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How to write an annual impact report for a small charity – part 2
Anita Holford Freelance communications practitioner at www.writing-services.co.uk Posted 5 years ago
If you know your last annual report* didn’t do you justice, there are a few simple steps you can take. This is part two of a three-part guide. The previous blog - How to write an annual report for a small charity – Part 1, looked at the process, and the framework you might use for the content. Part 3 looks at key messages. In this blog I’ll look a bit more deeply at how to write persuasively to win hearts and minds.
Who is your reader?
The starting point for any piece of communication is to understand your audience/reader and their needs. The more you can really step inside your reader’s shoes, the stronger and more appealing your communication will be. The problem is, annual reports have a number of audiences and often a dual purpose.
The audience can be all of your stakeholders, from beneficiaries to funders. The core purpose is to show accountability – what difference have you made and how have you used your resources? – and beyond that, to also act as a marketing/advocacy tool.
So it’s a good idea to start by asking yourself:
- Who are the priority audiences? Put them in order of importance and focus on the top one to three
- What do we know about their needs, interests, expectations in relation to our organisation and this report?
- Are there any misconceptions that we need to address through this publication?
What are your key messages?
Key messages are a way for you to distil what you want to say into short, memorable phrases – the things you want people to remember, including your team.
Key messages are a whole topic in themselves so for now here are a few questions that may help:
- Is there an overriding message you want people to take away about what you’ve achieved and the difference you’ve made in this particular year?
- Is there a particular audience/set of stakeholders you need to convince this year – what message/s do they most need/want to hear?
- Are there any specific achievements you want to highlight, or any misperceptions about your organisation that you want to address?
- Can you summarise the difference you’ve made this year in one sentence?
Key messages should be short, clear and easy to remember. When writing them, always try to answer your reader’s question: ‘so what?’ ie why does that matter, why is it important, how does it change things?
Use the three modes of persuasion – think, feel, know
Before you start, and throughout the writing process, think about what you’d like your readers to think/feel about you. This will help you to get the right tone of voice.
The world’s top persuasive communicators – from Greek philosopher Aristotle, to modern day speech writers for politicians – agree there are three things you have to convey if you want to appeal to hearts and minds. These are known as the three modes of persuasion:
- Character (‘ethos’) – the beliefs, attitudes, and values of an organisation that build credibility and trust: what people THINK of you
You’ll be more credible if you’re clear, honest, and consistent. Avoid too many adjectives (fantastic workshop, wonderful activity, heartwarming programme) and don’t over-claim or exaggerate. Character is built over time but each communication contributes to it, and is helped by tone of voice.
- Emotion (‘pathos’) – the appeal to emotion, eg pride, anger, kindness – what people FEEL about you
Stories of individuals that are written using classic storytelling techniques are by far the most powerful technique to convey your impact. In brief, try to engage the reader with the character and their plight; show their journey from the situation they were in, the obstacles they overcame to where they are now – and obviously how you helped. Emotion nearly always overrides logic – and there is research to prove it (see here for just one example, a summary of Damasio’s theory).
- Logic (‘logos’) – the reasoned argument, backed by evidence – what people KNOW about you
Ideally your annual report will answer the question ‘convince me’ through quotes from beneficiaries and people in positions of authority; statistical evidence. Make sure facts and figures are easy to remember (ideally conveyed visually or compared with something else eg the size of a football pitch), and that there aren’t too many.
Other things to consider
- Remember that what you did isn’t as important as the difference it made: outcomes are more important than outputs
- The difference you made is best conveyed through impact evaluation language that suggests a change eg increased, reduced, grew, improved, developed
- Your impact on an individual is easier to grasp than on large group of people
- For everything you write, think – can I present it in a way that’s easier to remember and understand? Have I backed that up with enough evidence?
Finally, here are a couple of blogs about the fundamentals of copywriting that are a good starting point for any writing you have to do for your organisation:
Is there anything else you’ve found that you need to do or include that’s not listed here? Do comment in the box below, I’d be interested to hear your top tips and experiences. Next week I’ll be publishing Part 3: Key messages.
This is an edited version of a post that first appeared on the Writing Services blog.
* If you work for a charity, it will have to produce a trustees’ annual report and accounts for the Charity Commission. This is a legal obligation, with specific requirements, and is likely to be a more detailed document than the type of report I refer to here. However, some of the writing principles outlined here can also be used when writing your Charity Commission report.
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