If Possible
A podcast for ambitious nonprofit leaders who think AI can help their mission
Colleen Cook and Scott Williams are nonprofit fundraisers who figured out AI. Each episode takes one idea in AI and nonprofits and reports back on what works, what is half built, and what it means for your mission.
From “too busy for AI” to anything possible
Listen in order and the season tells a story: Colleen calls her shot on air in Episode 5 and reports back in Episode 6, and the finale answers the question behind the name.
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Start here if you’re slammed26 minEpisode 1: Too Busy for AI
AI for Nonprofits When You Have No Time
Every fall we hear it from nonprofit leaders: we're slammed, let's talk about AI in January. In our first episode, Colleen and Scott make the case for starting with the work already on your plate.
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Start here if AI gives you mush23 minEpisode 2: A Goldfish With a Brain
Why AI Forgets Your Nonprofit (and How to Fix It)
Your AI has the memory of a goldfish, and when it forgets, it won't tell you. You'll just see it in the work.
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29 minEpisode 3: Hit Record
Your Nonprofit's Best Donor Insights Are Hiding in Your Meetings
Most of what matters at a nonprofit is said out loud, and we keep maybe a tenth of it. Colleen and Scott don't say a word in a meeting until somebody hits record. Here's why.
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24 minEpisode 4: Meat Proxy
AI for Nonprofits: Don't Be a Meat Proxy
A meat proxy is the person who pastes AI output into Slack or an email without adding anything to it. If you've ever received a five-page summary of a two-line idea, you've met one.
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26 minEpisode 5: Call Your Shot
Why Your Nonprofit Feels Like the Best Kept Secret (AI for Nonprofits)
Most nonprofits feel like the best kept secret in town because they only speak up when they have an ask. One appeal letter is never enough. Year-end takes hundreds of touches.
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Start here if year-end is on your desk26 minEpisode 6: Ninety-One Assets
91 Nonprofit Campaign Pieces in Eight Hours With AI
Last episode, Colleen called her shot: one day to build a nonprofit's whole year-end campaign with AI. Here's how it went.
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26 minEpisode 7: Whatever's in Your Head
AI and the Software Nobody Will Ever Sell Your Nonprofit
Colleen and Scott spent years running an agency that built websites, so they know what it costs to hand-code an idea. Then AI started handing them clickable web pages in minutes.
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16 minEpisode 8: The Bathroom Sink
The Half-Built Truth About AI for Nonprofits
Most of what we build with AI is half done for a while, like the 13-inch discount sink we lived with in our unfinished office kitchen: functional, and not where you want to live.
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Start here if asking is the hard part23 minEpisode 9: Fundraising Is Fear
Fundraising Is Fear: How AI Helps Nonprofits Know Their Donors
Colleen's first development job started with a front-page story saying her organization would close, and every donor in town mad at them. Years later she has a word for what sits underneath every hard ask: fear.
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23 minEpisode 10: If Possible
If Anything Were Possible: AI Is the Great Equalizer for Nonprofits
A few times this season, we've left you with one question. In the Season 1 finale, Colleen tells where it came from: a nonprofit whose dreams always came with the limits built in.
Nonprofit fundraisers who figured out AI
Colleen Cook and Scott Williams spent more than a decade inside nonprofit fundraising before AI changed how they work. Now they use it all day and report back on what works, what is still half built, and what it means for a stretched team.
- 11+years inside nonprofit fundraising
- 100+organizations served
- $200M+raised
On nonprofit busyness
Colleen · 43 s
On better prompts
Scott · 49 s
On the $25 reply card
Colleen · 27 s
On how we met
Scott · 20 s
On board meetings
Colleen · 41 s
On AI hype
Scott · 15 s
On year-end appeals
Colleen · 53 s
On donor relationships
Scott · 44 s
On why we do this
Colleen · 24 s
On telling your story
Scott · 36 s
On impact reports
Colleen · 47 s
On AI slop
Scott · 59 s
On major donors
Colleen · 41 s
On AI teammates
Scott · 28 s
On your team and AI
Colleen · 50 s
On agencies
Scott · 45 s
On 91 pieces in 8 hours
Colleen · 38 s
On more time with people
Scott · 34 s
On back-to-back meetings
Colleen · 36 s
On your job, post-AI
Scott · 39 s
On being counted out
Colleen · 38 s
On shaky phone video
Scott · 35 s
What listeners are saying
The Meat Proxy one made me laugh. I’ve definitely done some of that.
Easy to follow. I’m still pretty new to all of this.
The first episode was a good introduction. I sent it to a coworker who’s been asking about AI.
A good place to start if you’re still figuring AI out.
A little weird. I’m into it.
Colleen explains things well. There have been a few spots where I’ve backed it up to listen again.
Episode 2 helped. I’d been wondering why I kept getting such generic answers.
Some useful ideas in the year-end episode. I bookmarked that one.
Scott and Colleen are fun to listen to. I especially like hearing about what they’re trying and how it’s going.
I like that the examples are about work we actually do.
I’ve listened to a few now. Useful stuff, and the conversations feel pretty relaxed.
Worth a listen if you’re working on year-end. I jotted down a couple of ideas for our emails.
Good company for the drive home.
Personally, I’m here for the fake sponsors.
Really appreciated the fundraising conversation.
Meat Proxy is such a ridiculous name. Pretty accurate, though.
The goldfish bit was a good way to explain it.
Already looking forward to the next one.
Hear Season 2 first
Leave your email and we'll send you each new episode the day it's out, plus the If Possible Newsletter: one useful AI idea for nonprofit leaders, free every Wednesday.
The practical details
What is the If Possible podcast?
A podcast for ambitious nonprofit leaders who think AI can help their mission. Co-hosts Colleen Cook and Scott Williams talk through one AI idea per episode with real stories in plain language, plus a song, a fake sponsor and a one-minute skit.
Who is it for?
Executive directors, development directors, and the person on staff who already uses AI and has hit the ceiling of what they can do alone. You do not need to be technical.
How long are the episodes?
Between 15 and 29 minutes. All 10 episodes of Season 1 come out together, so you can listen in order or start with the one that fits your week.
Where can I listen?
Right on this page, or on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube. It is free everywhere.
Who are the hosts?
Colleen Cook and Scott Williams, co-founders of If Possible. They have spent 11+ years inside nonprofit fundraising and helped 100+ organizations raise more than $200 million.
Where should I start?
Episode 1, Too Busy for AI, if you are short on time. Episode 6, Ninety-One Assets, if year-end is on your desk. Episode 9, Fundraising Is Fear, if asking donors is the hard part.
If anything were possible, what would your nonprofit be doing?
Ten episodes to find out. Start with the one you need this week.
Ready to build it with us? Join the cohort waitlist.
