The Do's and Don'ts of Using AI in Content Marketing
AI (artificial intelligence) has moved beyond being a buzzword in the nonprofit sector to a widely accepted tool many organizations use daily. According to a Google.org survey, over half of nonprofits now use AI tools.
These solutions not only help nonprofits save time and increase productivity—they offer tangible support when it comes to connecting with donors and boosting revenue. However, AI tools also have the potential to damage a nonprofit’s reputation if used improperly.
In this guide, we’ll review a few do’s and don’ts of AI usage to help your nonprofit take a thoughtful and effective content marketing approach.
Do: Use AI as a tool to supplement your content marketing strategy
Just like word processors, messaging apps, or spreadsheets, AI solutions are tools. They’re meant to support the content creation process, not entirely replace human-led creative efforts. AI solutions can help your marketing team save time and streamline tasks, allowing you to spend more energy on the big picture of your content strategy.
Use these tools to their fullest advantage by finding ways to:
Save time by automating repetitive tasks
Brainstorm new content ideas, from blog post topics to email subject lines
Edit content for grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, or opportunities to add impact to written content
By incorporating AI solutions like generative AI, predictive analytics, and chatbots into your workflows, you can modernize your marketing approach while providing a better experience for your audience.
Don’t: Rely on AI to write all of your content
While it may be tempting to turn to generative AI solutions like ChatGPT to write all of your organization’s content, we recommend resisting this urge. Using AI to write all content comes with a variety of potential pitfalls, such as:
Negative SEO implications. Although Google does not penalize AI-written content specifically, it does demote poorly written, spammy, or thin content. Google values content that offers EEAT—expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. Therefore, any AI content you use should be carefully edited to add your nonprofit’s unique experience, perspective, and tone of voice.
Factual errors. While AI solutions are becoming increasingly advanced and accurate, they still may suffer from “hallucinations” or factual errors in their outputs. Keep this in mind and carefully review AI-generated content for accuracy.
Lack of originality. AI content can be somewhat generic since many tools simply aggregate the most common opinions on a given topic. Your content will be much more engaging when you add a unique perspective that draws your audience in and offers clear value based on your years of experience working in your field.
We recommend using generative solutions for the content planning process, including tasks like brainstorming new ideas, researching technical topics, or generating content outlines. Then, combine this research with your own expertise to create comprehensive educational content to serve your audience effectively.
Do: Carefully vet your AI solutions
As Kanopi’s content marketing guide explains, organizations must “tread carefully, weighing the benefits and potential risks of using AI tools.” Using secure, trusted AI solutions is crucial to maintaining data integrity and your nonprofit’s reputation.
Before getting started with a new AI tool, consider the following:
Potential biases. Harmful biases can result from predictive AI tools that aren’t trained using diverse data sets that represent all community members accurately. Understand which models your AI solutions use to ensure they’re trained using data representing your community’s demographics.
Security features. Make sure you understand how your AI solutions collect and store data. Only use tools with robust encryption features to keep data secure.
Impact on your community. Before fully diving into AI content creation, consider the potential impact on your nonprofit’s audience if any data or ethical breaches were to occur. A Pew Research study found that 37% of respondents were more concerned than excited about AI, demonstrating the prevailing distrust of this new type of technology. Carefully consider how you can offer transparency and accountability to your audience to assuage any concerns and maintain positive relationships.
In addition, ensure any AI solutions you use comply with legal regulations. Many states have recently introduced or enacted laws regulating AI use, so it’s important to understand which regulations apply to your state and ensure your tools and AI use comply with relevant legislation.
Don’t: Input sensitive data into AI tools
Although many AI solutions have strong data protection safeguards, you can’t rule out the potential for data leaks. That’s why it’s essential to avoid inputting sensitive, proprietary, or personal data into AI tools.
According to NPOInfo’s nonprofit data collection guide, organizations typically gather donor information such as email addresses, phone numbers, physical addresses, and employer data. This information can help create tailored marketing strategies, but it should only be used in-house and not shared with any third-party AI platforms.
Do: Create a clear AI use policy
To maintain security and a high standard of ethics, create an acceptable AI use policy for your organization to follow as you develop online content. This is an effective opportunity to determine how AI solutions will fit into your marketing strategy and support your goals.
There are plenty of examples of AI policies available online for all types of organizations, including businesses, universities, healthcare organizations, and nonprofits. Most policies have the following regulations in common:
Commitment to only using tools that actively combat bias and offer the highest level of security
Transparency about how the AI solutions work
Prohibitions on uploading sensitive or proprietary information
Update your AI policy regularly as part of your ongoing website maintenance and strategic realignment processes. This ensures you can keep up with any technology updates or legal regulations that impact your AI use.
Don’t: Use vague prompts
Effectively using a generative AI solution like ChatGPT requires clear intention. If you ask a vague or ineffective question, you’ll receive a vague or ineffective answer.
Practice creating specific prompts to generate useful responses that serve your marketing goals. For example, let’s say you’re brainstorming blog post ideas for a series leading up to GivingTuesday. You could ask a generative AI solution to “Generate five blog post ideas for a series encouraging donors to contribute on GivingTuesday.” However, this request will likely lead to a generic list of ideas that could apply to any nonprofit.
Instead, get specific about your nonprofit’s audience, goals, and mission. For example, “Generate five blog post ideas for a series of posts leading up to Giving Tuesday. The audience for these posts will be environmentally conscious donors who are on the fence about giving to a conservation nonprofit and need information about how their contributions make a difference.”
This example features a clear subject, audience, and goal. With this information, the generative AI solution can create tailored ideas that are more useful and relevant to your audience.
Do: Experiment with multiple solutions
It’s not an exaggeration to say there are literally hundreds of AI solutions. These tools run the gamut, from website chatbots to task automation solutions to image editors.
Don’t be afraid to investigate new tools and see which options work best for your content marketing strategy. Becoming familiar with a wide range of innovative tools won’t just help your nonprofit create the most compelling marketing content possible. It will also help you develop your skills as a savvy marketer who can adapt to innovations to drive value for your cause.
Ultimately, the most effective, best nonprofit websites have the best content strategies. Whether these websites are created with the support of AI or not, they feature compelling images, videos, blog posts, and other materials that tell a cohesive story. Keep that goal in mind as you consider using AI to support your content marketing strategy.