YouTube Debuts Nonprofit Program

YouTube Debuts Nonprofit Program
Organizations Can Now Apply for a Designated Nonprofit Channel and Collect Donations Through Google Checkout for Non-Profits

SAN BRUNO, CA--(Marketwire - September 27, 2007) - Hundreds of nonprofits currently leverage YouTube, the leader in online video, to raise awareness of their causes. Today at the Clinton Global Initiative, YouTube announced the YouTube Nonprofit Program, a way to make it even easier for people to find, watch and engage with nonprofit video content on the site.

YouTube's 2007/2008 Clinton Global Initiative commitment enables nonprofit organizations (in the U.S. those with 501c3 tax filing status) that register for the program to receive a free nonprofit specific YouTube channel where they can upload footage of their work, public service announcements, calls to action and more. The channel will also allow them to collect donations with no processing costs using the newly launched Google Checkout for Non-Profits. YouTube's global platform enables nonprofits to deliver their message, showcase their impact and needs, and encourage supporters to take action.

"Video, unlike any other medium, allows nonprofits to give a tangible demonstration of their efforts, connect with people and exponentially widen their reach," said Douglas Staples, Senior Vice President, Strategic Marketing & Communications from the March of Dimes. "We are excited to be an initial participant in the program. We'll use our YouTube channel to reach out to an audience of all ages and engage them in our mission, which is to give every baby a healthy start, and we encourage other nonprofits to do the same."

YouTube Nonprofit Program participants will receive:


-- A premium channel on YouTube that serves as a nonprofit's hub for
their uploaded videos. Through the channel, people can connect with a
nonprofit via messages, subscriptions, comments and more. Nonprofits will
also receive enhanced channel branding features and increased upload
capacity.

-- Designation as a "Nonprofit" on YouTube that clearly identifies
organizations as a nonprofit for YouTube community.

-- The ability to embed a Google Checkout donation button on their
channel and video watch pages, allowing people to quickly and securely make
a contribution directly from YouTube. Starting today, nonprofits who offer
Google Checkout for Non-Profits as a donation option -- whether through
YouTube or on their own sites -- will receive 100 percent of donated funds,
as Google has committed to processing all donations for free through at
least the end of 2008.

-- In the coming months, nonprofit channels will have a centralized area
on YouTube, making them and their videos more easily discoverable.
"When YouTube was founded we dreamed that people would someday leverage the site to make the world a better place," said YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley. "It is an honor to have great organizations and individuals utilizing the YouTube to raise awareness of noble causes and we are thrilled to offer a program that helps them thrive and inspire change."

At launch there will be a thirteen organizations participating in the YouTube Nonprofit Program including:

24 Hours for Darfur * American Cancer Society * Autism Speaks * 92nd Street Y * Asia Society * Strong American Schools' ED in '08 * Friends of the Earth * International Rescue Committee * March of Dimes * YouthNoise * The ONE Campaign * The Clinton Global Initiative * World Vision Australia

Application Process

Nonprofits can apply for a nonprofit channel type by going to youtube.com/nonprofits and filling out a short application, which will be processed by our grants team. This page will also contain information on how to take advantage of this new channel type, as well as some tips for how to use YouTube effectively for advocacy and fundraising.

About YouTube

Founded in February 2005, YouTube is the leading video community on the Internet and the premier destination to watch and share original videos worldwide through a Web experience. YouTube allows people to easily upload and share video clips on www.YouTube.com and across the Internet through websites, blogs, and e-mail. YouTube has quickly become the leading destination on the Internet for video entertainment. YouTube is a subsidiary of Google, Inc.

About the Clinton Global Initiative

President Clinton started the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in 2005. A non-partisan catalyst for action, CGI brings together a community of global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges. CGI consists of approximately 1,000 members from all over the world who commit to create or support projects within one or more of CGI's annual areas of focus. In 2007, the areas of focus are education, energy & climate change, global health, and poverty alleviation. For further information, please contact Jove Oliver, Director of Marketing and Communications, Clinton Global Initiative, (212) 710-4416. jove.oliver@clintonglobalinitiative.org.

Gift Hub: How to Build A Ship

I can think of few better ways to describe my role as a development officer for a social justice organization than teaching our supporters to "long for the endless immensity of" genuine community.

Thank you, Phil Cubeta, for continuing to be a beacon!

Gift Hub: How to Build A Ship

If you want to build a ship,
don't herd people together to collect wood
And don't assign them tasks and work
but rather, teach them to long for the
endless immensity of the sea.

---Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Eight Things Your Home Page Should Have

Thanks to Katya's Non-Profit Marketing Blog for referring me to this excellent list: "Eight Things Your Home Page Should Have."

For those who don't want to click, here is the relevant content:

Eight Things A Nonprofit Home Page Should Have

• A guessable URL
  
• Your postal address (so you look legit and so people can send you a check if they want)
  
• Your phone number (shows you’re real, makes you accessible)
  
• Email sign-up (so you can cultivate people after they visit)
  
• Keyword density (so people will find you via search) - this is so important!
  
• Donate Now buttons (on the main part of the page and in the navigation)
  
• A pathway for learning more about the organization (a case for why you should donate)
  
• Images - strong, emotional ones that are clickable (people expect images to be clickable - send them to your case for giving or your donate form)

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One final reminder.... tonight is A Night to Remember 2007 with LeAnn Rimes, a benefit concert for Central Dallas Ministries. Tickets are available at the gate starting at 1:00 p.m.

Yayyyyyyy, it's finally here!

The best fundraisers are 100% mission, 0% marketing

I recently came across the Donor Power Blog's article, "The best fundraisers probably aren't fundraisers." This article resonated deeply within me, as I firmly belive in its core argument that program officers are far better fundraisers than development staff.

To put it into context, here is the vision of Central Dallas Ministries:
"To put ourselves out of business by removing the need for our services."

Similarly, I have put forth the following vision for my development department:
"To put ourselves out of a job by removing CDM's need for our services."

Yes, it is unlikely that either vision will come to be. The poor will always be with us, and the rich will always require that certain hoops be jumped through before granting their benevolence unto CDM....

But I do believe that we can dramatically improve our work by focusing on a "world without us", which would involve:

• Donors who send checks without prompting,
  
• Program officers who know what their supporters need, and who have the technical capacity and the "bandwidth" to provide them with this information,
  
• Robust financial management that can easily and efficiently provide the level of transparency and accountability that both donors and non-donors would expect of any public charity purporting to work on behalf of their community's best interest,
  
• Sustainable revenue streams that do not depend on giving trends.

I long for the day when my organization does not need me to focus on asking for money, and when I can spend my time simply telling the story of our good work at building community in the inner city.

Perhaps, though, we are all closer to that goal than we realize.

Perhaps the truth is that all of our complicated designs and overwrought machinations of wealth capturing are nothing compared to the honest moments when we sit down to listen to a donors dreams, and take the time to open our hearts to our own.

Taste of Deep Ellum TONIGHT!

Thank you to our neighbors in Deep Ellum for naming CDM the beneficiary of this event. I hope to see you all at the show!

A Taste of Deep Ellum
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Sons of Hermann Hall, 3414 Elm Street at Exposition
4pm to 7:30pm.

Admission $25 benefitting Central Dallas Ministries
Tickets available at frontgatetickets.com, or locally at Bill's Records, S. Lamar OR at Good Records, Greenville Ave.

A Taste of Deep Ellum will be "family friendly" and feature Live Music by a diverse group of Dallas musicians including a group of students from Zounds Sounds School of Rock, as well as local Country, Folk and Rock bands.

Food Stations by each participating restaurant/business will be spread throughout the entire building and admission will grant attendees food samples from all.

Confirmed participants:

AllGood Cafe
Baker's Ribs
Chateau de Fromage
Daddy Jack's Wood Grill
Dallas Mozzarella Company
Deep Sushi
Golden Desserts
Istanbul Grill
Monica's Aca y Alla
Murray Street Coffee
Rudolph's Meat Market
Rush Patisserie
Santiago's Taco Loco
Sol's Taco Lounge
St. Pete's Dancing Marlin
Vern's Soul Food Cafe
and the
Deep Ellum Association

Musical Entertainment by:

SHIBBOLETH ~ SHANGHAI 5
ANN ARMSTRONG & STEVE HUGHES
ZOUNDS SOUNDS SCHOOL OF ROCK
LAURA HARRELL & FRANKIE 45

14 of Forbes’ Richest Call Dallas Home

Found an interesting local blog this morning called Dallas is My Home. They posted this about the recent Forbes 400 List:

For a city that logistically has no reason to exist as a major metropolitan market, Dallas hasn’t done too bad for itself.

In Forbes Magazine’s recent list of the 400 wealthiest Americans (Forbes does have a fixation with lists!), 14 of that stellar class make their homes here.

