This article will answer you on how to write a project report in 7 effective steps.
It will snatch away all your fears of writing a project report and you’ll be able to write it effortlessly from this moment onwards.
The Truth of Project Report
No matter what idea you have about ‘Project Report Making’ in your mind, one thing that I can say for sure: the word ‘Report Making’ sounds a bit technical.
Even I stressed a lot in school when I was asked to write a report.
But trust me, it’s not as hard as it sounds.
Apart from the school curriculum, the first time when I got the opportunity to write a campaign report was in class 10th when my team leader asked me to do the report-making work for one of our campaigns that our team conducted in our school.
I was frightened at that moment and didn’t know the answer to how to write a project report?
But thanks to the number of articles I read, the teachings of my team leader and the numerous reports which I have written to date, I have the answer today.
I am now capable of writing reports of any work that can help even the least knowledgeable person understand the matter in a crystal-clear manner.
I am not blowing my own trumpet by telling you all this. Rather, I want you to understand that even you can do it too if you keep my framework in mind.
Why this article on How to write a Project Report is important?
There is a specific reason why I am writing an article on How to write a Project report.
You can do a quick exercise and see that if you search about ‘project report‘ or ‘campaign report‘ in google, it will show you results about their meaning along with reports of advertising campaigns, marketing campaigns, digital campaigns and something of that sort.
But you won’t be able to find any guide to write a report about any offline campaign or an activity that has been done on real grounds. Even the ones you’ll find will lack examples for understanding the sections you have to write into.
So, with this article, I want to empower the real ground activist and the people who want to learn the powerful skill of presenting their work in form of a project report that can replicate the intensity of hard work they have poured into their campaign or project.
But it doesn’t mean you cannot apply this framework in writing reports of the project works you got in your search result just now.
You can apply this framework in nearly every project report you write.
Primary Things to know about a Project Report
Before we move on How to write a project report, you need to understand a bunch of things about Project Reports.
What is a project report?
A project report is a report that traces down the story of a campaign from beginning to end that has been performed or conducted for a particular cause.
Who write project reports?
A team, individual, organisation or group of organisations when conducts a campaign; then they need to collate the entire thing in a report that they can use to share their journey or as a document that they can share with people interested in their work for future scaling.
Why are project reports important?
It matters a lot when you need to share your story that replicates the same intensity of emotion you have felt while performing it.
Moreover, it acts as a backbone for developing a video or slide presentation of the campaign.
The most important reason which I prioritize the most is its integrity!
You see, nowadays, we consume a lot of content over social media, including campaign videos.
They are extremely impressive and promising to watch.
However, if you attach a campaign report along with the campaign video, then it connects to a deeper level with the interested people among the audience and develops a bridge of trust, connecting you and them.
Is Writing a good project report an inbuilt quality?
No, it’s not. It’s a learnable skill that anyone can achieve with practice. There was a time when I used to be afraid of the question How to write a project report?
However, after learning it, I can say for sure that if I can do it, then you can too!
The Framework of Project Report
Now, if you are convinced of the importance of a good project report, then let’s kick off with the writing part!
Like any report, you need to have a structure of topics in mind.
So, let’s make a structure of topics that we have to follow for the report making.
Structure of A Project Report
- Problem Statement (Introduction)
- Background of the Main Cause
- Primary Objective of Campaign
- Valuable Insights
- Results so far
- Conclusion
- Abstract
I know that some of you might be thinking about why the hell have I kept the Abstract at last. Right?
Well, it will be an “At a glance” version of the report, so it’s better to write it at the end after completing the writing part.
So, let’s jump into the process!
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Problem Statement (Introduction)
A problem statement is an expression of the reason why the campaign came into existence.
It is good to keep it short and simple, yet effective.
The reason why I have kept it and that too in the first place is that it gives an idea to the reader about the context.
Now, if you want to catch your reader’s attention with an intriguing thought, then you can add a question, fact, phrase or quote before that.
It helps to vitalize the problem statement in fewer words.
For example, if you have done a campaign on Water Conservation. You can state the fact;
I used to think the stock market to be a cool thing
But the moment I got the news of water trading started in Wall Street,
I am more than horrified!
Or
Did you get the news that Water joined gold, oil and other commodities traded on Wall Street!
It made me worried that the life-sustaining natural resource may become scarce across more of the world!
After stating the fact, quote, or phrase, you need to write a one-liner statement highlighting your campaign’s agenda.
Taking the same example,
Fact ______ and that’s the reason why we are here with our campaign to ensure water conservation & its availability to all!
Now, this is not the only way you can do it. If you don’t want to give a dramatic introduction and would prefer a straightforward introduction, then go for it!
