How to Document Your Nonprofit’s Impact

For nonprofit organizations that accept donations, documenting your impact is essential.

People donate when they understand that you are doing real, tangible work. That means well-defined projects, measurable outcomes, and stories from real people. It also means being specific. Stories have greater emotional impact when they include concrete results—like how many acres of contaminated land were restored, how many unhoused people became housed, or how a policy change you helped push through actually reduced trafficking.

Documenting your impact is also about transparency. Donors want to know what their money is being used for and see evidence that an organization’s theory of change is working. Clear, honest reporting builds trust and helps sustain donor relationships over time.

If you take away nothing else from this article, take away this: start collecting stories and data. Start small, use what you already have, and plan to build the practice over time.

Following is a simple strategy to get started.

Pair Stories With Data

Pairing good stories with hard data is one of the most effective ways to show impact. Stories about how people, animals, or the environment directly benefited from your work … combined with data that shows improvement over time, the number of people supported, or how long it takes to achieve results … can really capture attention. Emotional pull backed up by facts is powerful.

Storytelling (Qualitative Content)

Start by looking at the roles your team members already have and what they do day to day. Think about how they interact with the people, communities, environments, or spaces you serve. If there are existing touchpoints, consider having staff take photos, collect quotes, or record short videos as part of their work.

If those touchpoints don’t exist yet, look for opportunities to adjust workflows or responsibilities. The goal is to make documenting your work an ordinary, expected part of the job. Not to make it an extra task that only happens when someone has spare time.

Some organizations take this a step further and hire professional photographers, videographers, writers, or other creatives. There are advantages to both approaches. DIY content can feel more authentic and immediate, while professionally produced content can be more polished and emotionally compelling.

Data (Quantitative Content)

Collecting data can feel intimidating, but you can start small. Begin by identifying what you already track. Often, this will be “output” data. That means numbers that show activity, but not necessarily results. For example: “We helped 12,879 people experiencing homelessness last year.” That’s a big number, but it doesn’t explain how those people benefited. It tells potential donors that you’re active, but not what their donation actually accomplishes.

Whenever possible, aim to collect “outcome” data instead. That might look like: “Last year, we helped 89% of the 12,879 people we worked with obtain housing.” Or more simply: “Last year, we helped 11,462 people obtain housing.” This kind of data clearly shows the impact of your work and helps donors understand exactly how their support makes a difference.

Outcome data can be harder to track, but it’s worth the effort. You might start by having staff log basic information in a simple spreadsheet. Over time, you could invest in more robust tools such as Power BI. These types of tools can analyze trends and report on results more deeply.

Pro-tip: do think about what data you can collect that will show trends over time. If you’re able to show a track record of improving results over time, that’s even more powerful.

What To Do With This Content

Once you’ve established a regular practice of collecting stories and data, you can start thinking about how to use it. Many nonprofits create an annual impact report. Unlike a traditional annual report, an impact report focuses on storytelling and emotional connection. Its goal is to help donors understand the value of their contribution, how funds were used, and why the work matters.

This content can also be broken down into smaller pieces for use on your website, in email campaigns, and across social media. When impact documentation becomes part of your regular workflow, it supports both fundraising and communications.

Just Start

Start with what you have. Outcome data is ideal, but output data is better than no data at all. The most important thing is to begin—and then keep improving over time.