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6 Ways To Use AI To Scale Content Marketing With a Lean Team

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Digital marketing toolkits and templates

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Digital marketing toolkits and templates

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Toolkits page of the Digital Marketing Institute, the global certification standard in digital marketing education.

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Photographing and filming children guidelines

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Photographing and filming children guidelines

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Photographing and filming children | Images guidance | NSPCC Learning

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Guidance about taking, sharing, using and storing images of children. Includes information about CCTV, social media and livestreaming online events and activities.

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Understand how your legal duties are relevant to your charity’s use of social media.

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New rules for online services: what you need to know

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The Online Safety Act makes businesses responsible for keeping people, especially children, safe online. Here’s what you need to know and do now.

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The Media Trust's guide to accessible content creation

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The Media Trust's guide to accessible content creation

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Accessible Content Creation for Charities May25

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Wishpond’s Email Marketing Masterclass for Beginners

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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How I Grew SEOFOMO Into an Email Marketing Empire — Whiteboard Friday

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The SEOFOMO newsletter grew to 36.6K subscribers in just 5 years, and now its creator is here to give you 7 tips to replicate her success. Join Aleyda Solis as she talks through what worked and what didn’t when launching her extremely successful set of email newsletters.

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The Marketing Over Coffee weekly marketing podcast brings you the latest in marketing and technology.

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20 June 2024 by Jodie Hoskin Marketing Manager at Media Trust.

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Five free marketing tools for charities | Media Trust

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Five free marketing tools for charities to make impactful content, design, and advertising campaigns a reality for your organisation.

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Accessible communications: A starting point for fostering more inclusive comms

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Accessibility is a huge topic and this resource is a starting point. A way in to help you and your teams start thinking about how you can make your comms more accessible.

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Strategic thinking should be at the heart of all of effective comms. Check out tips and advice from sector experts on how to do it right.

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Find out more Are you creating a policy, form or plan for your charity? Save time by adapting our templates.

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Find out more Are you creating a policy, form or plan for your charity? Save time by adapting our templates. © 2020 CharityComms.Charity registered in England & Wales (No.1138312).CharityComms Ltd company registered in England & Wales (No.06210121).Registered office: 2-6 Tenter Ground, Spitalfields, London E1 7NH.

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Should you be posting on every social channel during a crisis?

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Mel Berry and James Armstrong from Social Firefly share what they’ve learned about when to post, where to post and why it matters during a crisis.

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We look at the biggest marketing trends for 2025 and how charities can make the most of them to supercharge their fundraising and deliver more impact

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Comms ‘one of the most AI-ready’ professions, claims new report

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Augmentation and automation could affect more than 80 per cent of profession’s typical tasks, leading to significant cost and time savings.

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22 September 2025 by Nicholas McDonald Social Media Communications Officer at Media Trust.

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Using AI to boost your creativity (and not replace it) | Media Trust

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A dive into how early-career creatives can use AI effectively and responsibly AI is undeniably transforming the creative and media landscape. For many early-career creatives, this can feel intimidating. But if used correctly, AI can be a tool used to support your ideas, speed up repetitive tasks and open new avenues of inspiration. The key […]

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13 August 2025 by Nicholas McDonald Social Media Communications Officer at Media Trust.

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Free AI tools for charities | Media Trust

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Getting to know what AI tools could work for your charity

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Downloadable Marketing Guides & Videos | Wagada Digital

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Unlock your marketing potential with our Downloadable Guides and Videos. Strategise, engage customers, and achieve business growth. View all resources.

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This charity AI imagery guide from Charity Excellence details good practice with photo and illustration AI use.

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Charity AI Imagery - Ethics Best Practice

AI imagery has raised new issues for charities but faking imagery has existed since the advent of photography. Stock photos are not 'authentic', cropping can be used to change the context of an image and photo shopping images to create unrealistic expectations cause harm. This guidance applies to all aspects of our use of imagery, including video, but not CCTV.

This charity AI imagery guide is one in a series to support charities in safely and effectively adopting AI, as part of our Charity AI Ready campaign. All contributions to improve this guidance would be very welcome - ian@charityexcellence.co.uk. It was last updated on 14 Jan 25.

What Are Ethics?

Many in the sector have strongly and genuinely held beliefs and you are entitled to do so. However, ethics for your charity aren't about what you believe but what is best for your charity.

CC3 (Trustee Responsibilities and Duties) - You must act in your charity's best interests.
Including, you must avoid putting yourself in a position where your duty to your charity conflicts with your personal interests or loyalty to any other person or body.
And what are ethics anyway? With the help of Co-pilot, this is what I came up with.

Doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.

Acting in ways that are fair, honest, and respectful of others.

Being truthful, and treating people with kindness and respect.

Making choices that are good for everyone, not just for yourself.

I'm not suggesting you should follow my definition but you should be clear in your own mind what ethics means for your charity.

Charity AI Imagery Ethics - Principles

This charity imagery ethics policy is based on the principles that imagery should only be created by AI or modified where it:

Adds value to the charitable purpose for which the image is being used and.

