Code.org’s doing a lot of things right, starting with their excellent video to promote teaching computer coding to kids, and including placement of the video alongside some compelling calls-to-action. They use the power of video to get their audiences to follow the call-to-action.
Here’s one version of the video. (More about versions in a minute.)
In fact, this video supports three calls to action on code.org’s homepage that are segmented for different groups. The first call-to-action is a form to fill out to indicate your agreement that all schools should teach coding. The second call-to-action is a button for students who want to learn a little code right away. The third call-to-action is for teachers who want to bring code instruction to their schools—push that button, and a teacher gets to a number of options to get started. And let’s not forget the prominent Facebook and Twitter buttons well-integrated into the design as other easy options for action.
Design and segmentation help your video call-to-action
Other than the video, nothing besides the calls-to-action are all that prominent on the page. If you view the page in 100% zoom, you’ll see all the calls-to-action without scrolling. The color scheme makes the submit button pop, and the main call to action, to sign up, is impossible to miss. Within this form, you can indicate if you’re a student or a teacher or a parent or a software engineer or none of the above, and we suspect that the response to signing up provides material just as tailored to students and teachers as the other two buttons.
Make your call-to-action modest
All the initial fill-out form asks for is an expression of interest. While we’re sure that code.org would like donations and other kinds of support, by keeping their call to action simple, code.org is probably going to get more donations in the long run. Fundraising and marketing are complicated; they require a sensitive hand and repeated engagement. Getting names and contact information in the initial call-to-action will allow the organization to get other kinds of support in the future. At the same time, for anyone that does want to make a donation, code.org is using Google Checkout on their YouTube Channel to make it easy to send any amount, just as we advise.
The filming quality, distribution, and hosting for this video are all also excellent. Involving celebrities is useful as well, as it leads to more social media action and more views. Code.org has a Google transcript and an “About” that lists all the celebrities’ names. All in all, we’re not surprised that across the three videos they’ve got more than 10 million views. We’re betting they’re getting great responses on their calls-to-action, too.
How long should a video be–what do you think?
On a final note, Code.org supported their call to action with a video that gives a clever answer to the question: “How long should video be?” (We said, “It depends,” in this post; ReelSEO said something similar). On this website, Code.org gives viewers the option to view a five-minute version, a one-minute version, and a nine-minute version. A video should be the length the viewer desires. We think that’s pretty neat.
And here’s our call-to-action! Let us know in the comments which length of the video you watched–the one embedded here is the five minute version–and why. All this month you’ll be entered to win a free spruce-up for your YouTube channel by MiniMatters.If MiniMatters can help you with business video, fundraising video, association video, or other video production needs, we’d love to provide an estimate through our online form, talk with you at 301-339-0339, or communicate via email at [email protected]. We serve associations, foundations, nonprofits, and businesses primarily in Washington, DC, Maryland, and northern Virginia.
