10 Ways to Show Animal Shelters Love

I try not to show favorites with causes because all are equally important but I have a soft spot for any organizations that helps animals- specifically dogs. I found this list “10 Ways to Show Animal Shelters the Love” from an email newsletter I receive from a site called care2.com.

Care 2 is essentially a social networking and news site for people who are interested in causes, green living and health. I am still exploring and haven’t come to a definite conclusion about the site.  However, I do suggest joining and talking about your organization- it can’t hurt.

Lists, like the one below, are a great way to organize information about your organization. Lists are straight forward and easy to read.  Breaking down your organizations needs into a list of simple tasks illustrates how easy it is to get involved.  The top 10 list below gave me realistic options for helping my local shelter, that I was excited about.

My suggestion is to create a list of the top ten ways to help your organization and post them on your blog, website, Myspace, Facebook or GoodTube page. The list should appeal to all supporters your organization can think of.  Instead of just asking for money ask for supplies. The list below suggests purchasing dog beds so that the animals have a place to sleep- which really struck a cord with me.  Think of helpful lifestyle changes that people could make that would further your cause. Think out side of the box.

What about creating a top ten ways to help your organizations video?

Check out the list below to get you started:

“10 Ways to Show Animal Shelters Love”

In 1996, The Humane Society of the United States launched National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week–this year it begins Nov. 2. This campaign was designed to acknowledge and promote the invaluable role shelters play in their communities and to increase public awareness of animal welfare issues and shelter services. Here are the top 10 ways that the HSUS suggests you can show your appreciation:

1. Donate a Subscription to Animal Sheltering Magazine.
Shelter workers appreciate Animal Sheltering–an award-winning bi-monthly magazine chock full of articles to educate, inform and inspire anyone who works or volunteers with homeless pets. Donate a year’s subscription to your local shelter for just $20.

2. Learn How to Help Injured or Abandoned Animals.
Your local shelter and animal control officers depend on the community’s help to reach animals in need. Learn everything you need to know to take action, from how to put together a first aid kit to which community phone numbers you need to know.

3. Be an E-mail Ambassador.
Spread a shelter-friendly message every time you hit send–attach a tagline like this one to your signature for all outgoing e-mail messages: Love animals? Support your local shelter!

4. Adopt or Foster an Animal.
Consider adopting or fostering a homeless animal. Whether you decide to bring home a new pet or foster an animal until she finds a forever family, you’ll be giving a critter a safe and caring home while making room for another homeless pet in your community’s animal shelter, where space is limited.

5. Say Thank You.
Drop a note in the mail or shoot an e-mail to your local shelter and let them know how much you appreciate all they do for animals. If you can, sweeten your thank you by adding an item from the shelter’s wish list, a check or a gift card from a pet supply store.

6. Volunteer Your Time and Skills.
Whether you end up walking pooches, helping at special events or lending your expertise as a newsletter editor, your shelter can match your schedule and talents to their needs. Not only will you be helping animals in your community, but you also will be building knowledge and skills. Call your local shelter and find out how to start volunteering.

7. Support Spay-Neuter.
Spaying or neutering your pet or offering to help fund a spay/neuter surgery for a friend, family member or neighbor’s pet will save animals’ lives by helping to lower the number of unwanted animals in your community and reduce the strain on your local shelter’s resources.

8. Donate a Dog Bed.
No shelter dog should have to sleep on a cold, concrete floor while waiting for a forever home, but providing bedding for the millions of homeless animals in our nation’s animal shelters can add up to thousands of dollars each year–not to mention loads of laundry. Help a dog in need by donating a durable, shelter-tested bed to a shelter of your choice through the Kuranda shelter donation program. The beds can increase the overall physical and mental well-being of a shelter’s doggie residents.

9. ID Your Pet.
Your pet should never go naked–that is, without a collar and ID tags. It’s the number one way that lost pets are returned to their owners. Without it a Good Samaritan or animal shelter will likely have no idea how to contact you. Even if your pet is microchipped or your cat never goes outdoors, always err on the safe side and make a collar and tag permanent–your pet’s life could depend on it.

