by Dan King | Apr 2, 2026 | business strategy
I spend a lot of time thinking about how churches and ministries can use AI to do what they already do — just better. And when Anthropic (the company behind Claude AI) launched their nonprofit program offering up to 75% off for qualifying organizations, I immediately thought about what that means for churches.
Because here’s the thing: most churches are trying to do a lot with very little. One pastor. A few volunteers. A small staff stretched thin across Sunday services, social media, pastoral care, bulletins, newsletters, visitor follow-up, and about a dozen other things that all feel equally urgent. AI doesn’t replace any of that human work — but it can take a real load off the operational side of things, so your people can focus on what only they can do.
I wrote a whole book about this called AI Systems for Churches, and one of the core ideas running through it is that AI works best when it’s built into real systems, not used randomly. The tools I’m about to share are the foundation of that stack. And when you put them together, you’re looking at roughly $31 a month to give a church genuinely powerful AI capabilities.
Let’s walk through them.
1. Claude (via Claude for Nonprofits)
Claude is the tool I’d put at the center of everything a church does with AI — and it’s the one I built most of the systems in the book around.
In the teaching preparation chapter, I describe Claude as a study partner and idea-development assistant — something that helps you go deeper into passages, think more broadly about application, and organize your thoughts into strong teaching structures. The key phrase there is what it doesn’t do: it doesn’t write your sermons. What it actually does is help you prepare them more thoroughly.
The way I use it for teaching prep is conversational. After doing my own prayerful study of a passage, I essentially sit down with Claude the way I’d sit down with a knowledgeable friend and start thinking out loud. Because the AI has my exegetical framework and theological guidelines already loaded, it can track with where I’m going, surface connections I hadn’t made, and help me develop my ideas — rather than just generating something generic from a blank prompt.
Beyond sermon prep, Claude handles the full communication load: newsletters, emails, volunteer communications, bulletin announcements, visitor follow-up, event promotion. Once you’ve defined your church’s voice and tone (the book walks through how to build that), it produces content that actually sounds like your church — not like every other AI-generated church email.
And for qualifying nonprofits (which includes most 501(c)(3) churches), Anthropic’s nonprofit program offers up to 75% off the Team plan. The verification is quick, the discount doesn’t expire annually, and you end up at about $8/user/month. That’s the deal that makes this a no-brainer.
Cost: ~$16/month (2 users after nonprofit discount)
2. NotebookLM (Google)
One of the ideas I come back to throughout the book is the concept of one sermon becoming a week’s worth of content that extends its reach far beyond the people who were in the room. NotebookLM is the tool that helps make that happen.
Here’s how I use it: I upload existing content — sermon series notes, teaching transcripts, a body of writing I’ve built around a particular topic — and then let it generate ideas from that material. Social media posts. Email newsletter angles. Discussion prompts for your Facebook group or small group. Infographics. Videos. It essentially turns a library of content you’ve already created into an ongoing content engine.
For churches, think about what’s already sitting in your archives. Sermon series. Bible study content. Devotionals. Teaching notes. That’s years of material that most congregations never fully leverage. NotebookLM can help you surface and repurpose it in ways that keep people engaged throughout the week, not just on Sunday.
The free version handles just about all of what you’ll need. (Plus, Google has some pretty nonprofit-friendly offers too if you need more.)
Cost: Free
3. OpusClip
In the book, I mention that if you record your sermons on video, there are tools that can identify compelling clips for Reels and YouTube Shorts — and that one sermon can become a week’s worth of digital content. OpusClip is the tool I love for this.
It reviews the full video of a service or teaching, identifies the strongest moments, and creates short-form vertical clips ready to post throughout the week. What I particularly like is that it gives each clip a virality score — its prediction of how well that clip will perform. That makes prioritizing easy. You’re not watching back through an hour of footage trying to find the right thirty seconds. You scan the scores and know immediately what’s worth grabbing.
For churches that already have someone handling video, this fits naturally into the social media side of the communication system. For churches just getting started with video, it dramatically lowers the barrier.
Cost: ~$15/month (Starter plan)
4. Canva Pro (Free for Nonprofits)
Most churches need a constant stream of visuals: social media graphics, event flyers, announcement slides, bulletin covers, series artwork. And most churches don’t have a graphic designer on staff.
