10 Best Practices to Revamp Your Grant Reporting

Have you ever wondered how to transform your grant reports from dull documents into powerful narratives that captivate funders? In this article, we will explore the essential elements that not only show funders the impact of their money, but make them feel invested in your organization's journey—making your grant report unforgettable.

We will review 10 best practices to help you revamp your grant reporting using helpful advice from Jeff Rum, Co-Founder of Yearly and Founder and CEO of Ignite, who recently discussed how to develop impactful digital reports in his Instrumentl webinar. Let’s get started!

Grant reports aren’t just an administrative requirement—they’re a way to cultivate relationships with funders and help influence future funding decisions!

When he spoke with us about the importance of grant reports, Jeff Rum shared a few reasons why effective reports are so essential:

• They help funders feel in control of how their contributions are being spent.
• They demonstrate to funders that their investment is well worth it.
• They give funders solid evidence of the impact of their contributions.
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The most effective grant reports prioritize transparency and establish trust with your organization’s stakeholders, including funders, volunteers, community partners, and more. A clear and comprehensive grant report should instill confidence in your nonprofit’s ability to manage funds and achieve project objectives.

While some funders—particularly government funders—might have pretty strict reporting guidelines, corporate and foundation grantmakers sometimes allow flexibility in how your reports can be structured and presented.

In the following steps, we are going to share insights from Jeff Rum on how to create digital grant reports that will stand out to your funders through qualitative data, visuals, and storytelling.

The first and most important step when it comes to developing impactful grant reports is to understand your specific funder’s expectations.
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Every funder will have different requirements for grant reports and it’s critical that you follow these guidelines precisely.

Funders will typically base their grant reporting requirements off of the objectives and outcomes a grantee has outlined upon submission of a grant proposal. These requirements may be easily available on the grantmaker’s website or they may have been provided to you when you were awarded funding.

Whether the funder’s reporting requirements are strict or more flexible, the most important thing is that these expectations are clarified before you begin the grant reporting process. That way, you can be sure you are highlighting exactly what they are looking for and don’t damage your relationship or jeopardize future funding.

Funders provide grant monies with the expectation that the funds will be used effectively and responsibility to drive change. This means your grant report will serve as the primary mechanism of accountability—which requires a clear understanding of their expectations from the start.

Have you ever read something that was so disorganized that it made it difficult to pay attention? You definitely don’t want your grant funders to feel this way when reading your report.

Your grant reports should be clear and easy to follow. The easier your report is to comprehend, the more effective your messaging will be.

However, this doesn’t mean that your report has to be outlined in a standard PDF or Word document. Jeff Rum shared with us that he’s beginning to see more funders be open to accepting alternative reporting formats:
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“[A grant report] is usually created in Word. It's a document. It has all the facts. It has some formatting in it…And some require a format like this. So, if this is what's required, that's what you need to do.

But what I've seen, which is really exciting, is that a lot of funders are open to getting reports in other ways. It could be a video or it could be a web-based report or an interactive component of your website…something that you can interact with more than just a PDF.”

In fact, digital reports that combine the standard text with images, videos, and interactive components are often more easy to read and comprehend.

You can enhance the funder’s experience through interactive elements while still including some of the most commonly required reporting sections:

• Grant summary
• Milestones
• Financial statements
• Project activities
• Results and impact
• Lessons learned
• Future plans and sustainability

These sections can be redesigned into digital reports. Jeff shared with us this example below that illustrates how you can combine images and graphics with clearly structured links to each section of your digital report:

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Whatever format you choose, clarity and readability should be a top priority.

Another strategy for creating grant reports that really stand out is leveraging qualitative data to showcase impact.

Focus on how your organization's work transforms lives through storytelling techniques like testimonials and personal narratives to bring the impact to life for funders. With digital grant reports, you can also use things like:

• Photos
• Graphics
• Videos

Here’s what Jeff Rum had to say:
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“Sometimes it's one powerful story that can really capture the audience and really showcase what you do without having so many different stories on the page.”

While quantitative data is powerful, qualitative data can help bring those numbers to life in the eyes of the funder. Photos, videos, and testimonials can help connect funders to the tangible impact that your organization is making with their help.

