Closing the AI Effectiveness Gap: From Prompts to Fundraising Workflows

Heather McLean

Use the Prompt Library and Peer Exchange Prompt Clinics to move from AI experimentation to repeatable fundraising impact. 

AI access is growing quickly across the social impact sector. But access alone does not guarantee impact. In Bridging the AI Effectiveness Gap, the Blackbaud Institute reports that 85% of professionals use AI at work, while only about one-third believe their organization is using AI very effectively. 

That gap is the opportunity. Many teams are experimenting with AI, but fewer have built the habits, shared examples, and repeatable workflows that turn AI into consistent organizational value. For fundraisers and admins, the next step is not simply asking more questions in chat. It is learning how to connect prompts into real work. 

The practical shift: Don’t start with a blank chat. Start with a proven prompt, then build a sequence that matches the work you are trying to complete. 

The Prompt Library now makes prompt chains easier to find

The Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT® Chat for Blackbaud AI Prompt Library gives fundraisers and admins a curated place to start. And with the new filter for prompt chains, it is easier to find prompts that are designed to work together instead of standing alone. 

Prompt chains are more than sample questions. They are recipes for workflows. Each chain helps users move through a familiar pattern: surface the right information, generate useful context or content, and act on the result. 

For admins, database managers, and AI champions, these chains are especially useful coaching tools. Instead of training your team on every possible prompt, you can point fundraisers to a small set of workflow recipes that fit how they already work—then use Peer Exchange Prompt Clinics to practice, refine, and share what works. 

Prompt chain example 1: Campaign performance check-in 

Use this chain when a fundraiser, manager, or admin wants to understand campaign results and identify practical next steps for improvement.  

Step	Prompt to try
Surface	“Show me total received revenue by campaign for the [CALENDAR OR FISCAL YEAR].”
Generate	“Did [CAMPAIGN, APPEAL OR FUND NAME OR ID] come in below goal for the [CALENDAR OR FISCAL YEAR], and did we meet our goal and by how much?”
Act	“What are some strategies to improve the [CAMPAIGN, APPEAL OR FUND NAME OR ID]’s performance?”

Admin enablement idea: Share this as a reporting-to-action recipe. It helps users move from a revenue view to a goal check to specific improvement strategies, making the prompt chain useful for campaign reviews, appeal planning, and coaching conversations. 

Prompt chain example 2: LYBUNT donor re-engagement 

Use this chain when a fundraiser wants to identify lapsed donors, understand why a donor may have lapsed, and create a next step that keeps the relationship moving. 

Step	Prompt to try
Surface	“Show me LYBUNT donors in my portfolio.”
Generate	“For [NAME], summarize their giving history and likely reasons they lapsed.”
Act	“Draft a re-engagement email, then create a follow-up call action for next week.”

Admin enablement idea: Share this as a donor-retention workflow recipe. It gives fundraisers a repeatable way to move from list discovery to donor-specific context to action—without having to invent the workflow from scratch each time. 

Peer Exchange Prompt Clinics help turn recipes into practice. 

The Prompt Library gives users a structured starting point. Prompt chains show how to connect multiple prompts into a workflow. Peer Exchange Prompt Clinics from Blackbaud University give fundraisers and admins a place to practice those workflows with peers. 

In a clinic, users can bring a real fundraising challenge, try a prompt chain, compare approaches, and learn how others are applying Chat for Blackbaud AI in day-to-day work. That peer learning is what helps move AI from individual experimentation to shared team capability. 

This is also where admins can look for enablement patterns. Which chains are easiest for fundraisers to adopt? Which ones need clearer data, permissions, or coaching? Which “hero workflows” should become part of onboarding or team enablement? 

Ready to get started? 

Start by exploring the Prompt Library and using the new prompt-chain filter to find workflows that match your team’s work. 

Then register for Peer Exchange: Chat for Blackbaud AI—Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT to practice prompt chains alongside other fundraisers and admins. 

The goal is not simply to use AI more. The goal is to use AI more effectively—with prompts that fit real fundraising workflows, teams that learn from one another, and actions that help move donor relationships forward. 

Don’t start with a blank chat. Start with the Prompt Library, try a prompt chain, and join a Peer Exchange Prompt Clinic to turn AI experimentation into practical fundraising workflows.