Any decent fundraiser (and copywriter) knows that the best way to capture attention, engage a donor and touch their emotional side is through stories. Stories trigger emotions and are memorable. They enable vicarious experience on the part of the listener … enabling the storyteller to communicate on a deeper level.
So where might your stories come from?
Here are some possibilities. All involve, of course, listening …
- To donors themselves, who write, email, post or phone in their personal experiences with your organization and the work it does or the problem it addresses, why they decided (and continue) to support it, and what feelings their involvement engenders. Hint: many of the best stories come from donors who are making bequests … almost always there is a very powerful and inspiring personal story behind their decision.
- To clients or beneficiaries of your work if you are a service organization — who tell you firsthand how your programs have affected or improved their lives (or their friend or member of their family), helped them overcome adversity. These stories personalize results.
- To your program staff — who can tell you about their day-to-day work … challenges faced, their satisfaction and enjoyment in their work, their specific accomplishments or heartbreaks, their ‘insider’ experiences as they go about their work. But keep in mind you’re looking for the personal aspect in all these things, not simply a narrative of events.
Some of these ‘sources’ are already sitting in front of you … in letters, case files, personal social net posts and notes. But most of the stories will need to be actively sought out and ‘extracted’ from the original story ‘holder’. And that’s the trick … changing story-holders in your organization into story-tellers!
And then integrating the most compelling of those stories into all of your fundraising communications.
Do you have a story file on your nonprofit? Have you videotaped any of your storytellers? Have you told a story lately? Are there any stories on your website?
Tom
This article was posted in: communications, copywriting, Don't Miss these Posts, fundraising, loyalty, nonprofits.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
How about suggesting the NPO actually share the outcomes or results of their day to day work. Such reporting is every bit as vital as an income statement and balance sheet in the for profit world. Are they making a difference in whatever mission or groups they serve? Are the groups they serve truly better off a year later?
The larger foundations are demanding such reporting. I am betting that within a few years major donors will be asking to see the same outcome reports!
We always tell our clients that finding good stories means they have to leave their desk and go talk to folks — all the groups you suggest–donors, constituents, staff who provide serve, etc.
Sometimes we’re so busy with meetings and mail plans, we forget to get up from our desks and talk to one another!
Thank you for reiterating the importance of the story. Working for a social fundraising site, we come across amazing people with amazing stories to tell everyday. We’ve found that the story not only encourages donors to give, but it encourages them to act.
For the past 2 years, we’ve hosted a national philanthropic award show called the CLASSY Awards. The goal has always been to recognize those doing more than just their part, but as we’ve entered into planning for our 3rd year, our focus has shifted to the “story”. Each story submission (read: nomination) will be transformed into an article that will be posted on our website for the public. Last year, we received over 3,400 “stories” – our hope is that people will take the time to read about the efforts of these amazing people (and then, of course, donate to their causes).
Responding to both articles:
I recently read a 20+ page grant proposal (or more of a pre-proposal “menu” of funding options for foundations to select from) that included only a 1 number or measurement: How much money they wanted. They told lots of stories and anecdotes and did an admirable job describing how they do what they do, but no numbers, no measures, nothing, 0. It was impossible for a donor to assess the size, scope or effectiveness of the program. I don’t know how effective an unsolicited, but targeted, pre-proposal “menu” is (it was a new concept to me, maybe it’s an old trick), but I know that all “soft-heart” is difficult to evaluate seriously. It’s also difficult to read (the writing was very good and well edited–I mean, it was a lot of work to read it all.)
I think that there are certain things people look for in long, wordy documents, and numbers stand out in paragraphs. It’s hard to evaluate a 1,000+ word document quickly without reading the whole thing, through. And then, if its poorly written or not an interest area for you as a donor, you’re not likely to be pleased to have wasted your time. In other words, you won’t be 100% satisfied with the interaction.
My feeling is that well placed and interspersed numbers–actual numbers like 1-9 (even if this is “grammatically incorrect”)–stand out from words and catch people’s eye. If they then read that a number equals a result (“In 2010, 98% of our clients were employed within 90 days!”), an impact, a measurement, they’re likely to read the entire document.
To me, it’s not just putting numbers and measurements “somewhere” in the proposal or story (usually crammed into the end of the document or in a separate sidebar) but putting them directly into and throughout the document, embedded into the story/narrative. Yes, it communicates results, but it also hooks readers who are going to spend very little time (maybe 10 seconds or less) on documents (even for organizations they love) unless they are lulled into it.
Numbers have another effect: when I listen to people talk about nonprofit programs, not just mine but other organizations, they describe them in 2 ways: who they help and generally how without much specificity; or who they help and what amazing results they produce. In my experience, people who talk about organizations using the latter information are more interesting and compelling to new prospects–they know that if it moves their heart to action, it will have a tangible effect on the world and (by) how (much).