Canva‘s template library handles a lot of that, and it’s already familiar to most people in a church communications role. But the feature I want to highlight is AI image generation. This opens up creative possibilities that most ministries couldn’t pull off otherwise.
Teaching through the book of Jonah? Have Canva generate a stained glass-style image of the whale spitting Jonah onto the shore. And no, that doesn’t mean every image you create now has to be in stained glass style just because I got that stuck in your head. You’re welcome.
The point is that you can create custom, thematically specific images on demand — no stock photo subscriptions, no waiting on a volunteer who has design skills but also has a full-time job. Describe what you need and go. For nonprofits with up to 50 users, Canva Pro is free.
Cost: Free (for nonprofits)
What This Actually Costs
Put it all together and you’re looking at about $31/month minimum:
- Claude for Nonprofits (2 users): ~$16/month
- NotebookLM: Free
- OpusClip Starter: ~$15/month
- Canva Pro: Free
That’s a genuinely capable AI stack for a church budget. The tools are accessible and the cost is manageable.
What takes a little more investment is building the systems behind those tools — the workflows your team can follow consistently, the voice guidelines that keep your communication on-brand, the teaching preparation frameworks that make AI output actually useful rather than generic. That’s the difference between a church that tries AI and a church that gets lasting results from it.
That’s exactly what AI Systems for Churches is built to help you do. It walks through each major ministry system — teaching preparation, communication, discipleship and programming, administration, and data — with practical, repeatable workflows for putting these tools to work inside a real church context.
If you’re ready to stop using AI randomly and start building something that actually compounds, it’s a good next step.
Get AI Systems for Churches on Amazon →
Not sure where your church’s online presence stands? Start with a free website grade.
by Dan King | Apr 1, 2026 | blogging strategy, business strategy
You ran your website through our free grader. You got a number. Maybe it was 72. Maybe it was 45. Maybe you got a perfect 100 on SEO and a 12 on Performance and now you’re not sure what any of it means for your actual business.
That’s what this post is for.
I ran my own personal blog through the grader so I could show you exactly what the results look like and what to do with them. Let’s walk through it.
The overall score gives you a quick snapshot, but the category scores are where the real information is.
Your Overall Score
The overall score is out of 100 and is calculated from four categories: Performance (30 points), SEO (30 points), Mobile (30 points), and Security (10 points). A score of 75 means you’re doing some things well and some things need attention.
Here’s the thing most people miss: the overall score is almost meaningless on its own. What matters is which category is pulling it down. A 75 with a 28 on Performance is a very different problem than a 75 with a 28 on Mobile. Each one has different causes and different solutions.
Find your lowest category score. That’s where to start.
Performance: /30
Performance measures how fast your site loads and how efficiently it delivers content to visitors. The grader checks three things: page size, page requests, and page speed.
Page size is how much data your site forces the visitor’s browser to download before anything shows up. Under 3MB is the target.
Page requests is the number of separate files your site has to load — images, scripts, stylesheets, fonts. The more requests, the longer everything takes. Under 30 is the goal. My personal blog had 88, which is why it scored 15/30.
Page speed is the one most people care about. Best-in-class sites load in under 5.3 seconds. Mine came in at 14.5 seconds — “we need to talk” as the grader puts it.
Why does this matter? Because slow sites lose visitors before they even have a chance to read a word. Google also uses page speed as a ranking factor, so a slow site doesn’t just frustrate visitors — it actively hurts your search visibility.
If your Performance score is low: This is usually fixable without rebuilding your whole site. Image compression, caching configuration, and plugin cleanup can make a significant difference. Our speed optimization service addresses exactly this, typically within 48 hours.
SEO: /30
The SEO score checks four technical fundamentals: whether search engines have permission to index your site, whether you have meta descriptions set up, whether you’re using content plugins correctly, and whether your link text is descriptive.
This is the basic hygiene layer of SEO — not keyword strategy or content planning, just whether your site is set up in a way that lets Google understand and index it properly. My blog scored 30/30 here, which means these technical basics are in order.
Getting a perfect SEO score doesn’t mean your site ranks well for anything. It means the technical foundation is solid. You still need a content strategy to actually rank for the terms your audience is searching.
If your SEO score is low: Start with the technical fixes the grader identifies. Then, if you want to build real search traffic, this course walks through a complete SEO strategy for blogs and content sites.
