of 5— Gather public source information

What you'll accomplish

By the end of this guide, you'll have a repeatable process for synthesizing public prospect research into a structured donor profile in 15–20 minutes instead of 60–90 minutes. You'll also have a standard prospect profile template that makes your cultivation conversations more informed and your major gift asks more targeted.

What you'll need

A Claude account — free tier works; {{tool:Claude.plan}} ({{tool:Claude.price}}) handles longer research documents
Public information sources: LinkedIn, foundation websites, Candid/GuideStar, local business press, news articles, board affiliate lists
Time needed: 15–20 minutes per prospect profile
Cost: Free (Claude free tier)

How-To Guide: AI-Powered Donor Prospect Research

Step 1: Gather public source information

Before using Claude, spend 10–15 minutes collecting raw public information about the prospect. Open multiple browser tabs:

LinkedIn: Their current role, career history, board affiliations, education, what they share/engage with
Candid (candid.org): Foundation giving history if they have a DAF or family foundation
Local business press: News mentions, company leadership, community involvement
Nonprofit board lists: What other organizations they serve on — this maps their philanthropic priorities
Social media (public profiles): What causes they champion, what events they attend

Copy all relevant text into a single document or your clipboard.

Tools:Claude