How do you solicit feedback and improve your social impact storytelling and testimonial skills?

2 Use a simple and compelling structure

A good story or testimonial should have a simple and compelling structure that captures the attention and interest of the audience. A common structure is the STAR method, which stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. You can use this method to describe the problem or challenge you or your beneficiary faced, the goal or solution you or your beneficiary pursued, the steps or actions you or your beneficiary took, and the outcome or impact you or your beneficiary achieved. This method helps you to highlight the relevance, value, and effectiveness of your philanthropic work.

3 Incorporate emotions and evidence

Emotions and evidence are essential elements of social impact stories and testimonials. Emotions help you to connect with your audience on a human level and elicit empathy, sympathy, or inspiration. Evidence helps you to support your claims and demonstrate your credibility and accountability. You can incorporate emotions and evidence by using vivid language, sensory details, anecdotes, quotes, statistics, facts, or figures. However, be careful not to overwhelm or manipulate your audience with too much or too little information. Balance your emotions and evidence with honesty and authenticity.

4 Solicit feedback and iterate

One of the best ways to improve your social impact storytelling and testimonial skills is to solicit feedback from your audience and iterate your content accordingly. You can ask your audience for feedback through surveys, interviews, focus groups, online platforms, or social media. You can also use analytics tools to measure the performance and engagement of your content. You can ask questions such as: What did you like or dislike about the story or testimonial? What did you learn or feel from the story or testimonial? How did the story or testimonial influence your perception or behavior? How can the story or testimonial be improved? Based on the feedback, you can revise, refine, or reframe your stories and testimonials to make them more effective and impactful.

5 Experiment with different formats and channels

Another way to improve your social impact storytelling and testimonial skills is to experiment with different formats and channels to reach and appeal to different audiences. You can use formats such as text, audio, video, images, infographics, or interactive media to present your stories and testimonials. You can also use channels such as websites, blogs, newsletters, podcasts, videos, social media, or events to distribute your stories and testimonials. You can test and compare different formats and channels to see which ones generate the most interest, engagement, and action from your audience.

6 Learn from others

Finally, you can improve your social impact storytelling and testimonial skills by learning from others who are doing it well. You can research and follow other philanthropic organizations or individuals who are using stories and testimonials effectively to communicate their impact and value. You can analyze and emulate their techniques, strategies, and best practices. You can also network and collaborate with them to exchange ideas, insights, and feedback. By learning from others, you can discover new ways to improve your own skills and enhance your own impact.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?