How To Use Storytelling In Fundraising

To all founders trying to raise funds or talking to investors - this one’s for you. Last week at Mercury Spheres, I sat in on a storytelling session by Siqi Chen. He broke down what great investor pitches look like. Basically, he broke down any storytelling as a 3-act structure: Act 1: Origin - Tell them how you discovered the problem. - Don’t drop stats - tell a story. - Make the problem feel real, broken, urgent. Act 2: Now - Present your product as the obvious solution. - Show traction. - Make it clear: this is just the beginning. Act 3: Future - This is where most founders fall flat. - Paint the future. - Show them what changes if you win. - Let them see the upside. Let them want a seat at that table. We followed this playbook at Mailmodo, not intentionally at first. We didn’t sell email features. We sold a future where users don’t click away and drop off. That story got us  - Our first users. - Our first investors. - And it still aligns our team today If you want people along to build your future, make them believe in your story.

I've seen so many nonprofits wait until the last minute to collect stories they need for their next fundraising campaign. You’re a week or two away from launching your next big campaign, and your marketing director sends the team an email. “Anyone have any stories to illustrate…?” Suddenly, everyone is scrambling. Someone remembers a client who said something powerful… but it was 6 months ago. Mayyyyybe there’s a photo somewhere. The staff member who oversaw that really cool project? They’ve left. It doesn’t have to be this hard. If storytelling is one of your most powerful fundraising tools, then you need a system to capture stories all year long – not just when you need them. My recommendation? 1️⃣ Set up a shared “Story Bank” CRM. This is a central place where everyone can drop in client stories, donor quotes, Board anecdotes, or milestones as they happen. Use something like Airtable or Notion where the information can be searchable by program, date, and theme. 2️⃣ Create a routine rhythm of having your team add to the Story Bank on a monthly basis. This doesn’t have to be full-blown stories – just moments & emotions that can be fleshed out later. 3️⃣ Commit to sharing stories. A Story Bank that just collects stories and is never used isn’t of much value. You need to actually tell the stories you collect. Commit to sharing a story at least once or twice per month. The truth is, your nonprofit is already creating plenty of meaningful moments and success stories. You just need a system to collect & share them. What is your organization doing to collect Impact Stories?  What tools do you use to aid in the process?

Your Impact Report is Probably Boring (And It's Costing You Donors) One approach puts donors to sleep. The other opens wallets. Which are you choosing? Effective storytelling in impact reports is key. Here's how to do it: Start with a Hook: Before: "We provided 10,000 meals last year." After: "Maria turned our food bank into a stepping stone for her family's future.” Use the "Before and After" Technique: Before: "Our job training program had a 75% success rate." After: "John went from homeless to homeowner in 18 months. Here's how our program made it possible..." Incorporate Sensory Details: Before: "We built a new playground." After: "Where there was once an empty lot, kids now laugh and play. The bright red slides and yellow swings have brought new life to the neighborhood. Parents chat on nearby benches, watching their children make new friends and create lasting memories.” Showcase Donor Impact: Before: "Your donations helped us achieve our goals." After: "Because of supporters like you, Sarah received the life-saving surgery she needed. Here's a letter from her family..." Use Data Visualization: Before: "We increased literacy rates by 40%." After: [Include an infographic showing a child's journey from struggling reader to honor roll student, with key stats along the way] End with a Clear Call-to-Action: Before: "Please consider donating." After: "For just $50, you can provide a month of tutoring for a child like Tommy." How to implement this: ☑️Identify your most compelling success stories ☑️ Gather quotes and personal anecdotes from beneficiaries ☑️Collect before-and-after photos or data points ☑️ Craft your narratives using the techniques above ☑️ Test different versions with a small group of donors ☑️ Refine based on feedback and roll out your new, story-driven impact report

