Donor Walls Utilizing Multimedia Displays for Donor Recognition and More

Non-profit organizations are constantly searching for new and innovative ways to provide quality donor recognition to their supporters. Many are now utilizing both interactive and standalone multimedia presentations to enhance their donor walls and recognition displays with content that is limited only by the imagination.

While static donor walls will always have their place close to the heart of any non-profit organization, they are not without their challenges. Space limitations, difficulty and expense of annual updates, inability to communicate timely messages and more importantly - a general failure to attract and impress new donors - is creating a revolution in current donor wall design.

Hospitals, colleges, universities, healthcare facilities, religious organizations and other non-profit organizations are using multimedia presentations not only to enhance their donor recognition, but also to increase awareness, promote capital campaigns, provide wayfinding, foster better communication with their supporters and attract new contributors.

Multimedia means audio, video, text, graphics, images, computer animation - anything digital. If it can be displayed on your computer, it can be delivered via other electronic platforms such as plasma screens, touch-screen kiosks, LCD displays and the Internet.

Well known for its superior attraction capabilities, when multimedia is integrated into a traditional donor wall, or used as a complement to the wall, it acts to attract, inform, persuade, involve and keep donors and visitors coming back. It also provides a superior level of donor recognition.

Multimedia presentations can either be self-cycling or interactive. In the case of self cycling, different types of content are pre-programmed to run at specific intervals, either separately or together on different areas of the display. Adding interactive capabilities to the display allows visitors to view the multimedia content of their choice by touching the screen.

People tend to walk by static signage and traditional donor walls without even a glance after a few visits. The eyes become lazy and, sensing nothing new on the structure - the person walks right by. This is in contrast to what happens when multimedia is integrated into a donor wall.

People are drawn to the wall by the colorful, moving display - which always features something new and different. Non-profits can now use their display to provide unlimited organizational information, tell their story, provide up-to-date information on capital campaigns and projects, show historic videos and photos, provide specialized donor recognition and more. Displays and kiosks can be enhanced to take donations using credit cards, checks and cash and a printer can also be added to print receipts.

The possibilities really are endless - and when a visitor discovers that the display is updated on a regular basis with new information, they decide to visit again.

Multimedia addresses numerous challenges faced by non-profit organizations including the age-old problem of limited space and ease of updates. Space is no longer an issue, as it is limited only by the size of a small but powerful hard drive. And expensive annual updates can now be made quickly and easily using a content management system from the comfort of any office with a network connection.

• Superior ability to attract more donors and create awareness
• Unique donor recognition utilizing video, audio, text and photos
• Quick and easy updates from the comfort of an office
• Instant capital campaign promotions and updates
• Display of unlimited historical and organizational information
• Increased donor and visitor participation with interactive displays
• Instant content updates that can include donor names and more
• 24/7 promotional displays that never stop working for you
• Space saving electronic storage that is virtually unlimited
• Transportable kiosks that can be displayed anywhere
• Enhanced naming opportunities for donor walls and displays
• Instant donations using optional credit card swipe and printer
• Powerful video testimonials that attract more donors
• Transparency made easier with quick updates
• Multi-generational functionality attracts all ages
• Easy integration into current donor wall or can stand alone

1. Do they have experience working with non-profit organizations?

2. Is designing and manufacturing donor walls and recognition displays with multimedia presentations their core business?

3. Will they be doing the design and programming of the multimedia presentation themselves or will they be subcontracting to a second vendor?

4. Can they provide specific project examples and references for projects they have developed that incorporate interactive and/or self cycling multimedia?

5. Are they a one-stop shop? Can they design and fabricate the display? Can they design and integrate the multimedia presentation?

6. Do they have in-house writers and multimedia designers to assist with content creation?

7. Can they guide you through a content development process which might include text, graphics, video, photographs, audio, archived information, storyboarding and multimedia layout?

8. Are they knowledgeable with regards to the different types of multimedia display hardware options?

9. Do they have experience setting up, monitoring and supporting remote networks?

10. What is their database structure? Is it scaleable and able to handle an unlimited number of records and search queries?

11. What is their record back-up and restoration capability?

12. Do they provide an image of the most recent version of the multimedia presentation and database, and how quickly can it be replicated?

13. Do they have experience working with the various types of lighting required for different displays and locations?

14. Do they have experience working with donor management software?

15. What is their system's security protocol? How is the system locked down?

16. On interactive multimedia presentations can the client measure visitor usage, areas visited, times of visits, etc?

17. What reporting procedure does the system employ?

18. How is content management handled? Can it be done remotely from the client's computer? Does it require a technical visit to the system's PC? Does it require information to be forwarded to the vendor's facility where it must be burned to a CD or DVD and then sent back to the client, who must then upload it manually to the system?

19. What ongoing monitoring system does the vendor have in place to continually check on the system's performance and address any issues that may present themselves?

20. Are they capable of integrating all or part of the multimedia presentation with the client's Web site?

21. Can they answer the technical questions posed by your IT professionals, architects and engineers?