Are you story envious? Perhaps you’ve watched your peer's environmental organization's latest video. You felt impressed by how the work came to life and desired that, too. You admit your organization doesn’t do a good job at storytelling. So, you’re ready to fix that by investing in your story through a video. Yet, funding videos without a storytelling infrastructure and system is not always beneficial.

For example, a prospective client contacted us last year. They witnessed the work we did for their colleagues and wanted the same impact. As we chatted, it became clear to me that they hadn’t yet clarified their focus and story.

Imagine if we spent their $16,000 on a video storytelling project. After the excitement for the video vaporizes, the thought remains, “We don’t do a good job at storytelling.” See, in their hearts, more content would change things. But a lack of video content isn’t the problem. It is a symptom caused by the absence of a storytelling infrastructure and system.

Premature Video Production: Why Storytelling Infrastructure Comes First

Video marketing cannot fix your organizational storytelling problem. As an amplifying tool, video is incapable of focusing on the roots. This is the main reason you shouldn’t invest in video marketing first. Video amplifies what’s already there. Picture a person with low self-worth and bad spending habits who wins the Mega Millions. Those fortunes will magnify the existing problems.

I don’t fault you for thinking video can improve your storytelling. The pressure you feel to produce video content is subtle and potent.

• Video use across meetings, streaming, and social media has grown since COVID.
• Social media platforms (since Vine in 2013) made video central to the social media experience.
• Algorithms and on-demand access changed how and where we consume video.
• Many marketing voices warn: adopt video or risk falling behind.

This mix of factors is like a current slowly pulling you to produce videos. Despite the benefits of video marketing, I advise investing after you have a clear story and a well-defined system. If you don’t, you will:

• Waste existing limited funds.
• Remain dissatisfied and frustrated because your mission is lost in a sea of programs.
• Disconnect with funders

I repeat that these are not unique problems. They are symptoms of deeper infrastructure issues, not a content strategy issue. Suppose your organization is executing its 3-5 strategic plan. There are more benefits from a storytelling infrastructure than a single video.

What is A Storytelling Infrastructure & System?

When I say storytelling infrastructure and system, I mean two distinct things. These two terms are not interchangeable; they serve different roles. Below are definitions from Google AI Overview that best represent my meaning.

Storytelling Infrastructure

Infrastructure is the underlying structure that enables storytelling. It’s the assets, tools, and foundations that support long-term storytelling efforts.

Think of infrastructure like the plumbing, electrical wiring, and framing of a house. It’s the thing you set up. None of your rooms functions without it.A storytelling infrastructure includes things you build once and update when necessary.

This includes but is not limited to the following:

• A story database or content library
• Internal alignment on narrative focus
• Processes for collecting and vetting stories
• Shared language across departments
• Brand voice, identity, and story guidelines
• A staff training workshop to think in narrative terms
• A content strategy that connects stories to goals

These are individual resources, tools, or actions. By themselves, they are not a system. They can sit there unused until you move them.

Storytelling Systems

A system is how those activities are connected and used on an ongoing basis to achieve a result. It’s how stories flow through your organization, prioritized and reinforced over time. Sticking with the home analogy:

If infrastructure is the plumbing, the system is how water moves through the pipes. The system also conserves or reuses water. The value is in how those pieces interact to build trust, consistency, and clarity over time.

In storytelling terms, your system might include:

• Monthly story-finding meetings tied to programs or partnerships (process)
• Assign stories to specific campaigns (integration)
• Track feedback loops (donors or stakeholders on what resonates) and performance (adaptation)
• Feed learnings into future story selection (iteration)
• A rhythm of content creation aligned with your fundraising calendar
• Repurposing workflows that turn one story into social posts, newsletter highlights, and reports

Why This Distinction Matters

To make this distinction super clear, infrastructure is the thing(s). Systems are what you do with the thing(s) intentionally. These specific terms provide order and flow, building trust, clarity, and consistency.

This distinction between infrastructure and systems reminds me of the book Atomic Habits. Author James Clear makes a similar case: goals set direction, but systems create progress.

It’s not enough to want great storytelling or produce a few strong videos. Momentum drags without a system that repeatedly tells your larger organization's story. Several individual, connected actions and stories convey your overall story. Infrastructure and systems work together. Ignore either, and storytelling remains isolated, half-wins instead of a strategic asset.

For more insights on how storytelling works together, read our guide on holistic storytelling. You'll see how infrastructure and systems interconnect within a larger practice.

From Farm Plot to Policy Table (An Illustrative Example)

An environmental organization realizes that their BIPOC farming community was missing from their narrative. The organization developed the storytelling infrastructure to ensure consistent visibility.

The infrastructure they built:

• A regional story database tagged by issue, identity, and location
• A shared story intake form for program staff
• Training for rural team members on capturing story moments using photos and videos
• Editorial framework connecting stories to organizational pillars (climate justice, land equity)

The system they activated:

• Weekly story submission from field staff.
• Monthly “story briefs” created for the policy and development teams.
• Quarterly story cycles tied to funding priorities and advocacy pushes.

Potential Outcomes:

A human-centered story from a youth-run community farm. A regional climate resilience grant is awarded with the help of the story as a focal point. The organization now has funding resources beyond the metro area.