In great fundraising, the donor is the heart and hero of our story. They aren't just supporters; they're the driving force. Here's how we can elevate their role: > Craft your mailings to reflect the donor's impact. When they see the tangible difference they make, they become deeply invested narrators of the cause. > Equip donors with stories that highlight their role. Their connection deepens when they recognize how vital they are to the mission. > Consider launching a 'share your story' campaign. Let donors tell their unique tales of support and the change they've witnessed. > Keep donors informed. Show them the direct results of their contributions and how they're leading the change. > A genuine 'thank you' can do wonders. Celebrate their heroism, acknowledging that every step forward is due to their generosity. In direct mail, it's our privilege to tell stories. But remember, it's the donor who always plays the lead role. How do you make your donors the heroes in your narratives?

Most fundraising appeals sound like requests. The best ones sound like 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴. Not “please give.” But “this is who you are.” Here’s the difference: 𝗔 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀: We need your help. 𝗔 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀: You’ve already made a difference—let’s keep going. Donors don’t need more urgency. They need more 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨. They want to feel like their gift fits into a bigger story. That they’re not just responding to need— They’re living out their values. So write your next appeal like this: 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 “You’ve always shown up when it mattered most.” 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆 “Right now, another child needs someone like you.” 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗿𝘂𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 “This is the next chapter in the story you’ve already started writing.” Great fundraising isn’t about pressure. It’s about 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. Remind donors who they are— And they’ll keep proving you right. What’s the last line in an appeal that made 𝘺𝘰𝘶 want to give?

You Don’t Need Better Testimonials —  You Need Better Storytelling Your Testimonials Are Dying in Your Docs Most businesses are sitting on a goldmine of social proof. (And letting it rot) Here's the truth no one's telling you: Raw testimonials don't sell. Stories do. Here's how to transform dead feedback into living proof: 1. Find the Tension First → What kept your client awake at night? → Which "solutions" had already failed? → What made them finally reach out? 2. Build the Stakes → What would happen if nothing changed? → Which obstacles almost stopped them? → What convinced them to trust you? 3. Show the Transformation → What specific results emerged? → Which surprise benefits appeared? → How does their world look different now? Example: Before: "Great service, helped us grow our sales!" After: "We were burning through $40K/month on ads that didn't convert. Two agencies had failed us. Within 8 weeks of implementing the new framework, our cost per lead dropped 65% and our team stopped working weekends." See the difference? One is forgettable. The other makes prospects reach for their wallet. Your testimonials are story gold. Stop letting them gather dust. ♻️ Share if this shifted your thinking 🔔 Follow Mike Hays for more modern marketing psychology

They got rejected by 30 VCs. 90 days later, they closed their first lead investor. Same team. Same product. Different story. When they came to me, they were exhausted. Burned by a string of VC rejections and stuck in a cycle of pitch → silence → ghosted. What changed? Not their deck. Not their market. But the way they told their story and the clarity of their ask. Here’s what we fixed: ➟ No more “here’s what we built”. We began with, “Here’s the problem.” ➟ Reframed traction to speak investor language (not vanity metrics) ➟ Built a narrative around momentum, not desperation ➟ Positioned the raise as a growth opportunity, not a lifeline ✅ Clarity of the market ✅Proof of demand ✅Founder conviction ✅A crisp use of funds ✅Evidence of velocity ✅Competitive insight ✅Realistic milestones ✅Aligned ask ✅Simple deck ✅Compelling close 10 lessons that helped them go from ignored to in-demand: 1. Investors fund momentum ↳ Rebuild your story around traction and timing 2. Data is the language of belief ↳ Make every claim measurable and credible 3. The first 10 seconds decide the next 10 minutes ↳ Lead with insight, not your origin story 4. Fundraising is sales with a longer sales cycle ↳ Qualify, follow up, close like B2B 5. A vague raise is a red flag ↳ “$1.5M to do what, exactly?” — Answer it before they ask 6. Pressure kills the pitch ↳ Invite the right fit, not approval from everyone 7. Lead with the problem, not the product ↳ Show you get the pain better than anyone 8. Make it easy to say yes ↳ Fewer slides, clearer ask, sharper logic 9. Own your unfair advantage ↳ Don’t whisper the thing that sets you apart 10. One believer opens the door ↳ The first “yes” is the hardest, then the narrative flips Rejection is feedback, but only if you listen, adapt, and level up. VCs said no. Now they’re getting intros from those same firms. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from rejection? Comment! Repost! ------------------------------------------------------ 💯 Want to qualify for VC funding?   Take your free Fundraising Gap Analysis Scorecard. The link is on my profile page - Leon Eisen, PhD