They include:

• Harold Simmons at #43 on the list. At the age of 76, he’s worth $7.4 billion. His money is from investments.
  
• Robert Rowling is #49 with $6.4 billion. His pockets are lined with the profits from oil, gas & investments.
  
• Henry Ross Perot is #76 with 4.4 billion at the age of 77. His money is from computer services and real estate.
  
• Ray Hunt is #82. At $4.0 billion, he made his money in oil and real estate. He’s 64 and a modern day JR Ewing.
  
• T. Boone Pickens is #117. At the age of 79, he’s worth $3.0 billion. His loot is from investments, oil and gas.
  
• Mark Cuban is a young’un at 49 and is #161 on the list with $2.6 billion. His money is from Broadcast.com and he’s the owner of the Dallas Mavericks (NBA) and a recently named contestant on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars”.
  
  With 6 Dallasites tied at #117 with $1.5 billion each, they include:
  
  
• Gerald J. Ford. At the age of 63 he made his money in banking.
  
• Andrew Beal. He’s 54 and his resources came from Beal Bank and real estate.
  
• Timothy Headington. 57 years old from oil and investments.
  
• Todd Wagner. At 47, he’s also from Broadcast.com.
  
• Trevor Rees-Jones. At 57 he’s from oil.
  
• Jerry Jones. 64 years old (though still trying to pass for 50 with all that plastic surgery he’s had done) and owner of the Dallas Cowboys (NFL) which was recently named the world’s most valuable sports franchise.
  
  Another tie at #380 with $1.3 billion each are:
  
  
• Thomas Hicks at the age of 61, he made his money from leveraged buyouts.
  
• Kenny Troutt at 59. He founded Excel Communications.

Lots of money in this silly little town that, as they rightly say, has little natural reason to exist....

How are you tapping into this vast well?

Free Your Mind ... and Others' Pocket Books

An excellent article that every grantmaker should read ...

White Courtesy Telephone: How To Free Our Funder Minds ...

"We can start by contemplating, then rejecting, the following two widely held notions....

1. It’s my job as a funder to separate the wheat from the chaff, the bad nonprofits from the good. I reward the effective nonprofits by giving them money (for a few years anyway); I discourage the ineffective nonprofits by denying them funding.

2. Different funders have different missions and therefore different funding priorities. Thus it’s perfectly appropriate for some funders to forego supporting “overhead” and other organizational strengthening costs like board development, the upgrading of financial reporting systems, and the like."

And an excellent article that every fundraiser should read . . .

Donor Power Blog: Fundraising the hard (but effective) way

"... deciding to give money to a charity is an emotional process, it's much more to do with the heart than the brain. So a mailed appeal should aim to produce tears of sadness or outrage or anger. An event must produce laughter or comradeship or unity. You should try to give your supporters ... 'planned emotional moments,' moments when they feel like thanking the charity for the opportunity you've given them to do something they'd be unable to do without you."

Make space for art... and win $5,000!

I recently blogged about the noble work of my dear friend, Catherine Cuellar, who would push boulders up mountains to make our world a better place.

Looking into her story a bit more, I uncovered this wonderful article in the Dallas Morning News that gives some more details on her latest project.... La Reunion, "where life and art unite."

"La Reunion TX plans artists' compound in Oak Cliff | GuideLive.com"

Pictured here is a photo from that story; the tagline reads, "Sarah Jane Semrad (right) and Catherine Cuellar plan to build the compound around a railroad trestle."

Well, it turns out that La Reunion is sponsoring "the most irresistible dream project ever" ... more details at this link, and quoted below:

la reunion tx: where life and art unite :: architecture

La Reunion TX announces the most irresistible dream project ever in the form of a juried architecture exhibit! We seek ideas for a sustainable live/work space for up to 10 artists with a multifunctional space for intimate performances, installations, and exhibits. It will be built in and around an amazing site which is also the home of a startling historic artifact -- a trestle leftover from the Interurban Rail Line. Cash prizes to selected entries. Please visit link below for an entry form, specs, downlowdable poster by Square 1, and more info!

la reunion tx: architecture contest

A Night to Remember 2007

Next Monday, Central Dallas Ministries hosts the 2007 A Night to Remember -- our annual fundraiser and community celebration!

Monday, September 24 at 7:00 p.m. the doors will open for the 8:00 p.m. concert at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the Downtown Arts District here in Dallas. This year our night of celebration will feature country musician and Grammy Award winner LeAnn Rimes!

