Text-To-Give Fundraising

The Blackbaud Institute report says that 84% of Gen Z support a cause or nonprofit, but not in the way you might expect. They’re not waiting for a year-end gala or a tax write-off. They’re: → Moving money on Venmo. → Organizing fundraisers on TikTok & Instagram. → Sharing bail funds on Instagram stories. In fact, 50% of Gen Z share causes or fundraisers at least once a week. And they’re three times more likely than Boomers to publicly advocate for the organizations they support. It's not just a new style of giving; it's a power shift. They’re turning away from the donor class model. And leaning into community-led support, impact investing, and mutual aid. → No gatekeeping. → No slow-moving boards. → Just action—fast, visible, and values-aligned. So I’ve been wondering… ↳ What if Millennials and Gen Z don’t want to be philanthropists at all? ↳ What if they’re not looking to tweak the system but to build an entirely different one? One where generosity doesn’t require status. And the impact doesn’t wait for permission. Do we see the end of the donor class or the start of a new giving economy?

AI is only as powerful as the problems it solves. For nonprofits, one of the most fundamental challenges is knowing how much to ask for, and when. Ask too high, and you risk discouraging a gift. Ask too low, and you leave potential impact on the table. That’s why we’ve taken Intelligent Ask Amounts to the next level for GoFundMe Pro partners. Grounded in deep user research and powered by GoFundMe’s AI models, this improved version gives nonprofits the ability to dynamically optimize campaigns for what matters most: one-time revenue, conversions, recurring gifts, or a balanced mix. The ask amounts adapt in real time to donor behavior and campaign goals—helping nonprofits drive more sustainable giving. The best part? These improvements are to a product that has already delivered results. For example: the National Civil Rights Museum used Intelligent Ask Amounts during key giving moments and saw a 62% increase in average gift size on December 31st year-over-year, along with other strong gains. (I’ll link the case study with more details in the comments!) What makes me proud isn’t just the AI, it’s the teamwork behind it. Three product pods, Applied Science, Research, CX, Legal, Marketing, Comms and more all came together to turn a complex fundraising challenge into a solution that’s both powerful and practical. Because at the end of the day, innovation is only meaningful when it helps nonprofits raise more with less friction—so they can focus on their mission. 👉 Learn more here: https://gfme.co/47CvtSc 

Welcome to the Future of Fundraising. I’ve talked extensively about the challenges fundraising organizations face not being able to personally engage with the majority of their donor base. One question my team and I still get asked regularly is “how is autonomous fundraising different from a segmented, multi-point marketing campaign?” Email and text marketing are essential fundraising tools that allow organizations to quickly share updates with supporters and promote time-sensitive events or campaigns. These campaigns do have their place, but they lack the ability to adapt to the individual preferences needed to meaningfully engage a donor. While segmentation and automation tools that personalize names or donation amounts exist, they do little to mask the fact that the communication is, in fact, a mass broadcast. In contrast, Autonomous Fundraising uses Virtual Engagement Officers (VEOs) to treat each donor communication as 1:1 and unique, the same way human relationship managers do. But unlike their human counterparts, VEOs are not challenged by scale because they tap into the power of Large Language Models (LLMs). LLMs are advanced AI systems that understand and produce messaging that feels natural and conversational, much like how we communicate with one another. They power the VEO’s ability to understand the context of past interactions, giving history, and more to generate personalized content based on that data and circumstances. Whether it’s a birthday message, stewardship note, or tailored ask, LLMs craft messages that resonate with the donor on a personal level. As a former major gift officer, I find what’s equally important about LLMs is that they "listen" and “remember” donor engagements over time. This creates a meaningful back-and-forth that builds stronger connections between donors and organizations. This extends all the way through to capabilities like multi-lingual communication, giving the VEO the ability to reach out and respond to donors in their preferred language, breaking down previous barriers to inclusion and participation. When we first introduced fully autonomous fundraising, we were told that the opt-out rate would be extremely high, somewhere between 5-10% because donors would not want to interact with AI. However, in practice, we’ve found the complete opposite. In marketing, direct mail has a 0.5-2% response rate, SMS has a 1.5% opt-out, and email .25%. In comparison, of the 17,000+ communications the VEO has sent, there is just a .12% opt out. The truth is, people don’t opt out of personal communications. We know 1:1 engagement is the best way to bring donors closer to the missions of our organizations. Increasing donor retention by even a few percentage points can have an exponential impact on the lifetime value of an organization’s donor base, which translates to long-term sustainability of an organization and its ability to fulfill its mission.

