Easy Peasy Video School for Nonprofit Storytelling: Recent Episodes
Nolan Hong
Easy Peasy Video School is a resource for nonprofits to learn how to create your own videos. We focus on easy and inexpensive tips, tricks and strategies you can implement right away to start boosting engagement with your community.
Join our free facebook group to ask questions in the weekly Q&A following each episode ➡️ https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/group
We're Nolan & Jamie Hong, we're married with two kids (from Jamie's first marriage), two dogs (Emmett and Natto Bean) and a video production business. We've been producing marketing videos for nonprofit organizations in Hawaiʻi since 2016, and in a corporate capacity since 2004.
Tune in every Thursday for actionable advice so you can move forward in this small but important piece of your outreach and communications.
Many nonprofits want to grow their audience and donor base but lack the resources to invest in effectively marketing themselves. Learning about the "donor journey" and applying it to your nonprofit can sound like a lot...
In this episode, we break it down and make it to easy to understand, with actionable steps so you have a plan to grow your engagement.
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"Marketing to Your Target Audience" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/marketing-to-your-target-audience/
"How to Get Started with Video Marketing" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/how-to-get-started-with-video-marketing/
"10 Simple Videos for Nonprofits" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/simple-videos-for-nonprofits/
When you google "nonprofit video examples," most of what you'll find was produced by professional videographers for organizations with big budgets. But you don't need an Oscar-worthy short film to convey the heart of your programs and your mission.
In this episode, we go over 10 simple video ideas we've seen work for nonprofits to boost engagement with donors and reach new audiences.
Grab our free guide for more info on each type of video, like who each video is best for, what to do and what not to do, and how to keep it simple so you can do it on your own without hiring a videographer to do it for you. Download it at https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “10 Simple Videos Any Nonprofit Can Create to Boost Donor Engagement” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"What is Video Marketing?" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/2
"How to Get Started with Video Marketing" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/3
"Marketing to Your Target Audience" -- https://easypeasyvideoschool.com/7
If you can get comfortable being yourself in front of a camera or on a stage, that can make a world of difference in the connection you're able to make with your audience. When you're representing a nonprofit, that can translate into donations, partnerships, and better relationships with your supporters. But knowing that it's important doesn't make it any easier, so here are some things I do to get comfortable showing my personality even when it's not easy.
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨ Download “How to Get Comfy on Camera” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YOUTUBE VERSION OF THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/LH0NqiVk2QQ
There are some super simple things you can do to get more views on YouTube for FREE. This is known as optimizing your videos, and if you do it with each video you post, you'll have a much better chance of getting organic growth for your channel.
Download “Super Fast YouTube Set-Up” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
✨ REFERENCES ✨
Keywords Everywhere -- https://keywordseverywhere.com/
Make sure to turn Keywords Everywhere off when you’re not doing keyword research to save your credits
TubeBuddy -- https://www.tubebuddy.com/
The free version is useful for keyword research
"Las Vegas Reviews: Hobak Korean BBQ" -- https://youtu.be/xGKH9XZJPG8
"Vegas Food Adventure: Shake Shack" -- https://youtu.be/7Tr6apz48IM
Sunny Lenarduzzi -- https://www.youtube.com/c/SunnyLenarduzzi
YouTube version -- https://youtu.be/3r17t-aiBng
A teleprompter is a great tool, but if you don't know what you're doing you might end up "zombie reading". Here are some tips for using a teleprompter that I've picked up over the years to look more natural reading a script.
For more help looking comfortable on camera, download “How to Get Comfy on Camera” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode at https://youtu.be/LmQdSUBMHSA
Video production isn't rocket science, and it isn't brain surgery. But it's still scary when people invest their time and energy into your work and there's a chance you're going to screw it up. Well, we've been there, done that. Many, many times...
Jamie was sharing one of these screw ups with a friend and she said it was so helpful to hear about how the **** hit the fan and we got through it okay 😅 So we decided to share these stories with you to hopefully take away some of that fear. Screw ups happen, it's not the end of the world.
Here are some of the ways we screwed up when it comes to recording audio during interviews. Audio is SO IMPORTANT when it comes to video -- in fact, in our opinion the audio quality is more important than the picture quality -- so screwing up the recording of the audio was MAJOR. Here's what happened, and the lessons we learned.
