YouTube 101 for Nonprofits: Getting Started

YouTube is a huge social video sharing platform, allowing your nonprofit to share their story with millions of users. Every second, an hour of video is uploaded to YouTube; every day, over 3 billion videos are viewed; every month, 800 million unique visitors visit the site. It's time your nonprofit had a presence there!

If your organisation's not already on YouTube, here are your first steps, including signing up for their YouTube for Nonprofits program which gives you extra features the average user doesn't.

First step: Create a Google account for your organisation

First things first, you’ll have to set up a Google account for your organisation. Not only is it handy to have a central account for your staff to use, but you can also use it to access products and services which Google offers to nonprofits. In this case, it’s a branded YouTube for Nonprofits account.

Note: If your organisations already has a Gmail account then you already have a Google Account.

To create a Google Account visit:

• Visit the “Create a new Google Account” page
• Fill in the details
• Click “next step”
• Add a photo (which will also be used for your YouTube avatar)

This will also create a Google+ account for your nonprofit, which you can delete later if you do not want it.

Second step: Apply for YouTube for Nonprofits

If you want to give your nonprofit the best start on YouTube, you’ll want to take advantage of the YouTube for Nonprofits program. This program offers a free ‘upgrade’ available to eligible nonprofits offered by YouTube/Google.  (Note: there are eligibility guidelines, so make sure your nonprofit is eligible before you apply).

YouTube for Nonprofits offers some great added features for nonprofits which will help you engage more with your audiences, upload longer videos and also promote your cause better.

• Premium branding capabilities and increased uploading capacity
• Listing on the Nonprofit channels and the Nonprofit videos pages
• Ability to add a Call-to-action overlay on your videos to drive campaigns
• Posting a video opportunity on the YouTube Video Volunteers platform to find a skilled YouTube user to create a video for your cause.

How to apply

Application is simple and with just a few clicks you’ll be on your way.

• Go to the YouTube for Nonprofits Australian portal (make sure it says “Australia” in the dropdown menu at the top right)
• Read through the page, especially the requirements and click the ‘apply’ button
• The next form asks about information about your organisation including information such as your ABN, registered name and annual operating budget
• Click submit and simply wait back for a reply from YouTube to see if you are successful! 

Third Step: Customise your account (coming soon!)

Now you’re all set up to use YouTube for your nonprofit. Even if you’re not eligible for YouTube for nonprofits there are some basic customisations that you can do.

In the next article, we’ll look at how to customise your YouTube account and make the most of your YouTube for Nonprofits account. (Coming soon!)

Other Reading

YouTube has a lot of great resources for nonprofits including their Playbook for Good. It has some great hints and tips, check it out below.