An Annual Report – Telling Your Story

Effective annual reports seek a balance between telling successes and honoring supporters. A good annual report should not frontload the accomplishments of the school to start, and then list the donors in the back. In providing the list of donor names, be sure not to let it become unwieldy. As long as the font is clear and readable, go ahead and use a small size for donor lists.  Consider including profiles of certain donors and disperse photographs throughout the list. Personal profiles will help tell the story of your achievements and us testimonial quotes and disperse them throughout your report. Depending on how many donors you have and the range of gifts, you could consider identifying a minimum donation level for being liste in the annual report.

Most non profits have their annual reports accessible on their websites. You should place your logo, mission, goals and objectives, and physical address in the beginning of the report. The middle section of the report provides a framework of your achievements and the services you provided. Include relevant data in the report; such as the board met x number of times, there were x number of fundraiser events and we raised x dollars. Services were provided to over x number of people. If your institution collaborates with outside community partners list them too. If you were awarded grants list those as well as, any private sector organizations that contributed.

Financial information can put off the average reader as can statistics about your accomplishments. It is important to humanize your achievements. Illustrate in real terms how your successes have influenced lives for the better. Incorporate the statistics and enliven them with profiles and information about real people and families. In this way your annual report will make a greater impact.

The financial piece of your annual report should explain where revenues come from and how they are spent. In addition to the information provided in traditional financial statements, it is smart to include pie charts, bar graphs, or other visuals that help readers see the big picture and understand financial trends. A short narrative description is also essential. Using straight talk, explain the meaning behind all those numbers. You want to make sure you share the total amount of money that was made for the year. Compare it to what was made in the previous year. Enumerate the areas where the money was spent. Show the actual budget. Discuss the proposed budget for the upcoming year and how you anticipate spending the money for the upcoming year to meet your goals and objectives. This section is vital and should be accurate and easy to understand. Annual reports are read by possible funders and current contributors, so you want the Finances to be transparent.