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"5 Life Lessons from Starting a Business" -- https://youtu.be/h6Z3W8kLm0k
"Microphones for Phone Video Recording" -- https://youtu.be/LvPF9QrGkN4
"What is Video Marketing?" -- https://youtu.be/LgQPxhTc7Fc
If your nonprofit is already on facebook and instagram, why should you be on youtube? Is youtube for nonprofits? It's just one more platform to learn, why should you bother?
For starters, youtube is a search engine, not a social media platform -- and that makes a HUGE difference in terms of the lifespan of your content and how people find you when they don't already know you. If your organization is already investing time, money and energy into producing video content, you're losing a huge opportunity to grow your base of support if you're not publishing those videos on youtube.
In this episode, we get into the demographic reach of youtube, youtube vs social media and how that works in your favor in the long-term, and the bare minimum you need to start a youtube channel.
Download our free guide "Super Fast YouTube Set-Up" at https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
Youtube version -- https://youtu.be/Yk3JpCUI3ho
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “Super Fast YouTube Set-Up” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
Pop Live walk-thru: setting up your youtube channel and keyword search -- https://youtu.be/xxNtgDZMN0M?t=629 (start at 10:29)
✨ REFERENCES ✨
https://the-refinery.io/blog/how-long-does-a-social-media-post-last
https://cappuccinoandfashion.com/lifespan-of-social-media-posts/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-long-does-social-media-post-live-julia-ripo/
A lighting kit isn't necessary to start making your own marketing videos -- remember, done is better than perfect! But when you can afford it, a basic lighting setup can do a lot to improve the look of your videos.
In this episode, we go over three point lighting, what to look for when purchasing lights, and if you should get a ring light or a panel light.
✨ LIGHTS WE RECOMMEND ✨
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Ring Light -- https://amzn.to/3JDolFH
Panel Lights -- https://amzn.to/3uAk1mj
Panel Lights (we don't have this one, but Nolan thinks it looks better than the one we have) -- https://amzn.to/3KDv0ky
Softbox -- https://amzn.to/37F0yb8
Key Light -- https://amzn.to/368kL8N
Download "How to Shoot Better Video with Your Phone" -- https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
What is the ideal video length for social media? This question comes up a lot with our clients, and unfortunately there isn't a clear cut answer. While each platform has their own rules about what they allow and what they say performs best, it's also important to keep other factors in mind.
In today's episode, we go over what video length is allowed and recommended on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn now in 2022, and the other factors that we take into consideration when looking at how long our videos should be.
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/6OQj0KL8Xoo
✨ LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE ✨
Pearl City High School fundraiser -- https://www.gofundme.com/f/pchs-ptsa-skillsusa-national-competition
Hootsuite article -- https://blog.hootsuite.com/how-long-should-a-social-media-video-be/
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
Small business owners often skip the step of developing a brand identity. We've worked with so many small businesses whose "logo" was their business name in a default font, and their colors were picked by the print shop that made their signage. But if you spend some time on it, your brand identity can be the missing piece that elevates your company above all the other businesses in your niche. It can be THE THING that catches the eye of your ideal customer and nudges them to want to learn more.
While there are branding consultants who can work with you to outline your ideal client avatars, design a beautiful, meaningful logo and develop a full style guide, if you're not at that level yet, building a brand identity is something you can easily do on your own with free tools available online. That's what we've been doing for our various brands, and we get a lot of positive feedback and (knock on wood) our branding has been doing the job of attracting our ideal community and repelling those we wouldn't be a good fit for.
This episode gets into the nitty gritty of defining a color palette for your brand, choosing your brand fonts and other graphic design elements. We recommend watching the previous episode first ("Show Your Brand Personality to Stand Out From the Crowd") -- that one went into identifying your brand personality and writing in your brand voice.
Youtube version of this episode has some screen recordings that might be helpful -- https://youtu.be/Hb0lZr5bP2c
✨ TOOLS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE ✨
HEX COLOR PICKER -- https://imagecolorpicker.com/en
COLOR PALETTE GENERATORS
Adobe -- https://color.adobe.com/create/color-wheel
Coolers -- https://coolors.co/generate
FONT PAIRINGS -- https://fontjoy.com/
CANVA TUTORIALS Pua’s Course Creators Academy Canva Hacks Playlist -- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLnG6KRvtwT1GU5X1D7NDRI7tPib_Pzn0Z
✨ THINGS TO DO NEXT ✨
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"Show Your Brand Personality to Stand Out From the Crowd" -- https://youtu.be/vcm8_iYutC0
"Marketing to Your Target Audience" -- https://youtu.be/7nO0HrpBK5o
"What is Video Marketing?" -- https://youtu.be/LgQPxhTc7Fc
Do you get stuck wondering how your clients are ever going to find you when so many businesses do pretty much the same thing you do? How are you supposed to stand out from the crowd?
