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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →One well-chosen story will usually get a supporter’s attention faster than a page of numbers, and it can make a large problem feel solvable. That is the core advice in a 2021 Best Friends Network article by Liz Finch, and it is the working approach behind this guide. Nobody has measured a revenue lift from it, so treat “bottom line” as a hope for better engagement rather than a guaranteed return. What follows is a practical method for shelters, rescues and animal charities.
What the advice rests on
The guidance comes from practitioners. Finch’s article, published by Best Friends Animal Society on October 15, 2021, quotes Trish Tolbert, a senior development strategist. It reports no measured sales lift and no ROI figure. It offers observations and illustrative cases, not a controlled study. Use it as a craft guide and judge the results by your own response rates.
Tolbert’s reasoning: “First you must get someone’s attention, and it’s much harder to engage people with numbers as opposed to telling one story that represents both the problem and the solution.”
A six-step method for building a fundraising story
1. Start with one identifiable subject
Pick a single animal, person or situation. Show what makes this one distinctive so readers have a reason to empathize. A named dog with a specific history gives people something a general statement about “homeless pets” cannot.
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2. Tie the story to the point you want to make
The article’s example is a dog with serious orthopedic injuries. His story works because it illustrates how a wheelchair can help. Ask what larger issue the story is evidence of. If you cannot state it in a sentence, the story is not ready.
3. Cut what does not serve that point
Finch advises turning a tale into “a succinct, effective piece.” Remove side plots, extra names and procedural detail until the story holds attention. The edited version can go into direct mail, social media, annual reports or in-person conversation.
4. Match the story to the audience and the ask
Decide who you are talking to and what you want them to do, then choose the story to fit:
| If you are asking for… | Tell a story about… |
|---|---|
| Foster homes | A foster home: what the animal needed, what the fostering experience was like |
| Donations | The impact of a gift: what a specific amount made possible for specific animals |
| Awareness of a value | A case that shows the value at work, such as a lost cat reunited with its family thanks to a microchip |
The article’s donation illustration is a $5,000 gift that enabled spay/neuter for 75 community cats. That is an example from the 2021 piece, not a current cost benchmark. Use your own real costs.
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5. Let the story show your values
Stories can state what you stand for without a mission statement. The microchip reunion demonstrates why identification matters. Tolbert also used a story from Paula Underwood’s Who Speaks for Wolf to orient audiences to The Nature Conservancy’s conservation values. Your own version should come from your work, not a borrowed tale.
6. Give the reader a role
End by answering “what can we do about it.” Frame the request as a chance to make a difference, so the audience can picture itself as part of the solution. Tolbert says, “Being part of the solution drives involvement and it drives giving.” That is her practitioner view, not a measured finding.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where statistics fit
Do not drop the numbers. Tolbert’s advice is to “hone in on an engaging story that represents what you’re trying to work on, then have a few good stats in your hip pocket to show the scope and scale.” The story opens the door and the figures show how big the need is.
The Best Friends article cites 347,000 animals unnecessarily dying because they cannot find homes. That figure is from the 2021 article, and its underlying date and method are not given in the passage. If you use any statistic like it, trace it to the original source and use the current version. The article does not claim that leading with a story is right for every message, so test it against your own audience.
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A quick checklist before you send
- Does the story center on one specific animal, person or situation?
- Can you say in one sentence what larger issue it represents?
- Is every detail there for a reason?
- Does it fit the audience and the ask, whether foster, donate or adopt?
- Does it show a value rather than just assert it?
- Is the supporter’s role clear and specific?
- Are the supporting statistics current, attributed and short?
Judging whether it works
Because no external ROI evidence exists, build your own. Send a story-led appeal and a statistics-led appeal to comparable segments of your list, then compare response and gift size. Track foster sign-ups the same way. Your own results will tell you more than any general claim about storytelling.
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