In addition to the great music, CDM will name the 2007 winner of the Hazel E. Brown Community Builder Award.

It will definitely be a night to remember!

Help us sell out this great music hall!

For ticket information, visit:
http://centraldallasministries.org

Renewing the Faith of Fundraisers: Blue Rock Texas and La Reunion

I often struggle in my faith as a fundraiser. It can be so unfortunately easy to slip under the cold waves, as your dinghy is battered about by realities such as the disproportionately increasing number of non-profit organizations compared to the slow growth of donations, the ever-dwindling capacity to get the public's attention in a world bombarded by charity newsletters, emails, videos, blogs and appeals for support. . .

In the midst of this darkening storm, I am grateful today for two people who have renewed my faith in the uniquely human enterprise of philanthropy.

The first is Dodee Crockett, whom I recently met at the National Committee on Planned Giving's September meeting, which I blogged about here. Dodee is a CFP and a First Vice President and Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch. She spends her time advising clients on how to plan their estates, and how to utilize their wealth to achieve their dreams.

In her presentation, someone asked her to describe her Blue Rock project. A sudden wave of delight and surprise washed over her -- she had enjoyed discussing her professional work, but you could see that suddenly she had tapped into that deep well of passion that fills her heart and life with meaning. She energetically talked about the artist ranch and studio, Blue Rock Texas, that she and her husband had created.

"We do not have children, and realized that this would be our legacy," she explained. The Crocketts have planned their estate so that Blue Rock will continue to be funded when they leave this life. Dodee truly is practicing what she preaches to her clients.

The second person who brings joy and renewed hope into my life as a fundraiser is my dear friend, Catherine Cuellar. For the past six years, Catherine has worked tirelessly as one of the shining stars at KERA public radio (broadcast in Dallas at 90.1 FM). She recently announced that she will be joining Pegasus News as Managing Editor.

Among the many other things that Catherine does in her life, she co-founded an artist residency in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas called La Reunion, "where life and art unite." In addition to being a place for local artists to gather, the organization itself is galvanizing the community around the idea that local art is relevant, powerful and ALL AROUND us... we need merely open our eyes, and get out there to find it.

(La Reunion also puts on some of the best events in our city... definitely worth subscribing to their eNewsletter)

Dodee and Catherine have both created spaces within their lives and worlds that are dedicated to their passion. This is not about fundraising: it's about allocating resources -- not just money, but time, emotion, thought, love -- into something outside of yourself. It's about creating legacies.

Thank you, Dodee and Catherine, for renewing our faith in people's capacity to give.

Centers of Influence and Planned Giving

Thank you to Phil Cubeta for encouraging me to attend this week's meeting of the North Texas Chapter of the National Committee on Planned Giving. The topic was "Translating Ideals into Action: Tools for Effective Planning with Your Client or Donor."

The speakers included:

• Dodee Frost Crockett, CFP, First Vice President and Senior Financial Advisor, Merrill Lynch;
  
• Kathryn Henkel, JD, Partner, Hughes and Luce, LLP;
  
• Michelle Monse, JD, President, Carl B. and Florence E. King Foundation; and
  
• moderator Jayne Grimes, CFP, Carter Financial Management, North Texas Chapter NCPG board member

The presentation was very informative, and reminded me a great deal of some recent conversations we've had at Central Dallas Ministries about working to engage the "centers of influence" who can affect our top prospects. For example, finding ways to educate financial planners and estate attorneys about CDM, so that they can refer their clients to us.

We are very grateful to the work of New York Life's Phil Cubeta in this regard, as well as our extremely devoted volunteer Bryan Cook, from UBS.

At one point in the presentation, the panelists were asked if they ever recommend specific charities to their clients. They all agreed that it is hard enough for planners to even ask their clients if they have charitable intent, let alone urge them to give to a specific charity. This was discouraging to me, but I understand the difficulty that they face. Asking about charitable intent is a loaded question for an advisor, akin to "are you or are you not a good neighbor?" or "how much or how little do you care about other people?" The client could feel very pressured to be or act a certain way, which is not the case when asked about their risk tolerance or even their feelings about leaving wealth to their children.

The panelists agreed that the only way they've ever recommended a charity is at the client's request, and then it is usually for advice on what sort of charity addresses a cause they already care about (i.e. "I want to help orphans in Dallas -- who does that?"). So, it's very unlikely that a wealthy donor will ask their financial planner, "Can you recommend a good charity to be the beneficiary of this foundation we're setting up?" (and even less likely that the answer will be your organization).

