People usually take action on behalf of a cause only when they feel an emotional connection. That’s human nature. Unfortunately, many nonprofits are not very good at telling and sharing their own stories. Most of those using video are doing a fantastic job of making that emotional connection to prompt action. That emotional tie is most easily achieved through traditional video – telling the stories of those people’s lives that have been enhanced and helped by the nonprofit. There is also a case for animation for nonprofits as well.
The best use of animation is telling the mission story. Usually there are fundamental concepts that are difficult to visualize shooting traditional video. The mission is bigger than one person’s story it’s how the nonprofit affects the lives of many, many others.
One of the best examples is charity: water and their animated mission video “Water Changes Everything”:
You quickly understand how something as simple as water affects everything and how dire the situation is for those affected, particularly women and children. They begin with that emotionally charged message showing how difficult and awful the situation is. Then they spin to show how much a positive impact charity: water can have with the help of the viewer to make a huge difference.
Charity: water does a great job of then following up to show how the work they are doing is affecting and changing people’s lives with emotionally charged videos featuring those most affected:
Charity: water is one of the best storytellers among nonprofits and do a wonderful job using video to tell their stories and drive their mission and individual campaigns. As a parent, or a human being for that matter, you immediately are moved by the plight of Bagina and her family in Rwanda. Their hopes and dreams and how much their lives are affected by something as simple as water.
Another great use of animation for nonprofits is to launch a fundraising campaign. Usually a fundraising campaign launch is similar to a mission statement in that it is speaking to the bigger fundamentals of the campaign similar to the mission.
One great example of using animation for a campaign launch is the Heifer International’s Honduras Matching Challenge:
The bigger statistics of how difficult it is for Honduran farmers is presented and then put to the viewer to help showing them for every donation they give, it’s doubled. It’s aspirational and shows how even a little donation can have a profound effect on the farmer’s lives.
Animation has a place within the marketing and storytelling of a nonprofit and, if used well, can have a profound and emotional impact on the viewer. It’s part of that 80/20 mix that works for a great video marketing strategy, especially when the animated mission story is followed up with the emotional stories of the people affected by the nonprofit. That’s how you move a viewer to action.
God reach out and save me
I was so happy and playful when I was younger. I felt like I could do anything! I was playing with everyone I met before it happened. Let me tell you what happened.
Walking down the road, half dead, hit by a car. All bloody, trying to move, but I lost my balance. Every step I take I get dizzier and dizzier, losing myself in all this pain. Dying and crying. Why me!? When my family hears me, they come over to see what’s going on. They all see me dead on the ground. My mom falls to her knees and cries “How can this be fair?!”
After, I’m falling, I’m crying. Can I already be dead? I grow younger and younger every second. I’m falling.
I fall into the car where it all began. I look around to see what’s going on. I see my brothers, and my mom and dad smiling back at me from the heavens above when I take my final breath. I picture myself falling again, “crying God reach out and save me!” He tries to grab on to me but he can’t. I just kept falling. But then I wake up in the hospital and realize it was all a dream.
After, I’m walking down the aisle of the store with my mom but I lost her in the store. I start to cry but then someone helps me. Then my mom starts calling my name. I can hear you but I can’t see were you are then I find you after all.
After I’m sad and cold. I am cutting my arms. Sitting on the bench, crying and dying by bleeding out. then I close my eyes, I see a light and I reach out to the light. Then I open my eyes and I’m in the sky but then I hear someone say my name. They come over and they try to help me but I don’t want help. I just want to die. Then they get my brother to help. My brother takes me home. I try to leave but he takes me home by force. He calls my mom. I see him crying when my mom gets home.
Then I have to go to the hospital and then I see my mom crying. Win she gets in the car so after all of that happens I say to my family “Never did I ever want to try and go and kill myself and then see you cry! Never did I ever wan’t to be sad and then cry. Never did I ever wan’t to blame you for all my problems I ever had! Never should I have had ever tried!” Saying all of that with just one tear sliding down my face.
Then after all of that happened a few days later I now go on walks, when I’m feeling sad to clear my mind I try not to give up and, I try not to give in “so I say take a walk!!” and you will be happy like me because I feel happy again!
But I’m not really happy after a while I’m just crying and crying how can this be fair why am I the only one that feels this pain so l try and try but I fail and then I go to the hospital again and again which makes me feel worse and then I cry and then
I close my eyes and I picture myself young again playing with my family. But then it ends and there’s no easy way to go back to those ways these easy ways those fun days.
I get out of the hospital and I try to change. It’s hard to change for me but I have to change. I need to change and I have to stop saying what I say to my family.
Saying that in my room
A few days later at school I trip and fall but people just pass by me. No one try’s to help me and no one says anything to me. I don’t even think anyone saw me so I get up and I go to the bench, sit down and close my eyes. I feel all alone in this world and I have no friends to talk too because people say I’m too different because I was hit by a car.
But aren’t we all different because my dad told me once that when someone says something about you they have problems.
But this kid that I told pushed me down on the ground but I got up and I got mad but I dropped it and walked away.
The next day I go to school and on the play ground they surround me and they hit me but I fight back but I get in trouble and I say to myself it’s not fair am I the only one that seems to care.
Laying out on the play ground out in the rain pushed by my bully Bleeding, hurt and crying. Why did you do that? The bully laughing while I am in pain.
And I cry out for help but no one hears me. Everyone went to class
so I try to get up but it hurts and after I get up I go to the office.
A few years later in seventh grade I made peace with my bully
and we become friends. He helps me with writing and other stuff when I ask.
After one year later I face planted in PE on the cement and my friend saw and helped me up and got the PE teacher to help.
Then I am inside the nurses office I think back to my childhood when I had a seizure. When I had a seizure I felt like I was all alone in this world. I felt a pain in my heart and was scared, drooling and staring off into space. But then I found a light somewhere in my heart glowing and I felt it. The warmth. Then I was able to see clearly.
One year later it’s my freshman year of high school. I’m nervous but I can do it but I drift away from my family. I become distant and depressed and sad and I try to hold it in but it’s hard. One day I try to end my life so I have to go to the hospital.
A few weeks later I’m sad inside but I try not to show it. I try to stay happy but inside I was really lonely, sad and crying. But one day they caught me crying at school in class. My teacher asked me what was wrong. I did not answer so she called my mom and my mom came down to help and I went home.
One day later I find peace and my eyes open up to see what the world. Really is then I find what I need it is love.
The end
To be continued…