If you’ve ever heard a nonprofit communicator say, “We don’t have any stories,” here’s the truth:
Stories are all around you.
What’s missing is a way to capture and tell them.
Fortunately, that’s easy to solve for with three straightforward principles that help draw out your nonprofit’s best stories.
The $10 Bill
While consulting at a teen suicide prevention and addiction treatment center, nonprofit marketing specialist Julia Campbell noticed a man at the front desk delivering a $10 bill.
She’d seen him before. Every Friday, just as the team wrapped up their staff meeting, there he’d be with a $10 donation.
When she encouraged the team to ask him about his story, they discovered his son had died of a drug overdose in high school.
That $10 bill was the weekly allowance he would have put in his son’s hand every Friday if the teen were still alive.
Ten dollars. A whole life’s worth of Fridays.
“These unbelievable stories—they’re in your community, they’re in your organization,” says Julia1.
Finding them can be as simple as taking a moment to lean in and ask one question.
How to Close the Story Gap
Your organization already has the stories. They’re happening in your programs and being shared in hallway conversations.
Without a simple process for catching them, they can slip past unnoticed.
So how do you close that gap to capture your next appeal’s story? Try these principles.
1. Ask and Listen
If you don’t ask for the stories, you’ll never hear them.
Cultivate a curiosity mindset. Pay attention to what stands out. Take note of anything unexpected that surfaces during your work days. Tug on these loose threads, and a story starts to emerge.
When you hear a program staffer mention an event or a meaningful interaction with a client, pull them aside. Say you’d love to hear more. Ask what stood out to them or what seemed unexpected.
Look for key moments in your program’s life cycle: graduations, celebrations, big days. Reach out to staff after milestones and ask about memorable moments.
Be known as someone who asks good questions in pursuit of stories, and you’ll not only find the material you need—you’ll also help your colleagues process and articulate what they’ve encountered.
2. Make It Easy for Staff to Share
Give your colleagues a low-effort way to send you any story moments they notice.
Keep an open-door policy. Encourage a quick text, email, or voice memo whenever someone witnesses a moment that moves them—just enough to mark it so you can follow up later for the full story.
Whatever method you use, remind your team about it often. Don’t just build it and forget it, assuming people will use it. Remind your colleagues exactly how to share stories.
3. Cultivate a Storytelling Culture
Create storytelling rhythms. Once a month, take time during a staff meeting for story highlights.
Talk about why storytelling matters in staff meetings and one-on-ones.
Train your team to understand what to look for in a good story.
And when a team member shares a story that gets used, publicly acknowledge their contribution. Show how it was used and how audiences responded so they feel proud to have shared it. Highlight it as proof that stories don’t just disappear into an abyss but that your story-sharing system works to make a difference for your mission.
No More Scrambling for Stories
Start doing even one of these practices consistently, and you’ll no longer have to scramble to find story material.
Instead, stories will start finding you.
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1 We Are For Good. “How to Leverage Storytelling to Advance Your Cause - Julia Campbell.” We Are For Good Podcast. Accessed March 24, 2026. https://www.weareforgood.com/episode/1
Katie Whitehorn is Senior Copy Director and Creative Lead at Historic, a nonprofit brand and strategy partner.
