January 23, 2025
AI has taken the world by storm, and the nonprofit sector is no exception. From automating administrative tasks to enhancing fundraising strategies, it’s certainly a game-changing tool.
But the possibilities of AI come with risks: inadvertent bias, security concerns, and perhaps most concerning for fundraisers—the potential to weaken the personal connections that drive your mission forward.
Today’s donors are savvy and value genuine connections with the organizations they support. They can spot AI-generated content from a mile away—and they often reject it. Overreliance on technology risks making your outreach feel impersonal, missing the human touch that builds trust and loyalty.
While AI is just one example, technology can impact your donor communications and relationships in many ways. When used thoughtfully, technology can reinvigorate your communications and deepen donor relationships.
So, how do you ensure your communications stay authentic while leveraging technology’s benefits? Here, we’ll explore actionable tips for blending human authenticity with the smart use of technology to cultivate stronger, trusting donor relationships that last.
Take personalization to the next level.
“Personalize communication” is an old truism. Nonprofits of all sizes know it’s important to ensure donors don’t feel like they’re receiving the same cookie-cutter outreach. Adding names to salutations and tailoring appeals to donor interests are easy wins thanks to your CRM. However, technology empowers you to go deeper to personalize outreach and foster more genuine relationships.
Start by defining your case for support. Graham-Pelton’s guide explains that this is your core brand and/or campaign message that should be consistent throughout all outreach and tell donors why their support matters. A strong case for support can guide your messaging as you tailor content and outreach to each donor group—ensuring your mission remains clear and compelling at every touchpoint.
To write yours, clearly outline your vision for the future, define priorities based on concrete objectives and costs, and highlight the projected impact of achieving those goals. Your case for support should reflect your nonprofit’s unique voice through authentic stories and values and feature a compelling call to action that tells donors how they can help.
Let your case for support be the foundation of all your outreach. From there, try these four ways to use technology to make your outreach even more personal, while staying true to your core message:
1) Create dynamic content.
Use engagement data to tailor your content to individual interests and behaviors. For example, newsletters can include modular sections with different stories, program updates, or impact highlights, personalized to resonate with each donor segment.
Also, consider offering self-reporting options for new email signups so donors can share their interests upfront. Then, an email automation system will help deliver content that feels personal and relevant.
2) Leverage journey mapping and predictive analytics.
Journey mapping and predictive analytics help identify and automate key moments when donors are most likely to engage, give, or lapse—allowing for smarter outreach. For new donors, mapping an onboarding journey can help them understand your organization better and begin to cultivate them for their next gift.
By analyzing giving patterns, you can predict cycles like annual donations and time appeals accordingly. For example, predictive tools might flag when a donor is nearing their typical giving month, prompting personalized outreach to encourage another gift.
3) Strategically expand personal outreach to larger donor groups.
Truly personalized outreach is often reserved for high-impact donors, but smarter segmentation makes it feasible for broader audiences. Use insights from journey mapping and predictive analytics to group donors based on their giving behaviors.
For example, in university fundraising, many donors give annually while others give more sporadically in longer cycles. If you treat them as a single group, outreach can easily become ignored by those who give consistently but less frequently. Instead, segment them separately. Predict which donors are likely to give this year and send this smaller group handwritten notes or make personal calls. Similarly, identify those at risk of lapsing and engage them with proactive, personalized communication.
4) Recognize donors based on recent involvement.
Acknowledge donors based on their most recent contributions or actions, whether they donated, volunteered, or advocated for your cause. Your technology can flag recent contributions and automate follow-up in many cases. To level up your donor recognition, you might:
- Send tailored impact emails or text updates. These short, personalized messages should highlight the direct results of their actions. For example, “Your recent gift helped us deliver 20 meals this week!” Marketing automation platforms and CRM systems can segment donors and trigger timely messages based on their recent actions.
- Design digital greeting cards. Then, have a staff member or beneficiary craft a personal note to accompany each eCard. They should express genuine appreciation and explain how the supporter’s contributions made an impact. eCard tools make it easy to design, send, and track outreach while leaving room for personal touches.
- Personalized thank-you videos. Send short, customized videos from your team, leadership, or beneficiaries. You might create a few versions for different program designations. Then, embed these videos into your post-donation follow-up emails.
