March 2026: Campaign Tips for Small Teams – Swell Fundraising

In this Just 1 Thing from Swell, Brooke shares practical ways to save time when running a campaign. The goal is not to do less. It is to work more efficiently so you can focus on what matters most.

Navigation

Overview

Video and Transcript

Start with a One-Page Campaign Plan

Set Clear Guardrails

Let AI Draft Your Content

Delegate Where It Matters Most

Use Templates to Save Time

What Really Matters

Key Takeaways

Resources

Overview

Most teams we work with are small and stretched thin. The challenge is finding ways to manage the workload without sacrificing results.

This session focuses on three ways to extend your capacity:

Use AI to speed up planning and content
Delegate key responsibilities
Batch and schedule your work in advance

Video and Transcript Start with a One-Page Campaign Plan

Slides

Transcript

Board Fundraising Toolkit Template mentioned in the presentation

Start with a One-Page Campaign Plan

Before you begin, take about an hour to map out your campaign. Your plan should include:

Goal
Audience
Theme
Key dates
Overall structure

This gives you a clear direction and helps you stay focused. It also makes it easier to say no to ideas that do not support your goal.

Use AI to Get Started.
If you are not sure where to begin, enter your goal into an AI tool and ask for:
Theme ideas

Target audiences
Messaging suggestions
Metrics

Use what you like, adjust as needed, and move forward.

Set Clear Guardrails

Changing direction during a campaign adds time and complexity.

Once your plan is set, use it as your guide. If new ideas come up, you can save them for a future campaign instead of adding more work now.

Reuse and Organize Your Work

Anything you can reuse will save time later. Keep your assets organized so you can:

Update instead of rebuild
Maintain consistency
Support new team members if roles change

Well-organized files make it easy to relaunch a campaign with minimal effort.

Batch and Pre-Schedule Your Work

Switching between tools and tasks takes time. Instead, group similar work together. For example, write all of your emails at once, then move on to creating your graphics, and schedule your content in advance. This reduces stress and keeps your campaign running smoothly.

Here are a few things you could pre-schedule

Pre-launch email
Campaign emails
Final push email
Social posts

Let AI Draft Your Content

There's no need to stare at a blank page. AI tools like Claude and Chat GPT can help you quickly generate:

Email drafts
Social captions
Campaign messaging and more!

Remember to edit the drafts to make sure they sound like you. This approach helps you quickly create the content you need while maintaining your organization's voice.

Delegate Where It Matters Most

Delegation isn't always easy, and it takes planning, but it really can save time.

Here are a few high-impact roles to consider:

Campaign Champion

Recruits participants or fundraisers
Helps with outreach and follow-upGraphic Support
Creates Canva templates
Designs campaign assets

This is one of the most effective ways to save time and improve quality. Students or freelancers are often great options.

Engagement Support

Follows up with donors
Helps re-engage past supporters

Even a small amount of support here can make a difference.

Use Templates to Save Time

Using templates help you reduce the decision-making load and keep your campaigns consistent. Instead of starting from scratch each year, consider creating templates for the following: