Tag: nonprofits

The New Search: How AI Overviews and Chatbots Are Changing How People Discover Nonprofits 

Posted on by Javier Encinas

In 2026, digital discovery is shifting from web links and search rankings to AI-generated summaries and conversational assistants. For nonprofit leaders, understanding how donors, beneficiaries, and partners encounter organizations in this new landscape is crucial for mission visibility, funding, and trust.

Today, more searchers receive answers directly on the results page through AI Overviews, rather than clicking into individual websites. Donors and partners rely less on sifting through pages of search results and more on instant, AI-powered responses from Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Perplexity.  

What Are AI Overviews and LLMs? 

AI Overviews are generative-AI summaries placed above Google Search results. They draw from Google’s indexed web pages and deliver a compact answer with relevant links. (1) 

LLMs operate via what’s called Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG). This approach retrieves live web data from websites, articles, research reports, and even community platforms like Reddit or Quora to craft natural, human-like responses. (2) 

These technologies now surface nonprofits not just based on keywords and backlinks, but on transparency, quality of storytelling, and clarity of mission. 

Put simply: 

  • AI Overviews summarize Google-indexed sources.
  • LLMs/chatbots blend live web data and learned context to generate natural language answers. 

3 Reasons Why the Age of AI Search Matters 

  1. Visibility Without Clicks: AI Overviews and LLMs summarize information without requiring a click, so your website may capture fewer direct visits. Visibility now depends on the strength of your story and the clarity of your impact, not just keywords and links. 
  2. Trust Begins Before the Visit: Searchers form judgments based on what AI tools say about you before they ever reach your homepage. Algorithms highlight organizations that show authentic outcomes, clear missions, and active engagement.  
  3. Consistency Builds Credibility: Inconsistent or outdated public messaging can result in missed opportunities for discovery in AI-generated overviews. Clear messaging, transparent impact data, and mission-driven storytelling allows nonprofits to shape how they appear in AI-powered search results. 

Where does the Opportunity Lie? 

This shift in AI-driven search offers nonprofit organizations a chance to shape how their missions are understood and trusted. The opportunity lies in clear, consistent messaging, transparent impact data, and authentic, mission-driven storytelling. 

When you back up your claims and describe them in everyday language, AI is more likely to feature your work. Early adopters who refine their content and maintain consistent public profiles will earn trust and visibility. By leading with clarity and transparency, nonprofits can define how their stories show up in this new landscape of AI-powered discovery. 

Practical Steps to Prepare 

Run HarborWay Foundations’ four-step visibility audit to understand your organization’s digital footprint. 

  1. Search five to 10 questions a typical donor, volunteer, or service recipient might ask about your mission. 
  2. Check if your organization appears in AI Overviews or LLM/chatbot answers. Document what you do or do not find. Pay attention to which competitors or market dominators surface in the answers and document the source content cited.
  3. Review your findings and identify what needs improvement. If you already have relevant pages, assess whether your content clarity or impact framing needs refinement 
  4. Create a 6–12-month plan to improve how your mission appears across these emerging discovery channels.  

If you want to better understand how your organization stacks up, HarborWay Foundations can help. Together, we’ll build a strategy to stay visible in the age of AI discovery. 

Get In Touch

Marketing Isn’t a Dirty Word Series: From Segmentation to Smarter Channels 

Posted on by Javier Encinas

Even the clearest message falls flat if you deliver it the same way to everyone. For nonprofits, segmentation and channel choice determine whether people lean in or tune out.

Why Segmentation Matters for Nonprofits 

Nonprofits serve diverse audiences, each motivated by different aspects of your mission: 

  • Families respond to programs for kids. 
  • Volunteers respond to opportunities to contribute their time and skills. 
  • Funders respond to impact metrics.

When everyone gets the same generic message, nobody feels seen. Personalized outreach builds loyalty and retention. Research shows that personalized campaigns can increase conversion and engagement rates by 30 to 40 percent, which means your audience is far more likely to stick with you. 

