What are the best ways to create engaging nonprofit stories and messages?

Creating audience personae is ideal, but it is not always practical, due to staffing, database issues, and you name it. If it's not possible to create multiple personas, then write to your audience as if they were sitting in front of you and you can see their faces. Make your narrative compelling. Omit acronyms, jargon, and overused phrases. Here's what else not to do: this week, I received an email from a nonprofit that made me cringe. It said, if you have given a gift this year, then thank you. Clearly, that nonprofit has written one boilerplate email for the masses and it shows. Take the time to relate to your audience and it will reap benefits.

One more point, beyond the resolution: explain what will happen if support is not received. That will underscore how your organization makes a difference.

Storytelling is a great way to communicate and connect with your audience. Beyond stories about your organization, you can also share stories from the people you serve or the people who serve you. Are volunteers willing to share why they chose your organization in particular to serve? Or if your service has a lasting impact on a person or family, are they willing to share their stories?

This is not original advice, but it bears repeating: choose 2-3 channels and focus on them. You don't want to be where your audience is not. Determine which channels get the most viewership from your constituency and focus on those. And when you do, post consistently. Twice a week is probably best for long form or posts and once a week for YouTube would be my suggestion. Create a content calendar to stay on track and repurpose your content among your channels and communications. I find it frustrating when a website lists 5-6 social media icons and when I click on them, I see that several haven't been updated in months or years. Jettison those pronto.

Great advice, all around; however, you need an opening hook to entice viewers to read further. Make your headline or subject compelling, whether it be through humor, statistics, a call to action, or a photo that piques one's interest.

The "you" here should refer to the organization, and to not the individual writer. The writer represents the organization and should always be mindful that they are speaking for it and not sharing their personal opinions or values. Its the organization's "personality," more commonly stated as Mission, Vision, and Values, that should be on display. Regarding the use of humor: it’s very subjective and it is often misunderstood. The best advice is to tread carefully.