As humans, we are attracted to narratives. It helps us make sense of the world and connect the dots in things we see and hear about. Storytelling has also become an important aspect of fundraising. Potential donors understandably need a good reason to contribute. Nonprofits that use storytelling in their fundraising efforts have a donor retention rate of 45? That's compared to 27% for organizations that do not focus on storytelling. In this blog, we’d like to equip you with the know-how to turn storytelling into a key part of your next fundraiser.

Is Storytelling in Fundraising Worth It?

Instead of simply explaining it, we’d like to provide a couple of examples for you to feel the impact of storytelling:

1. University of San Francisco

The University of San Francisco has applied the power of storytelling since 2015 as part of their $300 million comprehensive campaign. By sharing authentic stories about philanthropy, they have engaged more audiences, especially alumni and donors, as they move towards the public phase of the campaign. In 2016 and 2017, the philanthropy stories consistently had a higher readership than other university news, demonstrating the effectiveness of their storytelling approach. Read more about it here.

2. John Crosland School

The John Crosland School in California successfully reinvented its fundraising gala by shifting the focus of the event from being about the school to being all about the kids. They included anecdotes about the kids, their struggles, and their accomplishments in the event program. During the event, they started talking about how the school’s mission would improve the children’s future. During the gala and throughout the dinner, they had pictures of the students rolling on a slideshow. Read more about it here.

These examples are just a small glimpse into the power of storytelling. But how do you reach that point where storytelling gives you the impact you otherwise could? Let’s start by segmenting and personalizing your engagement with your potential donors.

Before You Tell Your Story: Segmentation and Personalization

Each alumnus is different, and they are much more likely to donate to a cause that resonates with their work or personal interests. This is where segmentation comes in. To put it plainly, segmentation is the process of creating specific groups of target audiences so you engage them in a way they would prefer. Let’s take an example:

Telling Your Story: What Goes Into It

There are countless ways you can tell your story to make it special, but for now let’s take a look at the essential bits. We took some inspiration from this insightful article by Ioan Marc Jones for Charity Digital to outline some of the basic components of a good fundraiser story:

• Setting: It’s an easy choice to have your story set around your institution’s location. However, depending on the story you are going for, try to mix things up. You generally want to show the location of your impact. If you are raising funds to buy lab equipment for an upcoming science fair, try to include scenes set in your laboratory and use videos or photos from similar events from the past.
• Characters: Whether your characters are from your advancement team or a spotlight on a donor, they provide you a great opportunity to make your story relatable. Ioan suggests having characters in action or showing character development. Your audience resonates with your characters succeeding, struggling, overcoming challenges, and feeling the impact of your efforts.
• Plot: The plot is where you can get creative and tell the narrative you want to. There are two time-proven parts to any good plot:
  • Conflict: The problem that your fundraiser is aiming to help alleviate. Let’s say you are fundraising for your college’s soccer team. Showcase how the problem areas, such as lack of equipment or proper infrastructure, have impacted them in the past. Are any interested students or players willing to share their frustrations?
  • Resolution: How can your fundraiser help solve the conflict? Are there any early actions being taken that you can highlight? Taking the same example above, if you could include a video where staff members are discussing plans to help the soccer team, that would show your potential donors that this is something in the works that they can help become a reality.

Remember that all things need to lead back to why you are reaching out to your alumni for a fundraiser in the first place. Tie things up by talking about how your fundraiser will help provide the ideal ending before directing them to your CTAs.

Where Should Your Alumni See Your Story?

Today, advancement teams have a wide array of mediums and platforms to promote their fundraisers. That means there’s just as much choice when it comes to the stories. Our recommendation is to take advantage of all the channels available to you while focusing on your segmented target audiences. A good starting point is to consider your demographics. For example, Gen X and older generations may prefer written communication through email much more than younger generations, who are more open to social media and mobile platforms. Remember that which channel you use forms a part of your storytelling.

Your Alumni Are Interested. Now What?

Today, a simple donate button won’t always cut it. You can take it a step further by helping your potential donors make an informed decision they will be happy with. Give clear objectives or milestones wherever you can. Let’s say you are fundraising for a mentorship program. Mention how long the mentorship will be, and whether you can guarantee opportunities based on it, or even further plans based on success.

Finally, ensure that your donors do not get left on an island. Keep them updated. Provide milestone updates. Celebrate your successes with them and inform them of any notable updates. Invite them for a big launch or send gifts. After all, the ultimate goal is to bring alumni closer to their alma mater.

This proactive approach to fundraising also creates better opportunities in the future. You could build online communities based on donor segments, a great source of user-generated stories. Satisfied donors who are kept engaged don’t just contribute to great stories but are also more likely to donate in the future.

We hope we have given you a decent broad overview of the power of storytelling in fundraising and how you, too, can use it to make your donors feel truly connected to your efforts.