Meets legal and regulatory requirements

Is both ethical and.

Minimises risk and harm to others.

Ethics will be (at least slightly) different for each charity, so add, delete and/or amend as appropriate, using the toolkit below, to create your own charity AI imagery policy. An Imagery Use Policy can be downloaded by logging in the Charity Excellence and asking the in-system AI bunny to download it for you in Word.

Charity AI Imagery Ethics Policy Template

Charity Governance

Responsibility. The Board will retain responsibility for the legal, ethical and safe use of any imagery and.

Oversight. Will ensure that management oversight and procedures appropriate to our needs are in place and consistently applied and.

Risk. We will identify and assess the key risks relating to imagery use and take appropriate measures to ensure that risk remains within acceptable limits.

Systems and Procedures

Perception of AI. Even if an image meets our requirements below, we will not use it where the fact we have used AI may be perceived negatively. For example, we will:

Use AI for routine tasks where its use would be non contentious or.

Where AI use allows us to do things real imagery may not.
For example, using realistic cartoon imagery when using images of beneficiaries isn't possible for security or other reasons.

Not use AI where our stakeholders may view its use as not appropriate or bad actors are likely to see it as an opportunity to undermine our message.

Imagery Sharing.
If we share imagery with other organisations, we will put in place a data sharing agreement and ensure this is reflected in our consent process.

AI Data Sets. Insofar as we are able to and able to ascertain, we will use AI systems and data sets that have strong legal and ethical protections in place, including how data is obtained and trained.

AI Large Language Models. LLMs are the data sets of generative AI systems such as Chat GPT and DALL E. Charity images may not be.

Shared with an AI system or.

Shared with an AI system unless you have opted out of data sharing.

Platforms. Insofar as we are able to and able to ascertain, we use social media platforms with good ethical and safety systems and procedures in place (see our deepfake guide).

Take Down. We will respond promptly to any take down requests received, and we will take down any imagery posted in our social media that we reasonably believe to be offensive to a reasonable number of our stakeholders, a deepfake, spam/scam, misinformation, illegal or AI slop.

AI Imagery. AI imagery or imagery which has been manipulated by AI will always be annotated as AI, unless it would be obvious to our stakeholders and any other reasonable person that the image is AI generated.

Deepfakes. We would not clone anyone's voice or create a deepfake image or video and will take reasonable steps to ensure we do not repost deepfake imagery, and take down any deepfakes posted in our feeds.

Dignity and Respect for Others

We will portray people in imagery in the way they would wish to be and with respect and dignity.

Exploitation. We do not use imagery that could reasonably be seen as exploitative or dehumanising.

Stereotypes. We are mindful to avoid stereotypes and always do our best to represent diverse groups fairly and accurately.

Cultural Sensitivity. We do our best to be aware of cultural sensitivities and norms and recognise that what might be acceptable in one culture could be offensive in another.

Objectification. We will not use imagery to sexualise or objectify individuals.

Accuracy. We will ensure that anything portrayed in imagery, particularly if using AI, such as medical equipment or cultural dress, is accurate.

Recognition. We will aim to provide appropriate recognition if using imagery that has been created by others or is in the style of a particular creator and we have their permission to use it.

Human Creativity. We respect the importance of human creativity and artistic expression, and we only use AI to complement and enhance this, not replace it.

Imagery Content

Context and Accuracy. We ensure images are used in a context that accurately represents the situation and the message we are using it to convey. We do not use misleading or sensationalised content.

Transparency. We are transparent about the source of images and the purpose for which they are being used.

Minimising Potential Harm

Harm and Offence. We may use imagery that is provocative or challenging for some. We will only do so where there is a clear need, there is no other reasonable alternative that would meet this need, and we will always ensure that any harm that might reasonably be caused by doing so is acceptable in terms of the charitable benefit in using such imagery.

Personal Safety. We will not include personal or other information in imagery data either if:

We do not have consent or.

Where doing so may pose a risk to an individual.

Deepfake Risks. We will not upload high-quality, high-resolution images where individuals faces can be seen from various angles and we will take all other reasonable steps to mitigate the risk of imagery being used for deepfakes and other misuse - Charity AI Best Practice - Deepfakes.

Charity Imagery - Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Data Protection Consent. We will ensure that we obtain proper consent for any imagery we use.

Retention.

Imagery should be kept secure and.

For no longer than necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.
A common practice is to retain personal data for up to six years.

The consent form must include the period of retention.

Legal and Regulatory. We will take reasonable steps to ensure that we do not breach copyright or other IP rights.

Where imagery is created by volunteers, we will ensure that our volunteering agreement includes that all intellectual property rights, including copyright, is owned by the charity.

In the event that imagery IP is retained by another organisation or individual, this will be made clear as part of obtaining consent.

Politics and Law. We do not use imagery in a way that portrays support, or which might reasonably appear to portray support for a politician or political party, or which might be reasonably seen to be illegal.
You can download a campaigning policy by logging in and asking the in-system AI Bunny to get it for you.

