How to Get Useful Answers from the FUNDesk Assistant

Last updated: July 2026

You do not need to configure a separate bot to get help from your fundraising records. In FUNDesk, choose Ask FUNDesk to open the built-in assistant.

The best questions include a clear goal, a useful scope, and the form of answer you want.

Prepare for a donor meeting

Try:

Summarize our relationship with the Harper family. Include the last three conversations, open commitments, and the next promised step. Give me a short meeting brief.

The donor name sets the scope. The requested details tell the assistant what to look for. The final sentence defines the format.

Find work that needs attention

Try:

Show me potential gifts that are In Conversation or Asked, have no activity in the last 30 days, and do not have a future follow-up. Group them by owner.

This combines progress, recent activity, and tasks. It is more useful than asking for a vague list of "stale records."

Review commitments and gifts

Try:

Which committed gifts are still waiting for payment? Show the donor, amount, expected date, owner, and most recent contact.

FUNDesk keeps Committed separate from Gift Received, so the answer can distinguish a promise from money that has arrived.

Check grant work

Try:

List grant applications due in the next 45 days. Separate Preparing Application from Submitted, and call out any missing owner or next step.

The assistant can organize the answer around the grant stages people see in the product: Researching, Preparing Application, Submitted, Awarded, and Grant Payment Received.

Draft a follow-up

Try:

Draft a warm follow-up to Jordan after yesterday's meeting. Mention the annual program report we promised and propose two times next week. Keep it under 140 words. Do not send it.

Ask for a draft first. Review names, dates, promises, tone, and sensitive details before any message is sent.

Ask for uncertainty

A good assistant should make gaps visible. Add language such as:

Tell me which parts come directly from our records and which parts are an inference. List any missing information I should confirm.

This is especially useful before a donor meeting or a grant decision.

A short prompt pattern

Use this structure when you are unsure how to begin:

1. Goal: what are you trying to prepare or decide?
2. Scope: which donor, owner, date range, gift stage, or grant stage matters?
3. Evidence: which records or details should be included?
4. Format: do you want a list, brief, draft, or table?
5. Action: should the assistant only answer, prepare a draft, or propose an update?

The assistant is most useful when it saves gathering time while keeping the fundraiser in control.

Open FUNDesk and choose Ask FUNDesk.