10. Add a Banner to Your Web Page.
Post a banner to your MySpace profile, blog, or website to show your appreciation for your local shelter. Just copy and paste the code here into your page.

Great Cause Video

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about how to create a great video for video sharing sites like YouTube and GoodTube. I found a great example to share with everyone.

The video was created by Haagen Daas to raise awareness of their cause- saving bees. Haagen Daas uses honey in almost all of their products so it’s clear why they decided to support this cause.

This video is great!

The best thing about this video is that the message is simple and not  revealed until the end. Users watch this silly video in order to determine what it is all about.

Cause Marketing= more sales

I read an article the other day from, The Center for Media Research from Mediapost, about a consumer study of brands that align with causes vs. those that don’t.

Interestingly enough consumers were more likely to purchase brands that associated themselves with a charitable cause.  I included the entire article below- May be useful for your organization to include in a presentation to a corporate sponsor.

Stay tuned to GoodBlog I found a great video that illustrates a large brand, Haagen Daas, getting behind a cause. The video is also a great example of a cause video that went viral.

Cause Related Marketing Influences Sales

The 2008 Cone/Duke University Behavioral Cause Study, released recently by Cone and Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, confirms that cause-related marketing can exponentially increase sales, in one case as much as 74%, resulting in millions of dollars in potential revenue for brands.

182 participants evaluated a new regional magazine and were exposed to either a cause-related or generic corporate advertisement for one of four focus brands. Afterward, they entered a mock convenience store with nearly 150 SKUs and were given real money to purchase a product in each of the four categories.

Results revealed:

74% increase in actual purchase for a shampoo brand when associated with a cause (47% of participants who saw the cause-related message chose the brand while only 27% of those who saw the generic corporate advertisement chose the brand)
28% increase in actual purchase for a toothpaste brand when associated with a cause (64% of participants who saw the cause message chose the target brand vs. 50% who viewed the generic corporate advertisement)
Modest increases in the other two product categories tested (chips and light bulbs) – Qualitative consumer responses showed that the issue, the nonprofit and the inherent nature of products were key factors in making cause-related purchasing decisions, and helped explain why movement in these categories was not significant.

In the second phase of the research, Cone and Duke validated the sales increases for shampoo and toothpaste by replicating the study online among a nationally projectable sample of more than 1,000 adults. The participants spent nearly twice as long reviewing cause-related ads versus the general corporate advertisements.

This resulted in a 19% sales increase (similar to the lab study for the target toothpaste brand.) Although the shampoo brand increased only by a modest 5 percent, sales among its target audience of women increased by nearly 14 percent.

Gavan Fitzsimons, Duke marketing professor and lead researcher on the study, observes tha “… consumers are paying more attention to cause messages, and… are more likely to purchase… “

Additionally, Cone conducted the 2008 Cause Evolution Study, to better identify what drove substantial product sales for only two of the four brands. The following factors appeared to be important when deciding to support a company’s cause efforts:

84% want to select their own cause
83% say personal relevance is key
80% believe the specific nonprofit associated with the campaign matters
77% say practical incentives for involvement, such as saving money or time, are important
65% find emotional incentives for involvement, such as it making them feel good or alleviating shopping guilt, important

Alison DaSilva, Cone executive vice president, Knowledge Leadership and Insights, said “The findings… show (that)… consumers want to feel a connection to the issue and the nonprofit while fulfilling their personal needs… “

According to the study, the leading issues that Americans want companies to address in their cause programs are consistent with growing domestic and global needs. The issues include:

Education – 80%
Economic development (i.e.: job creation, income generation, wealth accumulation) – 80%
Health and disease – 79%
Access to clean water – 79%
Environment – 77%
Disaster relief – 77%
Hunger – 77%

If you are interested in more media and marketing research check out the research blog at Media Post http://www.mediapost.com/blogs/research_brief/.