AI is eating the world… but nonprofits are still serving sandwiches. While startups sprint ahead with AI, most nonprofits are stuck debating if ChatGPT is “ethical.” AI is NOT optional. It’s the single biggest force multiplier in history. Yet, most nonprofits are: Drowning in admin work Burning out on low-impact tasks Struggling with donor engagement Meanwhile, AI-driven orgs are: Automating back-office work Personalizing donor outreach Running impact programs with 10X efficiency Let’s talk about what nobody tells nonprofits about AI (with real evidence). 1. AI can 10X donor engagement. Most nonprofits still send generic mass emails. AI changes that. Harvard research shows personalized donor messaging increases retention by 80%. How? AI tools like Rasa and Drift tailor responses in real time. ChatGPT-style assistants craft hyper-personalized donation asks. AI sentiment analysis ensures every message hits the right emotional tone. Nonprofits using AI in fundraising see a 44% increase in donor conversion. 2. AI slashes admin work (so teams can focus on impact). Nonprofits waste 40% of their time on admin. AI eliminates that. AI automation can: Process tax receipts Automate grant applications Manage volunteer scheduling Example? GiveDirectly uses AI to verify beneficiaries, cutting admin costs by 70%. 3. AI predicts & prevents crises. Most nonprofits react after disasters strike. AI-driven analytics change that. Example? Red Cross uses AI to predict hurricanes and deploy aid faster. AI processes satellite data, social media, and weather reports. Early warnings improve response times by 50%. More lives saved, less money wasted. 4. AI makes small teams operate like big ones. Think AI is only for giant NGOs? Think again. Mama Hope used AI chatbots to handle donor FAQs, freeing 30% of staff time. Charity: Water automates donor follow-ups to boost retention. Team Rubicon uses AI logistics to deploy volunteers faster than FEMA. AI levels the playing field. 5. AI doesn’t replace humans, it amplifies them. Biggest fear? “AI will take our jobs.” Reality? AI eliminates low-impact tasks so teams can focus on real mission work. AI writes reports—humans build relationships. AI analyzes data—humans make decisions. AI sends emails—humans inspire action. The question isn’t “Will AI replace us?” The question is “How fast will we fall behind if we ignore it?” Nonprofits that adopt AI now will dominate the next decade. The biggest threat to nonprofits isn’t funding, it’s irrelevance. Want to get started? Pick ONE thing to automate this month: AI-powered donor messaging? (Try ChatGPT or Jasper) AI-driven grant writing? (Check out Grantable) AI for impact measurement? (Look into DataRobot) The nonprofits that embrace AI will scale 10X. The ones that don’t? They’ll keep serving sandwiches. With purpose and impact, Mario

Charities 📣 is attracting more donors under 40, up the priority list? Try this. Pull out your phone. Try to donate to your own charity in under 90 seconds. No laptop. No credit card. No password manager. Could you do it? If not, they won’t either. Younger donors expect giving to feel like shopping. Fast, mobile-friendly, and frictionless. Don't lose potential donors at the start line. --- I love hearing what charities are testing. If you would like to explore new ideas or discuss challenges, feel free to ask anything - https://lnkd.in/eaaZ8UhF