Supporter appreciation that feels timely and connected to individuals’ involvement reinforces their value to your mission and builds stronger, more authentic relationships.
Foster community through meaningful engagement opportunities.
Building a sense of community among supporters requires a balance between exclusivity—offering unique opportunities they can’t find elsewhere—and togetherness, where shared passions and concerns unite them.
To take higher education for example again, university fundraising programs thrive on this dynamic. Alumni engage through behind-the-scenes campus tours and events that strengthen their connection to the institution’s successes. Other nonprofits can adopt a similar approach to deepen donor relationships:
- Offer behind-the-scenes access to programs in action, live-streamed project updates, or Q&A sessions with leadership and frontline staff.
- Host impact days where donors can meet beneficiaries and see their contributions at work firsthand.
- Share transparent progress reports to build trust and a shared sense of purpose. Getting Attention’s annual report guide recommends including elements like financial breakdowns, compelling stories, recent achievements, strong visuals like infographics, and compelling calls to action to encourage ongoing involvement.
- Refresh or create membership tiers that provide mission-aligned perks. Think special seminars, access to exclusive resources, or private online groups where supporters can connect and collaborate.
- Amplify supporters’ voices by encouraging user-generated content. Stories, photos, and testimonials can highlight their involvement, reinforce their pride in your community, and educate others on your mission.
Technology—such as your CRM, marketing tools, and analytics platforms—plays a crucial role in tailoring these efforts and tracking donor engagement to uncover trends. When you correlate specific donor segments with preferred engagement opportunities, you can offer tailored opportunities, making your stewardship more proactive.
For example, if a certain group of donors consistently engages with networking events, you can guide them toward similar events. If you notice they’re more likely to engage with certain communications—such as personalized email updates or interactive social media posts—communicate using those methods. Likewise, trends in participation in membership perks or specific events can reveal what aspects of your mission resonate most, helping you refine your outreach and engagement strategies.
When supporters feel included, valued, and connected to both your mission and each other, they’re far more likely to remain engaged. Focus on offering experiences that show them the impact of their involvement and provide meaningful opportunities to deepen their connection with your cause.
Actively seek donor input and involvement.
One of the most powerful ways to make donors feel invested in your mission is to seek their input and actively involve them in your work. This not only fosters a stronger sense of community but also empowers supporters to help shape your organization’s future.
There are multiple ways to seek donor feedback, such as:
- Regular feedback surveys: Send targeted surveys on donor satisfaction, events, or programs. Act on donors’ input and share how their feedback influenced your decisions.
- Vision sessions and advisory boards: Invite highly engaged supporters from various segments to join advisory boards or structured sessions with leadership. Use these opportunities to share long-term visions, discuss upcoming initiatives (like capital campaigns), and gather donor perspectives on messaging, priorities, or potential concerns.
- Community collaboration: Recruit select donors to join advisory committees or ambassador programs where they can help plan events, shape initiatives, or support fundraising more directly.
You should actively record and study any feedback you receive. Technology—such as CRMs, survey platforms, and data visualization tools—can streamline this process by consolidating responses, identifying key trends, and segmenting insights by donor groups.
While you don’t necessarily need to implement all feedback, you should value the time donors put into giving it. Ensure your data infrastructure doesn’t cause feedback to flow into a silo where it’s never seen or used by the relevant teams. Rather, educate all teams on where to access feedback or create a regular cadence for reviewing it, distilling key insights into actionable team or program-specific reports. Advanced analytics platforms can even help flag recurring themes or predict areas of donor interest, ensuring your response is both informed and impactful.
Seeking and responding to donor input builds trust, strengthens relationships, and creates a true sense of ownership. When supporters see their ideas and feedback reflected in your work, they’ll feel more valued, engaged, and connected to your mission.
Technology has transformed how nonprofits connect with donors, but the human touch builds lasting relationships. By combining the smart use of technology with genuine engagement, you can deliver tailored donor experiences that connect supporters to your mission.
From deeper personalization to thoughtful community-building, these strategies empower your team to cultivate a sense of partnership with supporters. In turn, donors will champion your cause for years to come.
Meredith Schneider