Creating a Video for YouTube or GoodTube

aster internet speeds mean websites with rich media capabilities.   YouTube, GoodTube and GodTube are all video sharing sites that millions of people visit each day.  The ability to reach a worldwide audience is as simple as uploading. You know the technology is there, you know the audience exists now what to say.

There isn’t a  formula for a successful online video it depends on a number of factors- your message, your audience and your platform.  It is important to lay out a simple plan for the videos you put online considering all of these things.

The first step of any successful campaign is to watch your competition. When considering online video, don’t just watch non profit videos or cause related videos watch all videos. You are competing for the attention of the online audience, everything is game.  Take some time to watch the most popular YouTube videos in all categories. Then take sometime to watch popular videos that relate to your cause on more specific sites like GodTube, GoodTube or DoGooder.tv. Take note of the videos that capture your attention and those that don’t.

Then select five videos from the ones you view and put them in one of the following categories:

Humor- videos that get attention and keep it with something absurd
Dramatic- videos that grab your attention by focusing on the drama of a situation
Edgy- captures your attention by challenging your views
Emotional – video that captures your attention by playing to one of your emotions
Sexual(non pornographic)- captures your attention by appealing to ones sexual nature

After you have categorized the five videos ask yourself, which category could I use to tell the online world about my cause? Then focus on that category, watch the videos you put in that category, watch the first thirty seconds and try to identify what caught your attention. Watch the rest and identify what held your attention.  Now ask how can I incorporate this into my video?

It is also good to take sometime and watch a couple awful videos. Videos that don’t hold your attention, bore you in the first 10 seconds and ones you would never watch again. If you start mentally taking note of the good and the bad in online videos you will teach yourself how to create a great video.

Stay tuned to GoodBlog for more video tips. If you want some sound advice on production check out these simple production tips from the producer of “Profiles In Caring”. An emmy nominated tv series about non profit organizations and volunteering.

Websites Can be Fun

In the world of websites often designers and developers are faced with the reality that functionality and usability are the two most important factors in a website. While there is room for creativity, when building a website it is important to put functionality first.

While building GoodTube, a team of developers said it was “too pretty”. There are rotating backgrounds for each region represented and a lot of color.  Often time pretty elements like photos and elaborate backgrounds increase the load time and are discouraged by developers. GoodTube however, has a simple layout on the informational pages that are focused on text. The design of GoodTube works for a video site that is ment to be visual.   An organizational site however, will have be centered around text and providing information. I was reading a white paper from Marketbirght the other day which essential said that lengthy flash intros are out and simple fast loading html is in.

Does this mean that your organization can’t ever let loose and create a beautiful masterpiece online? No! In fact I was delighted to find the perfect example of beauty and functionality from one of my favorite organizations – The Nature Conservancy.

Take a look at their website below. It’s a great site with straight forward navigation. All of the search and browse items are located in the top left with relevant links close by.  Their promotional items are placed further down the page and use more graphics to get people attention. It’s functional,clean and has a great heirarchy of information but it isn’t pretty.

On the other hand The Nature Conservancy built a microsite to promote their Plant a Billion campaign- www.plantabillion.org.  This page is visually striking, with an image as a background and flash elements. The great thing about this promotional site is that the information is easy to find and the purpose of the site is simple and straight forward. A users can clearly see what the creators wanted them to do- learn about why more trees need to be planted and how to help.  The donation link is easy to find  and one can learn more without leaving the page.

For the next promotional campaign try creating a site like this that is fun and functional.  The plant a billion site is exciting and made me excited about giving my money to the organization. Here some tips to creating a visually stunning, promotional microsite:

- Use imagery that sums up the campaign. Think outside the box.  Instead of using a photo of acres of tress The Nature Conservancy choose a close up image showing the soil and roots.

- Select two or three main tasks you want users to do while on the site. Place links on the first page, above the fold near the left side of the site.  The Nature Conservancy selected has three goals: educate about the problem,introduce the solution and donate.