Your SMS strategy is bleeding $$$ (and killing your ROI).   Here's the expensive mistake most brands make:   They're treating SMS like email.   Blasting everyone on the list for every campaign.   This doesn't work for SMS.   Unlike email, you pay for every single SMS you send.   Every subscriber. Every message. Real money.   Here's the fix:   Stop sending the same SMS to your entire list.   Start segmenting based on campaign priority:   Regular product campaigns: → 14-30 day engaged subscribers only → Maybe stretch to 60-90 days if it's a strong product   Announcements: → 90-180 day engaged subscribers   Big sales events (Black Friday, 4th of July, etc.): → 180-365 day engaged subscribers → Worth spending more credits for major promotions   The frequency rule: → 2 SMS campaigns per week max → Increase only during major sales events   The main goal is to send fewer messages to people who actually engage.   ✅ Higher revenue per recipient. ✅ Lower credit costs. ✅ Better performance overall.   The principle is the same: be selective with who gets your messages.   Segment smart. Send less. Make more.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) aims to prevent financial fraud perpetrated using voice calls and SMS. It outlines regulatory prescriptions and institutional safeguards to mitigate the misuse of mobile numbers for fraudulent activities. IMPORTANT POINTERS ✅ Regulated Entities (REs) to utilize the Mobile Number Revocation List (MNRL) available on the Digital Intelligence Platform (DIP) to monitor and clean their customer database. REs should develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to update registered mobile numbers after due verification and enhance monitoring of accounts linked to revoked mobile numbers. ✅ REs should provide verified customer care numbers to DIP for publication on the "Sanchar Saathi" portal and undertake transactional/service calls only using the '1600xx' numbering series when operationalized. Promotional voice calls should only be made using the '140xx' numbering series, following TRAI guidelines. ✅ The annexure provides important guidelines for sending commercial communication using telecom resources, as elucidated by TRAI. These guidelines include registering on the DLT platform, using specific numbering series for commercial voice calls, registering headers for sending SMS messages, registering content templates, and using the Digital Consent Acquisition (DCA) service to acquire customers' digital consents. Maintaining confidentiality and data security, curbing misuse of headers and content templates, and creating awareness among customers about DND registration, 160-series service/transactional calling, and complaint registration processes. Know more about the same below

Marketing and communication friends in Texas: a new law you’ll want to pay attention to is Texas Senate Bill 140 (effective Sept 1, 2025!). The bill requires anyone sending SMS or MMS messages for marketing to register as a telephone solicitor. That means filing with the Secretary of State, paying a $200 application fee, and posting a $10,000 bond (which can be forfeited if you’re found out of compliance). The Texas Attorney General is responsible for enforcement, and individuals who feel harmed by noncompliant solicitations can file complaints through the Consumer Protection Division. There are exemptions, including for 501(c)(3) nonprofits, but it’s worth double-checking your SMS platform and practices, especially around the immediate opt-out requirement.

How to make your SMS channel more profitable in <1 hour without a massive rebrand or strategy shift. Take a look at your number of new SMS subscribers per month. Then look at how many welcome and abandoned checkout texts go out in a month. Also check how much revenue those flows generate monthly. Calculate the following: - Number of text credits used per send (this should be credits, not messages) - Cost per SMS credit with your provider - Total cost of SMS per month - Total cost of SMS per new customer - Total revenue from SMS per new customer - SMS profit per new customer By the end you should have a rough idea of how much cost and profit your SMS flows are bringing in. Now let's squeeze out some more profit 👇🏼 While you do this exercise: - pay attention to which SMS messages are over-crediting. E.g. a text with an emoji or image might be costing you 3-6x a normal SMS. - setup AB tests taking out emojis/photos - setup AB tests minimizing copy to drop texts down from 2 credits to 3 - AB test removing some texts entirely from the flow (many are probably useless or annoying) A brand that is sending out 20 credits per month for 10,000 new subscribers is paying 1.2k per month (assuming a $0.006 credit) or ~14k per year. 1 hour optimizing your SMS credit making your texts 20% more efficient would yield ~3k in annual savings. SMS and MMS credits vary by provider and account size so these numbers are very rough, but you get the point.

SMS marketing has become a go-to strategy for brands seeking to quickly engage with customers. However, recent updates to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act （TCPA） highlight the importance of balancing speed with compliance to avoid significant risks. As reported recently, the FCC's revised TCPA rules now require businesses to adhere to stricter guidelines, including: -- Processing opt-out requests within 10 business days, a sharp reduction from the previous 30-day timeframe. -- Accepting opt-out requests through any reasonable channel, such as email, text, phone, or web forms. -- Honouring opt-out requests in all forms, whether a consumer replies with "Stop," "Unsubscribe," or even an emoji, as long as the intent is clear. These changes call for brands to implement robust systems to effectively manage consent and opt-outs across all communication channels. Non-compliance can lead to fines of up to $1,500 per violation, along with potential damage to your brand's reputation. In today’s landscape, a fast SMS campaign is no longer enough. It must also respect consumer preferences and fully comply with the law. Is your brand ready to meet these new TCPA requirements? Share your approach or thoughts below!