The advice we hear from the big names online is to Be Yourself, Stay In Your Lane, No One Else Can Do It the Same Way You Do It So Just Keep Being You! And we totally agree with that, but what exactly does that mean? What does it mean to be yourself on a website or in an email newsletter?
Today we're talking about brand personality, how to get specific with it so you don't look like everybody else, and how to bring it into your writing. Be sure to join us in the next episode for more on the visual expression of your brand personality with color palette and graphic design.
“Brand Personality” video with slide of brand personality descriptors -- https://youtu.be/kSAR1fvmPMg?t=133
“10 Brand Personality Examples” -- https://youtu.be/WCxT7-VPqWk
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"Marketing to Your Target Audience" -- https://youtu.be/7nO0HrpBK5o
"What is Video Marketing?" -- https://youtu.be/LgQPxhTc7Fc
Youtube Version: https://youtu.be/vcm8_iYutC0
When you start a business without knowing anything about business, it's inevitable that you're going to learn A LOT of lessons in a hurry 😵💫 In this episode, we're sharing our top 5 lessons from starting a business, from finances to health and the importance of the gut check.
Being your own boss sounds like the dream, but it's a lot of hard work and stress, and you're forced to face demons that you might have been able to avoid in the corporate world. We learned all these lessons the hard way, so we're hoping that sharing them here might help someone just starting out on their journey as a small business owner or entrepreneur.
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
"Afraid of Going on Camera?" -- https://youtu.be/XsLj39O5x-8
Youtube version: https://youtu.be/h6Z3W8kLm0k
What are the rules around using music in your videos on youtube and facebook? How do you to find music that you can use legally? And how do you know which music track to pick? These are some of the most common questions we get from people who are new to video editing, and we're answering all of them in this episode.
Background music is one of our favorite tools to use in video editing to make the video more impactful, but it has to match the vibe and the feel of what you're seeing, otherwise it's just weird. And you need to make sure to follow copyright rules, or the social media platforms you're posting on might disable your account.
✨ If you're looking for FREE royalty free music, we put together a PDF of links to songs listed by category (happy, introspective, energetic, etc) with a notation of how to credit each publisher. The websites included on the list have more free royalty free music available if you want more options, just be ready to spend a lot of time searching through their libraries. Our PDF has links to tracks that are good for video, so you don't have to spend so much time searching.
Download it at https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
Here are the paid music subscriptions we use for royalty free music:
✨ Epidemic Sound: https://share.epidemicsound.com/ms5dee
✨ Hooksounds: https://www.hooksounds.com/ (Use promo code “NOLAN10” for 10% off)
More on youtube's copyright policy ➡️ vidIQ’s “I have a Copyright Claim. Can I Monetize My YouTube Channel?” -- https://youtu.be/yL8roHCv928
With so many social media platforms out there, how do you decide which is the best one for your marketing videos? Does your business or nonprofit need to be EVERYWHERE??
Well the answer to that is easy -- No, you totally don't need to be everywhere. But having a social media video strategy is super important so you can create video content that works on the platform you choose. A marketing video you create for Facebook will probably stick out like a sore thumb on TikTok, and it might not even work on Instagram. That's why it's important to pick a primary platform that you want to build on and create your content for that audience.
The demographics and user habits on each platform are different and changing all the time, so we spent some time looking at the latest data for 2022. In this episode, we're covering Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn. Here are the articles we referenced for this episode:
Hubspot’s 2022 Social Media Marketing Report - https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/hubspot-blog-social-media-marketing-report
Hubspot’s Social Media Demographics for Marketers in 2022 - https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/state-of-social-media-demographics
Hootsuite’s The Global State of Digital 2022 - https://www.hootsuite.com/resources/digital-trends
Social Media Examiner’s Social Media Marketing Trends for 2022 - https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-marketing-trends-for-2022-predictions-from-the-pros/
Download “How to Shoot Better Video with Your Phone” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version - https://youtu.be/EQhrkKT5qpI
Your intro video, or overview video, functions as the first introduction to your business or organization. It usually goes on the homepage of your website or maybe it's the featured video on your facebook page.
