The Storytelling Non-Profit
Master Class
Learn how to get more donations using storytelling to captivate your audience.

About The Master Class
The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class is an online class that shows non-profit professionals a step-by-step process for telling stories that raise money and awareness. Through my work with dozens of clients, researching my book, and teaching over 10,000 people how to tell great stories, I have developed this class to give you the tools and training you need to succeed at storytelling.
If you've wanted to tell incredible impact stories about your organization's work, tell stories that help you raise money, or tell stories that help you grow awareness about your cause, The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class is for you.
The focus of The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class is learning how to tell stories. You'll learn the foundations of non-profit storytelling and how to get more donations. The Master Class will walk you through every aspect of how to do this from understanding your goal for storytelling, who your audience is, how to find stories, how to interview for stories, how to actually write a great story and how to get your story out into the world.
Students have gone on to apply what they've learned in the Master Class beyond their fundraising program and to their organization's communications and public relations strategies.
What You'll Learn In The Master Class
- MoDule Two
- Module Three
- Module Four
In Module One you will learn the basics of successful storytelling. Topics include:
- The essential story structure to inspire giving
- How to assess your organization's current storytelling efforts to plan for success
- Understanding your audience in order to tell stories that resonate
- How to get organizational buy-in for storytelling
What Alumni Are Saying About The Master Class

"We have met our financial revenue targets every year since I've taken the Master Class."
We became more serious about tracking outcomes as a result of Vanessa's inputs. Also, as a small organization without a resource development department we have met our financial revenue targets every year since I've taken the class. However, equally importantly, as the primary writer for the organization the tips and guides that Vanessa offers has helped me be much more confident and efficient in writing. The incredible added bonus is the Office Hours that Vanessa offers which allows us to continue to get our questions answered in real time.
- Janice Haskell, Dreams InDeed Foundation
How The Master Class Works
The Master Class is taught through 10+ hours of instructional video content inside our online classroom. In addition to the instructional videos, you'll also receive worksheets and resources that complement each lesson and help you implement what you're learning.
You'll have access to the discussion forums inside our classroom, plus a private Facebook group for on-going discussion and support with your storytelling.
Enroll Today to Start Your Journey to Better Storytelling and Fundraising
When you sign up for the Master Class, you'll get immediate life-time access to all of the course modules, the private community Facebook group and access to month Office Hours calls.
Meet Your Instructor, Vanessa Chase Lockshin

Vanessa Chase Lockshin is an international non-profit consultant, speaker, and author of The Storytelling Non-Profit: A practical guide to telling stories that raise money and awareness.
Vanessa has helped clients raise millions of dollars, increase a monthly giving program to over 5,000 donors, improved donor retention rates, create donor stewardship plans, and develop winning digital strategies.
Vanessa’s fundraising career started at The University of British Columbia, her alma mater. Her clients have included: Barnard College, Meals on Wheels Association of America, Girl Scouts of the USA, British Columbia Children’s Hospital, Senior Medicare Patrol, The Dixon Transition Society, Zanesville Museum of Art, Win Without War, and OpenMedia.
To date, she has trained over 10,000 non-profit professionals. Vanessa has been invited to speak at a number of events and associations including: The Association of Fundraising Professionals; The Council for Advancement and Support of Education; The Association of Donor Relations Professionals; BBcon; Mid-Valley Development Professionals; and many more.
Your Invitation to Join
If your organization has told stories but has not seen results, I want to personally invite you to join me for the Master Class.
If your organization is brand new to storytelling, I want to personally invite you to join me for the Master Class.
The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class is focused on learning how to get more donations using stories. Typically students have been fundraisers, executive directors, and even board members. Communications and marketing professionals have also joined the Master Class to learn how to improve donor communications.
Master Class alumni include a range of organizations from higher education institutions to small social service organizations, international development groups to hospital and health care organizations, arts and culture groups to environmental organizations.
The Master Class is a great fit for organizations who already have a fundraising program in place and are looking to learn how to make the most of their donor relationships and fundraising opportunities.
The Master Class is an immersive online learning experience taught over four core learning modules. The class is self-paced so you can work through the material at times that work with your schedule. You will also have lifetime access to the material taught in The Master Class so you can revisit the modules and materials any time, as well as on-going access to our Facebook community.
“Enrolling in the Master Class was by far the best decision I’ve made for my professional development” said Alyssa Scott, a Master Class alumni.
Alyssa joined the Master Class because she wanted to learn how to use storytelling to improve her fundraising work.
Deciding to take the Master Class was not a quick decision for Alyssa. She spent some time debating whether or not to join the Master Class because her organization would not cover the fee. Ultimately, she was very glad she enrolled.
“I discovered problems I didn’t even know I had been facing! Direct mail appeals are one of my least favorite work projects and Vanessa made me really excited to find inspiring, compelling stories and to craft a message. . .”
Using what she learned in the Master Class, Alyssa was able to foster better collaboration among colleagues. Together they worked to create a quarterly storytelling themes. The result was that they could collect and share better stories in a more consistent way. “We got a lot of feedback from donors who loved the stories and messaging we were sharing,” said Alyssa.
When I asked Alyssa what she would tell someone who is thinking about joining the Master Class, here’s what she shared.
If you’re on the fence about signing up for the Master Class, you should go for it! You’re guaranteed to learn at least three things. . . and Vanessa is really great about making it incredibly easy to implement pieces of her lesson. She is also an invaluable resource you can reach out to about anything storytelling or fundraising related during the course of the class, and even after.
Frequently Asked Questions about the
Master Class
How Students are Using What They Learn in the Master Class
Curious how our Master Class alumni are applying what they learn in the Master Class? Here's what students have shared.

Enroll in The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class Today!
When you sign up for the Master Class, you'll get immediate life-time access to all of the course modules plus the private community Facebook group.
Join the Master Class today with two payment options. 2 monthly payments of $227, or choose a 1 time payment of $447.
Have a question about The Storytelling Non-Profit Master Class?
Use the form below to send me your question.