Here’s an example that Jeff shared with us of an impact narrative that highlights the human story behind the numbers:

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It should be clear by now that what funders really care about is how their support is making a difference.

If you aren’t already, a great way to make your reports even more compelling is to tie your local successes to global challenges.

To do this, you can reference statistics and data in your report that illustrate how your local efforts contribute to broader goals. For example you could include data and an explanation on how opening a food bank in your city connects to reducing national food insecurity levels.
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By tying your local successes to global challenges, you will show funders the wider significance of their investment.

Not only do you want to tell the stories of those you are helping, but visualizing your data can enhance the clarity and impact of your grant reports.
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In digital grant reports, you can leverage infographics and videos to make your data more engaging, effective, and easier to understand. This is a great way to engage your funders in ways a simple Microsoft Word or pdf document cannot do.

And since digital reports aren’t static, you can update your data (and visuals) easily as your work progresses throughout the life of the grant.

Here’s an example Jeff shared with us about how to show off the impact of your work through visual storytelling:

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And here’s an example of how you can pair great imagery and authentic photos with solid quantitative data to illustrate what’ve you’ve accomplished over time.

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You can also leverage these data visualizations on your social channels to communicate your impact to an even larger audience.

Your grant reporting should definitely show your successes, but it is also important to share information about what may not have worked as anticipated.

Grantmakers understand that projects don’t always work out exactly as planned, so being honest in grant reporting, including discussing challenges and setbacks, will ultimately build trust with funders.

You may feel reluctant to report any challenges or failures, but ignoring these setbacks in grant reporting will create a distorted impression of your proposed initiative.

Here’s some great advice from Mary Gladstone-Highland from Spark Group Consulting:
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“If you need to report on unmet objectives or targets make sure to be honest. Making up data or sugar-coating problems isn't advisable. Your grantors will see through those tactics. Instead, highlight how you plan to address the challenges and remain within your original vision for the project.”

Admitting challenges and failure doesn’t show weakness; it illustrates your transparency and establishes trust with the funder. You should honestly report challenges and failures, identify the root causes, and explain the steps and strategies you are taking to address them.

Another way to take your grant reporting to the next level is by showcasing the value and impact of volunteer efforts.
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Highlighting your volunteer contributions shows funders how engaged your community is around your project or organization as a whole.

One way to do this is by featuring pull-out quotes or testimonials from volunteers in your report. Volunteers work with you because they share your passion for helping the community—and you can share their passion with the funder.

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If you are using a digital grant report, you can also include any volunteer and partner contributions and add a link to their website to further showcase what they do for your project. For example, if you have a partnership with another foundation, linking to their website will further build your credibility.

Whether you’re creating a digital or traditional grant report, you will want to tailor it to resonate with that specific funder. This means including language, focus areas, and outcomes that align with their interests.

Here’s some great advice from Jeannette Archer-Simons, Development Director and grant consultant:
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“If it is an individual, make sure you know why they give.”

Many funderse give to nonprofits because they have a personal connection to the mission and vision. You want to make sure that your report recognizes and highlights these connections and emphasizes how the funder’s contribution is making a real difference.

The most effective grant reports use predictive analysis to demonstrate to funders their project's future potential and sustainability.

Predictive analysis means using data from the past to predict future trends. That way, you can show the funder that with their help your organization will have the financial and operational capacity to successfully provide services and achieve its mission well into the future.

If you’re new to predictive analysis, here’s a helpful resource from the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy.

Even if digital design isn’t your thing, there are lots of great resources out there that can help you create eye-catching and compelling digital grant reports with ease, including:

• Story Raise
• Infogram
• Canva
• Piktochart

For a tool that’s designed specifically for nonprofits, check out Yearly created by Jeff Rum. Yearly is designed to help nonprofits impress their stakeholders and inspire them to increase their support through digital storytelling. With just a few clicks of a button, you’ll be able to develop captivating reports that stand out to funders and communicate your impact in powerful ways.

With these 10 best practices under your belt, you should be ready to begin creating your own grant report.

For help getting started, make sure to check out our grant report template. In it, we share best practices, common pitfalls to avoid, and helpful tips to make sure your report really shines!