AI Guidelines for Relay For Life Event Leadership
Welcome! This page provides guidelines for using artificial intelligence (AI) tools while supporting your Relay For Life event and fundraising efforts. These guidelines are intended to help you understand where AI can be helpful, and where it should not be used, when representing the American Cancer Society (ACS).
Allowed
Drafting and Writing Support
AI may help create first drafts that you then review and edit:
- Drafting emails
- Drafting social media captions
- Drafting event descriptions or updates
- Drafting your personal story or speaking scripts
- Drafting ceremony scripts for your event
- Rewriting content for clarity or a more positive tone
- Tools (public documents are able to be shared with AI tools):
- Consider using the RFL Key Messaging Document as an input to your written content.
- Consider using the RFL Ceremonies resources as an input to ceremony scripting.
Brainstorming & Idea Generation
AI can help volunteers:
- Brainstorm fundraising ideas
- Generate social media post concepts
- Suggest headlines or subject lines
- Outline talking points for a meeting or outreach effort
Research & Planning
AI may help volunteers:
- Summarize publicly available information
- Organize ideas into timelines or task lists
- Create draft agendas for meetings
- Build checklists for event planning
- Suggest event theme ideas or lap themes
Practicing & Role Play
- Practicing your Relay recruitment or donation pitch and responding to feedback
- Practicing your sponsorship pitch and responding to feedback
Not Allowed
Content & Storytelling
- Generating/updating stories about:
- Cancer patients
- Survivors
- Caregivers
- Creating emotional narratives meant to feel “real” but are AI‑generated
- Using AI to generate flyers or social media graphics is not permitted.
- Creating or modifying:
- ACS logos
- Brand marks
- Official graphics meant to replace ACS assets
- Never upload photos of other people to AI tools.
- Using AI‑generated images that appear official or misleading
Agentic AI
- No AI tools that act on a volunteer’s (or staff’s) behalf
- No AI that can:
- Make decisions autonomously
- Send messages automatically
Privacy & Data
- Entering any of the following into AI tools:
- Donor data
- Participant lists
- Health information
- Personal email lists
- Do not share anything that is not publicly accessible with AI tools.
Coding
- AI tools may not be used for any public-facing code.
Accuracy & Review
- Posting AI‑generated content without human review
AI Tools
ACS does not endorse any of these tools. This list is provided as a courtesy. ACS does not license any AI tools to volunteers at this time.
- Claude
- Gemini
- ChatGPT
- Microsoft CoPilot (built on ChatGPT, Claude, and other models; available with Microsoft 365 subscriptions)
- Canva AI (not available on ACS Canva accounts at this time)
- CapCut (video editing)
- LinkedIn Learning AI Role Play
Prompt Suggestions
AI tools work best when prompts are clear and specific. Giving the AI context and direction will usually produce more useful results.
When writing a prompt, try to include:
- Role: Who should the AI act as?
Example: “Act as a Relay For Life volunteer recruiter.” - Audience: Who is the content for?
Example: Past participants, sponsors, students, or community members. - Goal: What do you want the AI to help create or accomplish?
Example: Recruit teams, promote an event, or create a marketing plan. - Tone: How should the content sound?
Example: Hopeful, professional, welcoming, or energetic. - Constraints: What rules or details should the AI follow?
Example: Keep under 150 words, focus on low-cost ideas, use the attached RFL messaging only, or use Relay For Life terminology correctly.
The more details you provide about your local event, goals, audience, and community, the better the results will usually be.
Below are example prompt templates you can customize for your Relay For Life event. More will be added over time!
Team Recruitment Plan
Role:
Act as an experienced Relay For Life community fundraising strategist helping recruit teams for Relay For Life of [EVENT NAME].
Audience:
Event leadership team members and volunteer recruiters.
Goal:
Create a detailed team recruitment plan to grow participation for our Relay For Life event happening on [EVENT DATE].
Tone:
Strategic, practical, community-focused, and encouraging.
Constraints:
Build a realistic plan for volunteers to execute. Focus on recruiting teams within [GEOGRAPHIC AREA OR COMMUNITY]. Do not suggest paid advertising unless specifically requested. Recommendations should align with Relay For Life values and community fundraising best practices.
Event Information to Include:
- Event Name: [EVENT NAME]
- Event Date: [EVENT DATE]
- Community/Area Served: [CITY/COUNTY/REGION]
- Geographic Recruitment Boundaries: [HOW FAR OR WHERE YOU RECRUIT FROM]
- Current Team Types Already Participating: [SCHOOLS, CHURCHES, COMPANIES, FRIENDS & FAMILY, HEALTHCARE, FIRST RESPONDERS, ETC.]
- Team Types We Want to Grow: [EXAMPLES]
- Current Number of Teams: [NUMBER]
- Team Goal for This Year: [NUMBER]
- Known Community Partners or Major Employers: [LIST]
- Recruitment Challenges: [OPTIONAL]
- Recruitment Strengths or Opportunities: [OPTIONAL]
Request:
Create:
- A recruitment strategy overview
- Priority audiences to target
- Specific outreach ideas for each audience
- Suggested recruitment timeline leading up to the event
- Sample community outreach opportunities
- Volunteer assignments or committee structure recommendations
- Creative ideas to attract new teams while retaining existing ones
- Suggested messaging themes for recruitment efforts
- Metrics or goals we should track during recruitment season
Event Marketing Plan
Role:
Act as an experienced nonprofit marketing strategist helping promote Relay For Life of [EVENT NAME].