- Once you have determined the tasks , order them that is logical to how users will make a decision. With the first task closest to the left. (people read left to right) For instance, on the plantabillion.org the first peice of information is called the facts, this introduces users to the problem. Second is a tab called the solution, the user knows that there is a problem and now they see the solution.  Finally, the act now tab encourages users to help solve the problem by helping with the solution.

- Select a url that sums up the campaign and is easy for a person to remember after visiting your site.  The Nature Conservancy set out to plant a billion trees thus the url is www.plantabillion.org.

- Place a share option prominently on the page, after the final task. If you place a share link after users have read about your cause they are more likely to share the page because they are now invested in the cause. People are more likely to share sites that are fun and visually interesting make it easy for people to share.

- Include a tally of the success of the campaign.

- Place promos on the right of the page. Promos are ment to peak the interest of users that are already interested in the cause. Placing the promos to the right gives users the next step after they have leared about what your organization is trying to accomplish. Remember people read from left to right, top to bottom. Organization your information this way, with the most important near the top left corner.

- Don’t clutter the page, focus on a primary design and don’t overdo it with to many elements.

- Finally, make the site fun. Plantabillion.org has a fun feature in the lower right hand corner. When you roll over the markers they pop up and you can learn more about the trees you are helping plant. Remember this is a fun element not the primary purpose so put elements like this on the right toward the bottom.

Have you stumbled across a get website promoting a cause that demonstrates the topics I covered? Tell me about it.

Have you stumbled across a horrible website attempting to promote a cause? Tell me about it.

Web 2.0 Badges

It seems that almost everyone today has a blog, MySpace account or website. These pages are easily customizable and offer internet users a place to express themselves. Why not give your supporters something to decorate their space with?

If I had one piece of advice for all non profit organizations that want to increase their online presence, it would be to design and create a Web 2.0 badge. Now some of you may be reading this and have a blank stare…what is a web 2.0 badge?

A web 2.0 badge is simply a graphic people put on their website, blog or social networking site to express themselves. Web badges are generally small and come in all shapes and sizes.  Organizations post the badges on their website, usually as a .PNG, .GIF or .JPG, which visitors can download or copy from the site.  Then post the badges on their blog, social site or web page.  A couple of badges I came across ask visitors to link the badge back to their website or include their web address in the badge (see below).

Recently, I found a website called GreenJobsNow that incorporated web 2.0 badges into their marketing plan.  The website promotes this idea of building a sustainable economy from green jobs. For instance, erecting wind turbines, installing solar panels and planting gardens.   To show support for the idea they created the following badges that anyone can download and post on their various pages to show support.

Putting these badges on my blog was simple, all I did was:

- Download the image

- Upload the image to WordPress by selecting insert image

ASPCA is another organizations that uses Web 2.0 badges to promote their cause. From the ASPCA’s MySpace page anyone can copy the code of the banner below then paste it on their MySpace page or into their blog.

Providing the html code on your page is great because all people have to do is copy the code and paste it where they want it- no download no uploading. The downside to only providing a code is some people may not know where to paste the code so that is show up as an image.

While your organization is going into planning mode for the fourth quarter why not incorporate these simple Web 2.0 badges into your marketing plan. Here are a few ideas:

- email the badges to past and present donors and encourage them to add them to their blog or social networking pages
- Post the badges on your website, blog and social networking site with instructions for adding them to a blog, website and social networking page
- create more than one badge, give supporters a variety

- Host a design contest and have supports select the ones they like best

- Give the badges as gifts to donors

- Post a video on GoodTube or YouTube then create a badge that links to the video or your organizations video page

The possibilities are endless.

Tell me about your organizations success or failures using web 2.0 badges and post your favorite badges here and we will all vote on our favorites.

Eyes on Darfur

Darfur has been in a state of emergency for the last 6 years. The U.N estimates the death toll in Darfur to be around 300,000, according to an article in the Associated Press from April of 2008.  Former U.N secretary puts the death toll at no less than 400,000.

