How to Gather Compelling Stories
How to Gather Compelling Stories for Fundraising and Volunteer Recruitment
Your church, organization, or program needs to raise funds or recruit volunteers. What
motivates someone to give to or get involved with a cause? A story that has an emotional
component and gives you the facts along with important details plays a key role. Facts without
the affective component are boring. Emotion without the facts does not compel someone to
take action. Both parts need to be woven together. This guide will share some tips used by the
Disability Ministries Committee of the UMC (DMC) for gathering compelling stories.
Good stories are all around us. We just have to be ready to receive them as the Spirit leads. For
instance, the DMC often focuses on those who have received past grants and those who use our
resources in their ministries. We want to know who has been impacted by the grant or the
resource being used. How did it make a difference? Was an individual or a group of people able
to be in worship or church activities as a result of the grant project or resource? A longer list of
possible questions to ask is on the next page.
A challenge in getting a good story is to make a connection and build trust with the person you
are interviewing. Let them know that you personally support and are committed to the
organization that will use their story. Assure them that you will not publish anything until they
have seen the story and let you know they are comfortable with it. Do this even if they have
already agreed to have their story told, as is the case with grant recipients.
Make sure you plan adequate time for the interview. It may take a while to get down to the
information that helps you develop that compelling story. Some people respond better to
open-ended questions and the space to tell their story. Others will share more if you ask specific
questions. You will sense that as you go along.
A good place to start is with the facts. Have the person explain the events that took place and
the process they used in chronological order. Once you have the basic facts recorded you can
ask for more details.
After you have recorded the facts and have sufficient detail, dig down for the emotional
component. You might ask how leading the project and seeing the results made them feel.
What did those impacted have to say about the program? Has someone’s faith journey been
enriched?
Try to get some photos to illustrate the story. Be sure you have received permission to use any
pictures they provide or that you take. This should be done in writing using a form such as the
DMC Media Release Form.
If you are concerned about taking accurate notes, consider doing a virtual interview and saving
the recording or caption transcript. You can also set your word-processing software to Voice
typing for (select the Tools button) for Google docs, or use the Dictate microphone feature on
Word Home toolbar to capture the interview.
To get you started, here are some questions we use during DMC interviews. These can be
adapted to your context. As you listen to the person you are interviewing, additional questions
will pop up.
● How did you find out about the grant program?
● How did you find out about the accessibility audit or other resource you used?
● What did the grant funding help you do?
● How did the resource help you solve a problem or meet a need?
● Who was impacted by the work you did with the resource or grant funding?
● Tell me about one person for whom this made a difference. Are there others?
● How did the volunteering you did make you feel?
● What feedback did you get from those who were impacted by the changes you made?
● Why is this ministry or project important to you, the people of your church, or the
people who were served?
● With so many organizations out there needing support, why should people give to or
volunteer with your cause, program, or activity?
● What have you learned about the church/God/people of faith through this program?
● What might you do differently if you were doing it again?
● Is there something you are most proud of regarding the project/work you have done?
● How did you feel when……. ?
● Are there any questions you hoped I would ask that I haven’t asked?
Remember, emotions and details make the story come alive!
It’s often a bit intimidating to start doing interviews. Remember that most people are excited to
tell their story. What you need to do is set the stage and give them time and space to share that
story.
Now, take a deep breath, pray, and get started!
Written by Rev. Debbie Hills 8-27-2024