How to write a case for support for individual donors

What is a case for support?

A case for support is a central document that explains what your organisation does, why it matters and why people should give. It is your core message. Everyone in the team should be able to use it when they speak to supporters.

It is not a strategic plan, a financial statement or a list of activities. It is written for a person who may give, and it answers a simple question: why should I give to this work, now?

Who is the reader?

Be clear about your audience before you write. Individual donors, community supporters, diaspora donors, small businesses and foundations all read differently. A case for individual donors should be short, human and specific. Donors are not giving to you. They are giving to solve a problem, so your case should speak about the problem and the change a gift can make.

Many individual supporters also want to trust you. In Myanmar, trust often comes through people they know. Plan to share the case in person, by phone or message, not only by a document. Our guide on working with diaspora donors covers this in more detail.

What are the seven building blocks?

Use only facts you can show. Do not invent numbers, quotes or stories.

How do you write it step by step?

1. Gather raw material first. Talk to three to five programme staff for half an hour each. Ask what changes for people and what they would stop doing without funding. Collect the numbers you already hold, such as people served and the cost of each activity.
2. Listen to the people you serve. With consent, record what was different before and after. Their words carry more weight than yours.
3. Draft an outline with the seven blocks. Leave out anything the reader does not need.
4. Write the first draft in plain language. If a board member would have to ask what a sentence means, rewrite it. Keep sentences short and put one idea in each paragraph.
5. Lead with one person, then widen. Open a section with a single participant's experience, then give the bigger numbers. Protect identity where needed by changing or leaving out names and places.
6. Test with trusted readers and revise.
7. Name an owner. Review the case twice a year and refresh the facts and stories.

How do you make "what a gift does" specific?

Donors want to see where money goes. "Your gift supports our work" tells them nothing. Show a link between an amount and an action: "A gift of this size pays for school supplies for one child for a term." Check each example with your finance team so the figure is true, and use the same unit costs in your budget.

Avoid confusing wants with needs. A vague goal such as "to strengthen our mission" is a want. A clear item such as "to repair the water tank that serves 200 households" is a need. People give to needs.

Be honest about limits. If you cannot promise a result, say what you will do and how you will report. Our guide on fundraising ethics sets out principles for respectful asks.

How do you reuse the case?

One core case becomes many pieces. Take the blocks you need for each channel:

• Appeal letter or message: the need, one participant story and what a gift does.
• One-page flyer: the need, your approach, three outcomes and how to give.
• Talk or visit: why now, the vision and a specific opportunity.
• Social post: one story, one number and one link.
• Grant proposal: the need, approach and outcomes, adapted to the donor's form.
• Report back: the outcomes you promised, so donors see what their gift did.

The last point matters most. The outcomes you promise in the case are the outcomes you report to donors after they give. A donor who sees a result is more likely to give again.

What common mistakes should you avoid?

• Writing for yourselves. Use the reader's words, not project jargon.
• Too many messages. Pick one need and one ask.
• No call to action. Tell the reader the exact next step and how to take it.
• Using people as props. Show participants with dignity and consent. See our guide on storytelling without exploiting people.
• Never updating. Old numbers weaken trust.

How EMPO can help

EMPO is a reliable, Yangon-based training and consultancy provider and one of Myanmar's leading names in practical NGO training, with 1,200+ people trained and 15 partner organisations. We help organisations present their work clearly through organisational profile creation and proposal writing support. Our trainers work in English and Burmese, online and in person. Read about our organisational profile service or contact us.

Sources

• Practical planning — SCVO, undated
• Your Guide to Writing a Compelling Case for Support — CCS Fundraising, 2024