The situation in Darfur is unimaginable to most westerners.  The word genocide doesn’t render a mental image for me, 400,000 deaths doesn’t either. I know it’s awful but how can I, a 25 year old from the suburbs of Utah, really understand the horror that is really taking place?  The key to a non profit organizations success is illustrating their cause so that someone like me can connect emotionally to the cause or situation.

I found a website the other day called Eyes on Darfur. This site profoundly illustrated to me the horror that has and continues to go one in Darfur.  The site uses satellites 280 miles above the earth to show the how the government actions are affecting humans in Africa.

In 2005 the government of Zimbabawe forced 700,000 people from their homes. The first image shows the village before. The second shows the village after the government bulldozed  the entire village leaving hundreds of thousands of people homeless.

I thought to myself after looking at these images – how would I feel if it was my house amongst the ruble. What if the before picture was my neighborhood-Sugarhouse and the government destroyed my home, my neighbors home, the grocery store up the street…everything. What would I do, where would I go and how would I get there?

These images shocked me, the images on the Eyes of Darfur illustrated genocide, these images illustrated an entire village being destroyed.  I now feel like I need to help, I need to do something, anything for the people of Darfur.  I encourage non profit marketers to look at this site, then look at their own and ask themselves “Does my organizations website compel me to connect emotionally with my cause?

These images are not only used to gain support of the cause. Amnesty International is using the satellite images to watch over the 12 intact and vulnerable villages in Darfur.  The project is lead by the Crisis Prevention and Response Center, Amnesty Internationals response center for preventing human rights crises around the world. The project is funded by Save Darfur.

Harsh Economy Equals Fewer Donations. How Can Your Non Profit Survive?

The sluggish United States economy is affecting millions of people across the country. We are all searching for areas to cut back and save money. Non profit organizations are feeling the pitch as well, finding it increasingly difficult to raise funds. An estimated 29 percent of individuals say they will decrease their charitable giving this fall, according to a study conducted by the Grizzard Communications Group.

Only 13 percent of the 500 individuals surveyed said that they planed on increasing their giving from the previous year. An important consideration for non profits becomes who are these people and how do I reach them. Respondents between the ages of 25-34 are the most likely to increase their giving the study found. Gizzard’s vice president and senior strategist, Terry Barber, emphasizes the importance of attracting these young philanthropist. Younger people usually don’t have as much invested in the stock market so they are less affected by falling stock prices. People age 25-34 are also less likely to have families and mortgages.

Reaching this younger audience will require non profits to rethink their marketing strategies. Those organizations that take advantage of the new media will be more successful than those organizations that don’t have an online marketing strategy.

Social marketing is key to reaching people between the ages of 25-34. Non profit specific sites like change.org and idealist.org are a great place to get your organizations message out and increase donations. Not only will you introduce your organization but also start a conversation about what your organization can achieve with their support.

Non profit marketers must rethink how they are delivering their message online. A great new technology is online video and web users have responded to this medium in a profound way. YouTube’s non profit program and GoodTube.org are video sites specific to non profit organizations and chartable causes.

Videos allows people to connect more emotionally with your organizations cause. You are no longer limited to text and photographs, you can now take potential donors where you work and introduce them to who they can help.

Blogging is another new technology non profit organizations should take advantage of to start a conversation about their organization.

The best thing about all these new technologies, they are all accessible and affordable. The people you reach with these mediums are not only younger but they are seeking out causes to support.

I would love to here is any success stories of non profit organizations that have incorporated blogging, videos or social networking into their marketing.

Celebrate Women’s Health Month

Why You Should Care About Women’s Health Issues

It’s Women’s Health Month, and we at GoodTube have already received several great videos that highlight women’s health organizations. But some of you may be wondering, “Why do we dedicate a month to focusing on women’s health?”

Here are 3 reasons why we need a month for women’s health:

1. Although men and women suffer from many of the same health issues, women’s bodies react to them differently.
2. Women experience some unique afflictions that men do not.
3. Either naturally or through conditioning, women in general are prone to neglect their own well-being in favor of their children and significant others. With many women working as well as caring for families, often as single mothers, their health takes a back seat to the demands of daily life.