Mobile: /30
The mobile score checks three things: whether your fonts are legible on small screens (at least 12px), whether your tap targets — buttons and links — are large enough to click with a finger, and whether your site uses responsive design that adapts to different screen sizes.
More than half of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices. If your site gives mobile visitors a poor experience, they leave — and Google notices. My blog scored 20/30 because of tap target issues, meaning some buttons and links are too small or too close together for comfortable mobile use.
Responsive design (which my site does have) is the foundation. But passing that test doesn’t mean the mobile experience is good — just that the layout adjusts. The details of font size and tap target spacing matter too.
If your Mobile score is low: This is often a theme or CSS issue that requires hands-on fixes. Our WordPress maintenance plans include mobile optimization as part of ongoing site care, so issues like this get caught and fixed rather than sitting unaddressed.
Security: /10
Security is worth 10 of your 100 points and checks two things: whether your site is running on HTTPS (the padlock in the browser bar), and whether your JavaScript libraries are up to date. Outdated JavaScript libraries are a common entry point for malware.
My blog scored 10/10 here — HTTPS is active and the JavaScript libraries are current. This is the easiest category to get right if you’re on managed hosting, since SSL is typically included and plugin/library updates are handled as part of maintenance.
If your Security score is low: Don’t sit on this one. A vulnerable site can be taken down or compromised faster than you’d expect. Our security and malware service gets you protected quickly, and our hosting plans keep you protected on an ongoing basis.
“What Should I Do Next?”
At the bottom of your grader results, you’ll find a “What Should I Do Next?” section that shows your specific failing metrics alongside the targets and recommendations for each one. This is your action list.
Work through it in priority order: Security first if it’s low (don’t wait on this), Performance next if your load time is significantly above 5.3 seconds, then Mobile, then any SEO gaps.
If you’re not sure which issues to tackle yourself versus hand off to someone else, that’s an easy conversation. Most of the technical issues the grader identifies are things we handle for clients regularly — and knowing what’s wrong is half the battle.
Haven’t Graded Your Site Yet?
If you landed on this post without having run your site through the grader yet, do that first. It takes about 30 seconds and gives you a personalized breakdown of exactly where your site stands right now.
Get your free website grade here.
Once you have your score, come back to this post and find the section that matches your lowest category. That’s your starting point.
And if you want a second set of eyes on your results, just reply to the email you received after grading — I read every one.
by Dan King | Dec 31, 2025 | blogging strategy, business strategy, fistbump media updates, publishing strategy
AI is powerful. It’s also loud.
New tools appear constantly. Promises of speed, scale, and shortcuts fill social feeds and inboxes. Advice is everywhere, and much of it conflicts. For many people, the result isn’t excitement. It’s pressure. A quiet sense that they’re falling behind if they don’t adopt everything immediately.
If that feels familiar, you’re not alone.
The challenge most people face right now isn’t access to AI. It’s clarity. Knowing how to use these tools thoughtfully, responsibly, and in ways that actually support their goals.
That’s why we built AI Labs.
The Problem Isn’t AI. It’s How We’re Being Taught to Use It.
AI itself isn’t the issue. The way it’s often presented is.
Much of the conversation around AI focuses on hacks, prompts, and tricks. Tools are treated like shortcuts that can replace thinking, creativity, or experience. The emphasis is on speed and output, not understanding.
The problem with that approach is that tools change constantly. What works today may be irrelevant next month. When people are taught what to click without learning how to think, they become dependent on systems they don’t fully understand.
That kind of learning doesn’t build confidence. It builds fragility.
Why Education Matters More Than Tools
Tools will continue to evolve. That’s a given.
What lasts is the ability to think clearly, ask better questions, and make informed decisions. Education creates that foundation. It helps people understand not just how to use AI, but when to use it, when not to, and why.
AI is most helpful when it supports human judgment, creativity, and discernment. It should amplify thinking, not replace it.
That belief sits at the center of everything we’re building with AI Labs.
What We Mean by “Labs”
We intentionally chose the word Labs.
AI Labs are not about polished performance or perfect output. They’re environments for experimentation, reflection, and learning. They’re places to test ideas, explore possibilities, and gain clarity before committing to a direction.