Smarter Channels, Smarter Reach 

Marketing is not about shouting everywhere. It is about showing up where your audience already listens. The right channel ensures your message lands and inspires action: 

  • Social media for quick actions, like signing up for an event or sharing a campaign. 
  • Email for deeper storytelling and connecting supporters to the impact of their contributions. 
  • Events for building relationships, trust, and long-term engagement.

The right channel with the right message builds stronger connections, reinforces trust, and increases participation in programs, campaigns, and initiatives. 

A Simple Framework 

Think of it as: Segment → Tailor → Deliver → Measure. 

  1. Segment  your audience by interest, role, or connection to your mission. 
  2. Tailor  the message to what they care about. 
  3. Deliver  it in the channel they use. 
  4. Measure results so you can refine your approach for even greater impact.

This framework ensures your communications are intentional, targeted, and more likely to produce meaningful action. 

How This Ties to CTAs 

Segmentation and channel strategy amplify your CTA. Without them, even the best CTA gets lost. With them, it lands with precision, inspiring your audience to take the next step and drive real impact. 

Wrapping It Up: Turning Segmentation into Lasting Engagement 

Segmentation and smart channel use aren’t just marketing tactics; they’re tools to keep audiences engaged and committed. When your audience receives the right message at the right time, they feel seen, understood, and empowered to act. Together, these strategies turn communication into community. 

Looking to reach the right people in the right way? HarborWay Foundations can help you design smart strategies that connect and keep audiences engaged. 

Missed earlier blogs? Catch Part 1 on why marketing is not a dirty word, Part 2 on sustainability, and Part 3 on the power of the call to action. 

Marketing Isn’t a Dirty Word Series: The Power of the Call to Action 

Posted on by Javier Encinas

Great stories inspire. But inspiration without direction fizzles. Even the most inspired supporter needs to know what to do next. That’s where your call to action (CTA) comes in. Nonprofit CTAs are what transform emotion into participation, and participation into real-world impact. 

Why CTAs Are Critical for Nonprofit Engagement 

Nonprofits rely on action: giving, volunteering, showing up, spreading the word. But action rarely happens by accident. Without a CTA, people may care deeply and still do nothing. With a clear, confident CTA, they know exactly how to help, and they’re far more likely to follow through. 

Knowing why CTAs matter is one thing; creating them effectively requires an understanding of what makes them strong. 

Key Qualities of a Strong Nonprofit CTA 

A few key qualities make a CTA strong, effective, and capable of turning support into real impact. Here’s what that looks like: 

  • Simple and specific: “Donate $25 today.” 
  • Consistent across channels so there is no confusion. 
  • Values-aligned so people know their action matters. 
  • Urgent but authentic, sparking momentum without pressure.

Nonprofit CTA Examples in Action 

Here’s how strong CTAs play out in the real world, inspiring supporters to take meaningful steps. 

Rock the Vote became a cultural force because it told people: register and vote. Food banks boost volunteer numbers when they add a clear sign-up button. Membership organizations thrive when they use CTAs like: “Join today as a sustaining member and unlock programs for your community.” 

Wrapping It Up: Turning Inspiration into Action with CTAs 

A strong message can move hearts, but only a strong CTA moves people to act. It closes the gap between awareness and impact, turning support into something measurable: meals served, voters registered, doors opened, futures changed. 

Nonprofits can’t afford to leave that power on the table. When you give people a clear path to help, they’re far more likely to take it. 

Ready to turn inspiration into action? HarborWay Foundations can help you build campaigns where every message leads to movement. 

Next in this series: how segmentation and channel choices sharpen your CTAs and keep audiences engaged. Missed our previous posts? Check out Part 1 to read why nonprofits need marketing more than ever, and Part 2 for what nonprofit sustainability really means.

Marketing Isn’t a Dirty Word Series: What Sustainability Really Means for Nonprofits

Posted on by Javier Encinas

When people hear “sustainability,” they often think of recycling, climate, or carbon footprint. For nonprofits, sustainability is broader. It is about building a resilient ecosystem that fuels your mission year after year. 