For that, you have to write those sentences which give accurate information about your campaign including The Name, Significance, date of conduction and objective in a brief manner.
Make sure to write it in a brief and engaging manner to give a solid first impression to the reader.
Example: If you have a campaign of Plantation drive on the occasion of World Environment Day then you can write the following introduction:
On the occasion of this year’s World Environment Day, our team Eco-warriors (Team Name) has conducted the Plant of Hope Campaign on 5th June 2021 with the objective of spreading awareness about planting and caring for saplings for a healthy future. In this campaign, we involved school students, college students, member of different societies and various NGO of the city and planted 564 saplings on the roadside of XYZ highway of our city thereby making a small effort for conserving our motherland!
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BACKGROUND OF THE MAIN CAUSE
Now, after writing the problem statement, you’ll be able to become successful in creating an itch in the reader to dive down in your ocean of wonders.
However, you still need to give a push to make it a deeper dive!
Meaning, you need to give a background idea of the problem.
For that, you can introduce the problem with a proper definition, how it takes place, the factual data or numerical figures that your readers need to witness for realizing the severity of the issue, and a stronger sense of responsibility to act on it.
Mind you; this is applicable for both; problem-based campaign & a possibility-based campaign.
i.e., if your campaign is based on solving or challenging a certain problem
or, if you are working on a completely new craft or scaling an already existing one that can add value to a set of individuals or a group of people altogether,
Objectively speaking, The Revolutionizing Campaign.
Woof!
Were the last paragraphs too heavy to digest?
Let me simplify it for you!
Here are the examples for both of the campaign types:
Problem Based Campaign-
Example-
Say hi to Aarati!
She is a running Organic Compost Making campaign that circles the problem of both wet and dry food waste generated in our kitchens and ends up in landfills.
Her aim with the campaign is to solve the Waste Problem, which causes harmful emissions in the environment!
Possibility Based Campaign-
Say hi to Prakhar!
He is the guy who has started making leaf tablets (locally known as Dona Pattal used as a plate for eating food.) at his home with his grandparents because he believes that there is a great scope of this commodity in everybody’s life.
Especially for the cause of ensuring sustainable food eating.
So, by these two examples, I think that you may now have got the essence of this segment.
One additional thing that you need to keep in mind is that don’t overpopulate this segment with information because that can decrease the reader’s interest in moving forward with your report.
Simply speaking, don’t write more than necessary because there are various segments which you need to deal with ahead. And you would not want to repeat any of your content matter.
If you like, then you can keep your readers’ attention intact by creating tiny suspense or completing the segment with a question.
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Primary Objectives of the Campaign
After writing the background, you have to write the primary objectives of your campaign. This is one of the most important segments to conquer because here you have to play with one-liners.
You need to define the objectives of your campaign and that too very precisely.
So, for doing it effectively, you need to keep the following things in mind:
- Be specific with your objectives. Don’t try to stretch the blanket more than your feet!
- Realize that your campaign will fulfil a set of objectives and will have to leave many behind.
So, don’t write about things that don’t comply with your campaign just for the sake of impressing your audience.
- Quality is more important than quantity. If you think that 2 objectives are sufficient to objectify your campaign’s motive, then stick to that only.
Ting Ting!
Example Time!
Let’s say Vedant has run a campaign named #SayNoToPlasticBags
He is following two objectives in that:
- To Spread awareness among citizen on not using single-use plastics bags.
- To spread awareness about developing the habit of carrying cloth/ reusable bags with them.
Here, if he also includes plastic cups, plates, party decorative, etc. for the sake of increasing the vitality of his campaign by thinking that they are also plastic commodities and we should also not use them,
Then it will create a problem of understanding for the audience because they won’t be able to correlate the campaign’s title with its objective.
Now if he wants to broaden his campaign’s reach, he can change the campaign’s name or modify the tagline attached to it.
That’s the most effective way to prevent miscorrelation of the campaign title with its objective.
For example: Changing #SayToPlasticBags
to
#SayNoToPlastics: A step to stop using single-use plastic plates, bags and cups!
So, this way, you can write a good segment of Primary Objectives.
This segment helps your reader have more clarity on your campaign’s introduction.
The best thing that can happen to your reader while reading the objective segment is visualizing the context (problem/possibility) and relating their personal experience.
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Valuable Insights
Now here comes the moment of truth!
This segment will be a sacred milestone of the project report because here, you speak the truth.
Trust me, you better should!
Here, you have to share about:
- the data backing up the campaign.
- observations from the campaign and its conduction.
- the challenges you faced during implementation of the campaigns,
- all the things that were different from your imagination,
- weird experiences,
- tales of support and criticism,
- and all the things that you feel to showcase reality to your audience.