Labs assume that mistakes are part of the process. They create space to learn through use, not pressure. The goal isn’t speed or volume. It’s understanding.
How the Labs Are Structured
Each Lab follows the same simple progression, designed to meet people where they are.
- Membership offers an ongoing environment for learning, experimentation, and shared frameworks. It’s a place to build familiarity and confidence over time.
- Blueprints are focused, guided sessions designed to bring clarity to a specific idea or challenge. They help people move from uncertainty to direction.
- Accelerators are short-term, hands-on intensives for those who are ready to apply what they’ve learned in a more concentrated way.
This structure isn’t about pushing people forward faster. It’s about aligning depth with readiness.
Who AI Labs Are For
AI Labs are designed for people who want to use AI thoughtfully, not just quickly.
→ Writers and Authors
For writers and authors, AI can be a powerful thinking partner. It can help explore ideas, test concepts, clarify structure, and surface questions worth answering.
Our Author Lab is focused on helping writers gain clarity around their ideas and direction, especially early in the process. It’s for people who want to think better about what they’re creating, not hand their voice over to a machine.
Tools like our Book Idea GPT are examples of how AI can support this kind of exploration by helping writers evaluate ideas before committing months of work to them.
→ Entrepreneurs and Builders
For entrepreneurs, AI can support clearer thinking around offers, messaging, and strategy. Used well, it helps reduce noise and sharpen focus.
Our Entrepreneur Lab, which is coming soon, is being built for people who want to use AI to support decision-making and strategic clarity, not chase every new tool that appears.
Resources like the AI Starter Kit exist as practical on-ramps for people who want to begin exploring AI with intention and confidence.
How AI Labs Connect to the Academy
AI Labs are experiential by design. They emphasize learning through use and reflection.
The Academy is where more structured courses live. Over time, new courses will expand on the ideas explored in the Labs, allowing people to learn at different depths and paces.
Together, they create a learning ecosystem that’s flexible, intentional, and built to adapt as tools continue to change.
What We’re Hoping to Build Long-Term
Our goal with AI Labs isn’t to keep up with trends. It’s to create a steady place for thoughtful learning in the middle of a fast-moving landscape.
We want to build:
- A counterweight to hype-driven AI culture
- A space where discernment is valued
- A community focused on clarity rather than shortcuts
- Learning that evolves alongside the tools, not behind them
This is a long-term commitment to education, not a momentary response to buzz.
AI Is a Tool. Learning Is the Advantage.
AI will continue to change. New capabilities will emerge. Tools will improve.
The real advantage will belong to those who know how to think with these tools wisely.
AI Labs exist to help people build that confidence and clarity, so they can use AI as a support for meaningful work, not a source of pressure or confusion.
The goal isn’t to use AI more. It’s to use it more wisely.
by Dan King | Dec 24, 2025 | publishing strategy
Every writer I know has a folder full of half-formed book ideas.
Some are just a sentence.
Some are a paragraph scribbled late at night.
Some are ambitious outlines that once felt electric and now feel heavy.
Most book ideas don’t fail because they are bad ideas. They fail because we never slow down long enough to really listen to them.
We either rush straight into outlining and get overwhelmed, or we abandon the idea too early because it feels vague or unfinished. In both cases, the problem is the same. We skip the work of discernment.
Over time, I’ve learned that before asking whether an idea can become a book, I need to ask a better question first.
Is this idea worth pursuing at all?
What I Do Not Ask at the Beginning
When a book idea first shows up, there are a lot of tempting questions we could ask.
How long should this book be?
Who is the publisher?
What would the chapters look like?
How would I market this?
Those questions aren’t wrong, but they’re almost always premature.
When we ask structural or strategic questions too early, we put pressure on an idea that hasn’t had time to breathe. Good ideas don’t usually arrive fully formed. They arrive as a nudge, a tension, a recurring thought that will not quite let go.
At the beginning, I’m not trying to organize the idea. I’m trying to understand it.
Clarity comes before structure. Meaning comes before mechanics.
The Question I Actually Start With
The question I return to again and again is simple.
What is this idea really asking of me?
Sometimes an idea isn’t calling to be a book at all. Sometimes it wants to be a single essay, a blog post, or a conversation. Other times it’s asking for something much more sustained.
Before I invest months or years into developing a project, I want to know a few things.
