The other morning, I came across a few marketing emails that stopped me in my tracks.
They were clean. Polished. Not a comma out of place.
And yet… they felt hollow.
They reminded me of something Eddie Shleyner, Founder of Very Good Copy and author of a book by the same title, wrote in a micro-essay he shared a few months back—one that’s been sitting with me ever since. He compares AI to the character Will in Good Will Hunting: brilliant, fast, unbelievably capable… but emotionally disconnected.
“AI is a genius, cocky, scared kid,” Shleyner writes. “It’s able to do so much, so quickly — except be human. It can’t do that.”
In the movie, Robin Williams’ character challenges Will’s assumptions. He tells him:
You can quote Shakespeare on war, but you’ve never watched a friend die in your arms.
You can recite facts about Michelangelo, but you’ve never stood in the Sistine Chapel and looked up.
That monologue draws a sharp line between knowledge and experience, and between knowing what something is and knowing how it feels.
And that’s exactly what AI can’t replicate.
AI may write perfectly polished narratives, and describe art, love, loss, joy, but it will never feel any of it.
Shleyner puts it simply: AI might know everything in the book, but “it can’t crawl your brain, regurgitating your personal experiences and emotions.” Only you can do that.
That’s what makes human writing irreplaceable.
As writers, strategists, and marketers, it’s our memories, emotions, and perspective that make a message land.
And while AI can give you a good start, it takes the lived experience of a human to make it meaningful.
That said, meaningful doesn’t have to mean manual.
AI might not carry your lived experience, but when used intentionally, it can clear the clutter so your voice shines through. It can’t feel, but it can help you focus on what does.
AI is Here to Stay—And That’s a Good Thing
The rise of ChatGPT, Claude, and similar AI tools has been nothing short of meteoric. And there’s plenty of reason for that momentum.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve stared at a blank page trying to craft a marketing message from scratch, and I’m sure you’ve been there, too. The good thing about AI is that it doesn’t just sit there while you wrestle with your first sentence. It offers a place to start. It could be in the form of an outline, a rough draft, or a handful of headline options that help you get moving.
The first version written by AI might not be perfect, but it’s often enough to nudge you in the right direction. And when you’re revisiting the same programs or campaigns for the third or fourth time, that spark can help you reframe the story in a way that feels clear, relevant, and worth telling again.
if you’re not using AI at this point, you’re probably making things harder than they need to be. When properly and ethically harnessed, AI can help move your marketing projects without ballooning your budget or burning out your team.
AI Alone Can’t Create Connection
AI is a remarkable tool, but like Eddie said, it can never replace you or the life you’ve lived. Think of it as a super-smart intern who’s read every textbook and article ever written. But that intern has never experienced the highs and lows your nonprofit’s clients or beneficiaries face every day.
AI doesn’t know what it feels like to watch a child’s eyes light up when they receive new books for the first time. It hasn’t stood with a family as they step into safe housing after months in a shelter. And it certainly hasn’t walked alongside communities after disaster strikes, the way a dedicated nonprofit does when it delivers food, water, and emergency supplies to families who’ve lost everything.
AI can’t capture the courage it takes to challenge the status quo in a room full of decision-makers, or the quiet power of people coming together to build a race equity culture from the inside out.
These are the stories that make our work real — the ones that connect, resonate, and inspire. And no matter how advanced AI becomes, it will never know these stories. You and I will. And that’s what makes your message matter.
When It Just Feels Off, It Probably Is
Chances are, you’ve read an AI-heavy piece and thought, “Something’s missing.” It might be perfectly organized and grammatically correct, but it feels lifeless—so painfully generic that you suspect it could have been written for any nonprofit in the world, not yours.
That’s the crux: if your content doesn’t make people feel anything, it’s not doing its job. While AI can help shape the factual foundation of your content, the true connective tissue—humor, empathy, storytelling, the subtle emotional cues that rally people to your cause—only comes from humans who understand both the context and the community.
Make People Feel, Not Just to Make People Understand
For nonprofits and purpose-driven businesses, emotion is everything. People don’t give to your organization because they learned facts and statistics about your mission. They give because they sense hope, urgency, and possibility. They want to be part of something bigger than themselves.
Even the best impact data will only carry you so far. What moves someone to click “Donate Now” is the stirring story, the evocative image, the moment that puts a human face to the work you do. That same emotional connection drives advocacy, too. If you want someone to share your latest campaign or show up at your next event, they need to feel something: a sense of belonging, of alignment, of care. AI might help you polish your message, but it can’t replicate the warmth of personal passion or the spark of lived conviction.
