If you didn’t know, YouTube is the #2 Search engine. It gets top engagement on multiple social platforms. It’s the cheapest to advertise (1 cent per view on FB and few cents per view on Youtube ads gives a great ROI). As cable is declining and online streaming is increasing, Forbes says the U.S. is watching more videos online than ever before! So, it’s time to use this YouTube for nonprofits tutorial to get on the video bandwagon and start making some video content to support your mission.
YouTube is the #2 search engine. Capitalize on that, nonprofits! Here's how: Click To Tweet
Where do we start?
First think about the goal of your organization. Does it make sense to create a channel? Honestly, everybody shouldn’t have video, but more organizations should definitely look more into it.
One question we hear a lot is,
“Is it better to have no video content or low-quality video content?”
The most important part of creating videos is the content! If you can provide value, educate and entertain your audience, this will be more important that the quality of your video.
Here at Whole Whale, we use the Video Series Approach which means we post videos regularly and in a similar style. The series approach can be used to tell your organization’s story and work towards your mission. Some organizations that do this this well and you can look to for inspiration are,
So, how do we make WholeWhale TV?
First we start out with plan. We brainstorm new ideas to make videos on and once we come up with an awesome idea, we create a presentation, then convert it to a Prezi that we can refer back to while recording the video. Last we find a quiet place with good lighting where we can set up our equipment.
Here is a list of the equipment we use:
- Cannon T5i
- lav mic
- backdrop
- battery + SD cards
- Tripod
- Reflector
- Computer (Mac)
Once you have recorded video, you can move to production!
First, get an Intro and Outro! You can use them for all of your videos, and this makes your videos instantly look more professional and polished. Hire a Pro or use Fiverr, where you can look up video animation from people willing to do this for FIVE DOLLARS!
Once you have your Intro and Outro you can focus on different ways to keep your audience interested. One way is to use background music. Some sites that provide royalty free music are:
You can use screen recording tools paired with voice overs. Some of these tools are:
Another thing you can use are mini animations! These take a lot of time, but some resources are:
Youtube has great resources! You can use Youtube.com/Creators, Youtube.com/ Non Profits, and Youtube’s Editor to help you create awesome videos.
Last but not least, we strongly recommend hiring a video intern. Look up local colleges and find a student that can help you! We have a super awesome Digital Media Intern here at Whole Whale (and we’re not just saying that because she wrote this post).
Don’t forget to look at some of our other videos, like How to Promote your YouTube channel and How to Measure Your Audience With YouTube Analytics.
Now go forth and create some awesome videos to support your cause!