Nonprofit Annual Report Writing Tips For Leaders

Here are some tips for leaders responsible for writing an effective annual report for their nonprofit organization.

Consider making these objectives for your report:

To demonstrate accomplishments (not activities) (results and how you did it).
To recognize important people (volunteers, donors, major funders, partners).
To provide an account of your organization's work for the past year.
To share your mission with a wide audience.
To generate new donations, retain donors and grow partnerships.

Consider these audience sectors when writing your report:

Donors
Volunteers
Community leaders
Future board members
Supporters (in-kind)
Elected officials
Potential partners, grant funding entities

Allow three to four months to prepare your report:

Create an outline
Gather and organize content
Engage your management team
Design
Review/Proof
Print
Prepare any videos
Distribute

Consider packaging your report with a theme, such as one of these:

Transformation
Day in the life
Milestones
Critical issues
Progress toward the future
New undertakings
Milestone anniversary

Present your financials with:

Pie charts and bar charts (use five or less elements in your pie charts)
Numbers and percentages
Explanations about where your revenue comes from and how the money is spent

Include at least these sections and elements in your report:

Executive Director letter
Accomplishments/Achievements
Financials
Donor list
Board of Directors list
Call to action
Lots of photos
Stories (profiles) to highlight your successes

And before you start preparing your next report, use this checklist:

Who will help prepare the report?
Do we need to engage an external freelancer (writing and/or design)?
Who will write the Executive Director letter?
Are we gathering photos all year long so we have enough come time to prepare our report?
Is our donor list accurate and up-to-date?
What will be our annual report's theme?
Will we distribute in print and/or online/digitally?
What are our best stories to tell?
What time of year will we release our report?
What are our three major accomplishments/achievements for the past year?
Who will double and triple check our reported financials and donor list for accuracy?
Where will we tell our key messages in different ways (Executive Director letter, photo captions, etc.)?
What calls to action will we include?

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