So far, so straightforward. But there’s a catch.

Do we actually tell the stories of people who need help, or people who have been helped?

The truth is that ninety-nine times out of a hundred, for very good reason, the stories we tell have been resolved.

I used to work for a brilliant small charity whose appeals asked donors to contribute to a new wheelchair for a disabled child, whose story we would tell. Donations would go towards providing the case study with the wheelchair, with any money raised above the target going to (as was clearly explained) general funds. But such simplicity, with such a tangible cause and effect between the resolution of the case studies story and the donation, is rare.

We will usually only have access to a hungry child’s story after he or she has been entered into our charity’s feeding programme and so be on the way to recovery. A homeless young person will only be able to talk to fundraisers after they have, through the great work of the charity, escaped life on the streets.

So how do we get over this discrepancy, this time-lag? We know that people give to people, yet if our case studies have already been helped, aren’t we using them as an example of a need, rather than inviting donors to help improve a named individual’s life? And isn’t our case going to be fatally weakened as a result?

Not necessarily. Here are three tips for overcoming the case study ‘time-lag’ and writing the copy that will persuade your donors to give. I’m sure there are lots more, please let me know… 

1. Ask the right questions. Case study interviews are key – and most beneficiaries are only too happy to look back to their lives before the charity helped them and often to imagine what might have otherwise happened to them. You should also always ask them why people should give. By so doing you invite them to think about why it’s so important others in similar situations are helped; and you could be provided with a case for support that’s far more powerful than anything you might have thought of yourself.
2. Demonstrate a continuing need. Your case study is likely to be representative of a larger problem. How many children will the feeding programme be admitting today/tomorrow? How many people will be diagnosed with the same condition as your case study this year? Contextualising your case study’s story helps, but be careful if you’re presenting big numbers. Donors are likely to respond to a request to help ‘another child like’ your case study, but they could be left feeling small and powerless if asked to help your charity be there for ’20,000’ children.
3. Don’t forget to include your donors, and trust them. Why was your case study helped? Because of the previous gifts of your supporters. Without them who knows what might have happened? Underline the critical role of your supporters in helping your case study, and you’re halfway to making the case for how crucial it is to give again.