Your nonprofit’s annual report may contain some of your most-powerful fundraising material. It has stories of people whose lives have changed, proof of what donors made possible, and numbers that show your organization is making a difference.
But what happens after the report is published?
Often, the report gets sent to your network, and that’s about it. All those amazing details inside don’t get put to get use.
NonProfit PRO found that about four in five nonprofits use an annual or impact report to support fundraising. Only 16 percent said their reports were very effective.
Here are five ways to turn your nonprofit annual report into a year-round tool for fundraising, marketing and donor relationships.
1. Turn One Report Into a Year of Content
Your annual report is a collection of stories, facts, photos, results and more.
Each can become a separate message for your supporters.
Imagine your nonprofit helps families facing homelessness. Your annual report will likely address things like:
- number of families received housing support
- number children gained access to tutoring
- percentage of participating families reported feeling more stable
Those facts can make great content for months, and your marketing team will love you forever!
Here’s one way to use them:
- January: Share a post about the number of families helped.
- February: Publish a story about a family that received support
- March: Send donors an email explaining how housing support works
- April: Share a short video featuring a staff member discussing the program
- May: Create a graphic showing the year’s results
- June: Send a thank-you message connecting donor support to progress made
You need to find different ways to explain the work your organization already does.
List the report’s strongest details. Assign each item a possible use.
The goal is to help different people understand different parts of your mission.
2. Give Each Story a Purpose
Before using a story, ask one question: What do we want the reader to understand or do?
Then choose the right content.
For fundraising: Show the problem your nonprofit addresses; what your team does; and what support makes possible. Help readers see why their gifts matter.
For donor stewardship: Focus on what happened after people gave. Explain what their support made possible. Thank them without immediately asking for another gift.
For volunteer recruitment: Show what volunteers do. Include the people they work with; the skills they use; and the difference their time makes.
For grant applications and funder updates: Use relevant results, program details, and examples that match the funder’s interests. Accuracy is key here.
For community awareness: Explain a problem people may not understand. Use a simple example to make the issue easier to grasp.
The same program can produce several stories. The key is to match each story to the audience and the action you want.
3. Turn Stories Into Short Videos
Numbers help people understand the size of your work. Stories help them understand why it matters.
Video brings both together.
Suppose your annual report says your nonprofit helped 200 young people complete a job training.
That number is useful. A short video featuring a participant who found a job after completing the program helps supporters understand what that result means in real life.
So you might create a 60-second video that includes:
- The challenge the person faced
- The support your nonprofit provided
- What changed as a result
- A brief explanation of how donors make the program possible
You could share the video in an email, on your website, during a fundraising presentation, across social media, and more!
One interview can easily lead to several short clips.
You can also use video to explain a key result from your report. A program director might explain why a service matters, while a staff member shows how the work happens.
4. Build a Year-Round Publishing Plan
A content plan doesn’t have to be complicated.
Start with four questions:
- What are the most important results in our report?
- Which audiences need to hear about them?
- What channels do we already use?
- When would each message be most useful?
Then build out a calendar.
For example:
| Month | Content idea | Main purpose |
|---|---|---|
| January | Three results from the previous year | Awareness |
| February | A participant story | Show impact |
| March | A staff member explains a program | Educate supporters |
| April | A donor thank-you message | Strengthen relationships |
| May | A short video about one program | Increase understanding |
| June | A progress update with new numbers | Show accountability |
Continue the pattern through the year. Use new information when it’s available.
Connect content to events, program milestones, awareness months, and fundraising campaigns. That will build excitement and interest in the campaigns, as well.
5. Track Your Content
Publishing more content is not the same as getting better results.
Your team should look at what people do after seeing a message, not just how many people saw it.
Start with the goal of each piece.
If the goal is to reach new people, track relevant measures such as reach, video watch time, and shares.
If the goal is to attract donors, track visits to the donation page and completed gifts.
If the goal is to recruit volunteers, track inquiries and completed applications.
If the goal is to keep existing donors engaged, look at email clicks, responses, event participation, and giving patterns over time.
Use reporting tools already available.
You can also use a simple spreadsheet to record each piece of content, its purpose, where it appeared, and what happened afterward.
Use those numbers to improve future content.
Your Next Step
Want to get more value from your existing video content? Team Trust Productions offers a free 15-minute video marketing review to help nonprofits identify three ways to get more marketing and fundraising value from their current video assets.
It’s a great way to start before investing in new content.