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Hey non-profit volunteers, go ‘door-to-door’ online!

May 16th, 2009   Filed Under Non-profit  

My house is on a busy street in San Francisco, gated from the sidewalk and sheltered from any stranger getting to the front door or for that matter ringing the bell, which has been left unfixed for months. You can imagine my surprise one windy night when summoned by a knock at the door, I’m greeted by a neighborhood canvasser from Save the Children who tells me for just under $30 a month I can sponsor a child in dire need. At that moment the $20 meal still digesting in my stomach guiltily shifted position and reminded me of the many not-so-fortunate. That was emotionally the right time as any for me to pull out my credit card and bring dear Fritz-Jouls from the Philippines into my life.

I can’t help but imagine countless other serendipitous possibilities for a volunteer to catch a potential supporter in just the right moment. Volunteers should be going ‘door-to-door’ on the web where they can reach an endless amount of people with the same intimate and emotion-provoking message.

Everyday we dream up new uses for our online studio and using it for non-profit organizations is always rewarding to explore. Imagine if every volunteer who goes canvassing on the street also made an on-demand Broadcast, bringing together pamphlets, videos and images. The volunteer could do an intimate webcam recording or narration telling the story of their cause. It would capture the ‘door-to-door’ experience online for sharing with friends on social networks, by email and forwarded around. It’s a great way to build awareness, make a real connection and direct potential donors to the website.

Here’s a great example created by Ashley Boren, the Executive Director at Sustainable Conservation, a non-profit organization that works with businesses and landowners promoting practical solutions for environmental and economic sustainability:

You Blog, You Tweet, BUT do you Webcam?

May 7th, 2009   Filed Under Faculte  

I hate it when someone takes my picture.

It stems from my deep-rooted aversion to contrived photos like those family outings where everyone is lined up and giving their best shot at a smile for the camera. You know, the kind of photos that make it straight to the dusty family album.

Marketing that aims to be ‘real’ is no different.

Too many smiling faces on every poster, ad or package that tries to stage a candid moment of happiness and ends up looking like stock imagery. Most of them probably *are* stock images. See for yourself here. This same stock image has been used on 192 different sites!

I started the Fireside Chats here in the office as a way to capture the team’s thoughts and philosophy in an engaging form. One sit-down with the team and I have video content for at least three Broadcasts!

Some of your best marketing is in your internal discussions. That meeting you had about your company’s vision and what your organization stands for? You probably had nuggets of gold hiding in there without you even realizing. So where was that webcam?!

I’m going to propose something radical here, so brace yourself.

For one day, imagine your office or workspace is a reality TV show and film everything. Grab yourself a flipcam or webcam and film your discussions, film your meetings and pull people aside for on-the-spot interviews. Assign somebody as the cameraman. Or if you’re a one-man show, film yourself. Get someone to ask you questions over the phone and answer them on-camera.

Keep in mind that you’ll use this footage on your website or blog so it still has to look good and sound good.

Here are a few tips to get you there:

1. Get the right equipment. There are a lot of great inexpensive options for handycams, webcams and microphones.

2. Stabilize the camera. Use books or a chair or anything that will put the camera at eye level with the person speaking. Try not to walk around with the camera in hand.

3. Test the sound. Always be aware of where the microphone is.

4. Have good lighting. Look for a room with lots windows to take advantage of the natural light. Face the camera away from the light so your subject doesn’t look like they’re giving an anonymous confession

With good positioning of the camera, great sound and nice lighting, you can become a content machine and capture some of your best marketing. Your content will be real, intimate, relatable and professional. Hey, you never know maybe these Fireside Chats will become an integral part of your marketing mix!