This winter, millions of people worldwide saw the
Kony 2012 video posted on their Facebook, Twitter and posted on other social
media sites. The video even made local and global news around the world. If you
have been living in a cave for the last four months and haven't seen the video,
click
here.
I am not focused on promoting the video (or the
cause) itself; I understand the organization who released this video, The
Invisible Children, have been scrutinized for various reasons. For the purpose
of this blog post, I want to focus solely on the organization's effective
methods of gaining support and receiving donations.
I know the Invisible Children organization is not
Canadian but they did an excellent job capturing attention of Canadians,
resulting in numerous donations. The Kony2012 video has 90 million hits on
YouTube! That’s more hits than the number of people who live in Canada.
The website has received over 3 million pledges
from over 200 countries, including Canada. The website is well presented with
an easily found “donate” button on the first page. Once clicking on the button,
you can make a simple donation for 10, 20, 40 or 100 dollars as a one time
payment or monthly option. Supporters can then pay with various types of credit
cards. The Invisible Children have made donating online incredibly simple.
The question is, why and how did the video go
viral and how did it drive so much traffic to the charity’s website in the
first place, resulting in donations?
Bloomberg BusinessWeek tells us why.
1. It
tells a story: The video is easy to understand and it tells a
story that is still ongoing.
2. The video is about you: Jason
Russell, filmmaker and co-founder of the Invisible Children starts the
video with footage of his son’s birth, adding a voiceover that reminds us that
this child represents us. “Every single person in the world started this way,”
Russell tells us. “He didn’t choose where or when he was born, but because he’s
here, he matters.”
3. It’s action packed: The video sweeps
us up into the action as it’s well-filmed, colorful, and as it uses footage of
the problem itself.
4. Famous
people: Famous people told you about the video or tweeted about it to
show their support.
5. The story isn’t over: The video
makes viewers believe that they can make a change by buying posters and
bracelets or simply by donating.
To read more on BusinessWeek, click here.
Overall, I think the Invisible Children have
provided us with an excellent case study on charities using viral marketing. The charity is an example on how to leverage a large amount of Facebook friends and
Twitter followers to spread a message.
- JS
This is a great case study in terms of their online fundraising efforts. What made this campaign so successful was that it had such a clear and simple message at the end of the video. The viewer finished the video knowing exactly what to do and how to do it. The online donation form seems simple to use.
ReplyDeleteAnother reason for the success of this campaign is that it empowered the viewer. The video made the viewer feel like they personally could make a huge difference, and it showed the power in numbers. Many other charities simply state that your donation will make a difference in someone's life and expect you to feel great about donating, however this campaign showed the grassroots aspect and how people just like us made a significant difference already in Uganda.
Overall, I think it was a great example of how to captivate your audience to get online donations.
-Nicole Craig
JS:
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the ambition and thought that went into this post, especially the detail around the donor-friendly description. I feel like the simplicity in donating makes it that much more enticing. No, I haven’t been living under a rock—although it certainly feels like that since we started this spring semester, but I was definitely a late adopter. I’ll admit that for a moment, I considered buying a Kony2012 pack (a very quick moment) until I found out it’s a do-it-yourself poster display kind of thing. I guess I just never got the whole Canadians should know what Kony looks like… in case he comes to Canada and his face is not on the poster. I digress.
Had I made it to the website, I’m sure I would have appreciated the ten dollar donation increments, after all, we are speaking about the younger demographics and their crazy social media wave. I immediately thought, “That’s less than two Starbucks coffees.” When I started counting in Starbucks coffees, I’ll never know. Online donations seem to be a great way to connect international audiences as proved by Kony2012.
I like your pull from an outside resource (BusinessWeek) describing some components of success. I wonder if Jason Russell's naked meltdown appearance on TMZ hurt the organization. Regardless, I think YOUR blog has provided me with and excellent review.
Michelle D – Team 4