The Future of Fundraising
Welcome to the Future of Fundraising.
When my team and I built the first fully autonomous fundraiser, we saw firsthand how digital labor could expand outreach and deepen engagement. Which is why now, in collaboration with our Innovation Partners, we are tackling one of the most persistent challenges in fundraising: scaling meaningful stewardship.
The cycle of giving feels transactional for too many donors. They make a gift, receive a generic thank you email or letter, and then the next time they hear from the organization, it’s another solicitation. This unintentional pattern leaves many donors feeling like just another name in a database rather than a valued partner in the mission they support.
Hundreds of our conversations about digital labor over the last few months have led us to believe there is a solution to these challenges – and research tells us they are worth solving:
- Mid-level donors are often the most loyal donors, yet they receive the least personalized stewardship. In a study of mid-level giving, donors cited “lack of communication and feeling unappreciated” as a top reason for stopping their gifts. (Nonprofit Quarterly)
- Younger donors are making lasting connections to causes now, even if their giving capacity isn’t fully realized yet. Organizations that don’t retain these donors will lose out on major returns as they age into their prime giving years. (The Chronicle of Philanthropy)
This is why we introduced the Virtual Stewardship Officer (VSO) as the next logical step in our mission to accelerate and transform philanthropy. Ensuring every donor receives the attention and engagement they deserve is critical to our missions.
Donors give because they care, and they continue giving when they feel genuinely valued. Yet, for many organizations, meaningful stewardship, personalized impact updates, heartfelt gratitude, and long-term engagement, is often reserved for top-tier donors making six- and seven-figure gifts.
The VSO expands meaningful stewardship beyond top donors, using digital labor to create personalized touchpoints that acknowledge donor history, reinforce impact, and build lasting relationships. By scaling engagement, it ensures no donor feels overlooked, making long-term relationship-building and meaningful pipeline development sustainable for every giving level.
Traditional stewardship models make it nearly impossible to engage donors in a truly personal way at scale. The VSO personalizes 1:1 stewardship to donors who give year-after-year, stretching their budgets to contribute in a way that is personally significant, even if it isn’t classified as a "major" gift; long-time supporters who have probably made their last large donation but remain deeply invested in the organization’s mission; first-time donors who, regardless of gift size, we want to retain; and more. These donors are often the backbone of an organization’s giving pipeline.
Philanthropy is a long game. If we only focus on today’s dollars, we’ll miss out on the donors who could be tomorrow’s game-changers. Planned gifts, IRA gifts, multi-year commitments—all of these require early cultivation and stewardship. This is where Version2’s Virtual Stewardship Officer (VSO) changes the game.
The future of fundraising isn’t just about raising more money—it’s about ensuring every donor feels like their gift matters. And with digital labor, meaningful stewardship is no longer just for a select few—it’s for everyone who chooses to give.
Autonomous Fundraising Progress Update
As more organizations understand that adding trusted hashtag digital labor to their teams to address the fundraising labor shortage, hashtag Autonomous Fundraising is taking off and setting new benchmarks for donor relationship management and fundraising efficiency every day.
In addition to introducing the Virtual Stewardship Officer (VSO) this week, current milestones showcase Autonomous Fundraising's growing impact:
- Successfully secured $512,369 in contributions
- Facilitated 2,747 meaningful donor conversations (aligned with CASE standards)
- Executed 45,668 strategic donor engagement activities
- Seamlessly coordinated 115 transitions to human fundraising professionals
By combining digital labor with trusted fundraising expertise, we're expanding the possibilities for meaningful donor engagement.
Track our live progress and latest metrics at https://version2.ai.
Autonomous Fundraising Reaches Major Milestones: Virtual Engagement Officer (VEO) Surpasses $500,000 in Gifts Secured; Givzey’s Version2.ai Introduces New Autonomous AI Virtual Stewardship Officer
Autonomous Fundraising has reached two new major milestones: First, the Virtual Engagement Officer (VEO) has now officially and successfully crossed the $500,000 threshold for gifts raised with $503,205 in just four months, and is projected to reach $1 million by mid-2025. Additionally, Version2 is introducing its latest innovation, the Virtual Stewardship Officer (VSO), designed to autonomously maintain and enhance donor relationships.