The Essential Step to Build a Storytelling Infrastructure & System

Strategic planning is the indispensable step to establishing a storytelling infrastructure and system. Without your strategic plan's direction, the infrastructure and system are partially useless. Imagine building your dream home without first creating a blueprint. Your general contractor begins placing pipes wherever. You might have a working kitchen, but would it be functional? I doubt it.

At BairStories, we specialize in building a storytelling infrastructure and system. It's the second phase of our practice, Holistic Storytelling. The strategic plan helps inform the specific infrastructure needed for your organization. Despite the customizable nature of this phase, there are typical activities, such as the ones mentioned above.

How to Persuade Upper Management to Invest in Storytelling?

A storytelling infrastructure and system might sound cool, but how will you discuss this with your Executive Director? Even if you’re the ED, getting buy-in from your Board is vital. Research reveals patterns that predict the success of leadership investment proposals. Those patterns show that investment decisions hinge on clear:

• organizational alignment,
• quantifiable ROI, and
• strategic communication.

Framing storytelling infrastructure as mission-critical will be essential for securing buy-in. I have compiled an 80/20 principle-based to-do list to help put together a successful proposal. This will help persuade Executive Directors and/or the Board to invest in strategic storytelling.

1. Build Your Organization Case Foundation

(Primary Focus - 40% of Effort)

Document the Strategic Alignment

• Map how storytelling infrastructure supports your mission, impact, and goals.
• Identify pain points like donor confusion, recruitment challenges, or policy gaps.
• Quantify the "storytelling tax", time spent recreating assets or re-explaining work.

Calculate Your Return On Investment (ROI) Projection

• Use this ROI formula: [(Projected Value - Cost) / Cost] x 100.
• Include financial (donations, grants) and mission returns (policy, behavior change).
• Benchmark against similar organizations who invested in storytelling systems.

2. Gather Compelling Evidence

(Secondary Focus - 30% of Effort)

Audit Your Current Storytelling Gaps

• Document specific instances where a lack of infrastructure hurt mission outcomes
• Survey staff time spent on repetitive storytelling tasks
• Track missed opportunities due to the inability to produce compelling content quickly.

Research Comparable Success Stories

• Find 2-3 environmental organizations that invested in storytelling infrastructure
• Document their measurable outcomes (membership growth, funding increases, policy victories)
• Prepare concrete examples of what becomes possible with proper systems

3. Develop Strategic Allies

(Supporting Focus - 20% of Effort)

Identify Internal Champions

• Approach program or development staff feeling current storytelling gaps.
• Offer solutions to their specific challenges within the larger infrastructure.
• Invite them to advocate for the initiative with leadership.

Cultivate Board Advocates

• Have conversations with board members who understand marketing or communications
• Share specific examples of storytelling challenges that resonate with their experience.
• Request their support before the formal proposal.

4. Craft Your Presentation Strategy

(Supporting Focus - 10% of Effort)

Create a Pilot Proposal

• Propose a pilot program to minimize perceived risk.
• Focus on one high-impact area (donor storytelling, volunteer recruitment, or policy advocacy).
• Design clear success metrics that matter to leadership.

Prepare for Objections

• Anticipate budget concerns with phased implementation options.
• Address capacity concerns by showing how infrastructure reduces long-term workload.
• Have contingency plans for scaled-down versions.

Key Messages to Emphasize

• Mission Increaser: Amplifies communication and strengthens org's impact.
• Productivity Investment: Saves staff time and improves effectiveness.
• Competitive Advantage: Strong narratives win support for environmental work.
• Risk Reduction: Without systems, impact stays unclear and underleveraged.

Warnings to Address Immediately

• If leadership views this as "communications" rather than mission infrastructure
• If cost concerns overshadow impact discussions
• If the proposal gets categorized as "nice to have" rather than a strategic necessity

From Dissatisfied & Uncertain to A Confident Story-Driven Organization

Here’s a reflection question. Before you start your next video, are you clear on how it contributes to your overall story and strategic goals?

Organizations that do not prioritize strategic storytelling remain stuck in a cycle of stagnation. They waste staff time and financial reserves on incomplete content tactics. Reacting is the name of the game because they’re unwilling to pause, reflect, and reorient themselves. Therefore, burnout is inevitable, accompanied by a slew of weighty feelings of frustration and annoyance. These organizations occasionally invest in video storytelling about their programs. Yet their mission still gets lost in their various work.

A story-driven organization operates differently. They know their story is equally important as their work and impact. Their video marketing is connected to their storytelling infrastructure and system. That is linked to their strategic plan, which is based on the organization's worldview and who they serve. Thus, they led with the story, allowing the rest to follow. They find it easier to build trust with funders who generously and unrestrictedly support them for their story, not only for what they do.

Download your simple 21-day plan to build a proposal for strategic storytelling.

Related Articles

• Holistic Storytelling: The Ultimate Guide 
• What’s Storytelling Got to Do With Nonprofit Strategic Planning?
• 4 Signs You’re Wasting Your Nonprofit Video Production Money
• Improve Nonprofit Video Engagement by Avoiding This Mistake
• 7 Easy Storytelling Tips For Your Climate Action Plan