My December 12 blog post was titled "2012 Is [Definitely] the Year of Video. If a promotion I recieved from Borrell Associates on Wednesday is any indication, I may have underestimated video's impact this year.
Borrell Associates took video marketing to a new level in promoting a line-up of 22 conference speakers via video!
On March 21-22, the Local Online Advertising Conference in New York City will feature a host of industry stars. The promotional landing page for this event gives us a few minutes with all of them.
Check it out here.
Nice!
-- scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Showing posts with label Video. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Video. Show all posts
Friday, January 6, 2012
Monday, December 12, 2011
2012 Is [Definitely] the Year of Video
It’s all over the Internet, stuffed into every eNewsletter, offered up on any website that works, glowing LED at every click. It’s marketing VIDEO. By the end of 2012, we’re going to be seeing so much of it people will begin to ask [all over again] whether “this is the death of print.”
Examples? How about the following three videos, all of which landed on my desk in a single morning (December 1).
Square2Marketing has its “Video Marketing Minute.”
Direct Marketing IQ [Target Marketing Group] has DMIQTV.
Production Solutions features Package Formats that will get your attention.
None of these videos are fancy-schmancy. They feature real people talking about -- and demonstrating -- marketing expertise. The films are short, sweet, and targeted.
There’s plenty more where this came from, so if video isn’t on your 2012 calendar (yet), you still have two weeks to put it there. Happy New Year!
p.s. In its Who's Mailing What archive report, DirectMarketingIQ.com reported a big crash (33% decline) in B2B direct mail in 2011. Please note that all of the above videos are B2B efforts.
p.s.s. When this post appeared on The Digital Nirvana blog to which I contribute, one commenter defended direct mail's role in acquisition marketing and wrongly assumed I was echoing the oft-repeated "direct mail is dead" mantra. Not so. Direct mail remains an effective — even essential — part of acquisition marketing. DMIQ’s “Who’s Mailing What” analysis led to their conclusion that B2B marketers had been doing far less direct mail in the first six months of 2011, compared to 2010. Meanwhile, I, too, have seen an explosion of B2B marketing video, not necessarily for acquisition, but certainly as a substitute for textual "content marketing." I stand by the prediction that 2012 will be the year video becomes commonplace on websites, in emails, in eNewletters, and in landing pages. A case in point? HubSpot's brilliant use of a "What is HubSpot" video on its download landing page for a free eBook.
--scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Examples? How about the following three videos, all of which landed on my desk in a single morning (December 1).
Square2Marketing has its “Video Marketing Minute.”
Direct Marketing IQ [Target Marketing Group] has DMIQTV.
Production Solutions features Package Formats that will get your attention.
None of these videos are fancy-schmancy. They feature real people talking about -- and demonstrating -- marketing expertise. The films are short, sweet, and targeted.
There’s plenty more where this came from, so if video isn’t on your 2012 calendar (yet), you still have two weeks to put it there. Happy New Year!
p.s. In its Who's Mailing What archive report, DirectMarketingIQ.com reported a big crash (33% decline) in B2B direct mail in 2011. Please note that all of the above videos are B2B efforts.
p.s.s. When this post appeared on The Digital Nirvana blog to which I contribute, one commenter defended direct mail's role in acquisition marketing and wrongly assumed I was echoing the oft-repeated "direct mail is dead" mantra. Not so. Direct mail remains an effective — even essential — part of acquisition marketing. DMIQ’s “Who’s Mailing What” analysis led to their conclusion that B2B marketers had been doing far less direct mail in the first six months of 2011, compared to 2010. Meanwhile, I, too, have seen an explosion of B2B marketing video, not necessarily for acquisition, but certainly as a substitute for textual "content marketing." I stand by the prediction that 2012 will be the year video becomes commonplace on websites, in emails, in eNewletters, and in landing pages. A case in point? HubSpot's brilliant use of a "What is HubSpot" video on its download landing page for a free eBook.
--scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Video Content Delivers Marketing Wins Across the Board
Increasingly, video is replacing text.
2011 statistics are difficult to come by (yet), but we do know that, according to a comScore study released in February 2011, 82.5% of the U.S. Internet audience viewed a video online. As far back as October 2009, Mashable notes that YouTube already was serving 1 billion videos per day. We also know, for example, that Discovery Channel increased video streams by 123% in 2010.
So, yes, we're watching more video online -- lots more. And, for marketing purposes, videos can't be beat.
• Better Conversion. Online retailer Ice.com reportedly found that viewers who chose to view video converted at a 400% increase over those who did not.
• Decreasing Returns. Ice.com also credits video with decreasing returns by 25% (Internet Retailer, December 2009).
• Better Conversion Again. Shoppers who view video at Onlineshoes.com convert at a 45% higher rate than other shoppers, and the site has seen a 359% year-over-year increase in video views. Product pages with video have higher conversion rates than product pages without video. (Internet Retailer, February 2010).
For more stats, check out "101 Online Video Stats" To Make Your Eyes Glaze Over" by Matthew Bavosa at engage.com. Or visit stats from activate media group.
