Published: September 16, 2016
by Katie Hemmeter
When it comes to fundraising, videos have a significant impact. We’re not about to throw around statistics and create anxiety, so we’ve provided some real takeaways from a 2013 Google study that, with cooperation from 14 nonprofit organizations, confirmed the importance of videos as a fundraising tool.
Fundraising Finding #1
57% of people who watched a nonprofit video went on to actually donate.
Takeaway: Nonprofit videos – whether educational in nature, bringing awareness of the organization, or making a specific ask for money – are effective at attracting donors. Using a video can help motivate the potential donor to hit that button and contribute.
Fundraising Finding #2
The frequency of watching nonprofit videos doubled in the month prior to a donation.
Takeaway: The timing and release of a video is extremely important. Don’t wait until the 11th hour.
- Have an end of year “ask” letter? Ensure the accompanying video is live in October.
- Annual fundraiser coming up? Post testimonial videos at least 1-2 months beforehand.
Fundraising Finding #3
During the month before a donation is made, donors watched an average of 5.7 nonprofit videos.
Takeaway: Stand out from the crowd! Remember that people buy on emotion and justify on price. An effective nonprofit video should make the viewer smile, laugh, cry, or better yet, do all three before it’s over.
Fundraising Finding #4:
84% of nonprofit videos are discovered from a traditional search engine, not by going directly to the nonprofit’s website.
Takeaway: Not on YouTube yet? Even if only one video is added each year, it is worth the time to create and maintain a channel. It’s easy to set up, and once you have your video ready to go, it’s just another click to share it to social media.
Check out videos we’ve done for nonprofits by visiting our Vimeo channel.
Click here to view the full findings of the study, presented by Google.