Communicating your impact is a critical part of the social value process. You’ve worked hard to establish an effective strategy, decided on the core KPIs you want to track, and invested in tools to help visualise your progress. And now it’s time to share these findings externally.
But you don’t want to just tell customers, investors, or staff that you’re meeting targets and progressing towards your goals. You want to show them exactly where you’re at on your social value journey.
By levelling up your social value communication, you can invite people onto this journey with you. You can exercise full transparency, building an authentic, well-rounded narrative of how you’re achieving your goals. And, in the process, leave less room for doubt, confusion, or greenwashing claims. So without further ado, here are three easy ways to shift to a “show, don’t tell” mindset when it comes to your social value.
Publish data regularly
Annual reports and social value statements are great. They’re a brilliant opportunity to reflect on the past year’s hard work and progress. And to look forward to what you hope to achieve in the future. But they shouldn’t be the only time you’re sharing impactful data or communicating your priorities.
If you have a piece of impressive data – such as rehoming 78 families in the past month – share it around your social channels straight away. Don’t wait for the next annual report. Celebrate your victories in the moment and invite your investors, customers, and followers to bask in your glory, too.
You could even have a public-facing dashboard as part of your website. Somewhere that’s updated in real-time to show the latest social value data and how you’re progressing towards your goals.
By publishing data little and often, you show people you’re continually pushing forward. That you’re willing to bring them along every step of the way. They won’t have to wonder what you’re currently doing or need to go hunting for evidence you’re keeping to your word. All the information they need is right at their fingertips.
Share beneficiary stories
Hosting five fully booked seminars to support local residents through the cost-of-living crisis is a great statistic. But it doesn’t have much of a personal, emotional impact. Instead, share the story of interventions in a more relatable way by leaning on your beneficiaries.
Use surveys to capture real-life stories that show not only what you’ve done but how you’ve made other people feel. Hear directly from the people you’ve helped about how you’ve been able to change their lives for the better.
Perhaps one of those seminars you hosted provided a local resident with peace of mind about their future. Maybe they even managed to shave 25% off their energy bills and no longer have to worry about putting food on the table for their kids.
These are the sort of impactful, affecting stories that take your social value communication to the next level. They help your reader to feel something. And build out the bigger picture of what your efforts mean in the real world.
Offer some reflection
We mentioned earlier about publishing your social value data regularly. But equally, you want to be publishing all valuable data – whether it shows progress or not.
Openly share any mistakes made and lessons learnt. Share data surrounding all outcomes – whether they were positive, negative, intended, or unintended. Be open when an initiative doesn’t go to plan or underperforms.
It’s not always fun to admit that progress towards a certain KPI is slower than you’d like. But it’s still an important part of your social value journey. Your organisation isn’t perfect. Not a single one is. And acknowledging your shortcomings will go a long way when building trust and transparency.
Having a strong social impact is step one. Communicating that impact is a critical step two. But as conversations around social value and sustainability get louder, third parties will expect more from your reporting and communication. Show, don’t tell is a powerful mindset to switch into when elevating your approach.
Impact makes capturing, evaluating, and reporting your social value simple. With decentralised data capture, innovative survey functionality, and real-time reporting, we make communicating your impact easier than ever. To find out more, schedule a demo, or get in touch with the team on 0161 532 4752.