YouTube and Such

When last we spoke, I mentioned my belief that the availability of free or inexpensive technologies offer incredible opportunities for non-profits. One of those freebies is YouTube. Jason Clark over at Untangled on the Edge talks a little about how easy it is to use this video-hosting source, which got me to thinking about some of the ways that non-profits could be using YouTube to further their mission:

• The most obvious, of course, is videotaping events and activities that tell your organization's particular story. This is particularly effective, I think, if you serve kids or animals or any other group that would cause people to go "AHHHHHHH" when they saw the video online. There's nothing like a classroom of pre-schoolers talking about who they want to be when they grow up to make us want to throw money your way.

• Staff training and development in many agencies is often a matter of "trial by fire." One day the staff person is completing new hire paperwork. The next, she's meeting with a client, often after only a few hours of reading a manual or watching a co-worker. But with YouTube, you could easily tape brief training segments that model meetings with clients or show staff how to maintain information in your on-line database. These can be accessible anytime, anywhere. If you got creative, you could even work with other agencies to develop training videos that could be shared, maybe introducing staff to the other organizations with which you work, or teaching things like case management skills that may be common to a group of agencies.

• If you want to get creative in the marketing area, create a viral video--something that is fun and catchy and gets your message across. Through sites like YouTube and Google Video you can then create a viral marketing campaign that sends your message zinging throughout the Internet, hopefully bringing dollars and publicity back your way. Viral marketing is a little like catching lightning in a bottle, but if you develop it through partnering with customers, then you can also kill a couple of birds with one stone.

These are just a few ideas off the top of my head, but I imagine that some of you may have thought of some others already. Tell us what you're thinking . . .