Tips, part 4. Videos.

Previous posts in this series: Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.

1. Videos are probably easier to give out than books, especially to English-only speakers.
   
2. Remember that placement success increases when you offer something ("Would you like a free ...?"), rather than just giving it out without asking them first ("Here, take this.")
   
3. I keep two to three copies of each in my car. But I only keep the "Mr. Krueger's Christmas" and "Joy to the World" during Christmas season, November and December. Be sure to order these DVDs, or their corresponding pass-along cards, in early October so you can start giving them out in early November. With the DVDs you can give them out through Christmas Eve. But with pass-along cards, the people you give them to will need to call the number about two weeks before Christmas to get it in time.
   
4. These videos are cheaper than the Book of Mormon, which is $3.00 for a hard-cover edition.
   
5. When I go into Asian restaurants, I usually include "Finding Happiness", "Together Forever", "Our Heavenly Father's Plan", and "Introduction to the Church" in my Asian-language book-bag.
   
6. When encountering beggars, I ask them if they, or one of their friends, has a DVD player. If they do, (and they usually have one or have access to one) I give them a $1 bill and a DVD. I tell them that they can either keep the DVD if they like it, or give it away, or even sell it if they want. The $1.00 is the "opportunity cost" in the placement. Even if they don't watch it themselves, as long as they give it away or sell it, someone is going to see it. If there is no time to talk, such as at an interstate exit ramp, I just hold the $1 bill against the DVD case, oriented so they see the bill, and hand it to them as one. (How much church material does your missionary give away for that $400/month? Do the math, and the $1 is very inexpensive for a placement. And remember that they'll likely give it away or sell it, which increases its exposure.)
   
7. If you don't have room in a bag or briefcase for the DVD clamshells, you can remove them from the clamshells, and put them in CD sleeves so they take up much less room.
   
8. The "language angle" still works. "Would you like a free DVD from my church in [their language]?"
   
9. By using the "quick description" (see below) sound-bite, you can also just flat out offer them to English-only speakers. See these posts for descriptions of some DVD placements.
   
10. I just about always take off the cellophane wrapper from the DVD's and insert a flyer of local-information in the clamshell. And on the reverse of the flyer, I put the list of Book of Mormon languages. (Those files are outdated, but illustrative.) It's very important to have local contact information, and/or a pass-along card with the DVD. Very few of the DVDs have an 800 number on them.
    
11. For a series of amazing encounters with DVD placements in the waiting room of a car repair shop, see this post. Those encounters were not planned. I didn't know ahead of time that the waiting room's TV had a DVD player built in. I had my book-bag because I thought I was going to go to lunch while waiting, but something else miraculous happened instead.

Appropriate videos:

1. The Restoration. Cost: $1.18/each in case of 50. Languages: American Sign Language (ASL), Cantonese, Cebuano, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, English audio plus subtitles, Finnish subtitles, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese audio plus subtitles, Russian, Subtitles for Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH), Spanish audio plus subtitles, Swedish subtitles, Tagalog, Thai, Ukranian.

Quick description: About how our church started.

2. The Testaments (of One Fold and One Shepherd). Cost: $1.50/each in case of 30. Languages: ASL, Cantonese, Danish subtitles , Dutch subtitles, English, Finnish audio plus subtitles, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish subtitles, Ukrainian.

Quick description: About Jesus's visit to the Americas after his resurrection.

3. Finding Faith in Christ. Cost: $1.36/each for a case of 50. Languages: Cantonese, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, English audio plus subtitles, Finnish subtitles, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish subtitles, Thai.

Quick description: About finding faith in Christ.

A pass-along card for "Finding Faith in Christ" is also available.

4. Special Witnesses of Christ. Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: ASL, English (with closed captioning and subtitles), French, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish.

Quick description: Mormon church leaders talk about Christ.

5. Our Heavenly Father's Plan. Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: Cantonese, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, English audio plus subtitles, Finnish subtitles, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish subtitles, Tagalog.

Quick description: What Mormons believe about the meaning of life.

6. Finding Happiness (Asian languages only). Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: Cantonese, English, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin. This DVD is unique in that it has three different videos depending on which language you choose, Chinese actors and locations, Korean actors and locations, or Japanese actors and locations. When listening to English, you can choose any one of the three video locations. The cover of the DVD clamshell has the title in Korean, Chinese, Japanese and English, so it's a nice attention getter when you put is on your table at a restaurant.

7. Finding Happiness, new edition, with Asian and European languages. Cost: $1.50/each in case of 100. Languages: British English, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish (Castillian Spanish, not Western Hemisphere Spanish), Swedish, Ukranian. There is no "American English" or "Western Hemisphere Spanish" track on this DVD. Like the previous edition, there are several different videos/actors depending on the location: British Isles, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, China, Korea, Japan. This DVD is not optimal for speakers of Western Hemisphere Spanish or American English.

8. Introduction to the Church. Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: English, French, German, Japanese, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish.

Quick description: a short introduction to what Mormons believe and do.

9. To This End Was I Born. (This is the full length version of "Lamb of God.") Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: ASL, Cantonese, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, English audio plus subtitles, Finnish subtitles, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish subtitles, Tagalog.

Quick description: About the last week of Jesus' mortal life.

10. The Lamb of God. (Basically same as "To This End Was I Born", but slightly different languages.) Cost: $1.50/each in case of 50. Languages: Dutch subtitles, English, English SDH subtitles, French, German, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Samoan, Spanish, Tahitian, Tongan.

Quick description: About the last week of Jesus' mortal life.

A pass-along card for "Lamb of God" is also available.

11. Together Forever. Very easy to give out. Cost: $1.18/each in case of 50. Languages: English audio plus subtitles, Spanish, French, Cantonese, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, Finnish subtitles, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin subtitles (traditional script), Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish subtitles, Tagalog.

Quick description 1: About families.
Quick description 2: About husbands who work too much.

Two pass-along cards for "Together Forever" are available, one featuring a Caucasian couple, and one featuring an African-American couple.

12. Mr. Krueger's Christmas. Easy to give out during Christmas season. Cost: $1.00/each in a case of 50. English only.

Quick description: A short Christmas movie, with Jimmy Stewart and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

13. Joy to the World. Easy to give out during Christmas season. Cost: $2.90/each (gotta pay those royalties) in case of 50. Languages: Cantonese, Danish subtitles, Dutch subtitles, English audio plus subtitles and closed captioning, Finnish subtitles, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian subtitles, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish audio plus subtitles, Swedish subtitles.

Quick description: It features the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

A pass-along card for "Joy to the World" is also available.

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See all pass-along cards here.

Related posts: Tips, part 1. Tips, part 2. Tips, part 3. How this started, some of the overall-story. A quick-start quide. How-to at Chinese restaurants.