You’ve probably heard you should include a volunteer impact story in your recruitment drive, or have been asked to supply them for funding requests.

They is all fine and dandy but how do you put together a story like that? What makes it stand out? A good volunteer impact story does more than describe what someone did, it shows why what they did mattered. It connects actions to outcomes, and gets people interested in being involved.

Impact stories are powerful tools for inspiring, recruiting, and retaining volunteers, as well as for engaging funders and the wider community.

Here are seven elements that make a volunteer impact story truly effective:

1. It has a clear human focus.

People connect with people. The most compelling stories centre around an individual or a small group—a volunteer, a client or a community member—rather than a program or organization. Give the story a face and a name (with permission, of course). For example, instead of saying, “Our literacy program helped 200 adults improve their reading skills,” tell the story of “Maya”, a grandmother who learned to read so she could help her grandson with his homework. Feel the difference? I’m not saying you shouldn’t use stats – you should – just not by themselves.

2. It........

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