How I Wrote Five Books That Changed the Game And How You Can, Too

Ever wonder what the biggest hurdle in running a non-profit is? It's not what you think.

While many point to lack of funding, that's just a symptom. The real culprit? Perceived lack of trust. In the cutthroat world of non-profits, we're all fighting for the same limited pool of funds. And let's face it, private donation campaigns often fall flat. Why? Sure, scams play a part, but for many organizations, it boils down to not understanding their donor pool and how to serve them.

Stick with me here.

Last week's Nonprofit Marketing Summit was a game-changer. I rubbed virtual elbows with thousands of nonprofit founders, grant writers, and supporters. Many connected with me on LinkedIn, and as I scoped their pages, I saw a recurring theme: smaller organizations like mine, For My Bonus Child, Inc., are desperate for funding. The summit armed us with long-game solutions like building communities and using AI for better grant proposals. But let's be real – many of us need cash now.

During my Sabbath observation, I had an epiphany. How can we build trust faster? The answer hit me like a ton of bricks: "You can't. But you can write a book and exchange it for a tax-deductible donation. People will buy a good book whether they 'trust' the organization or not."

So, I did what any rational person would do—

I wrote FIVE books.

Now, I'm not suggesting you go full-on "extra" like me. That would be, as the kids used to say, delulu.

One book aligned with your mission can be a game-changer. Here's how I pulled it off in less than a week:

What You'll Need

• A Word Processor (I used Google Docs)
• ChatGPT (I use the paid version, but free should work)
• A formatting tool (I use Designrr.io Standard)
• A copy editor (I use Claude.ai and Grammarly)
• Canva (Optional, but recommended)

The Process: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Train ChatGPT: Start a new chat and say, "I'm [Your Name], the founder of [Your Nonprofit]. Our mission is [Brief Mission Statement]. Our ideal donors are [Describe Your Ideal Donor Profile]." This primes ChatGPT for your specific needs.
2. Generate Topics: Ask ChatGPT, "Give me 10 book topics that would resonate with our ideal donors. Rank them from most to least aligned with our mission." This gives you a prioritized list to work from.
3. Create an Outline: Choose your top topic and say, "Create a detailed outline for [Your Chosen Topic]." Refine this outline through a few back-and-forths until it aligns with your expertise and research.
4. Write Your Draft: Copy the outline into Google Docs. Fill in each section with your thoughts, experiences, and insights. Aim for about 500 words per main section for a substantial but manageable book.
5. Initial Edit: Run your draft through Grammarly. Focus on clarity and flow, but maintain your unique voice. Don't let the AI strip away your personality.
6. Deep Edit: Use Claude.ai as your copy editor. Prompt it with: "Act as a professional copy editor. Please review this draft and suggest improvements for clarity, engagement, and impact." Implement the suggestions that resonate with you.
7. Format Your Book: Import your final draft into Designrr. Choose a template that matches your brand. Customize colors, headers, and add relevant images or graphics.
8. Create Cover Art: Use Canva to design an eye-catching cover. Include your nonprofit's logo and colors for brand consistency.
9. Write Compelling Back Matter: Upload your formatted book to Claude.ai and ask, "Please help me write engaging back cover copy that will compel donors to purchase this book." Refine the suggestion to match your voice.
10. Publish and Promote: Export your book as a PDF. Create a landing page on your website for the book. Use ChatGPT to craft Google Ad copy by saying, "Write a compelling Google Ads campaign for our new ebook, [Title], which supports [Your Nonprofit's Mission]."

The beauty of this approach? It creates an evergreen fundraising vehicle that costs nothing but time. I used ChatGPT to craft a Google Ads campaign (thanks, Google Ads Grant!), created a landing page, and voila! A new revenue stream was born.

Why does this work?

It's simple:

1. You're offering valuable content aligned with your mission.
2. It's a tangible product people will pay for.
3. Buyers get a dopamine hit knowing their purchase benefits a good cause.
4. It's tax-deductible!
5. You can include opt-ins to grow your email list and community.

Once I nailed the process with the first book, the rest was rinse and repeat. Each book got faster to produce. Sure, I sacrificed some social time (OK, a lot of social time), but the payoff was worth it. Now, we're working on physical copies to get our message (and fundraising) to an even wider audience.

There you have it – my no-holds-barred guide to writing game-changing books for your nonprofit. Want to see the results? Check out our books at www.formybonuschild.org.

If you're in the nonprofit world and want to give this a shot, let's connect. I'm here to help you replicate this success. Remember, if I can do it, you can too!