And so many women suffer from painful, and sometimes deadly, afflictions. Even with fully preventable or treatable illnesses. Even in modernized, Western countries. Whether you are a woman yourself with intentions of living a long, healthy life, or a male who has a woman or women in his life whose well-being you care about, Women’s Health Month is an invitation to learn how to help women take care of themselves.

There are many women’s illnesses that we could discuss, but one that seems to be particularly prevalent lately is HPV, or human papillomavirus. HPV is a group of over 100 common sexually transmitted viruses that causes many cases of cervical cancer. Although a simple PAP test can reveal changes from HPV which may lead to cervical cancer, there were still an estimated 11,000 new cases of cervical cancer in 2007 in the U.S., according to cancer.gov. There are high and low risk HPV viruses, and repeated outbreaks of the high risk types are the highest risk factor for cervical cancer. This is particularly unfortunate because of the significant increase in possibility of survival when cervical cancer is detected early.

What’s a woman to do?

1. Take the first PAP test at age 21, or 3 years after beginning sexual activity, whichever happens sooner.
2. Schedule annual pelvic exams and PAP tests.
3. Women who are between the ages 9 and 26 and who are not sexually active have available a new vaccine called Gardasil. Gardasil can also be effective in sexually active women.
4. If possible, reduce risk factors associated with HPV. Risk factors for HPV include: having many sexual partners, having many children, smoking, and birth control pills.

Treatment for cervical cancer is much more effective when detected early. Yearly exams are very important, especially for women who have the associated risk factors.

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/risk/HPV

“Don’t compromise yourself. You are all you’ve got.”
-Janis Joplin

Autism

Few people are aware that April is Autism Awareness Month. This month I have decided to take the time and learn a little bit more about this disorder that affects 1 in 150 children.

A couple of months ago I received a twenty minute video about a 17 year old guy named Jack. Jack has asperger syndrom, which is one of the autism spectrum disorders. The video is twenty minutes of a 17 year old spiking through a range of emotions, swearing at him mother when asked is he ate and then laughing hysterically. The most interesting thing in the video is Jack’s observations on seemingly irrelevant things, which is a symptom of asberger. For instance, in the video Jack mentions that the word “Pie” actually sounds like a pie or a fattening food. He also has a fascination with socks.

This video opened my eyes to the everyday dealing of person with autism and autism related disorders and how their families cope with the illness.I found a great article on The New York Times website that explains autism, symptoms and treatment. I pasted the article in this blog because after I read this article I felt I had a better understanding of what autism is. Also, I can’t say it better than the NY Times.

Autism is a physical condition linked to abnormal biology and chemistry in the brain. The exact causes of these abnormalities remain unknown, but this is a very active area of research. There are probably a combination of factors that lead to autism.

Genetic factors seem to be important. For example, identical twins are much more likely than fraternal twins or siblings to both have autism. Similarly, language abnormalities are more common in relatives of autistic children. Chromosomal abnormalities and other neurological problems are also more common in families with autism.

A number of other possible causes have been suspected, but not proven. They involve digestive tract changes, diet, mercury poisoning, vaccine sensitivity, and the body’s inefficient use of vitamins and minerals.

The exact number of children with autism is not known. A report released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that autism and related disorders are more common than previously thought, although it is unclear if this is due to an increasing rate of the illness or an increased ability to diagnose the illness.

Autism affects boys 3 to 4 times more often than girls. Family income, education, and lifestyle do not seem to affect the risk of autism.

Some parents have heard that the MMR vaccine that children receive may cause autism. This theory was based, in part, on two facts. First, the incidence of autism has increased steadily since around the same time the MMR vaccine was introduced. Second, children with the regressive form of autism (a type of autism that develops after a period of normal development) tend to start to show symptoms around the time the MMR vaccine is given. This is likely a coincidence due to the age of children at the time they receive this vaccine.