Minimising Risk in Creating AI Generated Imagery

AI systems include some automatic safeguards. They should:

Avoid reproducing long verbatim passages from copyrighted works.

Block generation of certain protected imagery (e.g., Disney, Marvel, or brand logos).

However, these are not fool proof. AI does not automatically check every draft or image for infringement - you must explicitly ask it to do so. Here is text you can amend to meet your specific wishes and add in to your AI prompt to create an image, if you wish to. If you do, you must note my caveats below that.
Generate an original image that does not copy or resemble copyrighted material. Only use elements that are in the public domain or licensed under Creative Commons. Avoid logos, trademarks, or recognisable characters. Suggest safer alternatives if any part of the image looks like it may infringe copyright.
This helps by setting boundaries to avoid copyrighted or trademarked content, encourages open‑licensed use, nudges the system toward safer material, flags risks and helps to promote originality by excluding recognisable brands or characters - you push the AI toward generating new, unique visuals. However, it cannot guarantee legal clearance, detect every subtle influence from training data or replace professional copyright or IP review.

Checking Imagery for Copyright Infringement

You can always ask your AI to check and image for copyright infringement. Here's a prompt you could use or amend to suit your needs.
Please review this AI‑generated image and flag any elements that may resemble copyrighted material, such as logos, trademarks, or distinctive artistic styles. Suggest safer alternatives or ways to make the image more original.
Can You Use AI to Create Genuinely Original Imagery?

Yes, it is possible but generative AI is a black box (we don't really know what's happening inside it) so you can never be 100% sure. However, human art is often influenced by other artists and is still considered to be original: influence doesn't automatically mean lack of originality.

And there are steps you can take to make it much more likely:

Start from scratch: Use prompts that emphasise originality (e.g., "generate a completely new abstract design").

Avoid copying styles: Don't ask AI to mimic a specific artist or brand.

Iterate and adapt: Treat AI outputs as drafts, then refine them with your own creative input.

If you want to make this even stronger, you could check for unintended similarities-for example, running outputs through reverse image search or plagiarism detection tools.

Have We Been Here Before?

When digital art first emerged in the 1960s, it faced criticism for lacking the "human touch," relying on machines, and raising questions about authorship and originality-similar to concerns about AI today. Over time, it became accepted because artists proved that technology could be a creative tool, and cultural shifts, like the rise of personal computers and software, brought digital art into mainstream galleries and design. Arguably, scepticism toward new technologies is nothing new, and acceptance comes when innovation is paired with human creativity?

What Do You Think?

Where the debate will end up, I don't know but AI and its use to generate imagery is a fact of life, so this best practice guide attempts to give people a process and ideas they can amend to meet their own needs and use to arrive at their own decisions. Any contribution to the debate would be very welcome and can be sent to me at ian@charityexcellence.co.uk.

Regulatory Guidance

ICO: Consent.

ICO: Installing CCTV? Things you need to do first.

Fundraising Regulator: Fundraising Communications and Adverts.

Charity Commission E&W - Campaigning and political activity guidance for charities (CC9).

Gov.UK: Attributing images. This is guidance for Government but is quite useful.

Gov.UK: Data protection and CCTV.

ASA: Disclosure of AI in Advertising: Striking the Balance Between Creativity and Responsibility

AI Imagery Resources

TED Talks - How to spot fake AI images (13 mins, Apr 25).

Sofii: Charity Right: ​' AI vs real people' image test. May 25.

Institute of Internal Communications - AI Ethics Charter. Feb 25.

ASA: AI at work in advertising ad regulation.

NSPCC: Creating a photo and video policy statement.

Harvard Business Review - Generative AI has an Intellectual Property Problem.

Arts Marketing Association - AI Sector Support Example AI Policy.

This Charity AI Imagery Guidance is not Professional Opinion

This charity AI imagery best practice guidance may be used by non-profits and may not be used on a commercial basis, without our prior written approval. Copyright and all other intellectual property rights of this and any derivatives of this document are retained by us to the fullest extent possible in law.

We are neither lawyers nor accountants, so are unable to offer professional advice. Even if we were, we could not offer advice that would adequately cover all charities or all circumstances. This draft policy is an example only and not intended to be taken into use as is. If you have a regulator other than the Charity Commission, there may be other requirements that are not necessarily included in this example policy. For example, the Advertising Standards Authority.

In using this imagery guidance, you are accepting that you will take all necessary steps, including seeking professional advice, to ensure the policy approved meets fully your charity's needs and complies with all regulatory and legal guidance, keep it under regular review and ensure it is up-to-date and that we have no responsibility whatsoever for any loss or detriment that may arise from using it. I have included links to regulatory guidance, and you can find pro bono support using the Charity Excellence Help Finder.

Ethics note: AI was partially used in researching this guide.

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Charity AI Imagery - Ethics Best Practice

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Charity AI imagery best practice toolkit - a practical guide for charities to ensure AI and other imagery is managed in a legal, ethical and safe way