2 lousy stories and a great one

Stories sometimes seem like magic.

But there’s no magic involved. When you tell the right story, you unlock the generosity of more people. When you tell the wrong one, not much happens.

So what stories are right or wrong?

Here’s a great answer to that question from the Better Fundraising Blog, at Which story are you telling?

• Wrong story: The story of one beneficiary who has already been helped. Nice and heartwarming (and highly appropriate for your newsletter), but not good at raising funds.

• Wrong story: The story about the services the organization provides, what year the organization was founded, and what the organization believes. Even worse at raising funds. Interesting to insiders; boring to everyone else.

• Right story: The story of the difference the donor’s gift will make. That’s the story donors are looking for: “Will my gift to this organization make a difference?”
  

The first two stories at best hint at what their giving might do — and at worse are irrelevant to the donor. The story about the change that can happen when the donor gets involved raises a lot more funds.