Story telling not reporting

I review letters every week, some from direct reports on my staff, some from other offices and departments looking for feedback or opinion.  One of the most consistent trends I see is letters that read like excerpts from the New York Times.  They provide the facts, figures and case for support but do so in a manner that reflects Joe Friday's "Just the facts."

This works great for meeting a one page letter length goal and gets the job done.  It does not however motivate or move constituents who are not already on board with you.  To do that requires a completely different approach - one based upon story telling not reporting.

The story can be the same but how it is worded and told makes all the difference.  It is hard to tell a first person story effectively - you need a narrator and that can be a fellow alum, student, administrator, parent, really anyone who the audience is likely to identify with.  Just as importantly, that person needs to be a donor - can be a first time donor, a long time donor, a leadership donor or a low level donor but they need to be demonstrating the behavior that you wish for the recipient to emulate.

By using a narrator, you can "brag" about the accomplishments of the subject without creating a negative impression.  This tale needs to be told in a similar fashion to that of a story in People magazine - provide details about the people and their impacts, not about the dollars and the results.  Make a big deal out of the people impacts, who benefited and what that led to.  This works in mail, email and even in phone and personal contacts.  Make the donor identify with the beneficiary and feel they can have the same impact as the narrator - that motivates folks to give even if your cause is not on the top of their list - yet.