Giving any example or setting any pre-set for this segment is something which will nullify the objective of writing this segment and that’s:
Stating Reality without any filter!
It’s a very personal thing, and it depends on your level of observation, mindset and perspective of looking at things.
But still, one pro-tip that I want to give you is to write them point-wise.
You can do it for both; challenge story & one-liners.
This segment relates strongly to the audience and also makes them realise that.
We wave off people who try their best to benefit us, and happily get stabbed by the people who with their sugar-coated words & glittered presentation empty our belongings and fill their pockets!
So, believe me, or not but this is the truth!
If you want your audience to appreciate your hard work, follow your example, and increase your campaign’s reach,
Then you need to share the harsh reality with them along with your act of courage.
This way, you can convince them to believe in your actions and apply your campaign’s message or insight into their daily lives.
Because nothing is more soothing than witnessing people replicating your actions of change!
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Results So Far
After dealing with the valuable insights, you need to share the results you have achieved in this segment.
It’s better if you write them point-wise.
This will help you boost your morale by having the progress’s accountable and making the audience celebrate your success!
Now here is one thing I want to confess!
Don’t feel shy while showcasing your accomplishments!
I know that there is always a fear of people judging you and your work deep down inside.
It’s okay! It’s completely normal. You only need to take the first step of kicking off!
Dramatically speaking, Take the Leap of Faith!
Because a wise man said in his interview that
+1 or -1 is better than 0
Both negative and positive feedbacks are the sign of constructive progress which is better than zero engagement!
So, keeping this in mind, write the results of your campaign.
You can insert images, before & after comparisons, graphical data and figures to justify your achievement and backing up your statement with visual identification.
The above tips are applicable for both; completed campaigns & ongoing campaigns.
If you wish to write a report when the campaign is ongoing, then go for it without a second thought because this will help you keep an account of the events in chronological order. And that too in detail.
You can also mention the project status in your report to help the audience relate to the time frame of your work and the stage of your progress.
You can share the report in an ongoing state as well by stating:
This campaign is still running and is on for more accomplishments.
Let’s see what happens ahead!
After all, we are open to surprises!
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Conclusion
Now comes the “Wrapping Up” segment.
This is the segment in which I strongly recommend writing a positive note!
Because I feel that no matter how vulnerable or tragic a situation might be, there always remains a “good reason” hiding somewhere, you can be grateful of.
Trust me, this applies everywhere!
It depends on the writer to point it out or not, and in this case, I want to take that call!
So, irrespective of the type of campaign report you are writing, give your audience a message at the end which will stay in their subconscious mind and will help them to remember the vitality of your campaign.
For example:
Suppose the campaign is of Waste management. Then you can end it with the following quote (It’s mine though. But you can use it if you like. Don’t forget to mention the name Lol!)
Nothing is a waste in this world,
it’s our inability to use any commodity to its 100%
So, let’s increase our merit & become a worthy inhabitant of this motherland!
~ Uttam Kumar Tamboli
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Abstract
Now comes the finishing blow – The gist of the entire report!
Well, I don’t know if you need to use it in a report’s formal setting. However, making one abstract proves to be helpful when you need to introduce your campaign report to someone.
As it is a precise version, so it becomes a bit easier for the person you are approaching to get an initial idea of the entire thing!
It is also email-friendly to paste it in the email draft and attach the entire report in the attachment section. This way, it will be more convenient for the reader to approach the report efficiently.
So, these are the important reason why I feel the need to write an abstract. If you can connect dots with it, then do write one for your campaign as well.
Now, after highlighting the vitality of an abstract, let me tell you what all things you need to take care of while writing it.
They are as follows:
- It is a collection of the miniature version of every segment you have written in your report.
- For making a concise abstract, focus on the problem statement, background, primary objective, & valuable insight into the campaign.
- Write it in one paragraph only.
- If the concerning body has given you a set of guidelines for writing an abstract, then follow it vigilantly.
- But in any case, make sure it doesn’t exceed one page.
Like valuable insights, it is also a dynamic segment that variates from person to person based on their mindset, perspective and language skills.
And that’s it!
After following all these steps, your wonderful project report will be ready!
I hope you have got your answer of how to write a project report by this article.
I have covered everything that I have tried, tested and implemented in my articles to date.
If you think that I have missed any spot to throw light on, please let me know in the feedback sections.
As I preach what I practice, I am open to feedback, be it positive or negative.
So, thank you very much for sticking to the end with me.
I hope that this article will help you to replicate your campaign’s spirit, emotion & outcome with an outstanding report.
If you liked what you read, then you can check my other articles of writing guide.
