制作一个有效的筹款视频

As industry professionals, we understand the power of online video. What’s even more appealing is that the majority of brands and companies are figuring it out, too. Ultimately, that means more work for video experts and storytellers. One of the fastest-growing markets for our skillsets is in the world of fundraising.

Kickstarter等平台, Indiegogo, and DonateNow have exploded in the past few years and are giving entrepreneurs, 非营利组织, inventors and small businesses a chance at fulfilling their dreams.

每个组织或项目的目标可能有所不同, but what doesn’t change is the fact that video plays a vital role in online fundraising. That’s because it’s a visual and engaging way to tell stories and encourage people to support the campaigns. With that in mind, here are 5 tips on crafting successful fundraising videos.

1. 了解平台

现在有几个不同的筹款平台. 他们都有自己的一套规则和指导方针. The first thing we do when we’re approached with a fundraising project is to learn all that we can about the specific platform that our client is using.

It’s absolutely critical to know whether the platform has limitations on video length, 大小, 编解码器, 交互性, 或者其他关键规格. Some may allow for YouTube or Vimeo embeds while others require you to upload straight to the platform.

Additionally, it’s important to know where the video is going to be positioned on the campaign page. 关注视频播放器的大小. 如果它是一个小玩家, then you may want to consider framing your subjects a little tighter in production, 这样观众就能和你视频里的人产生联系.

You can also see if there are any buttons positioned on the campaign page, 比如“点击捐赠”或类似的东西. Get creative with these and have your talent or on-camera subjects point to these buttons to direct viewers to the callouts. 看看 这篇文章 on a breakdown of some of the top online fundraising platforms out there (下面的图1).

图1. 顶级筹款平台.

2. 讲故事，但不要炫耀

As with any other video project, these fundraising videos need to evoke emotion. The whole purpose of the videos is to get viewers to believe in something and support the cause. Take a step back after your initial client call and think about all of the layers that go into a compelling video.

Ask yourself what the tone of the video should be: Are you trying to make people sad, 疯了, 快乐, 害怕或沮丧? 除了捐赠，你希望他们采取什么样的行动? Figuring out the desired emotion can help you select the right piece of music, 视觉风格, 相机的设置, 还有视频的节奏. Be proactive and ask your client about these things during pre-production so that everyone is on the same page.

I strongly recommend that you do not pull out all of the bells and whistles for these videos. 在大多数情况下, the companies hiring you to produce the content are not going to have a huge budget, 但如果他们这么做了, creating something that is over-produced may lead viewers to assume that your client does not really need the money if they can already afford a Hollywood-style commercial.

查看我们为 Ruby 杂志众筹活动, where we used a person-on-the-street interview style video that tied together powerful audio and opinions from the target audience (下面的图2).

图2. Ruby杂志竞选视频的采访.

Challenge yourself to focus on the story and try to keep it simple. Approaching it this way and producing a well-crafted story can be just as meaningful as a big-budget production.