If you have a video, but it is on a DVD, and not stored on your computer, you first need to convert that format to digital. (We'll address that in a separate "how to" article).

If your video is longer than 10 minutes, YouTube will not work for you. You will need to use Vimeo to post your video online. A how-to article on Vimeo is coming soon!

Step 1: Getting Started
First, go to your YouTube account.
If you do not already have one, sign up by clicking the "Sign Up" link at the top-right of the page at YouTube. Once you are logged into your account, you will see the yellow "Upload" button near the top of the page on the far right:

Next, Click "Upload" to begin the process
The first page asks you to provide information about your video like the title, description, video category and tags. This doesn't have to be the final information, since you can change it later.

Note: If you have previously uploaded your video and you believe you checked "No" on the "Embedding" option, you can change the setting by following the "Your Account" link and then clicking  the "Manage My Videos" link. Next select the "Videos, Favorites, & Playlists" option. Select your video from the list and select the "Edit Video Info" button. You can now change the setting to the "Yes, external sites may embed and play this video" option.

To move to the final page, click "Upload a Video..."

Step 2: Upload
You should now see a screen that looks like this:

Just click the "Browse..." button and then navigate to select your video file on your computer.

You should know that YouTube limits your video to 10 minutes and 1024 MB. However, your web connection is not likely to be able to transfer that much data, at least not without your being very persistent and possibly restarting the upload several times. You are best off trying to work with files that are 50MB or less, which is sufficient for a decent quality online video.

If your video is under 50MB, go ahead and click the "Upload Video" option.

If your video is over 50MB, you should either download the 'uploader application' from YouTube by clicking the orange "Install Uploader" button OR follow the Side Step instructions below to make your video smaller. When you are done, go ahead and click the "Upload Video" option.

Side Step: My video is too large to upload! How do I make it smaller?

One of the easiest. most accessible ways to render your video to a smaller size while maintaining quality is through iTunes. Follow these easy steps:
1. Open iTunes and import your video into it by selecting the file, importing it, then finding your video on your hard drive and selecting "ok"

2. In the "Movies" section of the "Library," click on the video file you wish to render.

3. In the "Advanced" menu along the top select the "Convert Selection for iPod" option. The iPod version is a clear, crisp rendering which will still be small in data size.

4. iTunes will go through the process of converting your video. When it is complete, it will ding.

5. You will then see a new video appear directly below the original in the listing on the page, named the same as your original. Drag thisnew file to your desktop and go back and resume.

You are now done with your "Upload!"

Your video will be on YouTube ready for use.

You can now:

- Email your video - Send to donors, volunteers, members, participants, etc. Use your video as a virtual site visit for your organization. Show them exactly what you have to offer.

- Embed your video on your website - Show off your video on your own website where you control all of the content that appears around it. To do this, look for our next article "How to Embed Your YouTube Video Into Your Website" coming soon.