Without fail, we get a call at See3 every week asking us to produce a “viral” video. “You know”, they say, “a video that will get a lot of views when we put it on YouTube.”
And every week, without fail, there is a sigh and a deep breath among the staff at See3 as we explain that maybe a viral video isn’t what you really need. Maybe, we say, what you really need is a video strategy.
The Siren Song of Viral
Nonprofit organizations work very hard to get their messages in front of new audiences. They work to get people to join their emails lists, to show up to events and to eventually become donors. Unlike other marketing efforts that take the actual hard work of building relationships, viral video seems like a short-cut to organizational riches.
The viral video story goes like this: A video will be uploaded to YouTube and it will (magically) catch fire. People will send it to each other and it will get so many views that it ends up in the “Most Viewed” rotation at YouTube, which will only bring in more views and next thing you know 1 MILLION PEOPLE have watched our video!
At this point in the story I ask, “And so what does that get you?” Well, they say, when 1 MILLION PEOPLE know about us, many will go to our website, sign up and be compelled to donate because our video was so good [funny] [sad] [moving] [powerful].
It’s a nice story, but unfortunately, it rarely works out that way.
Facts about Viral Video
You cannot predict which videos will be viral hits
We never promise viral hits because very few organizations are interested in being edgy enough, or off-message enough, to make their video a must-see. YouTube is littered with videos that the makers had hoped would be hits. The real viral video hits – the ones that get in everyone’s email — are, with some notable exceptions, videos with cute pets, people saying stupid things, sex appeal, and other qualities that rarely have anything to do with a nonprofit mission. (All of us should envy the animal welfare groups, because they have the unfair advantage of cute furry creatures.)
YouTube views do not translate into website traffic.
The average video length on YouTube is about 1.5 minutes while the average session time on YouTube is about 30 minutes. What this means is that the most likely thing to happen after someone watches a YouTube video is that they will watch another YouTube video, not enter in your URL to check out your website.
You need long-term supporters, not 1-minute sympathizers
A consumer product, such as Blendtec, gets a benefit from having lots of videos watched on YouTube because it helps their branding, which in a retail setting, translates into purchases. Nonprofits, on the other hand, are not sitting on store shelves. Organizations need to have online strategies that follow-up initial interest with real engagement over the long term. One successful YouTube video, even if it moves people while they are watching it, does not facilitate this engagement. It can be part of a strategy toward engagement, but it cannot be an end in and of itself.
You don’t want to be a one-hit wonder.
The people who are most successful on YouTube aren’t focused on making a single viral video. They are making a series of videos with a character or a set-up that is interesting and brings people back for more. In other words, they are building an audience through regular production of videos that tell stories. That’s what you should be thinking about. By investing in many videos over a long period of time, you are also much more likely to hit on one that attracts others to join your long-term audience.
People who like to watch kittens in paper bags may actually not be good donor prospects
The first question we ask about viral is, “Viral to whom?” The unspoken viral video assumption is that random people on YouTube are potential donor prospects. Some of them may be, of course. But it is likely that the people who spend a lot of time watching the viral video hits are teenagers, for example. You are better off identifying and speaking more directly to the audience who is most likely to already care about your core issues.
One of our biggest viral video hits was this video for the Maryland State Teachers Association. It only has about 2000 views. How can it be considered a viral hit? Because the goal of the video was to influence a debate about education funding and the state-level policy-makers and journalists that matter in that debate all heard about it, passed it on, and watched it. It worked.
Towards a Video Strategy
Viral is just another way of saying “word of mouth” and at its core it means that people pass the content on to one-another without the need for much intervention from the organization. In this sense, having viral marketing work for your organization is important. If you have really important, interesting things to share – and you share them in creative and interesting ways – then people will pass them on to their friends and increase your marketing effectiveness.
Where you should start with online video is to make a commitment to using this new medium to connect people to your work. You need to think about what the important and interesting things are and ask yourself, “How do we document this work?” You need to ask yourself why do you think what you do is important, and ask your staff as well. You need to then capture – on a regular basis – those important and interesting things. If you can find the funny stories, the creative metaphors, and turn your issue on its head once in a while, so much the better. But please, stop focusing on making a viral video and start focusing on making a viral cause.
Michael Hoffman is the CEO of See3 Communications and an expert in online video for nonprofits.
Good post that I plan on sharing the next time viral video comes up. I particularly like your Teachers association example. If we could produce a video that was seen by even 10% of current donors I believe that would be more of a success then a "mentos exploding" type video. People who watch menotos in cans of coke explode would not be interested in our nonprofit.
