What can New Amsterdam teach us about fundraising? (quite a lot, actually)

You know you’ve worked in fundraising too long when you’re watching New Amsterdam and thinking, "Hmmm. This would make a great blog post." Okay, so it might not be up there with The Resident (amazing, and not just because it features Logan from Gilmore Girls) but nonetheless, I was hooked.

It was Season 2, Episode 17 that really got me thinking, though. Not so much about crowdfunding and galas (the two mechanisms explored in this episode) but about stories, and the way we use them to connect with donors and make "the ask".

Why storytelling is important for charities

Those of you who know me will know that I’m a big believer in the power of storytelling. Why? Because stories help people make sense of complex information, create connections between people and ideas, and build a sense of intimacy and shared experience. They cut through noise, spark emotion, and stay with people long after facts and figures fade (it's not just me saying this — the Harvard Business Review does too).

It's no wonder stories are such an important part of a fundraisers' toolkit. But despite their power, the truth is that charities and non-profits don’t exactly have the best track record when it comes to storytelling. When targets are high and the pressure is on, it can be easy to lose sight of the person behind the story — to assign a victim, lean into stereotypes, and present someone’s experience the way we think it should be told (it happens — check out this essay by Nel Taylor).

You might be raising funds for a good cause, but the end doesn’t always justify the means. Behind every campaign, every advert, and every narrative, there is a real, lived experience. And as fundraisers, we all have a responsibility to respect and protect that.

After all, storytelling is a privilege, not a right. And this particular episode of New Amsterdam is the perfect example of why.

A little context...

If you haven’t tuned in to New Amsterdam yet, you’ll find the episode I’m talking about right before the Season 2 finale. It opens with a heartwarming story of a young girl, Allie, who is in desperate need of a new heart valve her insurance will not cover. Fortunately, her story is picked up by The Ellen Show, and thanks to the power of crowdfunding, the eye-watering six-figure sum is raised in a matter of hours.

There are two things that happen after this:

1. Every patient with limited (or no) health insurance wants to get their smartphone out and create their own crowdfunding video.

2. The hospital's board wants every patient with little or no health insurance to get their smartphone out and create their own crowdfunding video.

But at what cost?

It's a question that haunts the son of ICU patient Zhen Huang as he holds the camera firmly to his eye, struggling to keep himself together as he documents the final days of his father’s life. It's a desperate move and a last-ditch attempt to raise the funds that could save him:

“Dad, can you just look at the camera and say, I need your help. Anything you can give. Or just smile. That little girl smiled — maybe if you just smiled? Smile, Dad. Smile… Please. It’s fine if you can’t talk. If they see how sick he is, it works better, right? The sadder it is, the better.”

Right?

A shift from storytelling to "story sharing"

Now, New Amsterdam is hardly a show for subtlety. And it just so happens that alongside the crowdfunding debate, final preparations for the hospital's fundraising "Fight Cancer" Gala are underway — with a group of nervous-looking teenagers getting ready to tell the room how they beat this cruel disease.

There’s just one problem.

Not everyone has "won".

"That party is for people who beat cancer. I lost," explains one of the young advocates, tearfully. There's an interesting conflict here, because whilst the words "beat" and "fight" drum up a sense of action, determination and urgency that could inspire donors to give — they also conjure images of war, a sense of good and bad, winners and losers (in the interest of full disclosure, I'm pretty sure I've used this phrase myself too in the past).

Most of us know someone who has experienced cancer, and it just isn't that simple. Nobody "wins" and not responding to treatment should never imply a sense of failure.

The counter-argument, of course, is that using such language can create a strong and powerful call to action — one made all the more emotive by sharing stories of success and making an "ask" that will motivate donors to give.

Surely that trumps a few awkward semantics?

“The one place people do not want to hear the truth is the paediatric oncology ward. Donors want to hear that we’re beating cancer and that we’re going to beat more cancer.”

It doesn't.

Good fundraising doesn't mean selling someone's story because it's what a donor wants to hear. In fact, I would argue that good fundraising isn't about telling stories at all, it's about sharing them. And that means creating a forum for people to get their voice and their story out into the world.

All too aware of the risk the event poses to young people involved, Max Goodwin, the hospital's medical director tries to cancel the Gala. But in a heartwarming turn of events, they don't let him. Now it's time for the big reveal. Because these young people, they want to speak. They have been given the chance to share their story and they have chosen to take it. As long as they can share their truth.

Why? The answer is pretty simple.

"Because this is how we help the next kid with cancer.”

Needless to say, the event goes down well. It even inspires a new crowdfunding video — one that does away with the tragedy Olympics and shares snapshots of patients, stories of survival, and messages of thanks. I’d love to show the full clip here, but sadly I can’t find a shareable source online, so you’ll have to settle with this final quote:

“We got to tell our stories, we got to be survivors. And we want the rest to be survivors too… That’s why I’m asking you to donate. It’s not for me. It’s for them.”

So what can we learn about charity storytelling?

It might all work out a little too well, but the overarching points this episode makes are well worth thinking about. And for what they're worth, here are my parting thoughts on the subject:

#1. Storytelling is a powerful tool

That doesn’t give us the right to tell every story as we think it should be heard. As Ken Burnett would say, good storytelling is all about the truth — told well.

#2. Semantics matter

Think about the language you use and how this can influence audience perception and impact the person whose story is being shared.

#3. Respect the storyteller

Make sure you've got the right consent in place, involve your storyteller in the creative process, and make sure they have final sign-off.

Because good storytelling isn’t actually about telling stories at all. It’s about sharing them.

Like what you read? I'm Jen, a copywriter and content creator helping health and social impact organisations make a difference. Get in touch to find out how I can help your team create change-making content with the power to do more.