Is there a real tension here, not just an interesting topic?
Does this idea have weight, not just novelty?
Would this still matter to me after the initial excitement fades?
If I’m honest, the ideas that last are usually the ones that feel unfinished in the best possible way. They raise questions I can’t easily resolve. They stay with me even when I try to move on.
That’s usually a sign that something meaningful is happening.
What I Look For in an Idea With Staying Power
I don’t use a checklist, but over time I’ve noticed patterns in the ideas that turn into real books.
They usually involve a question I have lived with, not just noticed.
They connect to conversations I keep having with people.
They have a reader attached to them, someone I can picture clearly.
They have movement. A sense that the idea goes somewhere.
An idea with staying power doesn’t have to be impressive. It just has to be honest. It needs room to unfold, not pressure to perform.
Why So Many Writers Get Stuck Right Here
This is the point where many writers stall.
They have more than one idea and cannot choose.
They feel drawn to an idea but cannot explain why.
They are afraid of committing to the wrong project.
They worry about wasting time.
Getting stuck here doesn’t mean you’re unqualified. It usually means you care. It means you sense that this decision matters.
Most writers don’t need more motivation at this stage. They need clarity.
Turning a Philosophy Into Practice
Over the years, I noticed I was walking writers through the same early conversations again and again.
We would talk about where an idea came from.
We would name the tension underneath it.
We would imagine the reader.
We would look for the shape without forcing an outline.
Almost every time, something would shift. The idea would either settle or open up. Writers would leave clearer and often more excited than when they arrived.
Eventually, I realized this process didn’t need to stay locked inside one-on-one conversations. It could be experienced directly.
The Book Concept Builder
That realization led me to create the Book Concept Builder.
It is not an outline generator.
It does not write your book for you.
It does not rush you toward publishing decisions.
It is a guided thinking experience designed to help you explore whether an idea actually has book potential.
Through a series of thoughtful prompts, it walks you through the same early questions I return to again and again. At the end, it generates a Book Concept Snapshot that captures the heart of the idea, the reader, and the conceptual arc of a possible book.
If you’re curious, you can try it here:
👉 Try the Book Concept Builder
How to Use It Well
If you decide to use it, my best advice is simple.
Don’t rush.
Answer honestly.
Save the snapshot when you’re finished.
You don’t need to act on it immediately. Sometimes clarity itself is the gift. Other times it becomes the first real step toward something more.
What Comes After Clarity
Sometimes this process confirms that an idea isn’t ready yet, and that’s a good outcome. You haven’t failed. You’ve listened well.
Other times, it becomes clear that the idea wants more space, more structure, or more support. That’s where community, planning, and accountability can be helpful.
Support is available if and when you need it. It doesn’t have to be rushed.
A Final Thought
Writing a book isn’t just an act of productivity. It’s an act of attention.
Before we decide what to build, we have to decide what is worth building. Before we commit to structure, we need clarity. Before we write, we need to listen.
If you’ve been carrying a book idea and aren’t sure what to do with it, start there. Slow down. Ask better questions. Let the idea tell you what it needs.
That alone will take you further than you think.
by Dan King | Dec 22, 2025 | fistbump media updates
For many website owners, things are technically fine.
The site is online. Updates are running. Security is handled. Nothing feels broken. From the outside, it looks like the website is being managed well.
And in many cases, it is.
But “fine” is not always the same as “effective.” A website can be stable and still fall short of what its owner hoped it would do. It can be maintained and still feel disconnected from the goals that led to building it in the first place.
As we look ahead, it’s becoming clear that the future of website management isn’t just about keeping things running. It’s about helping websites do more meaningful work for the people behind them.
Maintenance Solves One Set of Problems, But Not All of Them
Good maintenance matters. Keeping WordPress core, themes, and plugins updated prevents countless issues before they ever surface. It reduces security risks, improves performance, and creates a more stable foundation overall.
That kind of preventative care is not optional. It’s essential.
A well-maintained website avoids many of the emergencies that frustrate owners and derail momentum. In that sense, maintenance is already a proactive act. It protects the investment people have made in their website and keeps the lights on behind the scenes.
But maintenance primarily answers one question:
Is the website still working as intended?
It doesn’t always answer the harder question:
Is the website still helping its owner move forward?
