10 hints for strong fundraising photos

It’s almost a rule that we should use photos in fundraising. After all, photos contain a lot more emotional information than the best-written copy.

But that’s what makes photos difficult.

Every photo tells a story, and often it’s not the story you mean to tell.

Here are some things to look for in fundraising photos, from Clairification, at Is Your Finger on the Nonprofit Appeal Trigger?:

1. Sad photos of people or animals who appear to be in desperate need.
   
2. Shocking photos showing real things happening your average reader will want to end.
   
3. One person is usually better than more.
   
4. People are usually better than things.
   
5. Faces, especially with big eyes staring directly into the reader’s eyes.
6. People looking human, vulnerable, resilient and filled with character.
7. Two people interacting, especially where one is helping the other.
   
8. Close-ups with tight frames and very little white space.
   
9. Photos that show a context.
   
10. Photos in bright colors and good lighting.
    

When you don’t have any photos that have at least a few of these characteristics, it’s okay to have on photo at all.

Better to tell the story you want with words alone than to undermine your story with a photo that doesn’t do the job.