Posted by Catie Foertsch on Wed, Sep 16, 2009 @ 11:47 AM
Nonprofits are uniquely positioned to benefit from video because they have compelling stories to tell, and video is the best medium on the planet for telling emotionally powerful stories. Any nonprofit that creates compelling videos, and then uses the Internet to get those videos in front of people who care about that nonprofit's cause, will create a thriving online community of current and future donors and advocates.
Sounds exciting - especially in these tough economic times. But an Internet video campaign? How in the world is a nonprofit supposed to do that?
(Drumroll, please...)
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Is your nonprofit currently using video to spread your story? What kind of videos are you making? How are you spreading them? And what kind of feedback are you getting?
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Posted by Catie Foertsch on Fri, Aug 14, 2009 @ 08:33 AM
It's a very good idea for nonprofits to make videos that spread their stories. But without a good understanding of how many videos to make and what to do with them once they're made, mistakes will be made. For example, there's a nonprofit out in the Midwest that is thinking about expanding their communication efforts by producing videos. But they're not sure how to proceed, so they've invested in one video, posted it to YouTube, and are now waiting for feedback. They will make their decision on whether to adopt video strategically based on what kind of success that one video achieves.
What's wrong with this plan? Plenty.
If the world were waiting for video to be posted to YouTube, and if each time a video were posted, the world pounced on it, watched it, and passed it around to friends and family, then the nonprofit's strategy would be a fine one.
But the world is not waiting for video on the web. In fact, 13 hours worth of videos are uploaded to YouTube every minute of every day.
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A single video on the web is like a single blade of grass in a great big lawn. Nobody is going to look at that lawn and see that blade of grass, because nobody can. There are just too many others. |
The second problem with creating one single video is economy of scale. Every time you bring in a videographer or a crew, you can gather video footage for one video or two videos or several videos. And depending on how you edit your footage, you can make one video or a few or many. If you start with a plan, you can maximize the number of videos you produce within your budget. The more videos you produce and post on the web, the greater the chance that people will watch them and spread them.
The third problem with that lonely video sitting there on YouTube, waiting to be found, is that it has no promotion plan. It's not being actively sent out in an email newsletter. It's not being blogged about in an active blog. People aren't being asked to blog about it, and to spread it around. It's just... sitting there.
How to fix these problems and help that nonprofit realize amazing results with video?
- Start with a master plan. Include a production plan that lets you maximize the number of videos you create. And include a promotion plan that will help you get your videos in front of lots and lots of people.
- After you send your videos out per your plan, gather and analyze as much data as you can, so you know what's working and what's not. Then when it's time to release your next video, incorporate the lessons your data have taught you.
- Ask for feedback every place you can, so you can learn what kind of videos have the most impact and generate the most action.
Video is the best communication tool on the planet for telling emotionally-compelling stories, and almost all nonprofits have emotionally-compelling stories to tell. But it's not enough to just go out and make a video. Your nonprofit has to start with a well-thought-out plan that will let your video content move people to come together in a community that cares about your cause as much as you do.
Read that last sentence again. Because a solid internet video campaign will help you achieve exactly that - a community that cares about your cause as much as you do.
Posted by Catie Foertsch on Mon, Aug 10, 2009 @ 08:53 AM
Meet Nikki, a lioness seized from a drug dealer and now living at Big Cat Rescue in Tampa. This is a terrific story by itself (watch her defend her chicken dinner!) and it's a great illustration of why nonprofits should be using video, and how nonprofits can get their videos to spread.
YouTube allows nonprofits to create channels branded with their logos. And, a nonprofit can place 'donate' buttons right on the channel. If you're a nonprofit, take a look at Big Cat Rescue's YouTube channel, and you'll understand why they have more than 7,500 subscribers: they have great video content that tells compelling stories, they make more videos on a regular basis, and they make it very easy for people to find and watch those great videos.
Placing your video content on your own branded YouTube channel is a great way to get people to spread your story - there are links for placement on sites including Facebook, Twitter and Digg. And, people can embed your videos in their blogs.
Granted, rescued lions and tigers are very easy to make videos about. But almost all nonprofits also have compelling stories to tell. And video is the planet's best medium for telling emotionally-compelling stories. Making videos that tell your stories will help you connect to a community of people who care about your cause and want to help you spread those stories.
If you're associated with a nonprofit or you donate to a nonprofit - is your nonprofit using video? If so, how are they using it? If not, do you know why not?