David: Welcome to episode eight of Nonprofit Video Comms, the show about video marketing tips to help your organization be seen, get funded and be more helpful. My name is David.
There is a video marketing guy that I've been following for a couple of years now. His name is Todd Hartley, and he says this thing that I'm going to paraphrase. He puts it really well. I'll do my best and it goes like this.
In what world does someone look on the Internet for clothes, something as personal and as intimate as clothes and doesn't try it on, but orders it online, waits a few days, receives it. And if it doesn't fit, is willing to take it back to the post office and send it back and wait another few days until they get it right. In what world is this more desirable than to just go in the store, try the thing on and get it done, buy it, have it instantly. Well, that world is this world, the world that we live in right now, a world that for some reason, I guess through a cumulative effect of commerce and Internet wants to self serve. paraphrase over.
So the reason I think that this is really powerful is, for me personally, is just witnessing that everywhere in terms of more modern digital marketing models and being aware of my own shopping and research and Internet surfing habits. So here are three examples that I've thought of that add a little bit more proof.
The first one is Maps. Google Maps. You can be sure for yourself, for your audience, for me, for your friends, for your kids. That way, when they want to know where something is, they're going to go check on Google Maps. It's one of the top places where someone goes to first in their journey. I'm looking for a hardware shop, go to Google Maps. But in the last decade or so, knowing what people really want in their selfserved shopping experience, they've added these other features, reviews, ratings, phone number, website address. Basically, Google Maps can replace your website. I have often called a contractor for repairs or work to do around the apartment, and there's enough information on Google Maps that I never even needed to visit their website. Website was kind of a secondary thing. It was. Well, if I have to click on it and open up another tab. But actually, I would just rather avoid clicking it altogether, especially on a tiny smartphone screen. If Google Maps gives me everything I need, I will will be happy more often than not. The Google Maps profile of your business or your organization has no information, and I'm going to just go right to the next listing. That's lost opportunity.
The second example of self serve culture is if I'm looking up an organization or if I'm looking up an accountant or if I'm looking up, maybe a design studio, whatever it is I want, I don't know about you but I will go to their social media platform, whether it's Facebook, whether it's Twitter, Instagram just to catch a couple of photos. I just want to see what we're dealing with. Who we're dealing with. Is that office? I don't know why I admit it. The look of the office matters to me. Is this going to be deep inside some mall or is it going to be on the street? Is it going to be close to the bus stop? Is it going to be complicated parking? I'm just looking for clues and photos and videos. Help me with that. Maybe some of you can relate, but when you buy tickets or when you're thinking of buying tickets to a conference or a small event or a workshop, or I don't know what you might look at their Facebook to see previous event photos. Who attends? What does the space look like? How many sit at a table?
The third example of a self serve market is why else would email and private message and text message become an option for inquiries on a website? Probably some combination of people wanting to have a passive or at their own convenience. Communication experience. Nobody wants to call anymore on the phone. Some people do, but even companies are starting to avoid taking phone calls and would prefer email. I'm not saying that's good, but I'm saying that's reality. So between maps lurking and looking at photos and preferring to email or text, this is a world that's trying to get everything they need out of an online experience without ever talking to another person, but also trying to get every human type of interaction possible out of it without actually talking to a person.
So let's talk about how video fits into that on your website. When you are introducing your service or on your website before someone donates or on your website. When you're inviting people to sign up for your programs and services, it would be so helpful to someone like me who is a self serve kind of person who would avoid at almost all costs talking on the phone. It would be so helpful to have a video that's one or two minutes long that just spells out everything we want to know. Things like, who are you? What do you do? How does it benefit me? How does it work? And what can I expect when I sign up? Tell me all of those things. Use your voice. Use your face. Give me all of that information that a person is looking for to reduce the uncertainty, to give predictability to give transparency to help me and others. Imagine what it's like to work with you to pre-imagine or preview or get a little taste of what happens after I sign up and you embed yourself in my mind, as safe as comfortable as this is doable. So this type of video is not special. It's not a story, it's not cinematic, but it shows up at the right time, at the right place. When I'm hovering over a sign up button or a Donate button, it's there to do a job. It's there to be as helpful as possible to me, the self serve audience.
I hope I've given you something to consider. That was episode eight. I would love to connect with you on LinkedIn. My name is David Phu, P-H-U. And I invite you to check out my website. nonprofitvideocomms.ca, to learn more about my video services for nonprofits.
See you next time.
[end]
Learn about our services at Nonprofit Video Comms or follow David on LinkedIn.
Comments