Video

In this video created exclusively for FundRaising Success, Michael Schweisheimer, owner and executive producer of Primitive World Productions, a company that specializes in video production for nonprofit organizations, offers three approaches for nonprofits entering the world of video fundraising.

CARADEUX CAMP, Haiti — The movie screen rose like an apparition, in the middle of a tent city, on a hillside veined by rain. “Under the Sky,” the title card said, and sure enough, a soap opera about a family living right here suddenly appeared.

Love and scandal followed, but the episode focused mainly on one issue: con men in the camps. After a slick villain in dark sunglasses tried to sell registration cards to the show’s main characters, claiming falsely that they could be redeemed for cash, officials with the International Organization for Migration suddenly appeared to save the day.

Online video is one of the best ways to tell your nonprofit's story. When done right, it can forge 
powerful connections between your organization and your supporters — but only when it stands out from the competition, in three minutes or less.

SANTA CRUZ, August 26, 2009, Mercury News — A new Internet-based nonprofit that offers video portals into some of the world's poorest communities aims to make educated philanthropy as easy as a click.

SANTA CRUZ, August 26, 2009 — A new Internet-based nonprofit that offers video portals into some of the world's poorest communities aims to make educated philanthropy as easy as a click.

Pew Internet & American Life Project — The audience for online video sharing sites like YouTube and Google Video continues to grow swiftly across all demographic groups, far outpacing the adoption rates of many other internet activities. Fully 62% of adult internet users have watched a video on these sites, up from just 33% who reported this in December 2006. Online video watching among young adults is near-universal; nine in ten (89%) internet users ages 18-29 now say they watch content on video sharing sites, and 36% do so on a typical day.

Using video online is a great strategy that allows organizations to deliver messages to constituents through blogs, social networks and other online gathering areas.

July 15, 2009, VOA News — A social entrepreneur is someone who solves a societal problem with a novel solution that benefits humanity, particularly people in the world's poorest communities. Take, for example, British education advocate Ann Cotton. She started a program to support young African girls whose families could not afford school fees. The young women return to their communities as leaders and educators themselves.

NEW YORK, NY, June 16, 2009 — The FeedRoom, a pioneer in online video communications, and a market leader in live streaming video and digital asset management, today announced that The Humane Society of the United States has launched a mobile marketing application, enabling the nation's largest animal protection organization to extend its Web video library to millions of iPhone and iPod Touch users. A FeedRoom customer since 2007, The HSUS delivers information and alerts to millions of online users by enabling Web sites, blogs and social media sites with video and podcast RSS feeds, and other video sharing capabilities.

June 6, 2009, Indianapolis Business Journal — Most of us wouldn’t drop what we’re doing to show our friends a form letter that included our names in the salutation.