Fundraising videos should show both beneficiaries and donors.

Our client the American Chemical Society imagined fundraising videos that would show donors and beneficiaries, and MiniMatters produced it: It’s kind of a have-it-both-ways approach. Some fundraising videos do a great job of showing generous donors and their reasons for giving. With these kinds of “peer-to-peer” appeals, you invite prospective donors into a community of people that share their values. Other fundraising videos do a great job of showing off an organization’s beneficiaries. This also makes good video. Beneficiaries tell the story of an organization’s worth and impact. But if your organization has occasions when donors and beneficiaries meet, you might just consider filming them together for a visual embodiment of the connection between donors and their impact. Presenting a circle of giving and receiving and mutual goodwill really speaks to donors. While showing donors tends to create a community of peers that share a point of view, donors and beneficiaries together present a community that crosses social barriers and nurtures new and interesting connections. The ACS video was able to show Susan Fahrenholtz and the students in Project Seed both in live-action, and that’s a great approach. But if logistics make that difficult, photographs that show donors and beneficiaries together at special events accomplish some of the same things. Video tells your organization’s story in a dynamic way. Having donors and beneficiaries together in a single video sends a special message. If MiniMatters can help you with fundraising video, association video, or other video production needs, we’d love to talk with you at 301-339-0339 or via email at [email protected]. We serve associations, foundations, and businesses primarily in Washington, DC, Maryland, and northern Virginia.