Measuring and Communicating

Your Impact Conference

29 June 2011

CharityComms is the professional membership body for charity communicators. We believe charity communications

are integral to each charity’s work for a better world.

W: www.charitycomms.org.uk T: 020 7426 8877

Using Multimedia Content

Eric Whelan

Producer, sounddelivery

@ericwhelan

About Us

• Small digital media training, production and consultancy company

• Work with the charity, not-for-profit and heritage and museums sector

• Our mission is to help organisations change the way the communicate and reach as many people as possible using free and cheap tools

www.sounddelivery.org.uk

The Media – What’s Different?

• The type of media that is

available to us has changed

• “Multimedia” is now used

all over the web

• Even traditional media is

being affected – for

example, radio-friendly

press releases

What is Multimedia content?

• Audio

• Video

• Blogs

• Photos

• Social Media presence

• Any kind of content that isn’t simply a single

piece of text

What does the Content allow us to

do?

• Show our supporters the good work we’re doing and where their donations are going

• Tell true stories of the lives of our beneficiaries – particularly useful for annual reports, newsletters, press releases etc

• Give a more human face to our organisations

• Multimedia content is a fantastic way to fundraise

Who’s using Multimedia Content?

How are they using it?

What happened next?

• Content was picked up by several

departments of the Guardian, including

Society Guardian and the Joe Public blog

• As a result, content was seen by many more

people than it otherwise would have, raising

awareness of the work that Carers UK do

• What do you think would have happened with

these stories had they only been in text form?

What about smaller charities?

• It’s not just large charities

that are using multimedia

content

• Tiny, start up organisations

are also creating incredibly

successful multimedia

campaigns

• They are doing this by

utilising free and

affordable tools

Case Study

www.colalife.org

• Charity that campaigns for Coca-Cola to allow

life-saving “aid pods” to be delivered to Africa

with their cola shipments

• The pods contain vitamins, rehydration salts,

supplements and more

• ColaLife have designed the aid pods

themselves and have just been registered as a

charity

What kind of content are they

creating?

• Videos diaries

• Audio pieces

• Photos

• Blog entries

Multimedia content get pride of place right on

the homepage

Why does this content work?

• Very personable, giving supporters an insight into the charity

• Makes the people behind the charity approachable, meaning people are more likely to engage with them online and spread their message

• The content is easily shareable – an important factor when it comes to getting your content noticed

Case Study

www.childsifoundation.org

• Organisation working in Uganda to help local

children and families

• Opened up a Mother and Baby centre last

year, providing support, care and even

temporary placement for local families

• Supported by volunteers and donors

Child’s i Hompage

• The entire website is built around a Wordpress blog

• This means that people working on the project can easily post updates and share any content they have created without the need for a web team

• Readers know exactly who has posted the update, creating a more direct connection with the content

Who do you think this video was for?

• Supporters

• Stakeholders

• Donors

• The media

How does it help?

• Content like this (in video, photos or audio form) really shows off the work that the organisation is doing

• It also shows donors where their money has gone to.

• Being able to clearly see exactly what has been done with donations is likely to encourage donors to return and will engage new supporters

What do you notice that’s different

about the “Our Mission” page on the

website?

Why do you think it’s done this way?

Points to Remember

• With both Child’s i & ColaLife, multimedia

content is key to their online presence

• This is true of many organisations and we

have started to see a shift towards the use of

videos, and audio to tell stories rather than

traditional text

• Always consider if you can show your story,

rather than tell it

Points to Remember

• The key to multimedia content is it’s

shareability

• You can easily embed audio, video, slideshows

and images into blogs, websites, on your

social media presence etc

• Unless you’re speaking about a particular

event, try to keep your content timeless by

not mentioning dates etc

Where to with your content?

• It’s important to remember to think of where

your multimedia content can go

• It allows you to offer ready-made content for

journalists. The media are screaming out for

your content!

• Don’t be afraid – pick up the phone and get in

touch with editors, Clare Horton especially

• Real stories will get you heard

Questions?

Get in Touch

Email: eric@sounddelivery.org.uk

Web: www.sounddelivery.org.uk

Twitter:@ericwhelan / @sounddelivery