The Quiet Problem Most Website Owners Still Face
For many website owners, the biggest challenges aren’t dramatic failures. They’re subtle stalls.
The website runs, but it doesn’t evolve.
Goals change, but the site stays the same.
Content grows, but direction becomes less clear.
Over time, the site becomes something that exists rather than something that actively helps.
This happens not because people stop caring, but because insight is harder to come by than information. Analytics exist. Reports can be generated. Dashboards can be checked. Yet many owners still find themselves asking the same questions month after month:
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What should I be focusing on next?
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Is this website actually doing what I need it to do?
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What matters right now, and what doesn’t?
A website can be perfectly maintained and still leave its owner guessing.
From Maintenance to Meaningful Guidance
This is where website management needs to grow.
Stability is the baseline. Guidance is the multiplier.
Smarter website management doesn’t replace maintenance. It builds on it. It recognizes that keeping a site healthy is only the first step, and that real value comes from helping owners understand what their website is telling them and how to respond thoughtfully.
That shift changes the role of website management from task execution to interpretation.
Instead of reacting to problems or blindly following best practices, smarter management focuses on clarity. It helps surface priorities, reduce noise, and connect technical decisions to real-world goals, whether that’s growing an audience, increasing engagement, or improving conversions.
Small, informed adjustments made consistently over time often matter more than big redesigns or major overhauls. But those adjustments require insight, not just upkeep.
Smarter Websites Don’t Come From More Dashboards
When people sense that their website could be doing more, the instinct is often to add tools.
More analytics.
More reports.
More notifications.
Data is not the problem. Most website owners already have access to more information than they know what to do with.
What’s missing is context.
Dashboards can tell you what is happening, but they rarely tell you why it matters or what to do next. Without interpretation, more data often leads to more uncertainty, not clarity.
Smarter websites are not created by piling on more tools. They are created by making sense of the information that already exists and using it to guide better decisions.
Insight, not volume, is what moves a website forward.
What Smarter Website Management Looks Like in Practice
At a high level, smarter website management shifts the experience for owners in a few important ways.
Instead of long, overwhelming to-do lists, priorities become clearer.
Instead of constant second-guessing, decisions feel more grounded.
Instead of reacting to every new idea or trend, changes are made with purpose.
A smarter website adapts as its owner’s goals evolve. It reflects growth rather than lagging behind it. And when adjustments are needed, they’re made thoughtfully, not out of panic or pressure.
This doesn’t require constant redesigns or dramatic overhauls. In many cases, it’s about small, intentional improvements that compound over time.
The result is a website that feels less like a static tool and more like an active partner in the work it’s meant to support.
Why This Shift Matters Right Now
Websites carry more weight than they used to.
For business owners, they’re often the first impression, the primary sales channel, and the backbone of marketing efforts. For content creators, they’re the home base for ideas, audiences, and long-term sustainability.
At the same time, expectations are higher. People expect websites to be fast, clear, useful, and trustworthy. They also expect them to grow alongside the people who run them.
Maintenance alone can keep a site stable, but it doesn’t help it rise to those expectations.
As technology continues to evolve and automation becomes more common, the baseline for what’s possible keeps moving. In that environment, clarity and guidance become more valuable than ever.
The websites that thrive will be the ones that aren’t just maintained, but intentionally guided.
Where We’re Investing Our Focus
Looking ahead, our focus is on helping websites become more helpful to the people behind them.
That means investing in systems and approaches that surface insight, not just status. It means rethinking how websites communicate what’s working, what’s not, and where attention is best spent next.
The goal isn’t to overwhelm owners with information or push constant changes. It’s to help them get more out of what they already have, with greater confidence and less friction.
This is not a short-term shift or a single feature. It’s a longer-term commitment to treating websites as living systems that deserve care, context, and thoughtful direction.
Websites Should Do More Than Stay Online
Keeping a website online and up to date is important. It’s the baseline.
But the future of website management goes further. It’s about usefulness, clarity, and helping people move forward with intention.
Smarter websites don’t just exist in the background. They support decisions, reflect growth, and adapt as goals change.
As expectations continue to rise, the websites that stand out won’t be the ones that simply avoid problems. They’ll be the ones that actively help their owners make progress.
That’s the direction we’re leaning into, and the future we’re building toward.