Lots of nonprofits and small businesses have a hard time deciding what should go into this video. They want it to be quick but also cover all of the services, programs and products they have to offer.
In this episode we're talking about what we've found works for the intro video -- the one goal almost every overview video should be laser focused on.
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/URmAnbmm2Zk
Marketing to your target audience -- identifying who you’re trying to reach, and your goal in talking to them -- is the most important part of creating marketing videos.
It's common for businesses and nonprofits to come up with the idea for a video first before they think about anything else. The problem with this is, the video might end up being fun or beautiful, but it doesn’t elicit any action.
When you start by identifying your target audience and your goal, the creative process is easier and the resulting video has a better chance of making a difference in your bottom line.
Sample video ➡️ Foundation Spine & Posture - https://youtu.be/8slwUXxLwKw
Download “3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing with Zero Investment” ➡️ https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/7nO0HrpBK5o
Recording video with your phone is a great option when you're getting started with creating your own videos, but don't forget about the sound! Investing in an external microphone is the first thing we recommend buying once you decide to put money towards your video marketing.
In this episode, we'll talk about two types of microphones I've used for recording video with my phone -- a wired lavalier mic and a shotgun mic. We'll also go into detail about how to use lavalier (lav) mic because it can be tricky if you want to use it well.
Equipment mentioned in this episode (check that the mic you order is compatible with your phone) * As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases *
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Shotgun Mic: https://amzn.to/3Leh0OS
-
Lavalier Mic: https://amzn.to/3gx8YTe
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Extension Cord for Lav Mic: https://amzn.to/3Li7nyK
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/LvPF9QrGkN4
Are you afraid of going on camera? That's nothing to be embarrassed about. From our experience, most people are. But, given how important video marketing is these days, and how big of a role personal connection plays in outreach today, getting on camera is almost unavoidable for entrepreneurs, business owners and nonprofit leaders. So today is a pep talk of sorts, our effort to help you push through your fears and get on camera 🤩
DOWNLOAD "How to Get Comfy on Camera" -- https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/XsLj39O5x-8
You don't need to buy a lot of equipment to shoot a good quality video. iPhones and Androids have great cameras on them! Today we'll show you how to shoot better video with only your smartphone and things you can find around the house.
DOWNLOAD "How to Shoot Better Video with Your Phone" -- https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/cWyw1q_4t9E
We know a lot of small businesses and nonprofits get super excited about getting started with video marketing, but they can't seem to get past the planning stage. In this episode, we share a common reason why we've seen this happen, and how we help our clients get through it.
DOWNLOAD "How to Shoot Better Video with Your Phone" -- https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/LwhfHR1Gt4I
What is video marketing, and why does it matter for small business owners, entrepreneurs and nonprofits? Today we'll talk about the actual definition and how we utilize it in our work with clients.
Video marketing can be super effective for businesses and organizations because it helps build a relationship with your audience (potential customers, clients and donors) so they get to KNOW, LIKE and TRUST you just by visiting your website or seeing what you post on social media.
DOWNLOAD "3 Essentials to Start Your Video Marketing With Zero Investment" -- https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/LgQPxhTc7Fc
SOURCES:
https://www.ama.org/the-definition-of-marketing-what-is-marketing/ https://www.ama.org/pages/marketing-vs-advertising/ https://animoto.com/blog/news/social-video-trends-consumers-2020
This week we're talking about framing, a topic suggested by Bryan, one of our awesome nonprofit friends. Nolan will go over 4 key ideas when it comes to framing talking head videos -- where someone is speaking directly to the camera (i.e. giving a presentation) or when you're shooting an interview.
Download our free resources at https://bit.ly/3otNvyi
YouTube version of this episode -- https://youtu.be/NYUgexGcqyQ
A powerful marketing video doesn’t need to be cinema-quality to have an impact on your mission and business. It can be totally doable and affordable to make your own videos for your website, social media and newsletters. Video Marketing Made Easy is for entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders who want to incorporate video into their marketing efforts but don’t want to go down the rabbit hole of tech, gear and endless tutorials.
Host Nolan Hong shares tips, tricks and strategies he and his wife/business partner Jamie have learned producing video content for nonprofit organizations and small business owners as Pop Creative Media since 2016, and in a corporate capacity since 2004. Tune in every Thursday for actionable advice so you can move forward in this small but important piece of your business.