Audience:
Event leadership team members and volunteers responsible for marketing, social media, recruitment, and community outreach.
Goal:
Create a comprehensive marketing plan for Relay For Life of [EVENT NAME] taking place on [EVENT DATE] to increase awareness, participant recruitment, team growth, fundraising, and event attendance.
Tone:
Strategic, community-focused, energetic, and realistic for volunteer-led execution.
Constraints:
Build a plan appropriate for a volunteer-run community event. Focus on marketing within [GEOGRAPHIC AREA]. Recommendations should primarily use free or low-cost marketing methods. Do not recommend paid advertising unless specifically requested. Align recommendations with Relay For Life and American Cancer Society branding and values. Recommendations should utilize existing Relay For Life tools and platforms where appropriate.
Available Marketing Channels & Tools:
Facebook Group for the event
Event Instagram account
Relay For Life event website
Email tools available through the Relay For Life event website backend
Ability to email prior year participants who have not yet registered
Ability to post announcements and updates on the event website
Community partnerships and local outreach opportunities
Event Information to Include:
Event Name: [EVENT NAME]
Event Date: [EVENT DATE]
Event Location: [LOCATION]
Community/Region Served: [CITY/COUNTY/AREA]
Geographic Marketing Boundaries: [AREA YOU MARKET TO]
Event Goal: [FUNDRAISING/PARTICIPANT/TEAM GOALS]
Current Event Size: [NUMBER OF TEAMS/PARTICIPANTS]
Primary Audiences: [SURVIVORS, FAMILIES, STUDENTS, COMPANIES, ETC.]
Existing Social Media Presence: [FACEBOOK GROUP SIZE, INSTAGRAM FOLLOWERS, ETC.]
Community Partners or Sponsors: [LIST]
Major Recruitment or Awareness Challenges: [OPTIONAL]
Strengths or Existing Community Recognition: [OPTIONAL]
Request:
Create:
A high-level marketing strategy overview
Primary target audiences and messaging recommendations
A month-by-month marketing timeline leading up to the event
Content ideas for the event Facebook Group
Instagram content ideas and campaign themes
Recommended email campaigns, including outreach to prior participants who have not yet registered
Suggestions for event website announcements and homepage updates
Community outreach and partnership opportunities
Ideas for local media and community calendar promotion
Recruitment-focused marketing tactics
Event-day attendance promotion ideas
Recommended volunteer marketing roles or committee structure
Key metrics or goals to track throughout the campaign
Low-cost or no-cost marketing ideas appropriate for community events
Day-of Event Schedule Prompt Template
Role:
Act as an experienced Relay For Life event operations planner helping organize a successful community Relay For Life event.
Audience:
Event leadership team members, ceremony leads, logistics volunteers, and day-of coordinators.
Goal:
Create a detailed day-of schedule for Relay For Life of [EVENT NAME] taking place on [EVENT DATE] that provides a smooth, engaging, and mission-focused experience for participants, survivors, caregivers, sponsors, and community attendees.
Tone:
Organized, practical, community-focused, and realistic for volunteer-led execution.
Constraints:
Build a schedule appropriate for a volunteer-run Relay For Life event. Include setup, ceremonies, fundraising activities, entertainment, laps, mission moments, and teardown. Allow reasonable transition times between activities. Keep the event engaging throughout the day while maintaining flexibility for volunteer capacity and attendance patterns. Recommendations should align with Relay For Life traditions and values.
Event Information to Include:
Event Name: [EVENT NAME]
Event Date: [EVENT DATE]
Event Start & End Time: [START TIME – END TIME]
Event Location: [LOCATION]
Expected Attendance: [NUMBER]
Event Format: [TRADITIONAL, WALK-ONLY, FESTIVAL STYLE, ETC.]
Main Activities Planned: [LIST]
Ceremonies Planned: [OPENING, SURVIVOR, LUMINARIA, CLOSING, ETC.]
Entertainment or Performances: [LIST]
Food or Vendor Activities: [LIST]
Special Fundraising Activities: [LIST]
Team Types Participating: [SCHOOLS, COMPANIES, FAMILIES, ETC.]
Volunteer Capacity or Staffing Notes: [OPTIONAL]
Venue Restrictions or Timing Constraints: [OPTIONAL]
Setup Access Time: [TIME]
Required Venue Cleanup Completion Time: [TIME]
Request:
Create:
A full event-day schedule from setup through teardown
Suggested timing for ceremonies and mission moments
Recommendations for pacing activities throughout the event
Ideas for keeping participants engaged during slower periods
Suggested volunteer shift timing or staffing considerations
Transition recommendations between major activities
Suggested announcements or reminders throughout the event
Backup/flex time recommendations for delays or adjustments
A concise “public-facing” version of the schedule appropriate for participants and social media
A separate “operations-focused” schedule version for event leadership team use