Several major studies have found NO connection between the vaccine and autism, however. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention report that there is no proven link between autism and the MMR vaccine.

Some doctors attribute the increased incidence in autism to newer definitions of autism. The term “autism” now includes a wider spectrum of children. For example, a child who is diagnosed with high-functioning autism today may have been thought to simply be odd or strange 30 years ago.

Symptoms

Most parents of autistic children suspect that something is wrong by the time the child is 18 months old and seek help by the time the child is 2. Children with autism typically have difficulties in verbal and nonverbal communication, social interactions, and pretend play. In some, aggression — toward others or self — may be present.

Some children with autism appear normal before age 1 or 2 and then suddenly “regress” and lose language or social skills they had previously gained. This is called the regressive type of autism.

People with autism may perform repeated body movements, show unusual attachments to objects or have unusual distress when routines are changed. Individuals may also experience sensitivities in the senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell, or taste. Such children, for example, will refuse to wear “itchy” clothes and become unduly distressed if forced because of the sensitivity of their skin. Some combination of the following areas may be affected in varying degrees.

Communication:

* Lack of pointing to direct others’ attention to objects (occurs in the first 14 months of life)
* Does not adjust gaze to look at objects that others are looking at
* Cannot start or sustain a social conversation
* Develops language slowly or not at all
* Repeats words or memorized passages, such as commercials
* Does not refer to self correctly (for example, says “you want water” when the child means “I want water”)
* Uses nonsense rhyming
* Communicates with gestures instead of words

Social interaction:

* Shows a lack of empathy
* Does not make friends
* Is withdrawn
* Prefers to spend time alone, rather than with others
* May not respond to eye contact or smiles
* May actually avoid eye contact
* May treat others as if they are objects
* Does not play interactive games

Response to sensory information:

* Has heightened or low senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell, or taste
* Seems to have a heightened or low response to pain
* May withdraw from physical contact because it is over-stimulating or overwhelming
* Does not startle at loud noises
* May find normal noises painful and hold hands over ears
* Rubs surfaces, mouths or licks objects

Play:

* Shows little pretend or imaginative play
* Doesn’t imitate the actions of others
* Prefers solitary or ritualistic play

Behaviors:

* Has a short attention span
* Uses repetitive body movements
* Shows a strong need for sameness
* “Acts up” with intense tantrums
* Has very narrow interests
* Demonstrates perseveration (gets stuck on a single topic or task)
* Shows aggression to others or self
* Is overactive or very passive

Back to TopSigns and Tests

All children should have routine developmental exams by their pediatrician. Further testing may be needed if there is concern on the part of the clinician or the parents. This is particularly true whenever a child fails to meet any of the following language milestones:

* Babbling by 12 months
* Gesturing (pointing, waving bye-bye) by 12 months
* Single words by 16 months
* Two-word spontaneous phrases by 24 months (not just echoing)
* Loss of any language or social skills at any age.

These children might receive a hearing evaluation, a blood lead test, and a screening test for autism (such as the Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (CHAT) or the Autism Screening Questionnaire).

A health care provider experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of autism is usually necessary for the actual diagnosis. Because there is no biological test for autism, the diagnosis will often be based on very specific criteria laid out in a book called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV.

The other pervasive developmental disorders include:

* Asperger syndrome (like autism, but with normal language development)
* Rett syndrome (very different from autism, and only occurs in females)
* Childhood disintegrative disorder (rare condition where a child acquires skills, then loses them by age 10)
* Pervasive developmental disorder – not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), also called atypical autism.

An evaluation of autism will often include a complete physical and neurologic examination. It may also include a specific diagnostic screening tool, such as:

* Autism Diagnostic Interview – Revised (ADI-R)
* Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS)
* Childhood Autism rating Scale (CARS)
* Gilliam Autism Rating Scale
* Pervasive Developmental Disorders Screening Test-Stage 3

Children with known or suspected autism will often have genetic testing (looking for chromosome abnormalities) and perhaps metabolic testing.