And when it comes to building lasting relationships with your community, emotion is the thread that keeps people connected. A one-time donation is helpful. But a longtime supporter? That’s the heartbeat of a thriving nonprofit.
Loyalty like that doesn’t come from data dashboards or perfectly timed automation. It grows through consistent, human moments,
AI can help with the logistics. But the heart? That still has to come from you.
Use AI as a Teammate, Not a Stand-In
Let’s be clear, none of this means you should write off AI entirely. Quite the contrary. It simply means that how you use AI matters.
Start with Human Insight
Before you hand a blog post or fundraising letter over to AI, take a moment to reflect on your brand’s voice and the emotional depth of the story you want to share.
Do you have testimonials from clients or community members? Quotes from volunteers? A particularly moving personal anecdote from a staff member?
Gather these human elements first. They’ll shape your final piece more powerfully than any AI-generated outline ever could.
Let AI Break Through the Blank Page
Once you’ve got your stories and perspective in place, it’s totally fine to let AI craft a first draft. Tools like ChatGPT and Claude can help structure your thoughts, format your bullet points, or generate headline ideas.
Personally, I like to ask for 10 different heading options. I may not actually use any of them, but reviewing the list usually sparks a new way of thinking about it. AI might not land on the perfect line, but it helps get you moving.
Revise, Refine, and Add Nuance
This is the most critical step—be the editor who brings heart and relevance to every sentence.
Rework the draft to ensure the tone, pacing, and emotional depth align with your audience. Verify every statistic. Pull in personal stories. Swap out bland phrases for something that reflects your unique perspective.
Amanda Natividad, VP of Marketing at Spark Toro, calls this process “Amanda-ifying” her content—reading closely, fact-checking, adjusting the language so it feels true to her style. Essentially, you’re doing what AI can’t: layering in humanity and vulnerability.
Double-Check Facts and Tone
AI is an impressive researcher, but it’s far from infallible. It might pull outdated numbers or fabricate data that sounds real but isn’t. That’s a big risk in the nonprofit sector, where trust is paramount.
Take the extra time to confirm the details. Also, ensure the final piece still sounds like a warm conversation between your organization and your audience—consistent, thoughtful, and reflective of your core values.
If It Doesn’t Feel Like Anything, Don’t Use It
We’ve all been in a spot where a client or colleague says, “Hey, AI wrote this—let’s just plug it in!” But if that content feels generic or, worse, completely disconnected from your audience,, there’s no point in publishing it. That quick fix might save time in the short term, but it can dilute your message and leave the audience feeling nothing at all.
As good as AI is getting, humans are incredible B.S. detectors. People can tell when writing is purely AI-generated because it often lacks the subtle transitions and unique quirks we are used to. For nonprofits who rely on personal stories and deeply felt outcomes, it could alienate both current donors and potential new supporters.
The Future Is a Human-AI Partnership
AI’s place in marketing—especially nonprofit marketing—isn’t a fad. It’s the new normal. If we treat AI as an adversary or something to be avoided, we miss out on massive opportunities to build efficiency in our work. But if we treat AI as the only solution, we risk losing the warmth and authenticity that make our organizations shine.
The sweet spot is in the balance:
Start with a “human pass” when writing your prompts. The more context you give AI, the better the output. A prompt like “Write a donor thank-you” is too vague. But something more specific, such as “Write a thank-you note based on this story about Ruby, who just graduated from college thanks to our support,” gives AI something real to work with, and the difference shows up immediately in the first draft.
Use AI for first drafts, research, or administrative tasks that don’t require deep nuance. But always protect the voice of your brand: the emotional arc, the stories of real people, and the spirit that draws readers in.
No matter how good the output looks on the surface, a final “human pass” is essential to make sure what you’re putting out into the world truly resonates.
Putting Humanity First in Every Message
Remember those polished marketing emails I mentioned earlier? The ones that felt just a little too perfect? We see versions of that all the time, and when we do, we don’t just swap them out. We look for ways to bring the human story back in.
At Wayward Kind, we love experimenting with new tools and ideas, but we’re unshakable in our belief that nonprofit marketing only works when it feels human. Yes, AI can supercharge your process and help you speak to more people in more places. But in our experience, the strongest outcomes happen when you let your mission, values, and empathy lead—and invite AI along for the ride.
Ready to bring real heart back to your nonprofit’s storytelling? Partner with Wayward Kind to craft messages that don’t just inform—but move people to act. Let’s put humanity in every one of your messages and help turn compassion into impact.