We recently got an Apple iPad as a gift. I knew I would like it because I love my iPhone, and in many ways the iPad is really just a big iPhone.

But at first it was a little bit too much like an iPhone–just one I couldn’t put in my pocket.

But the more I used it more I liked it. I downloaded apps for the iPad. I also bought the keyboard dock so unlike my iPhone I wouldn’t be stuck pecking away one letter at a time on the screen’s keyboard.

The keyboard dock dramatically changed my experience with the iPad. I felt liberated!

It wasn’t long before I started thinking how I could use the iPad for cause marketing. Here are some of the ways it’s already become a helpful tool.

Blogging. The keyboard dock was an absolute must here. While I’ve read that some bloggers type posts right from the iPad’s keyboard, this wasn’t for me. Next, I needed a platform on which to type my posts. iPad wouldn’t let me type them on the WordPress web interface as I usually do. Using Apple’s Pages or iWorks didn’t seem the right solution as my desktop and laptop are both PC’s. Ultimately I went with the WordPress app, which is nothing fancy but it works. I still have to jump on my PC to add photos and links, but all the writing can be done on the iPad.

Meetings. This is where the iPad really shined. It’s so easy to share with everyone in a room. We all know how much more difficult this is to do with a laptop, or with an iPhone, which is too small. But the iPad is a perfect size. I made it even easier to use in meetings by adding the Evernote app. I’ve written glowingly of Evernote as a cause marketing tool before, but the Evernote app for the iPad is impressive. Evernote has been a great way to share everything from cause marketing campaigns to videos to pinups to pictures.

And having an iPad for meetings has a coolness factor that can’t be beat! Just make sure you sign up for the 3G service if you plan to go online. Don’t be like me and learn the hard way that the company you’re at doesn’t have Wifi. Because as I learned, well, that’s just not cool.

Another iPad app that’s helpful in meetings is FastFinga. Instead of typing notes I can just write them with my finger, turning the iPad into a real writing pad. I can even ship these notes off to Evernote. Give Fastfinga a try.

Presentations. I share Chris Brogan’s frustrations with the iPad for creating presentations. But the gorgeous Dropbox app for iPad makes viewing and sharing them with others a breeze.

The iPad truly shines in meetings when you want to share examples of cause marketing campaigns or other types of media. But I plan to stick with it for blogging posts like this one. It won’t be long before WordPress improves its app so I can write my posts start to finish (links, pic and all) on the iPad.

How do you think you might use the iPad for your fundraising?