How to Keep a Human Touch in Automated Alumni Fundraising

As a higher education fundraising professional, it can be easy to fall into the generative AI trap—after all, you could get detailed fundraising plans and marketing strategies with just a couple of clicks. But relying on AI too much could backfire on you. If you’re not careful, you might end up spreading misinformation or sounding bland and robotic. All this will lead donors to lose trust in your organization, which is the last thing you want.

That’s why it’s essential that you maintain a human touch when planning an automated alumni fundraising. Doing so requires balancing data-driven efficiency with personalized, conversational outreach that reflects a genuine relationship. 

This guide explores key questions and tips for perfecting the balance between automation and the human touch in alumni fundraising. 

Frequently Asked Questions about AI in Alumni Fundraising

5 Tips to Maintain the Human Touch in Automated Alumni Fundraising

1. Build a foundation of clean data

Clean data is the absolute prerequisite for any automated outreach. If an automated system calls an alum by the wrong name or references a degree they don’t have, you’ll instantly lose the human touch, not to mention a good deal of credibility. 

Here are some steps you can take to build a foundation for clean data: 

• Use automated data cleaning tools. These tools will identify and resolve corrupt, inaccurate, or irrelevant donor data in your system. 
• Tag donors based on “affinity triggers,” such as recent attendance at a homecoming event or a social media mention of the university. This can help you determine which alumni are most likely to support your fundraising efforts and how you can reach out to others. For example, if an alum always attends a homecoming event, ask whether they’d be willing to invite a few former classmates. 
• Ensure your CRM syncs in real time so that you’ll get the most relevant and accurate information. If your CRM isn’t synced in real time, you might encounter issues like missing important data or having outdated records. 

Practicing good data hygiene enables your team to gain insights quickly when planning alumni fundraising, thereby streamlining the process.

2. Craft an automated message that feels personal

Just because you don’t have time to craft a message to every single donor doesn’t mean you have to stick to a robotic tone. If you stick to a robotic tone, you will turn off your supporters because it shows you didn’t even bother to meet them where they are. 

When writing scripts and templates for your automated messages, be sure to follow these tips:

• Use “I” and “You” language. Using first- and second-person language helps supporters feel like you’re speaking directly to them rather than to a large group. As a result, your supporters will feel closer to your organization.
• Avoid the “marketing voice.” No one wants to feel like your organization treats them like just a cash cow. So, drop the marketing voice and instead adopt the casual, friendly tone, similar to how you’d speak to a friend. 
• Include “dynamic storytelling” variables, such as a sentence about a specific campus event relevant to the alumna’s graduation decade. This will trigger their nostalgia, prompting them to think back to the good old days and, in turn, encouraging them to support your fundraising efforts. 

In short, don’t treat your alumni like they’re just a number on a spreadsheet. Make sure you’re still talking to them like they’re actual people—even if the message itself is automated.

3. Leverage multichannel automation for cohesive storytelling

Don’t just rely on one channel of communication. Instead, synchronize email, SMS, and voice messages to tell a single story. 

For example, let’s say that you’re running a fundraising program for a library extension. You can start your campaign with an email newsletter that highlights the library’s history and its vital role in many students’ and alumni’s lives. Then, you can follow up by sending text blasts that reference the newsletter or provide updates on the fundraising goals. After the campaign, send another email outlining the program’s impact.

You might also want to consider sending a fundraising letter via direct mail. A Salesforce report found that direct mail campaigns delivered an average response rate of around 4.4%, which is impressive compared to the 0.12% for email-based letters!

4. Learn when to transition from automation to human intervention

AI is excellent at sorting through thousands of leads to find the 10 people who actually want to talk, but it can’t actually talk to these people. So, you must have specific “hands-off” triggers that indicate when a staff member or student volunteer should take over. 

For example:

• Trigger a personal call if a donor replies to an automated text with a specific question about a gift’s impact.
• Set alerts for “major gift” signals, such as an alum repeatedly clicking a link to a planned giving page. 
• Use AI to flag high-sentiment responses in surveys so a fundraiser can follow up with a handwritten note.

Taking the time to go above and beyond to connect with highly engaged donors will allow you to make the most of their interest and motivation to give. 

5. Implement an ethical AI fundraising policy

Transparency is key when incorporating AI tools into the donor journey. It makes you appear honest, boosting your organization’s credibility. Donors will also be more inclined to give more in the future because they trust you. In fact, Candid reported that nonprofits with a GuideStar Seal of Transparency got 53% more contributions! 

So, to foster donor loyalty, implementing an ethical AI fundraising policy is a must. Here’s how you can achieve that:

• Be transparent about data use in your privacy policy. Let donors know how you use their data in automated fundraising processes, such as by segmenting them into groups or by serving them more personalized content. You should also give donors the choice to opt out of automated sequences and other AI-related processes.
• Use AI to audit your own communications for bias. This ensures that outreach is inclusive across all alumni demographics.
• Focus on “relationship-first” metrics (e.g., engagement and retention) rather than just “transaction-first” metrics (e.g., total dollars raised). While important, focusing solely on these can lead to a “churn and burn” strategy, where automation feels like a relentless series of requests that eventually burn out your donor base. Relationship-first metrics shift the focus to the health and longevity of the connection between the alum and the university. 

Keep in mind that in addition to automated marketing efforts, your nonprofit should also reaffirm donor relationships by speaking directly to your supporters. You can do this at a fundraising event, over the phone, or on a video call. 

Reminder: AI is simply a tool

It bears repeating that AI automation is simply a tool to amplify human connection, not replace it. AI should handle menial tasks, such as data collection, while you focus on the important work of cultivating relationships with your donor base. 

Start by auditing your current automated workflows to spot and fix the “robotic” friction points before launching a new campaign.

Shiksha Sharma

Shiksha Sharma is a Content Marketer with over 5 years of experience in the B2B SaaS industry. She has extensively written about software that helps organizations work easily. Her areas of research include politics, nonprofits, advocacy, and business.