First, let's talk about love.
Love. It's something other writing and marketing companies don't talk about, but as you might have noticed, we are different. Love is so important to us and the work that we do, that we need to talk about it.
A little bit of love can change a life for the better. It can give hope. It can lift a community. It can save a life. It is the power of love that makes non-profits work. Without love, nobody would give up their time or money to help others. Love is the magic potion at the center of every non-profit organization, and you have just found writers who write with love.
We write with love, and we write with passion and empathy, and that is exactly what you need to show you care. If your organization doesn't look like it cares, why would anybody else care? We help you to leverage the art of storytelling to increase fundraising and boost awareness. Let us help you to write your story, with love.
From stone tablets to tablet computers, for thousands of years, stories have served as powerful tools to teach the importance of love, faith, hope, courage, and giving. Skillfully crafted stories find their way to the human heart and provoke emotional reactions in a way that few other types of writing can. They are so embedded in our collective consciousness that we have become hardwired to respond to them.
That is why well-told stories are so effective to raise funds and boost awareness for non-profit organizations. And this is where Magic Sparkle comes in. We craft human-interest stories that give context to the importance of a non-profit’s mission. They motivate readers to act at an emotional level. A dash of facts and figures is always important, but it is our stories about real people that make a connection to encourage readers to donate. The stories can be adapted for use across multiple channels and can be aimed at all stakeholders.
Take a look at our eight-point guide to how we create stories for non-profit organizations that move people to give more:
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Before putting pen to paper, we gain a thorough understanding of the goals of our clients.
First, we ascertain exactly who we are writing for, whether it is donors, fundraisers or other stakeholders, to create the stories that will best resonate with them. We use a collaborative approach to ensure our clients are completely happy every step of the way.
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We can help you to strategize your marketing and to select the most effective stories.
We can help you to collect stories and to choose the best ones as part of a comprehensive marketing strategy. We can also advise you, if you need to put a system in place to achieve this, and we can recommend the best way to present each story.
3
We write stories with heart that prompt people to give.
We write content that triggers an emotional response. We achieve this through very specific real-life stories that tug at the human heart (human-interest stories). Our work with novelists gives us a solid background in bringing characters and their situations to life through the written word.
4
We write clearly and succinctly to keep your readers engaged.
We use sharp, smart writing to get to the story quickly and captivate your readers. We try to avoid the overuse of data. Facts and figures are important, but through real-life experiences, we show your readers the way they can change lives give for the better.
5
We craft complete stories for maximum impact.
We write human stories with a clear beginning, a middle and an end. This is essential to show the problem, the need, and the solution donors can provide.
6
We write with an authentic voice to connect with your readers.
These days, people are bombarded with hard-sell techniques that rarely work. We avoid that by staying away from generic, salesy language and by presenting a genuine and authentic voice. If we don’t show that you care, why should anybody else care?
7
We make a compelling call to action.
A powerful story motivates your audience to give, and at the end each story there should be a call to action that prompts the reader to donate or request more information. We ensure the call to action is as powerful as possible and relevant to the story.
8
We write content that works across all platforms.
We can adapt our stories to work across all platforms. Our stories can be used for print and online news media, videos, websites, blogs, social media, emails, newsletters, brochures, welcome packages, impact reports and other communications. They can be used for grant applications and outreach to existing donors, potential donors, members, and other stakeholders.
Non-Profit & Healthcare Case Studies
THE ATLANTA DOG JOG
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The organization
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The challenge
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The solution
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VetHeart of Georgia is a non-profit, dedicated to the well-being and safety of dogs. Canine Companions is the largest provider of assistance dogs. The organizations turned to Cheri and Trevor when they needed additional exposure to publicize their Atlanta Dog Jog event.
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Cheri and Trevor's stories achieved record publicity for the event. Cheri secured a TV slot on Good Day Atlanta, making stars out of therapy dogs, and Trevor generated printed newspaper coverage, as well as online placements. They also handled social media and recruited volunteers.
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The event was so successful that the Dog Jog Manager stated: "Trevor succeeded in generating record levels of online and offline publicity, including social media posts, event listings, online news stories, and a front-page newspaper story during the week leading to the event."
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One of our stories:
As May 2nd, the day of the Atlanta Dog Jog, approaches, Kathy Armistead (pictured above) is determined to do everything she can to ensure its success—from handing out fliers in order to advise local people of the event's new location at Brook Run Park in Dunwoody, to identifying and contacting potential vendors and sponsors.
After seeing an appeal for volunteers, Armistead has become one of many Dog Jog advocates who have given up their spare time to help promote and organize the event, which includes a one-mile fun run or walk, and a 5K race with dogs.
The Dunwoody mother of two grown children is the owner of three Labradors (Chester, Buddy and Hershel Walker) and helps to manage her parents' dog sitting and dog vacation business. She is motivated by her life-long affinity for dogs, and the good causes that the Dog Jog supports.
Click here to read the whole story. This story was published on the Patch website and helped secure other media stories, including the front page of the Dunwoody Reporter (above the fold).
THE SPECIAL OLYMPICS
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The organization
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The challenge
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The solution
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The Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta (MJCCA) supports the mission of the Georgia Special Olympics, which provides sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with special needs. The program helps participants to develop physical fitness, courage, and teamwork skills, as well as new friendships.
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The MJCCA fielded its first team to enter the Georgia Special Olympics, held twice a year in Atlanta. At the time, Cheri served as the center's PR and Communications Manager. She saw the opportunity to tell the story of some of the young players to bring publicity to the community center and its Special Needs department.
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Cheri's story helped to secure print media and prime time TV exposure on behalf of the Special Olympics team (see video below). In addition, Cheri researched and wrote nominations for the annual nationwide Jewish Community Center Awards, resulting in the Award of Excellence for the Special Needs department.
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