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For Local Organizations

Direct funding without intermediaries.

 

Professional infrastructure without building internally.

 

Stories told authentically.

 

Authority over programming decisions.​​

The Challenge Local Organizations Face

Navigating INGO reporting requirements creates significant burden. Detailed financial tracking, indicator monitoring, narrative reports—all necessary, but exhausting when trying to serve communities in crisis.

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After all that work, stories get summarized in donor reports, stripped of nuance, and filed away.

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The barriers:

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  • Limited funding access with authority - Systems flow through intermediaries who create hierarchical control even with good intentions

  • Limited voice and amplification - Stories get reduced to bullet points; organizations rarely reach audiences directly

  • Limited sustainability - Perpetual grant-seeking with no path to financial independence

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Story of Helping provides different infrastructure.

What Our Model Offers

Direct Connection to Supporters

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Projects reach an international marketplace where supporters choose organizations because their stories resonate—not because they fit donor funding priorities. No intermediaries filtering messages. When 1,000 people purchase books about a project, the organization receives full funding.

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Professional Infrastructure Without Building It Internally

 

Access to the same accountability systems international NGOs use—financial tracking, project management, payment processing, transparent reporting.

 

The difference: Local organizations work inside these systems alongside Story of Helping teams. Support and training provided, not gatekeeping. Organizations see their data, manage their workflows, control their processes in real-time.

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Hands-On Implementation Support

 

Remote project management throughout—budget tracking, payment coordination to vendors, troubleshooting challenges, technical guidance. The same support provided to INGO partners, now available to local organizations directly.

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Complete Storytelling Platform

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Professional photobook, accountability companion, and multimedia library. Stories told across multiple formats—photos, videos, narratives, real-time updates. The triumph and the struggle, the planned and the adapted. Organizations control what to share and how they're represented.

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Unrestricted Organizational Funding

 

Beyond project implementation budgets, organizations receive unrestricted funding for discretionary use—strengthening operations, building capacity, or supporting future work. No donor restrictions on expenditure.

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Capacity Building Investment

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30% of Story of Helping book sales profits are directed towards a capacity building fund for collective use of all local partners.  Organizations collectively decide their capacity building needs—financial management, project management, storytelling, fundraising, peer learning, etc.

The Process

  • Organizations submit projects through the marketplace

  • Story of Helping conducts vetting (sanctions checks, reference verification)

  • Approved organizations receive account setup

  • Timeline: 2-4 weeks

Phase 1
Submission & Vetting

  • Project pages created collaboratively

  • Both organization and Story of Helping promote to drive book sales

  • Local organization network activation is essential - supporters trust them

  • Campaign runs with 3-month checkpoint

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Phase 2
Campaign & Fundraising

  • Project launches with full funding

  • Story of Helping provides ongoing support and handles payments

  • Content captured throughout (photos, videos, updates)

  • Regular engagement with book buyers

Phase 3
Implementation & Documentation

  • Digital editions delivered immediately upon completion

  • Premium hardcover production follows for projects reaching 50%+ funding (2-3 months)

  • Organizations receive all discretionary funds

  • Final book becomes organizational portfolio piece

Phase 4
Book Production & Delivery

Other Details

"One Team" Structure:

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Local organizations determines:

  • All programming decisions

  • How to implement in their context

  • What to share publicly and what to protect

  • How to frame their narrative

  • Community relationships and trust

 

Story of Helping handles:

  • Financial management and payment processing

  • Budget tracking and transparent reporting

  • Technical and procurement support

  • Content design and production

  • Supporter engagement and communications

  • Platform operations and book fulfillment

 

Collaborative responsibilities:

  • Project planning and adaptations

  • Story development and content selection

  • Timeline adjustments based on field realities

  • Problem-solving when challenges arise

  • This is horizontal collaboration, not hierarchy. Organizations don't report "up"—teams work together with distinct responsibilities.

Three-Month Checkpoint:

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  • If project reaches 50% funding (500 supporters): Implementation planning begins or campaign continues to reach 100%

  • If project below 50%: Story of Helping works with organization on options:

    • Submit updated/revised project concept for supporters who want to continue

    • Adjust to micro-project with digital delivery if supporters continue

    • Close campaign if insufficient support

 

Supporters of projects below 50% choose: continue with adapted project, receive refund, transfer to another project, or wait for organization's updated concept.