One of the planners did say that they keep an updated file on the "big charities in town.... Children's, the DMA, the Opera, UT Southwestern." No social services agencies were mentioned.

However, what really struck me was that the advisors all agreed that, when asked for advice on what sort of charity is involved in a particular cause, they call someone like the Dallas Foundation, the Communities Foundation of Texas or the Communities Foundation of North Texas to see "who is doing the best work in that area right now."

This confirms my belief that every local non-profit should submit a grant proposal to each of these foundations for every deadline that they have. And if you're like Central Dallas Ministries and have multiple services, submit for a different program each time so that they learn about your various services.

I think it's still wise to consider opportunities to engage advisors in learning about your organization's work for the purposes of referring clients to you, however unlikely it might be.

However, what is probably more valuable is to find ways to engage your current donors in considering ways to plan their lifetime giving.... and no, not just to your organization. Create forums in which they can consider the variety of organizations that they care about, and causes that resonate within their soul. Empower your donors with the ability to dream.

I think you'll find that our donors appreciate your concern for securing your relationship them, not with their estate. And I honestly believe that the funds will still be there for you.

And then, you need to be ready to have an advanced conversation with donors about what their giving options are. We don't all need to be experts on financial planning -- that's what people like Phil Cubeta and Bryan Cook are for. However, you need to be familiar with concepts like charitable remainder trusts and be able to explain them to donors.

I truly believe that fundraisers need to think of themselves less as marketers and more as financial planners.

Perhaps we should change our titles from things like "Director of Development" to "Philanthropic Advisor" or "Charitable Coach"?

I wonder how the title "Wealth Counselor" would look, embossed in gold, on a business card?

Speaking of counselors....

RANDOM QUESTIONS: Did they ever need philanthropy in Star Trek?

Today is Freedom Day!

Every year, the Entrepreneurs Foundation of North Texas hosts Freedom Day, "a powerful day of community service that was developed to honor the lives lost and changed on September 11, 2001."

This year is the 6th annual event, in which hundreds of volunteers from EFNT member companies will join together to support local non-profits in their community. In addition to serving at Catholic Charities, volunteers will be working at three of Central Dallas Ministries' locations. Painting, landscaping and even building a fence, these volunteers are going to make some significant improvements to our community in a day of service that reminds us:

"WE ARE ALL NEIGHBORS, TOGETHER."

Thank you to the Communities Foundation of Texas, the parent of EFNT, for their visionary leadership in bringing a branch of the Entrepreneurs' Foundation to our community.

And, of course, thank you to Pam Gerber, the dynamo behind EFNT and Freedom Day. Her spirit, her work and her life are inspirations to us all.

The Double Bottom Line

Two recent articles reminded me of the concept of the "double bottom line," in which a company looks beyond profits and to other "benefits" produced by its work. Some companies, like Ben & Jerry's, espouse a "triple bottom line" approach that integrates profits with environmental impact as well as social impact.

The articles below are some of the "next steps" along this line of thinking:

• Volunteerism As a Lever to Promote City Revitalization | PhilanthroMedia
  
• Charitable work helps a company's bottom line, too | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

The latter article makes an excellent point that must also not be forgotten:

But remember, while you are getting the knots worked out of your back, that "cause marketing is not a substitute for personal philanthropy," Hessekiel said.

"Buying a product that makes a contribution does not absolve you from contributing to society with your time and treasures."

Echoing Green: Funding the Future of Social Enterprise

I recently found out about this amazing organization, which is providing seed capital to some of the world's most exciting ideas for social enterprise. Their fellowship is designed around their unique and powerful theory of social change. The next round of applications begins later this month ... I hope that you will consider an application.

---

Echoing Green

Echoing Green provides first-stage funding and support to visionary leaders with bold ideas for social change. As an angel investor in the social sector, Echoing Green identifies, funds, and supports the world’s most exceptional emerging leaders and the organizations they launch. Through a two-year fellowship program, we help passionate social entrepreneurs develop new solutions to some of society’s most difficult problems. These social entrepreneurs and their organizations work to address deeply-rooted social, economic, and political inequities to ensure equal access and help all individuals reach their potential.