Autism encompasses a broad spectrum of symptoms. Therefore, a single, brief evaluation cannot predict a child’s true abilities. Ideally, a team of different specialists will evaluate the child. They might evaluate speech, language, communication, thinking abilities, motor skills, success at school, and other factors.

Sometimes people are reluctant to have a child diagnosed because of concerns about labeling the child. However, failure to make a diagnosis can lead to failure to get the treatment and services the child needs.
Back to TopTreatment

An early, intensive, appropriate treatment program will greatly improve the outlook for most young children with autism. Most programs will build on the interests of the child in a highly structured schedule of constructive activities. Visual aids are often helpful.

Treatment is most successful when geared toward the child’s particular needs. An experienced specialist or team should design the individualized program. A variety of effective therapies are available, including applied behavior analysis (ABA), speech-language therapy, medications, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. Sensory integration and vision therapy are also common, but there is little research supporting their effectiveness. The best treatment plan may use a combination of techniques.

APPLIED BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS (ABA)

This program is for younger children with an autism spectrum disorder. It highly effective in many cases. ABA uses a one-on-one teaching approach that relies on reinforced practice of various skills. The goal is to get the child close to typical developmental functioning.

ABA programs are usually conducted within a child’s home, under the supervision of a behavioral psychologist. Unfortunately, these programs can be very expensive and have not been widely adopted by school systems. Parents often must seek funding and staffing from other sources, which can be hard to find in many communities.

TEACCH

Another program is called the Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH). TEACCH, developed as a statewide program in North Carolina, uses picture schedules and other visual cues. These help the child work independently and to organize and structure their environments. Though TEACCH tries to enhance a child’s adaptation and skills, there is also an acceptance of the deficits associated with autism spectrum disorders. In contrast to ABA programs, TEACCH programs do not anticipate that children will achieve typical developmental progress in response to the treatment.

MEDICINE

Medicines are often used to treat behavior or emotional problems that people with autism may have. These include hyperactivity, impulsiveness, attention problems, irritability, mood swings, outbursts, tantrums, aggression, extreme compulsions that the child finds it impossible to suppress, sleep difficulty, and anxiety. Currently, only risperidone is approved for treatment of children ages 5-16 with irritability and aggression associated with autism.

DIET

Some children with autism appear to respond to a gluten-free or a casein-free diet. Gluten is found in foods containing wheat, rye, and barley. Casein is found in milk, cheese, and other dairy products. Not all experts agree that dietary changes will make a difference, and not all reports studying this method have shown positive results.

If considering these or other dietary changes, seek guidance from both a gastroenterologist (doctor who specializes in the digestive system) and a registered dietitian. You want to be sure that the child is still receiving adequate calories, nutrients, and a balanced diet.

OTHER APPROACHES

Beware that there are widely publicized treatments for autism that do not have scientific support, and reports of “miracle cures” that do not live up to expectations. If your child has autism, it may be helpful to talk with other parents of children with autism, talk with autism specialists, and follow the progress of research in this area, which is rapidly developing.

At one time, there was enormous excitement about using secretin infusions. Now, after many studies have been conducted in many laboratories, it’s possible that secretin is not effective after all, but research is ongoing.
Back to TopSupport Groups

For organizations that can provide additional information and help on autism, see autism resources.
Back to TopExpectations (prognosis)

Autism remains a challenging condition for individuals and their families, but the outlook today is much better than it was a generation ago. At that time, most people with autism were placed in institutions. Today, with appropriate therapy, many of the symptoms of autism can be improved, though most people will have some symptoms throughout their lives. Most people with autism are able to live with their families or in the community.

The outlook depends on the severity of the autism and the level of therapy the individual receives.
Complications

Autism can be associated with other disorders that affect the brain, such as tuberous sclerosis, mental retardation, or fragile X syndrome. Some people with autism will develop seizures.

The stresses of dealing with autism can lead to social and emotional complications for family and caregivers, as well as the person with autism.