This week I was the guest presenter on this webinar. It’s free to view. Enjoy!
Here’s the description: On-demand webinar featuring Ken Okel on strategies to drive awareness, lead generation and customer engagement through multi-media and online video marketing.
We packed a lot of information in the 20 minutes. To view the session click here.
YouTube continues to be a great tool for nonprofits wanting to connect and market with their fans. With newspaper and TV staffs cut dramatically, why rely on these outlets to get your message out to the public? Take control of your message and your future.
Today I want to show you a short clip from a ballet company. The group wanted to find a fun way to raise awareness of its annual performance of The Nutcracker. They took a nutcracker doll and took pictures of it around the city. The pictures were edited together and then added a “ticking” sound. A couple of full page graphics were added and voila, the group had a video. Other than time, the project cost nothing.
This video was made without the use of any video. Just still pictures and graphics. It was edited with Windows MovieMaker, a free program. With YouTube, its easy to share the clip and even post it to social media sites like Facebook or embed it into a website.
Your nonprofit has spent a lot of time putting together a video about your agency. In most cases these run about five to six minutes in length. You’ve put it up on YouTube, which is a great social media tool. Maybe you’ve even embedded it your website. But then you stop. In this case you’re not getting as much as you can out of your video.
I’m guessing that your video is composed of several sections. Why not make each of these chapters into their own clips. So out of a 5 minute video, you might get four or five clips.
People consume information differently online. Some may not have the patience to watch a five minute video. But they will watch clips that are about a minute or two in length. Think of it like a restaurant that offers a lunch and a dinner portion of an entree. It’s the same food but it’s just presented in a different way.
In some cases, you’ll need to edit a slide to come before the video that can help set it up. Maybe in the big video, one segment is about mentoring. Pull that out and create an open that says something like, “mentoring minute.” Just a little bit of editing allows you to dramatically increase your video footprint.
Small and large videos should both be used and featured in your website. Maybe the big one goes on your home page and the smaller clips should be posted near the related programs.
Remember that social media marketing is not an exact copy of print marketing. Make sure that on your website or blog, you are limiting the number of words that you use. Pictures and video can sometimes say a lot more than just words.
Recently, on my speaking website I removed some copy and replaced it with a short, 38 second video. The goal was to create a short welcome that would also lay out the purpose of the website and my speaking business.
Through YouTube, I’ll be able to track the number of times people have watched it. I think the home page of the site now looks a bit more dynamic with the clip and also make the reader not shake in horror at having to read a lot of copy. Depending on the results, I may create a brief video for some of the other pages, that would give the basics about what the page is about.
YouTube is a free tool and embedding a video can improve the look and “readability” of your website.
Just about every child wants a puppy. Him or her dreams of bringing the pet home, having a great time, and fulfilling all of the responsibilities that comes with having an animal. Frequently that dream doesn’t turn into reality. After a few weeks, the excitement of having a pet wears off and then someone else has to take care of the pooch. And sometimes that means the animal doesn’t get the amount of love and attention it deserves.
For many nonprofits, social media is a puppy. Everyone is excited about Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter at first but once the “newness” of it wears off, it tends to be neglected.
In both cases, before you take on a new responsibility, make sure you have a commitment to nurturing and supporting either a puppy or social media strategy.
Every day more and more nonprofits are under pressure to start using social media. I think it’s a great idea, even if you’re just sticking your toe into the water with one tool. But very often the call to action comes from a board member or a senior member of staff who may have other motives.
While they may not know it, are they trying to have social media substitute for some task they don’t like to perform? Fundraising is a big one that comes to mind. Do they think that if they start using YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter that they’ll never have to ask the community for a dime again? In their minds, the cash will just magically pour in. Then when this doesn’t happen, you’re suddenly in trouble and don’t have a backup plan.
This is one of the biggest mistakes people can make with a social media strategy. Don’t think of it as a tool that will replace a task. Instead integrate it into your fundraising, communication, and outreach processes. Over time you then may be able to shift more of each function to online methods. But it takes a while to build your capacity. Resist the urge to dive head first into social media with the idea that it will save you from having to do something else.
Social media is great because it doesn’t have to cost your nonprofit a lot of money. Here’s an example of a video that you can use as model for your nonprofit. It was the 4th of July and I took all of the pictures of the fireworks with a basic digital camera. No tripod or anything.
Later I edited them together and added some royalty free music. This comes with the iMovie editor but you can also buy royalty free music very cheaply from a variety of sites online.
Voila, your nonprofit can have an inexpensive video that you can easily upload to YouTube. Why not do this for your next event?
As you bring your message online through social media, you may find yourself and your staff having to record audio. That may make you realize that you don’t sound very good. As a nonprofit, you don’t have the big bucks to hire a professional. In this free online presentation, you’ll learn some easy tips to improve the quality of your delivery.
A lot of nonprofits could learn a thing or two from businesses that have private bathrooms. These are the places where you have to request a key so you can unlock the facilities. Usually the key is attached to some kind of large object, like a shoe, a bowling ball, or some sort of sports equipment. The idea behind this is to make sure that the person will return the key instead of accidentally walking off with it.
While it may be a slightly heavy-handed reminder, it is an effective one.
In your nonprofit, as you craft your social media strategy, you’ll need to make sure it’s clear to everyone who will be working on the project. Make sure roles and duties are clearly defined. Are there backups to help when a key player is called out of the office for an extended period of time? You want all of this to be unforgettable to those involved, much like a restroom key! Remember the biggest obstacle to social media success is not consistently doing the work.
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social marketing, social media, Social Media for nonprofits, Social Media for nonprofits who want to use twitter, youtube and facebook, Uncategorized, youtube | Tagged: brainshark, linkedin, multi-media marketing, netprospex, online marketing, video, youtube | 
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Posted by Ken Okel 