Your fundraising appeals keep failing for one reason. It's not your subject line. It's not your donation page. It's not your ask amount. It's not even your story. It's that you're talking about yourself instead of your donor. Count the words "we," "us," and "our" in your last appeal. Now count "you" and "your." If the first number is higher, you've found your problem. Your donors don't care about your organization's needs. They care about the impact they can make through you. The organizations raising more money aren't writing better appeals about themselves. They're writing better appeals about their donors. They don't say "We need your support." They say "You can change a life." They don't say "Our programs are effective." They say "Your gift creates transformation." They don't say "Help us meet our goal." They say "Your impact will multiply when you give today." Pull out your last three fundraising appeals. Highlight every sentence that focuses on your organization rather than your donor's impact. Rewrite each one to put your donor at the center. Because your appeals aren't failing because of poor technique. They're failing because you've made yourself the hero of the story instead of your donor. Fix that, and watch your response rates transform.

Most nonprofits don’t struggle because their mission isn’t important. They struggle because no one feels it. Take Room to Read: Founded in 2000 by John Wood, a former Microsoft exec who quit his corporate job after seeing the lack of books in rural Nepalese schools. No deep pockets. No institutional backing. Just a story that hit people where it matters. How They Made People Care: Instead of bombarding people with literacy stats, they told stories of individual kids whose lives changed through education. Instead of just fundraising, they built a movement of people who believed in the power of books. The Results? Over 39 million children impacted across 23 countries 40,000+ schools and communities served $850M+ raised to fund education access 3 Storytelling Strategies That Scaled Their Impact 1. Start with One Person – John didn’t tell people about millions of kids needing books. He told them about one school with empty shelves. 2. Make the Audience the Hero – Donors didn’t just fund books; they helped rewrite kids’ futures. 3. Show the Proof – They didn’t just say, education changes lives, they showed data and stories of kids breaking cycles of poverty. Most nonprofits try to convince people to donate. The best ones inspire them to take action. Who’s telling nonprofit stories the right way right now? Drop a name in the comments. With purpose and impact, Mario

I've pitched 200+ funding stories to reporters over 15 years. The ones that got covered all broke the same rule: they didn’t lead with the dollar amount. Here's what happened with a Series A announcement last year. The founder wanted to lead with "Company X raises $8M." Standard formula. But I convinced him to flip it: "New Therapy App Translates its Psychiatrist Co-Founder’s Experience into AI." Same company. Same round. Different story. The first version: Generic funding news that would get buried on page 47 of TechCrunch. The second: Three reporters responded within hours asking for exclusives. That's when it hit me: reporters aren't covering funding rounds anymore. They're covering human stories that happen to be validated by funding rounds. The money isn't the story. It's just proof the story matters. Think about every funding announcement you've seen get real coverage lately. None of them led with the dollar amount unless it was massive. They led with the founder who dropped out of medical school to solve healthcare access. The immigrant entrepreneur serving 45 million underserved Americans. The 22-year-old who built something VCs couldn't ignore. The funding validates that this isn't just feel-good content; it's business news their editors will approve. Your next pitch should read like a profile piece that happens to mention funding, not a funding announcement that mentions a person. My point: Stop leading with dollars. Start leading with humans. The next time you draft a funding pitch, ask yourself: Would this story be interesting even without the money? If not, you're pitching the wrong angle.