László Bihari of organiKvideo explores the secrets of successful and effective social campaign videos. OrganiK is a video agency specialising in social affairs, producing videos primarily for NGOs.
There are short videos with a social message that reach a lot of people, more than would read an article on the same topic.
On the day I am writing this, it has just been announced that the global average temperature of the Earth has been one and a half degrees above pre-industrial revolution levels for 12 months. So we're in a bad position. We are here despite the fact that the media reports daily about the danger this poses. This is the problem with information: only knowing something is not enough to change our behaviour. We also need experiences, and that's what successful videos can provide. We as a non-profit creative video agency* are often challenged to explain what makes a video good and useful. Here are our main arguments.
The video they share
This spring, the campaign video and its follow-up, released on World Down Syndrome Day, hit the Hungarian web.
Although not an easy topic, it has travelled across borders and has been shared by many. Because it gives you an experience that is more complex, more complicated, more profound than what you can write about in a press release. That's the point: you need video when you want to communicate something that you can't convey well just by giving information. Because videos have a complex effect, they are both an information and an experience, which can have an impact on the deeper layers of our consciousness.
The protagonist of the Down video has acting skills, and at the same time she knows the situation of Down syndrome from the inside, as a person affected by it, so she doesn't just tell the message, but we follow her through a story, at the end of which she is released with great energy and shows her own spiritual strength and vitality. This is what gives the viewer the experience, and this is what videos at their best can do: you experience something through it.
But why do we need experiences? Isn't it enough to transmit the information well?
Successful and useful videos not only transmit information, but also help you experience what they are about. The experience can come from many things: a credible personality, a compelling story, or even a glimpse into the life of a community and what makes them move. They can evoke feelings we tend to forget, such as a sense of common roots shared by all living things; of not being independent of nature; of the uplifting power of standing up for what is right or helping each other in solidarity; or of living in a way that will procures security for future generations. These desires are in many people's hearts, but in our everyday lives we tend to give up on them - and that's where an effective social campaign, a powerful video, can make a difference. And they are the most powerful motivators for action.
What can an organisation do to make a good video?
Shoot not when the video is needed, but when there is a good opportunity to shoot it. Think about the life of your organisation from a video perspective! Every year there are a few times when it would be good to film. When an outsider can get a glimpse into your life. When something happens that shows you in a spectacular way what you're doing. With videos, it's all about showing: making something happen, letting the camera see something, not just talking heads talking the talk!
The most powerful message you can give to the world is the one that drives you, you personally. What has set you on the path you are on, what has made you put so much energy into advocacy.
A lot depends on who is in a video. No one knows better than an NGO who can best represent and make their case. Who stands for something not only with their words, but also with their life? And who can talk about it in a way that the audience can feel that authenticity. Ask them!
Find a creative professional for your videos and work with them to figure out what to include. There is no more effective way to plan than good collaboration, with room for ideas. The basis of a good video is collective thinking.
Resource planning. Your video should stand up in an amazing visual competition. The medium on which your target audience will see it is Instagram, YouTube, TikTok or even Netflix, and they're all competing works. A successful video is a lot of work and you need to allocate resources to it.
From personal experience to a winning environmental case
And finally, a specific example. Videos are often used for fundraising and other advocacy activities. One form of these is the petition. But usually the petition is signed by far more people than shared on social media. One reason for this may be that, however convincing the arguments, it is easier to sign than to take it out in public, which requires a greater commitment. On the other hand, if you have a personal experience of the issue, there is more motivation to share it. And this is where videos can play a role.
Two years ago, we produced a campaign video for a petition supporting action against an environmentally problematic investment. A gravel pit was to be built in a natural environment, in the Danube bend, and the local community started organising against it. Although videos on such issues often focus on the arguments, opinions and legal positions of NGOs, we followed a different strategy.
For the video, we were looking for people who could show their personal relationship with the landscape. We asked people to use their own phones to video what they like about the landscape and to speak into the phone's camera. It was a very honest, personal raw material. These were then used to create a professional campaign video that allowed the viewer to experience what the characters were doing. And this is what led to the sharing of the petition.
Because the experience becomes one's own. When one shares a petition because of one's own experience, it is much easier than when one has to argue for the petition on the basis of arguments read by others.
That year, this video became one of the most viewed videos on aHang and the case was ultimately a success, which we believe the video played a significant role in.