Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer reserved for just tech giants and profit-driven businesses. Increasingly, charities and not-for-profits (NFPs) are turning to AI to help maximise their social mission and enhance their impact. AI’s ability to automate tasks, analyse complex data, and even predict future trends, makes it easier to improve service delivery, engage supporters, and streamline operations.
The 2024 Charity Digital Skills Report states that 61% of charities are already using AI tools in their day-to-day work or operations, with 53% of larger charities saying that AI tools are a priority. AI is already rapidly changing the landscape for charities and NFP’s.
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of AI, offer real-life examples, address implementation challenges, and outline steps for developing an effective AI strategy.
Key Benefits of AI for Charities & Not-for-Profits
The potential of AI for charities and NFPs is huge, touching nearly every area of their operations, from service delivery to back-office processes. By automating repetitive tasks, enabling data-driven decisions, and enhancing donor experiences, AI allows nonprofits to focus on mission-critical activities. Here are some key benefits:
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Charities and NFPs have access to vast amounts of data, but drawing actionable insights from it can be overwhelming. AI analytics tools enable charities to unlock insights from their data, allowing for smarter resource allocation, better understanding of donor motivations, and improved service planning.
- Improved Operational Efficiency: By taking on time-consuming administrative tasks, AI frees up staff to focus on high-impact areas, such as service delivery, outreach and strategic planning. Tasks like data sorting, scheduling, and managing routine enquiries can potentially be handled by AI-driven tools. However, while technology can help, the human touch remains crucial in maintaining the personal relationships that are the heartbeat of any charity’s success.
- Marketing and Fundraising Support: Generative AI tools are being used to help create fundraising and marketing materials, social media content, video production and image assets. They are also being used for bid writing, grant funding applications and drafting policies, while ‘speech to text’ tools can take meeting minutes efficiently and effectively.
- Enhanced Donor Engagement: Through analysing supporter data, AI can help charities and NFP’s create highly personalised engagement strategies, which lead to stronger relationships with donors. Knowing what motivates supporters allows charities to roll out targeted marketing campaigns, keeping supporters engaged and ensuring a stable income stream for future donations.
How Are Charities Implementing AI?
From chatbots assisting with initial enquiries to machine learning algorithms optimising patient data securely and safely, AI is already helping many not-for-profit organisations overcome resource limitations and improve their service delivery:
- NSPCC Childline: AI chatbots keep young people engaged during counsellor wait times. The system intelligently directs users to relevant self-help resources and shares vital conversation context with counsellors, helping provide more effective support.
- Great Ormond Street Hospital: Has trialled TORTUS, an AI tool developed to boost face-to-face time in patient appointments. This project marks the first large-scale test of ambient voice technology to improve care and patient outcomes.
- Parkinson’s UK: Is part-funding a trial using AI diagnostic tools to help provide earlier and more accurate Parkinson’s detection. This proof-of-concept study demonstrated how machine learning can spot subtle disease markers that might otherwise go undetected.
- Pancreatic Cancer UK: Uses predictive AI to better target supporters, reducing mailings while increasing donations year-on-year. This data-driven approach boosts fundraising efficiency and deepens donor engagement.
- Surrey Wildlife Trust: Partnered with the University of Surrey to monitor wildlife habitats using AI and satellite technology. This has helped improve conservation efforts and biodiversity.
Challenges and Considerations
While AI offers exciting opportunities to transform how charities deliver their mission, it also introduces challenges that third-sector organisations must carefully consider and navigate. The promise of enhanced efficiency and impact must be balanced against practical constraints and ethical considerations. Some key factors include:
- Security and Privacy Concerns: For charities, safeguarding sensitive and confidential data is critical. Organisations must ensure AI usage complies with regulations like GDPR to maintain trust with beneficiaries and donors. Strong cybersecurity measures are also a priority to prevent potential data breaches.
- Data Readiness: Quality data is the backbone of any AI system, but achieving this level of readiness can be challenging. Many charities still need to develop robust data management practices, without which AI projects are unlikely to succeed.
- Financial and Staff Resources: Implementing and maintaining AI systems can require substantial funding and skilled personnel, both of which are limited for some charities. While AI has the potential to generate long-term efficiencies, many organisations struggle to secure the upfront investment needed for initial adoption.
- AI Hallucinations: Generative AI can be a powerful tool, but its outputs can sometimes be inaccurate or biased due to the diverse source material it draws from. This can cause ‘hallucinations’ where the algorithm tries to fill in gaps for missing information. Team members must still review, fact-check, and potentially refine the output to ensure accuracy and validity.
- Ethics and Transparency: Charities and NFP’s must ensure that AI decisions align with their mission and that there is no unintentional bias or inequity in AI-driven outcomes. By establishing clear ethical guidelines, nonprofits can build trust and demonstrate their commitment to using AI responsibly.
Developing an Effective AI Strategy for Your Charity
Before diving headfirst into AI, it’s important for charities to take a strategic approach that aligns with their mission and resources, so they don’t overwhelm their teams or budgets.
- Start Small: Introducing AI through a pilot project allows charities to see early benefits without a major financial commitment. This approach enables organisations to learn from small-scale implementations, like a chatbot or simple analytics tool, before scaling AI across other parts of the organisation.
- Align with Organisational Goals: AI should be a tool that supports and amplifies a charity’s mission rather than a means to an end. By focusing on clear objectives—whether it’s improving service delivery or strengthening donor relationships—nonprofits can use AI to solve meaningful problems and make a true difference.
- AI Governance: Consider implementing an internal policy to determine how AI should be used in terms of governance, workflows, and service delivery. For example, since June 2023, the British Heart Foundation has been developing its AI approach by establishing a dedicated working group, an AI user community, and a comprehensive AI strategy.
- Invest in Staff Training: AI tools are most effective when the people using them are comfortable and knowledgeable. Training team members on AI tools not only increases adoption but also helps to create a culture of collaboration within the organisation.
- Ensure Data Quality: Given the importance of high-quality data, establishing a strong data governance framework is essential. Charities can invest in data management practices to ensure that their data is accurate, relevant, and ready for AI-driven insights.
Summary
More and more charities and not-for-profits are exploring the power of AI to maximise their impact. AI is helping them work smarter, engage supporters and donors with targeted campaigns, and deliver services more effectively.
Organisations that successfully implement AI strategies often find that the technology doesn’t necessarily replace human interaction but rather enhances it, allowing staff to focus on what matters most: service delivery and enhancing their mission.
With a strong strategy, clear ethical standards, and a focus on data quality, charities can enhance their impact while maintaining the human touch that makes their work so vital.
Ready to explore how AI can transform your organisation? Get in touch with Optimum PPS today to start your AI journey.