For many folks, the old saw, “seeing is believing,” is very true, and videos and other images allow you to quickly and unequivocally demonstrate the impact of your work.  A candid photo can increase recognition of your nonprofit’s brand and encourage others to want to learn more about your mission. A moving video can arouse the emotions, strengthen your connection with supporters, and incite action.

The following is a list of a few best practices to help your NFP use digital storytelling to increase its support.

Show, Rather than Tell, the Story of the Good Work that You Do

Rather than focusing on statistics, raw data or trends, tell your story using images that are uplifting, and that demonstrate the tangible results of the work that you accomplish. Focus on stories of personal interest that show how your organisation helps others and has given them hope for a better future.

For example, rather than talking about the dollar amounts involved in completing a particular service project, why not allow your service recipients and volunteers tell the story of how your NFP has impacted their lives for the better? One way to do this is to embed a short video on your site of a service recipient telling the story of how your organisation helped them to overcome an obstacle. Volunteers and staff members could also talk about the impact your organisation has made in their own lives as they work to support your mission.

Make it Easy for Your Supporters to Be a Hero

There are many ways that organisations receive support: donations, advocacy, and volunteering. When creating your messages, make certain that you add a clear call to action in each message that lets supporters know how they can support your mission. Include buttons in each message that make it easy to spread the word across social media, as well as buttons that allow others to sign up to learn more and contribute to your cause.

Quality Takes on Extra Importance with Digital Storytelling

When you include images and videos on your nonprofit’s site and in its messaging, quality takes on extra importance. Use editing features to trim away excess footage so that videos are no longer than 2 minutes.

It’s also a good idea to shoot in high definition so that you capture sharp, crisp images, and high-quality sound. Slow loading pages, blurry images and extra background noises all distract your viewers and prevent you from being able to make the emotional connection with them that will encourage them to support your efforts.

It’s estimated by some web experts that 75% of all mobile data by 2020 will be videos, so it’s important to use image and video formats that open quickly and run smoothly on mobile platforms. Ideally, your entire site, and all of the formats that you send messages through are optimized for mobile applications. Anything that slows down the loading of your pages, or requires your supporters to click on more than once to take action increases the chance that they will navigate away from your site.