Free live workshop for nonprofit leaders & fundraisers

AI for Fundraisers

Practical ways to work smarter, raise more, and build better donor relationships.

AI is changing incredibly quickly.

But for fundraisers, the real question isn't “What can ChatGPT do?” It's “How can I actually use AI to become a better fundraiser?”

Join this practical live workshop to see how AI can help you find overlooked patterns in donor data, prepare for major donor meetings, capture notes and follow-up right after a meeting, turn program updates into donor communication, and decide which grant opportunities deserve your time. You'll leave with simple steps you can try in your own office this week.

There is no cost to attend.

Event information

  • Thursday, October 15, 2026
  • 2:00 PM ET
  • Live on Zoom
  • About 1 hour, including Q&A

There is no cost to attend.

The reality

Fundraising is getting harder.

More work. More pressure. More donor information. More follow-up. More tools. But not always more clarity.

  • Your CRM has donor data.
  • Your inbox has donor conversations.
  • Your team has program updates, notes, stories, reports and statistics.

The problem isn't a lack of information.

It's knowing what to do with it.

The big idea

AI can make you a dramatically better fundraiser.

But only if you know how to apply it to real fundraising work.

Don't start with the tool.
Start with the fundraising work you need help with.

Most AI training starts with software. That is why it rarely changes anything on Monday morning.

We start with the actual work: the donor email you owe, the report you need to translate, the list you need to review, the meeting you need to prepare for.

Workshop modules

5 practical AI workflows you can use in fundraising

01

Analyze Your Donor Data

Upload a simple gift history and have AI show you which donors deserve a closer look: possible lapses, rising or sliding giving, and small gifts that add up. You leave with a short list to review, not assumptions about donor intent.

02

Prepare for a Donor Meeting

Turn scattered giving history and notes into a focused brief with better questions and a clear next step before you walk in.

03

Follow Up After a Meeting

Speak your notes right after the conversation, then turn them into organized notes, next steps and a follow-up email while it is still fresh.

04

Write Donor Communications

Give AI your organization background, a real program update and a sample of your voice. See how the same facts become an email, a WhatsApp message, a social post and call points.

05

Evaluate a Grant Opportunity

Before you spend hours writing, check eligibility, restrictions, fit and missing information, and get a clear go, maybe, or no-go.

Plus: how to save each workflow so you never have to paste the prompt again, and where AI stops and your judgment and relationships take over.

Live demonstration

See the work. Don't just hear about it.

Preloaded examples with entirely fictional donor information show donor-data analysis and donor meeting preparation, followed by prepared examples of donor communication and grant evaluation. We finish with a live demonstration: one spoken voice note after a fictional donor meeting, and what AI does with it.

Prepared example: one update, different audiences

Raw material

  • Program updates
  • Internal notes
  • Student stories
  • Statistics
  • Reports
AI →

Donor communication

  • General donor email

    Warm, clear, broadly relevant.

  • Personal major-donor email

    Specific, contextual, relationship-aware.

  • Voice-note script

    Short, human, easy to send today.

Same facts. Different audiences. Different use cases.

Donor data

Your database knows more than you think.

Your CRM should not only tell you about donations. It should help you understand donors.

Donor signals: illustrative view

No real donor data shown

Giving concentration

How much comes from the top 20% of donors?

Possible lapses

Check missed giving and seasonal patterns

Upgrade patterns

Giving trending up

Declining giving

Giving trending down

Repeat giving

Smaller gifts can add up

Seasonal donors

Review their usual giving window

Donors worth reviewing this week

A short, human-sized list, not a 400-row export.

Major gifts

Walk into donor meetings with better context.

  1. Donor data
  2. AI analysis
  3. Better context
  4. Better questions
  5. Better next steps

Questions worth asking first

  • “What should I remember?”
  • “What seems to matter?”
  • “What questions should I ask?”
  • “What should I avoid assuming?”
  • “Should I cultivate or solicit?”

Better inputs

AI gets better when you give it better context.

Organizational context
Real source material
Clear audience
Sample of your voice
Specific instructions
Clear boundaries

Wrong question

“What can ChatGPT do?”

Better question

“What fundraising work do I need help with?”

Who it's for

Built for fundraisers who have too much work and not enough time.

Development Directors

You carry the plan, the team and the number. Use AI to move faster without losing the strategy.

Major Gift Officers

You need context before every visit. Use AI to prepare sharper questions and next steps.

Development Officers

You write constantly. Use AI to turn internal material into donor-ready communication.

Executive Directors

You are in the room for the biggest asks. Use AI to see what your data is already telling you.

Expectations

This isn't another AI hype session.

  • Not a generic ChatGPT 101 course
  • Not a list of random AI tricks
  • Not a technical AI course
  • Not a replacement for your CRM
  • Not a magic button for raising money

  • It's practical fundraising work, powered by AI.

Outcomes

Here's what you'll walk away with.

  • A practical way to spot donors worth a closer look
  • A better approach to preparing for major-donor meetings
  • A repeatable habit for capturing notes and follow-up right after a meeting
  • A simple way to turn one program update into donor communication
  • A way to assess a grant before committing staff time
  • Prompts you can reuse, and a clear sense of what still needs human judgment

Your donor data is already there.
Your fundraising work is already there.
Now learn how to put AI to work on it.

AI for Fundraisers

Practical ways to work smarter, raise more, and build better donor relationships.

Thu, Oct 15, 2026 · 2:00 PM ET · Live on Zoom

Yaacov Cohen presenting at a conference

Your presenter

Yaacov Cohen

Founder of YC Nonprofit Consulting, where he helps organizations build major donor fundraising systems that actually run.

He created the Major Donor Bootcamp and Move Your Donors, and works in nonprofit leadership and fundraising every day.

Register free

Save your place for AI for Fundraisers.

Join Yaacov Cohen for a practical, live workshop designed around the fundraising work already on your desk.

Thu, Oct 15, 2026 · 2:00 PM ET · Live on Zoom

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FAQ

Questions, answered.

Thu, Oct 15, 2026 · 2:00 PM ET · Live on Zoom