragraph.

Eight minutes later, with help from ChatGPT, it was transformed: clear, powerful, and unmistakably in the organization’s own voice.

AI can do that?

Someone typed, “Wait… I didn’t know AI could do that.”

Most folks in the nonprofit world still think of artificial intelligence (AI) as either a shiny toy or a threat to humanity. In reality, it’s a tool, in the way that Excel tracks budgets and, before that, calculators replaced manual math.

Just like those tools, AI’s real magic is freeing us to do the work only humans can do – building genuine relationships with donors, partners, and communities – and doing that work more effectively.

A Harvard study found that, at the consulting company BCG, AI users completed tasks 25% faster and with 40% higher quality than non-AI users. Faster work with higher quality … who doesn’t want that?

Five ways to use AI for fundraising

Whether you’re a nonprofit professional or a consultant, here are five favorite ways AI can help you work smarter.

1. Design donor archetypes and customize campaigns. Understand your donors, what motivates them, and how to speak their language.

2. Repurpose or edit drafts. In minutes, AI can adapt your proposals and thank you letters for new audiences.

3. Review materials through a donor’s eyes. You can ask AI to act like a skeptical funder, a first-time visitor, or a specific program officer – and flag unclear points.

4. Practice donor conversations. In ChatGPT, click on “Use voice mode,” tell it who to pretend to be, and then role-play with AI to refine your pitch.

5. Research. From summarizing a foundation’s giving history to identifying potential funders, AI can quickly surface useful details. (For research purposes, I prefer Perplexity to ChatGPT.)

These are critical tasks. While AI is managing them, you gain more time for conversations with donors and partners.

Two keys for using AI effectively

Here’s the deal: AI can only deliver if you get two things right.

Train the tool. AI programs, such as ChatGPT, work best when they know you. Provide examples of your work and writing style before asking them to create anything. With clients, I build an AI “memory” so outputs sound like them rather than a generic template.

Write good prompts. Vague requests – “Write me a proposal” – get bland results. Specific ones generate better results.

For example, “You are an expert grant writer for nonprofits in Vermont. Rewrite the attached one-page proposal for [name] Family Foundation that funds women’s economic empowerment so that it’s convincing and less than 300 words. Ask me any questions first.”

A note to consultants

With every nonprofit I’ve trained, their eyes get wide when they see what AI can do. However, you can’t just tell them to “use ChatGPT.”

Your task: Lead them from point zero. Let them observe you interacting with the program. Through careful training, they will be more likely to use AI and see you as a trusted guide.

You can also create tools to share with clients. I’ve trained ChatGPT on my best practices, templates, and examples to guide clients. The result: they create stronger messaging, write more compelling emails to prospective donors, and prepare better proposals. I created a Concept Note Writer GPT, which we used during the training mentioned at the top of this post.

The bottom line: AI helps you raise more money

Fundraising has always been about relationships: coffee catch-ups, hallway chats, and check-ins that have nothing to do with money and everything to do with trust.

AI can’t replace those moments, but it can give you more time, sharper insights, and smarter guidance to make these moments more meaningful. Also, there are simple, effective ways to address confidentiality concerns.

You don’t need to be an AI expert or tech geek. In just a few hours, you can master the tool sufficiently to get a good start.

What’s the first fundraising task you’d want to try with AI?