Create a case study to show your impact

As an infrastructure organisation you many find it challenging  to show your impact. One of the ways in which this can be done effectively is to create case studies as they’re a great way to communicate the work you do and the difference you make.

One way to create a case study is by interviewing frontline organisations that you have worked with to make a difference. Here are some useful simple tips:

Identify the organisation and plan your questions

• Check they are happy to talk publicly about your work with them
• Is there anything confidential they won’t be able to share? 
• If you have a key contact, check they are willing to make some time to talk to you
• You can gather information over email, but often you’ll get better results by talking in person or over the phone, where you can ask follow-up questions and go into further detail
• Send questions in advance so your interviewee has time to prepare.

Interview your contact

• Ask for as much detail as possible about how your work makes a difference
• Look at the impact on the organisation internally and on how it allowed them to help their beneficiaries
• Focus on what changed for the organisation
• Ask for numbers and statistics 
• How much funding did the organisation gain? 
• Ask for stories: how did their work help people? What role did you play in supporting that?

Think about multi-media

• Ask for relevant images to the story
• If you have the right equipment and skills, consider filming or recording part of the interview for a short video or podcast.

Edit the information you have

• Don’t be afraid to cut down the content to focus on the most relevant information
• Start with the most interesting aspects and tell the story of the organisation and your work together
• Think about pulling out the key figures/statistics to highlight
• Use direct quotes to add interest.

Share the information

• Post the case study on your website and share it on social media outlets
• Think about using extracts for annual reports or funding applications.

The Value of Infrastructure Programme has created a case study tool to capture your impact on frontline organisations, external agencies and the wider sector. You can access the tools here or email vip@ncvo-vol.org.uk to get more information.

Davinder Kaur