All of us know how important it is that your stories have heroes. It’s both the heart and the soul of creating communications that are donor focused. Communications, in other words, that focus on the donor’s impact rather than what your organization is doing.
There’s a missing piece here though that we need to talk about. It’s simple. So simple that we neglect it sometimes. I’m talking about the fact that every hero needs a bad guy to defeat. Rocky Balboa had his Apollo Creed and Harry Potter his Voldemort, for example.
My point is that you need to create something your supporters want to beat—cancer, hunger, lack of educational opportunities and poverty are a few examples of the evil your supporters want to defeat.
It’s your job to effectively explain in your communications how gifts to your cause allow donors to do just that.
Here’s your challenge: brainstorm some ideas on who your villain is. Once you’ve done that, start coming up with ways to give your villain human characteristics (like hunger, poverty, etc).
Once you’ve done that, you can then begin to write your story around both your hero and your enemy. Write that story with the thought in mind that you want the end result to be the reader of your communications saying this: “I simply have to help these guys. They’re trying to do a good thing here. If I don’t, I won’t be able to live with myself!”
I would like to help you with this. If you’re not quite certain just who your villain is, share with me what it is your organization does and we can discuss your villain together.
You can call me at 708-974-2600, x105 or email me at ron@rescignos.com at any time.