3 Fundraising Lessons From AFP ICON 2025 You Can Actually Use

AFP ICON 2025 brought a lot of energy to Seattle. Sure, there were plenty of buzzwords and more than a few bold predictions, but there were also real questions from people who want to do right by their donors and communities. 

And since the reality for so many nonprofit professionals is that attending big national conferences in person like this one is a luxury, not a given, I’m going to do more than provide a recap of the event. 

Instead, what I’m writing here is a reflection—grounded in data, focused on practical action, and written for the everyday fundraiser who can’t always step away from the real work.

Specifically, I want to reflect on three major conversations that stood out at AFP ICON 2025—and what they mean when we connect them to fresh data from the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, Neon One’s 2025 Generosity Report, and GivingTuesday’s latest Giving Pulse.

1. AI Curiosity Is High—But So Is the Confidence Gap

AI was everywhere at AFP ICON—from vendor booths to main stage keynotes. But beneath the excitement was something quieter and more honest: confusion. 

Many nonprofit professionals voiced hesitation about how to actually apply AI tools in meaningful, trustworthy ways. The conversations weren’t about ChatGPT or clever hacks. They were about ethics, trust, and confidence.

One of the most refreshing tools we saw was Practivated—a coaching-driven AI built by trusted nonprofit consultant (and Neon One partner) Mallory Erickson. It’s not here to replace fundraisers, but to walk alongside them. 

Focused on what Erickson calls “beneficial intelligence,” Practivated helps guide fundraisers through donor conversations, especially the ones that feel stressful or awkward. Talking about money can be hard. This tool offers a safe, structured space to build confidence and clarity before you ever pick up the phone or hit send.

The real opportunity isn’t better tech—it’s better understanding. Fundraisers don’t need AI that predicts their donors. They need systems that respect them. Practivated’s approach models a future where data is in service of human-centered fundraising—not the other way around.

2. Recurring Giving Needs More Than a Monthly Button

Recurring giving came up often at AFP ICON, but the depth of the conversation didn’t always match its importance. Some sessions zoomed in on the logistics—how to set up a monthly program, choose the right processor, or structure upgrade campaigns. Useful, but surface-level.

The real insight came offstage.

At the book launch for The Rise of Sustainable Giving, author and strategist Dave Raley unpacked what it really takes to build a thriving recurring program. Surrounded by sector peers like Dana Snyder and other partners, he talked about giving not as a transaction, but as a long-term relationship.

Raley outlined six key shifts driven by the subscription economy—things like crafting an ongoing value proposition, understanding donor motivation, and getting your tech stack aligned. But the heart of his message was simple: Generosity isn’t something we just capture once. It’s something we nurture over time.

The data backs this up. According to the Q4 2024 Fundraising Effectiveness Project report, overall donor participation is still falling. Yet recurring donors—when engaged intentionally—are a bright spot. The Generosity Report found that these donors gave 121% more than average in their first year alone.

So yes, monthly giving can help stabilize your fundraising. But the organizations seeing real success are the ones thinking beyond the donate button. They’re building systems of trust, consistency, and value that invite donors to stay, not just give.

If recurring giving is a topic you’re interested in, then you won’t want to miss this special event on May 15 that brings together the foremost thinkers in recurring giving as well as tips and tricks from fundraisers like you. 

3. Data Fluency Is the Real Differentiator

There’s no shortage of data in the nonprofit sector. But, during conversations at AFP ICON, one thing became clear: many organizations aren’t suffering from a lack of data—they’re overwhelmed by disconnected, redundant, or siloed information. Tools promise visibility, but without hygiene and integration, they just multiply confusion.

That’s where data fluency starts—not with analytics dashboards, but with clean, connected systems.

The Generosity Report backs this up in a big way. Here’s what the data shows about different segments of engaged supporters:

• Event attendees increased their giving by 2,291% between year one and year five of the study, showing the long-term value of in-person engagement.

• Recurring donors gave 121% more than average in their first year, illustrating the strong early impact of sustained giving relationships.

• Peer-to-peer participants often engaged across multiple channels—donating, volunteering, and fundraising—indicating a deeper, more durable form of generosity.

But here’s the catch: that generosity only becomes visible if your data is clean, centralized, and actively used. If event records live in one system, donations in another, and volunteer activity in a spreadsheet, you’ll never see the full picture—let alone act on it.

That’s why organizations investing in a nonprofit operating platform are positioned to connect the dots. It’s not about chasing flashy metrics. It’s about knowing who your supporters really are, where they engage, and how to meet them with relevance.

Data fluency isn’t just a technical edge. It’s an ethical one. When we cut through the clutter and treat supporter data with care and coherence, we build the trust that generosity thrives on.

From Conference to Practice

What we heard at AFP ICON 2025 wasn’t just noise from the main stage—it was a chorus of real concerns, candid questions, and quiet breakthroughs. It reminded us that the most important conversations in our sector aren’t always the ones delivered on slides. They happen in hallway chats, over dinner tables, and in the small moments when someone asks, “But what does this mean for us?”

This blog isn’t meant to be a recap. It’s a reflection and a resource—part of a new, ongoing series where we distill major sector moments into something useful for the everyday fundraiser. Because not everyone gets to go to nonprofit conferences. And frankly, not everyone needs to.

The goal here is to cut through the noise, connect the dots, and help you build something resilient. Whether you’re figuring out how to approach AI with intention, deepen recurring relationships, or finally make sense of your data, what matters most is not what’s trending—it’s what’s working.

If you’re ready to dig deeper, check out the Fundraising Effectiveness Project’s latest report and The Generosity Report from Neon One. Let them serve as a foundation for your next strategic move—not just inspiration, but implementation.

And remember, this is just the beginning. We’ll be back with more insights soon—no badge required.

A Question to Take With You

At AFP ICON, nonprofit researcher Meena Das and I facilitated a public session for the Fundraising Effectiveness Project that invited nonprofit leaders to pause and consider something deeper:

What do we really mean when we say “fundraiser”?

We used the AFP’s definition as a starting point:

“A person, paid or volunteer, who plans, manages, or participates in raising assets and resources for an organization or cause.”

From there, we asked participants to reflect individually and in groups on three key prompts:

• What roles or people are considered fundraisers—and who gets left out?
• Where do we agree or disagree on the definition?
• What perspectives or contributions are we missing altogether?

These questions aren’t just icebreakers. They’re strategic anchors. Use them in your next staff meeting, board retreat, or community gathering to spark conversation and clarify purpose.

We’ve put together a downloadable worksheet to guide the discussion—because a better future for fundraising starts by asking better questions. 

Get My Worksheet