WHAT WE BELIEVE
• Social entrepreneurs play a vital role in driving social change.
• Social change is created by developing new approaches that address the root causes of social problems.
• The next big idea will come from a robust pipeline of new leaders with innovative solutions.
• New organizations, unconstrained by tradition, are best able to challenge the status quo.

HOW WE MAKE A DIFFERENCE
• Identify Visionaries: Through a highly competitive selection process, Echoing Green identifies talented yet unproven social entrepreneurs who are dedicated to addressing the root causes of social problems.
• Invest in Innovation: Each year, we invest approximately $1 million to help Echoing Green Fellows transform innovative ideas into action. By applying entrepreneurial principles to social sector investment, we help launch cutting-edge organizations that transform communities.
• Provide Hands-on Support: We provide technical assistance and consulting to help new leaders build organizations, increase their organization’s capacity, and manage growth. We also facilitate peer-to-peer learning to enhance leadership skills and ensure organizational sustainability.
• Connect People: We harness the experience and expertise of our global network of social entrepreneurs to share best practices and ensure success.

INVESTMENT STRATEGY
The entrepreneurial spirit has driven the U.S. economy throughout its history. We believe that the same energy and creativity can foster new solutions in the social sector. That is why Echoing Green takes risks on undiscovered leaders when others won’t. Less than two percent of all foundation support is available for seed funding, making Echoing Green a leading global social venture fund that invests in new organizations at their earliest stages.

SOCIAL RETURN
Echoing Green has a proven track record of delivering a social return on investment. Since 1987, we have invested $25 million to help nearly 450 visionary leaders spark positive change in forty countries. We have helped launch model organizations working in education, youth development, health care, housing, environmental justice, human and civil rights, economic and social justice, the arts, and immigration. Since inception, fellows’ organizations have raised more than $930 million in additional funding, delivering a return on investment (ROI) of approximately forty-four times Echoing Green’s seed funding. Approximately two out of three organizations launched by Echoing Green Fellows are still thriving, and 85 percent of Echoing Green Fellows stay in leadership positions in the social sector.

WHY IT MATTERS
Intractable social problems must be approached in new ways if we ever hope to solve them. By funding new leaders who are willing to challenge the status quo, we promote new ideas and new solutions at the vanguard of social change. From working to stop the spread of HIV/AIDs among Nigerian youth to exonerating wrongly condemned

Free Website Giveaway - HotPress Web

I received an email earlier this week from Steve Thiel, managing partner of HotPress Web, a web marketing company in Denver Colorado. His company is donating a custom website to one charity, church, or non-profit on September 31.

More information here:

Denver Colorado Free Website Giveaway - HotPress Web

They do this every quarter. They are accepting applications until September 30, 2007 and will be selecting an organization the following day.

The last website they donated was to the Cunningham Foundation:

http://www.cunninghamfoundation.org

I was very impressed by this promotion, and took a look through some of their sites. All seem to be very high quality.

This donation is valued around $5,000.

I encourage you all to consider applying ... I checked, and it's open to all non-profits in the US (not just Colorado).

DoGooder.tv Web Site Showcases Charity Videos

The Chronicle of Philanthropy writes about a new Web Site (that) Showcases Charity Videos" called DoGooder.tv. The site is very user friendly, and it's easy to upload videos.

See my organiation's page here:
http://www.dogooder.tv/Orgs/cdm/

The only problem is that, just like YouTube or GoogleVideo, you cannot select the thumbnail that is used to represent your video. We have begun our videos with a fade-in from black, so half of our videos have a black screen thumbnail instead a picture of the person speaking.

If online videos are an important part of your communications portfolio, avoid using a fade-in for two reasons:

1. The problem above is unavoidable if you use a hosting service like YouTube or GoogleVideo, which I highly suggest because of the expanded audience that you receive (and the fact that it's free and does not use you server's bandwidth to play the videos).

2. For people who do not watch a lot of online videos (and those with slow connections), they may not realize that your video has started playing and will close the window prematurely since the screen is all black.

SEND ME LINKS: Have a good video that tells a non-profit's story? Send it my way, and I'll blog on it.

Using Online Videos to Show Your Mission

The Nonprofit Technology Blog recently discussed CDM's current video campaign in its blog, "Show. Don't Tell!."

"A recent report by Pew Internet & American Life Project - a great source of information on how we are all using the Internet - says that 57% of Internet users watch video online and 75% open a video link that a friend shares with them. What does this mean for your nonprofit? Get your video out there!"

Thanks to Jocelyn and the folks at NPower for this blog.