What's Required from Organizations

Organizations provide the same reporting they already do for INGOs—monthly updates, photo documentation, financial tracking. Story of Helping formats this as engaging content rather than filed reports.

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Network activation to promote campaigns is essential to success. Organizations actively promote their projects to communities, supporters, and networks. Story of Helping supplements with marketing, but the trust local organizations have with their communities is irreplaceable.

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Fundraising involves risk. Not all projects reach full funding. Organizations should be prepared for the 3-month checkpoint where campaigns may need to adapt, pause, or close based on supporter response.

Who this works for

This works best for organizations that:

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  • Have specific humanitarian projects ready to implement (typically $50K-$100K scale)

  • Can activate supporter networks (community members, volunteers, diaspora, past donors)

  • Are comfortable with financial transparency (all transactions visible in real-time)

  • Want programming control while receiving professional administrative support

  • Are open to documentary storytelling as accountability

  • Have basic implementation capacity but need funding access and systems

  • Understand fundraising involves risk and not all campaigns reach targets

 

This may not be right for organizations that:

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  • Need funding immediately (campaigns take 2-4 months minimum to reach targets)

  • Prefer traditional institutional donor relationships

  • Are uncomfortable with public campaigns or community engagement

  • Want complete privacy around operations (this requires transparency)

  • Don't have networks they can activate to promote campaigns

  • Cannot adapt project scope if funding falls short of targets

What organizations receive

Project Implementation:

  • Full funding for project implementation (materials, services, beneficiary support)

  • Professional project management and financial oversight throughout

  • Payment processing directly to vendors from project accounts

  • Technical support and troubleshooting as needed

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Organizational Support:

  • Unrestricted funding for discretionary organizational use

  • No donor restrictions on expenditure

  • Transparent revenue sharing model explained during orientation

 

Professional Documentation:

  • High-quality photobook documenting complete project (for projects reaching 50%+ funding)

  • Digital documentation appropriate to implementation scale

  • Accountability companion with integrated metrics and narrative

  • Multimedia content library (videos, photos, testimonials)

  • All becomes organizational portfolio for future use

 

Capacity Building:

  • Access to collective capacity building fund

  • Programs based on organizational priorities, not prescribed externally

  • Delivered through professional training partners

 

Complete financial details and pricing breakdown provided during orientation.

Geographic Focus

Currently: Myanmar and Thailand—contexts where the Story of Helping team has deep expertise, language capabilities, and established relationships.

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Why this matters: Effective support requires understanding local dynamics, communicating in local languages, and having credibility in humanitarian ecosystems. Story of Helping won't compromise quality to expand faster.

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Future expansion: Growth happens by hiring team members with expertise in new contexts, not by trying to work everywhere at once.

Questions?

"This sounds like more work than traditional grants"

 

It's the same work—monthly updates, photos, financial tracking, communications. Story of Helping packages it as beautiful documentation and engagement instead of reports that get filed away. The work burden is identical; the output is infinitely more valuable.

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"What if organizations can't do live Q&A sessions?"

 

Pre-recorded video responses work fine. Story of Helping is flexible based on connectivity, comfort, and capacity.

 

"What if projects take longer than expected?"

 

That's normal in humanitarian work. Funds remain available until appropriate to spend. Timeline flexibility is built in—adaptation based on field realities.

 

"What if projects don't reach 50% funding?"

 

Story of Helping works with organizations on options: submit updated concept, adjust to micro-project if supporters continue, or close campaign. This recognizes that not all campaigns succeed and context changes during fundraising periods.

 

"Do organizations need to work in English?"

 

No. The Story of Helping team works in local langauges and English. All communications happen in preferred language.

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Ready to Learn More?

See how this works in practice:

 

Browse projects on the marketplace. See how local organizations are using this model to fund their work while maintaining full programming control.

Story of Helping is building this model with local organizations, not for them. Feedback and questions help shape how this infrastructure develops.

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