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Building trust through storytelling in the nonprofit sector
The most valuable asset a nonprofit has is trust. Without trust, advancing its mission becomes nearly impossible. While barely more than half of Americans report trusting nonprofits, that trust is increasingly fragile. Growing skepticism toward government, high-net-worth donors, and even the rise of artificial intelligence is reshaping how communities relate to nonprofit organizations.
Additionally, nonprofits are facing increasing financial pressure. While donations continue to grow, the overall number of donors has declined, particularly at lower giving levels. This, while demand for services continues to rise. The result is a deeper reliance on the very systems that people distrust: high-net-worth individuals and government funding.
Compounding these challenges is the rapid rise of artificial intelligence. Tools such as chatbots and large language models are reshaping how people engage with information and evaluate credibility. As AI-generated content floods online spaces, organizations must meet their communities’ needs in ways only the nonprofit sector can, through authenticity and human-to-human connection.
How, then, can nonprofit organizations build and sustain trust in this environment?
As nonprofits face growing threats to trust, including political instability, skepticism toward high-net-worth donors, and the rise of artificial intelligence, storytelling becomes one of the most powerful tools available. Stories shape perception, deepen engagement, and help audiences connect more meaningfully with a mission.
However, storytelling alone is not enough. To be effective, it must be intentional, ethically grounded, and operationalized by leadership. When treated as a strategic framework, rather than simply a communications tactic, storytelling becomes a powerful driver of trust.
This framework can be built around three core principles: Be human, share knowledge and plan for tomorrow.
Be human
In a world of digital noise and interruption-focused media, nonprofits build trust not through scale, but through a consistent, authentic presence in their communities. Organizations should prioritize people-first stories of impact that highlight real individuals and their lived experiences. These stories should be authentic, transparent, and centered on people, not the organization.
This approach requires clear ethical guardrails. Nonprofits should develop storytelling policies rooted in permission-based practices that guide how stories are sourced, shaped, and shared. Individuals should remain the owners of their stories, and their consent should be sought and reaffirmed throughout the process.
Share knowledge
Many nonprofits are built on trust earned through relationships, reputation, and impact in their communities. The next step is to operationalize that trust by becoming master storytellers, using stories not only to create emotional connection, but also to demonstrate what the organization does and why it works. This requires a shift from storytelling as inspiration to storytelling as evidence.
The focus should remain outward, highlighting the people and communities served while making the organization’s expertise visible through those stories. In doing so, nonprofits build credibility that extends beyond individual relationships and into broader public trust. In a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence, this kind of relational, experience-driven storytelling stands out. It builds trust not through scale or automation, but through consistent, human-centered expertise demonstrated over time.
Plan for tomorrow
As Seth Godin writes, “persistent, consistent, and frequent stories delivered to an aligned audience will earn attention, trust, and action.” This is where storytelling becomes essential. By prioritizing long-term relationships with a focus on retention, engagement, and community, nonprofits can create a consistent narrative of ongoing impact. Over time, this approach builds a portfolio of stories, a clear organizational narrative, and trusted voices to carry that story forward.
When storytelling is approached in this way, it becomes more than a communications tool. It creates a shared sense of identity and belonging among supporters, reinforcing trust in the organization’s values and confidence in its expertise.
By centering storytelling in a human-first approach, reinforcing it through transparency and knowledge-sharing, and sustaining it through long-term relational engagement, nonprofits can build trust that is not only earned but also protected and strengthened over time.
Ultimately, the challenge for nonprofit leaders is not to tell better stories, but to build the kind of trust that drives engagement and action.
Ryan Hubbard is a marketing and communications expert who specializes in helping nonprofits integrate storytelling and brand strategy to strengthen engagement and build communities of supporters. He is a 2026 graduate of the Master of Nonprofit Leadership and Management program at Arizona State University, and specializes in helping nonprofit and mission-driven organizations translate complex priorities into clear, human-centered narratives that drive connection and long-term impact.
Image by Lillian Finley
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