Blog & Videos2021-12-09T15:04:00+00:00

How to Turn Narrative Survey Responses into Data You Can Use

I almost always recommend including open-ended questions at the end of surveys. This allows you to get some free-form, narrative responses from your clients. These narrative responses can be rich and detailed, and can give you valuable, unexpected information. But, what do you DO with them?!?

By |March 9th, 2024|Categories: Blog - Powerful Data Analysis|Comments Off on How to Turn Narrative Survey Responses into Data You Can Use

Why Benchmarking Doesn’t Work in the Social Sector

Benchmarking in the social sector is tricky because – while more productivity (i.e., serving more people) and more impact (i.e., more goodness in the world) seem like they would always be desirable – that’s not always the case! More is not necessarily better, and efficiency is often not the goal.

By |February 26th, 2024|Categories: Blog - Powerful Data Analysis|Comments Off on Why Benchmarking Doesn’t Work in the Social Sector

3 Tips for Getting AUTHENTIC Survey Responses

Nonprofit clients are often grateful, and they probably don't want to insult you. How do you not just get a lot of "strongly agree" answers that don't help you improve programming? Read more about three tips to help ensure they tell you the good, the bad, and the ugly!

By |February 11th, 2024|Categories: Blog - Smart Surveys|Comments Off on 3 Tips for Getting AUTHENTIC Survey Responses

The Trick to Defining Success in the Social Sector

In 20+ years of working with social sector partners, I’ve never met a single person who does not really, really want there to be a single number – like “profit” – that nonprofits can use as a simple, clear indicator of success.

By |January 22nd, 2024|Categories: Blog - Powerful Data Analysis, Blog - Programming that Works|Comments Off on The Trick to Defining Success in the Social Sector

Graphs that Help You Ask Important Questions

This weekend, I was thinking about how data can be used for good, and how data can be used for evil. So today, I thought I'd talk about how you can use graphs to understand your data in ways that build trust and understanding (good) or they can obscure the truth and promote stereotypes (evil).

By |December 4th, 2023|Categories: Blog - Powerful Data Analysis|Comments Off on Graphs that Help You Ask Important Questions

A Strategy for Co-Building Knowledge

What if... we established uncomplicated, sector-specific structures, defined metrics, and capacity for tracking, analyzing, and using impact data?

Insights Lead to Action

I was meeting with a funder last week, and they were asking me to confirm they were making good data-driven insights. They were not feeling clear about exactly what an insight is. These are super smart and insightful people, so they can't be the only one wondering this. For all you co-wonderers - this blog's for you!

By |November 7th, 2023|Categories: Blog - Powerful Data Analysis|Comments Off on Insights Lead to Action

18 Ways to Say “Impact”

A topic that came up recently in the ImpactStory Academy is all the different words for IMPACT. I started a quick list and came up with 18 different words - I know, right!

Nonprofits CANNOT Measure Long-term Impact

I'm being provocative - and - once someone leaves services you can no longer control what happens. The world is a complex and chaotic place. Your clients use what you gave them immediately, later, or (sadly) never. You have literally no control.

By |September 12th, 2023|Categories: Blog - Extras, Blog - Powerful Data Analysis, Blog - Programming that Works, Blog - Solid Framework|Comments Off on Nonprofits CANNOT Measure Long-term Impact

3 Data Culture Must-Have’s

I worked with an organization which wanted to be dedicated to collecting and using data. But, data was only seen as a fundraising tool, so they didn't create a positive data culture.

3 Keys to Successful Surveys

There are approximately a zillion more simple things you can do to boost response rates, improve the quality of your data, and ensure you are collecting data you can turn into action. Here are the three most important!

By |July 29th, 2023|Categories: Blog - Smart Surveys|Comments Off on 3 Keys to Successful Surveys

Why Nonprofits Should NOT do Program Evaluation

The scientific method just doesn't fit the budget, the mission, or the needs of nonprofits in the complex, day-to-day work of providing critical services. What the nonprofits I worked with needed was actionable data

Nonprofits & Strategic Data Collection

I had this wonderful opportunity to speak with Jay Smack on The Good Eye Podcast about the straightforward strategy I've developed that ensures nonprofits have data that helps them do work, and which communicates return on investment for funders - all this while being no more difficult to manage than a budget.

2 Reports You Should Read

When I was making a presentation last week, one of the nonprofit leaders in the group said "I'm realizing I'm not the only one not getting it right. It’s clearly a problem that smaller nonprofits have with measuring and talking about impact. Just hearing this is validating.”

4 Challenges for Nonprofit Storytelling and How to Overcome Them

The most effective corporate storytelling combines data, narrative, and visuals that draw people in by appealing to their intellectual curiosity and making them relate and care. But how do nonprofits do this?

By |December 5th, 2021|Categories: Blog - Extras, Blog - Masterful Data Viz, Blog - Masterful impact Stories|Comments Off on 4 Challenges for Nonprofit Storytelling and How to Overcome Them

The Strategy You Need

A Strategic Impact Map™ is a framework for telling your most powerful impact story. It’s a one-page document that tells an efficient story of, not only why and how your organization does good, but also how you are measuring it!

By |November 21st, 2021|Categories: Blog - Solid Framework|Comments Off on The Strategy You Need

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