Five Pillars of Nonprofit Sustainability 

That ecosystem is made up of five key pillars:  

  1. Donors who keep showing up, not just one-time gifts but steady commitment. 
  2. Volunteers who return because they feel valued and part of something. 
  3. Members who belong, not just a mailing list but a movement. 
  4. Funders who double down because your impact is undeniable. 
  5. Communities who amplify your work and spread your story.

Why Nonprofit Sustainability Matters 

Think of it as infrastructure. If you only chase dollars or headlines, you burn out. Sustainable organizations grow impact without running dry, because each part of the ecosystem supports the others. When one piece is weak or missing, programs falter, engagement drops, and your mission struggles to move forward. 

The Role of Communications and Marketing 

Nonprofit sustainability depends on trust, and trust comes from consistent storytelling. Communications keep your audiences aligned. Marketing amplifies that story, expanding your reach and strengthening the ecosystem that fuels your work.  

When your messaging is clear and purposeful, supporters stay engaged, new audiences are drawn in, and the entire nonprofit ecosystem grows stronger. 

Wrapping It Up: From Survival to Movement 

Sustainability is not survival. It is momentum. It’s the steady network of donors, volunteers, funders, members, and communities working together to keep your mission thriving. When every part of your ecosystem is supported and amplified through clear storytelling and smart marketing, your nonprofit grows, inspires, and becomes a movement. 

If you want to sharpen your sustainability strategy, HarborWay Foundations can help you align communications and marketing so your mission keeps moving forward. 

Next up in this series: the single most powerful ingredient in sustainability, the call to action. Check out Part 1 to see why nonprofits need marketing more than ever.

 Marketing Isn’t a Dirty Word: Why Nonprofits Need It More Than Ever

Posted on by Javier Encinas

Nonprofits are champions of social change. You bridge gaps, uplift communities, and make a real difference where it counts most. But here’s the truth: even the most powerful mission can stall if nobody hears about it. In today’s nonstop world, how do you make sure your voice rises above the scroll? The answer is a mix that too many organizations avoid: effective communications and a nonprofit marketing strategy.

Communications: The Fuel Behind Nonprofit Sustainability 

We toss “sustainability” around often, and people usually think of the environment. For nonprofits, sustainability runs deeper. It is about creating a steady ecosystem: donors who keep showing up, volunteers who return year after year, funders who see your impact and want to invest further, and communities that amplify your work. 

Communications, the way you tell your story and invite people in, is the fuel. 

Why Marketing Gets a Bad Rap 

The word makes some leaders cringe. It feels commercial, tied to “sell, sell, sell.” But nonprofits already do marketing. They just call it communications. Corporations might label an email campaign as marketing. Nonprofits might label the same thing communications. The tools are the same, the labels change. 

At its core, marketing is not manipulation. It is clarity and action. It is the megaphone for your story. 

So let’s call it what it is: storytelling with purpose. 

Strategic Communications and Marketing Together 

Strategic communications help you tailor your voice to donors, volunteers, beneficiaries, and boards. Marketing turns up the volume, carrying those messages into the right channels with the right nudge. Connecting smarter, not shouting louder, is the heart of any successful nonprofit marketing strategy. 

The Call to Action: Turning Inspiration into Action 

The most important ingredient nonprofits miss is the call to action. Rock the Vote did not just talk about civic engagement. It said: Register. Vote. Now. Food banks that add a bright “Sign up for Saturday” button often double volunteer turnout. When people know exactly what to do next, inspiration becomes action. 

Wrapping It Up: Building a Sustainable Nonprofit Ecosystem 

True sustainability comes from trust-building communications amplified by a smart nonprofit marketing strategy, powered by clear calls to action. That is how movements grow. 

At HarborWay Foundations, we believe nonprofits deserve the same strategic tools as the world’s biggest brands, with a mission-first heart. 

Want to explore how your organization can move from message to movement? Reach out to HarborWay Foundations to start the conversation.

Coming up next in this series: a deeper dive into what sustainability really means for nonprofits and why it is not just about the planet.