"With over 230,000 alumni in our Texas State family, the ability to add verticalized digital team members through Version2's autonomous solutions represents an unprecedented opportunity that staffing could never solve. These AI-powered officers allow us to meaningfully engage with our alumni base in ways that were previously impossible due to human capacity constraints,” said Brooks Hull, CFRE, Vice President for University Advancement, Texas State University, and Executive Director, Texas State University Development Foundation.
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[VIDEO] Digital Labor to Address Fundraising’s Labor Shortage at AFP-NYC Annual Meeting
This year's AFP-NYC Annual Meeting gave Givzey / Version2 CEO, Adam Martel, an opportunity to sit down with our great friend and partner, and AFP-NYC President, Craig Shelley, CRFE. Together, Adam and Craig discussed fundraising's labor shortage and the opportunity to add trusted digital labor to your organization's operations.
Together, they dove into the value of bold innovation to empower all nonprofit organizations to meet donors with the 1:1 personal engagement that we all know drives long-term giving and a thriving pipeline.
Here are a couple of brief snippets from that interview.
Thursday, February 27 at 2:00 PM ET
The pledge process is a pain. From reminders to manual tasks, asking donors to print, scan, sign, and return on your timeline – it’s a process!
Teams spend hours every week wrestling with spreadsheets, drafting individual reminder messages, and tracking follow-ups - yet things still slip through the cracks. This comprehensive workshop tackles the challenge of streamlining pledge reminder workflows to greatly improve the donor experience and reclaim your time and brain power to focus on the most impactful work.
Fundraising teams have put these worries behind them by transforming labor-intensive reminder processes into automated, personalized donor communications. See how they use Givzey's Gift Agreement Platform to eliminate manual reminder creation through smart scheduling and personalized messaging. Other organizations have struggled with pledge management and found a better way, all while reducing administrative time and improving donor response rates.
Don't let manual processes consume another week of your valuable time. Save your seat and learn how to transform pledge reminder management into an efficient, automated process that keeps donors connected to your mission.
Meet Givzey | Version2 at CCCU MAC-1
Our great friend and partner, Reed Sheard, Vice President for Collage Advancement and Chief Information Officer at Westmont College joins Adam Martel this week at the CCCU MAC-1 Conference in Atlanta.
Together, Reed and Adam will help advancement leaders understand AI and see how, when applied to fundraising’s labor shortage, it creates a layer of digital labor that empowers institutions to expand trusted fundraising capacity beyond what we could imagine with traditional fundraising models.
After the session, join Adam and Reed for an informal VIP cocktail reception to continue the conversation, network, and learn more. RSVP for the reception below.
Fundraising Jobs
Our featured jobs always come from our amazing subscribers. If you have jobs you would like posted in the Future of Fundraising newsletter, please email hello@givzey.com with your requests.
- Philanthropic Advisor $110,000 | Parkland Health and Hospital System | Dallas, TX | APPLY>>>
- Associate Director, Development *Two Openings* | Texas State University | San Marcos, TX | OPENING 1 APPLY>> | OPENING 2 APPLY>>>
- Chief Development Officer $160,000 | Please Touch Museum | Philadelphia, PA | APPLY>>>
- Director of Leadership and Major Gifts $160,000 - $180,000 | National Coast Guard Museum Association | Remote | APPLY>>>
Great article. Let's not forget that mid-level donors are also ideal prospects for planned gifts since they already have affinity and loyalty to your organization.
Stewardship is a cornerstone in fundraising! The VSO will elevate the donor experience and expand nonprofits stewardship capacity. I can't wait to see this in action!
Stewarding donors is a challenge for many organizations. The VSO will elevate donor stewardship to a new level while ensuring that every donor remains valued.
Love how the VSO will help organizations show every donor they matter, not just major gift donors. This kind of innovation is exactly what the sector needs to build lasting relationships at scale.
It’s impossible to steward every donor in a personal and meaningful way when fundraising teams are under staffed. Enter the virtual stewardship officer (VSO).