Keep it personal

Including personal stories and case studies is a great way to give your campaign an emotional edge and a sense of urgency. Tying attention-grabbing images to your story quickly provides context, helps the reader to understand your issue and can increase the impact of your campaign by enabling your audience to put themselves into your subject’s shoes.

The internet enables you to harness the power of images and enhance your campaign. Websites like Flickr and YouTube allow you to share your ideas and content quickly with a large group of people. But with so many competing stories trying to get their attention how do you make sure your message stands out from the crowd?

To help you capture the moment we’ve put together a quick guide to creating great photos and videos.

Taking good campaign photos

Take active shots of people doing things – avoid static or clichéd shots.

Ideally have two to three people in the picture or up to six people if it’s a group shot. Try not to have too many people, to avoid the ‘pinhead effect’ where too many heads are in the photo.

Put the person at the heart of the image, allow for eye contact so that the viewer can connect emotionally with the subject

• See how Chingford used pictures to share their concerns about changes to Disability Living Allowance.

Getting your videos noticed

 Remember you don’t need expensive equipment to get started. You can use your smartphone to create great images and video.

1.  Tie in the launch of your video with a public event to maximise interest.
2.  Use key words that people are most likely to search for and consider tagging the video using words with similar meaning to increase search ability.
3.  Look at videos on similar topics and post your videos in response. This will help your video reach people already interested in your subject.
4. Allow other people to embed your video and share it using their own website or social networking sites enabling them to share your message with a new audience. `

Remember the best content is made for sharing. Promote your issue by sending campaigns@scope.org.uk your most creative videos and content.

Step 5 - Become a decision maker