Being able to deliver quality content to your audience on a regular basis is KEY to building ongoing conversations and engagement. Ask any successful YouTuber what their number one tip is and it will most likely be “Start uploading and don’t stop”, followed closely by “Know your audience”.
But regular content delivery brings up some major challenges for non-profits big and small. Especially organisations that don’t have the revenue to build an in-house production team - at a realistic minimum cost of at least £50k a year.
Through Madcutta.com’s experience working exclusively with non-profits over the past five years let’s take a look at some of those challenges and then see how we can tackle them:
Funding and ROI
There’s no doubt that if you want to produce regular quality content you need the funds to do it. And in a non-profit if you want to spend it you had better have good reason to. That’s where we see the problem. It’s not necessarily that the funding isn’t there for long term content projects.
The issue with funding seems to lie in understanding and communicating the importance, impact and ROI of regular content. Simply put, communicating to the project stakeholders what successful content looks like. This can be down to the understanding of the stakeholders or the way that ROI is communicated from the department. Usually it’s a two way street.
Project Stakeholders
Most non-profits will have a board of trustees or a committee who sign off on expensive projects. This becomes one of the toughest challenges in producing regular content. And it’s not always because they can’t see the ROI of regular content delivery, but more the time it takes for the sign off to make its way there and back. Sometimes it can take months and even years.
Production Experience
Video is becoming easier and easier to produce. But knowing what equipment to use, how long it will take to shoot and what post-production workflow will be takes technical skill and experience that is costly to facilitate in-house. Especially when we are talking about the most important factor, delivering REGULAR content. A lot of the time long term projects fail because of the lack of foresight, planning and also expectations of the producer and the stakeholders.
What can you do?
Have a solid content strategy
A solid strategy from the beginning is vital for both you and your stakeholders expectations. Knowing what you plan to do upfront will set you up for success. When you know exactly what content you will produce, how you will produce it, when you will produce it and when it will be delivered to your audience things become a lot easier.
Be smart with your production
Produce your content in production blocks. Don’t try and shoot a weekly video every week. Shoot four in one week then you’re set for the month. Running a production block every 1-3 months is a great way to keep your production costs down and allow you to plan and programme more confidently.
#MADTIP
“If you do content right, it can become a justifiable
part of your service provision.”
Manage expectations
Identify and manage expectations from the beginning. For both you and your stakeholders. What do you want most from your content? Clearly identify those key signals. Views, subscribers, comments, sales, conversion, whatever they may be. Know what these are up front as part of your strategy and make sure they are accepted and understood by the project stakeholders. Then use these as your driving force for the project.
Do you agree? What challenges does your organisation face when it
comes to regular content production? Let me know in the comments below.
Article by: Rob Mitchell, Head of Production, Madcutta.com
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