Posted by: Chris Dattilo | July 16, 2009 at 07:58 AM
Good post Beth!
VIRAL reminds me of FIRE. I love it. I use it. But requires constant watching.
Of course you can't control how others play with it. UNITED Air had a Viral NIGHTMARE when they said no to fixing a broken guitar. Customer YouTube song got 3 MILLION VIEWS in 10 days. http://tinyurl.com/nr38jp
Posted by: Chris Wilde | July 16, 2009 at 08:48 AM
OOPS! HEY MICHAEL. You wrote a great post. I accidentally commented to Beth.
By the way I like your video at www.See3.net "GET THE MESSage OUT." It's refreshing to see something informative and fun.
Posted by: Chris Wilde | July 16, 2009 at 09:29 AM
Thanks for the great post, Michael.
In effort to try and redeem my unsuccessful communication via Twitter - 140 characters can be challenging sometimes :) . . .
I wanted to add to your statement under "Towards a Video Strategy" when you write: "You need to ask yourself why do you think what you do is important, and ask your staff as well" by saying that it might perhaps be more important to ask your community/supporters what they think it is that you do that's important to them and then build your strategy from there.
Thanks, again.
Posted by: Colin Rhinesmith | July 16, 2009 at 10:10 AM
Wonderful post Michael. It's very important for organizations to start with campaign goals to figure out which tools will best help achieve them. Smart advice on the target audiences and measurement of success too.
Posted by: Kristin Henry | July 16, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Thanks for the comments everyone.
Colin, you are 100% right. I think it is critical that organizations be in dialog with their constituents and they can learn what aspects of their missions and work resonate the most.
I also think, and what I was saying in the article, is that founders are passionate, that staff is passionate, and they do what they do for a reason. Getting at those reasons can be a way to bring the passion into your communications more generally.
The most exciting thing about video right now are the efforts to make it more of a conversation as well -- it has been a very one-way medium. But that's for another blog post.
Posted by: Michael Hoffman | July 16, 2009 at 10:17 AM
This is great! I totally agree that nonprofits need to think through the larger purpose of using video.
For example, I'm also very interested in how groups can use video creation as part of constituent leadership development and community organizing. Seems to me that the process of creation can be as important as the final product. At the same time, video is unique. Unlike lots of social media, it's created offline and often collaboratively. So much text-based digital media requires online access and a high level of English literacy.
That said, I do think that video is a storytelling tool. Even though being viral isn't a worthwhile goal, it's still important to think about what makes compelling engaging storytelling to draw the viewer in and spur them to share the video with others. Thanks again for this Michael! Keep up your great work!
Posted by: Will Coley | July 16, 2009 at 10:40 AM
Great post, I totally agree with the concept that nonprofits need long-term supporters, not 1-minute sympathizers. Quality over quantity!
Posted by: DorotheeRH | July 16, 2009 at 06:04 PM
Nice post, Mike. It's one of those posts that I save to my Delicious for another day!
I say that because like you I do believe that video is an important strategy moving forward. But also like you, I don't believe it's the be-all, end-all to making your organization compelling and successful. It's just another piece--an important one, I think--but just another.
I think the bigger challenge for nonprofits is coming up with a video strategy that is effective, doable and affordable. If it is "another thing," it needs to find its place in that world among blogging, snapping pictures, tweeting, hanging out at Facebook, etc. That's what I really need to understand and why one of my staff is signing up for your free seminar at the end of the month.
Thanks again for writing this, Mike. And thanks to Beth for giving Mike the space!
Posted by: Joe Waters | July 17, 2009 at 07:52 AM
Excellent post!
Viral videos get old. Who wants their nonprofit message to "get old"?
Posted by: Zoe | July 18, 2009 at 04:37 AM
There’s no question the cause community has gravitated towards social media outreach including web video given it’s relatively low cost as compared to it’s potential scalability. But often social media is best deployed as an additive to a robust integrated campaign, including paid media. And moreover, typically doesn’t achieve the dreamy results that one craves unless both a strong brand and an engaged audience are already in place. To your point Michael, if you're strategic in your targeting and messaging AND include a clear and convenient call to action you'll be viral to those who mean the most to achieving your results.
Brian Powell
@goodconcepts
Posted by: Brian Powell | July 19, 2009 at 01:38 PM
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Posted by: holy spirit | July 22, 2009 at 11:43 AM