A place to be safe after school.
A place to make friends.
A place to belong.
The staff, volunteers, and members who enter through your doors every day know exactly the impact you make on their lives, but it may not always feel easy to put into words. Because those outside your organization may not understand everything you provide to the community, you can help open the Blue Door a little wider.
Telling the unique story of your Clubs online can make the value of your work come to life to those who could support and amplify your efforts. Here are four key ways you can tell your impact story on your website and make a compelling case for supporting your mission.
Personal Is Universal
Psychologist Carl Rogers said, “what is most personal is most universal.” That apparent paradox proves true when it comes to writing stories that persuade.
When telling your Club story, a common impulse might be to stay more broad and not risk alienating readers with personal details. But really, the opposite is true: personal stories can have universal appeal.
Protecting member privacy is paramount, of course. But you can find opportunities to share specifics without compromising safety. Here are some ideas:
- Share a student success story told by a staff member
- Show the impact on particular neighborhoods
- Apply program skills to life skills and job readiness
- Use quotes from members and staff
The people, programs, and moments that make your Club uniquely yours make a compelling case, but the tangible, measurable information can help, too.
Say It With Stats
Complicated charts and graphs can sometimes be cold and unfriendly, but incorporating simple numbers and facts can support your case quickly and cut to the ROI that your investors are looking for.
Think you don’t have much to measure? Get creative—material is everywhere:
- Improvements in grades, attendance, or behavior
- The tangible value of different $ amount donations
- Number of meals served during the school year
- Hours of mentor time, sports, technology training
Showing practical numbers like these will help people realize what a difference their gift can make—no matter the size.
Short Is Sweet
Short chunks of information like those above keep information easy to digest and make it memorable. Attention spans are limited online, even when people care about the subject, so find ways to break up your content into scannable, readable sections.
- Break paragraphs into bullets when you can
- List information in easy steps
- Use visuals (images, captions, icons, quote blocks) to create interest
- Read it out loud and watch for sentences that make you pause and repeat yourself
Even with shorter content, you can keep visitors reading when you include opportunities to learn more or take action.
Keep Them Engaged
Once people are already interacting with your website, you've got their attention and are likely building a connection. You can make that connection stronger by recognizing what people might be looking for and giving them easy ways to find it.
- Include a call to action at the bottom of each page that keeps people reading
- Link to relevant blog posts to share more of your story
- Provide an opportunity to get involved that's relevant to the audience: join, volunteer, or donate
Building internal links into your site can also help boost SEO, since basically Google likes to see pages interacting with each other. That can help more people find you and connect to your unique story, one that's backed with evidence, easy to read, and ready for engagement.
A great website makes it easy to tell your impact story. The Digital Blue Door can help.
The Digital Blue Door is a website platform built just for Boys & Girls Clubs, with customizable content and features that help you communicate with members, partner with donors and sponsors, and reach the community at large—all while being easy to interact with and easy to maintain.