So, if you're still getting resistance to the video marketing investment, let's hope this ammunition packs enough fire power to argue for a test.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
2011 statistics are difficult to come by (yet), but we do know that, according to a comScore study released in February 2011, 82.5% of the U.S. Internet audience viewed a video online. As far back as October 2009, Mashable notes that YouTube already was serving 1 billion videos per day. We also know, for example, that Discovery Channel increased video streams by 123% in 2010.
So, yes, we're watching more video online -- lots more. And, for marketing purposes, videos can't be beat.
• Better Conversion. Online retailer Ice.com reportedly found that viewers who chose to view video converted at a 400% increase over those who did not.
• Decreasing Returns. Ice.com also credits video with decreasing returns by 25% (Internet Retailer, December 2009).
• Better Conversion Again. Shoppers who view video at Onlineshoes.com convert at a 45% higher rate than other shoppers, and the site has seen a 359% year-over-year increase in video views. Product pages with video have higher conversion rates than product pages without video. (Internet Retailer, February 2010).
For more stats, check out "101 Online Video Stats" To Make Your Eyes Glaze Over" by Matthew Bavosa at engage.com. Or visit stats from activate media group.
So, if you're still getting resistance to the video marketing investment, let's hope this ammunition packs enough fire power to argue for a test.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
Saturday, July 23, 2011
The Two New TVs: Branded and Social. Are You Ready?
Just when you thought it was safe to relax in front of the TV, it isn't. In fact, one of your new marketing tasks may involve putting up the content on your organization's own TV channel. That would be called a branded content channel.
Rob Davis, who heads the online video practice at adverting giant Ogilvy, says in this interview that his agency is working closely on branded content channels on YouTube.
Here are some sound bites from Rob.
"We're finding that with a lot of our clients it goes beyond 'I want to have a video and hope it goes well.' [The push] is about making use of the tools YouTube has available. We're focusing a lot of the effort around identifying the opportunities available with a brand channel. The brand channel model itself on YouTube is growing up. It's a place to curate content; it's a place where we're seeing people using the channel for direct marketing.
"Cure Bad Breath, for example, is a YouTube that's all about moving product, moving the Orabrush. We've just done a brand new channel for IBM that's about curating the best IBM content on the web on YouTube and bringing it into one place.
"When we talk about value of video content, we're looking at engagement, at views plus length of view and completion rates. At Ogilvy, we talk about PPI -- post play interaction. We help our clients identify what the next click should be in their strategy. Is it direct marketing, is it lead generation, is it awareness, is it about viewing more videos or going to a landing page and getting into the sales funnel. Different strategies require different measurements.
"Branded content is a major part of what we're doing. We're still focusing on VSEO (video search engine optimization) for a lot of the content we're creating. It's finding the right blend to get the eyeballs to the branded content. We're not leaving out the notion of blogger outreach and influencers, either. [The strategy involves] getting the content into the right hands so your audience finds the content where they are participating, rather than the old method of trying to drive them to a url.
[In branded channel TV] you want high production values. You don't want to cut corners on the content. The industry is ready for it, although the Internet audience may not be totally ready for it just yet. But I think it can happen. Technology is in place for this year -- 2011 -- to be the year."
And then there's Social TV. Even if you're not developing branded content for your own TV channel, you will probably be pulled into Social TV before long. So what is that?
If the MIT Technology Review on Social TV in 2010 is correct, it's coming on strong. In fact, social TV was named by this group as one of the 10 most important emerging technologies.
How about some real-life examples? Maybe you'll recall seeing Twitter integrated into a TV show. Or maybe you were part of Facebook reactions to the U.S. team's rise and fall at the Women's World Cup. Check out these and more at "Social TV," a blog on the subject.
LostRemote is another blog that covers the social TV scene. One story describes integrating TV into socialization via the Dexter app that allows users to set up their own text-messaging group chat surrounding Showtime's "Dexter" TV show.
And then there's Miso, a phone app designed to notify friends which TV shows you're watching. The process works much like Foursquare, as participants "check in" to report viewing.
Mashable gives us a quick run-down of how social TV is faring, according to TV Guide research. Surprise, Smallville, a program that's one of Nielsen's lowest-rated, has a huge social media following.
Content options provide audiences with additional content that is engaging, unique, and innovative, so that the experience is simultaneously available across platforms.
Wikipedia describes the burgeoning phenomenon this way: "Social TV is creating the cyber-living-room and cyber-bar to enable increased interactivity around shared programming, both live and time-shifted."
See you on the telly.
-- scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Rob Davis, who heads the online video practice at adverting giant Ogilvy, says in this interview that his agency is working closely on branded content channels on YouTube.
Here are some sound bites from Rob.
"We're finding that with a lot of our clients it goes beyond 'I want to have a video and hope it goes well.' [The push] is about making use of the tools YouTube has available. We're focusing a lot of the effort around identifying the opportunities available with a brand channel. The brand channel model itself on YouTube is growing up. It's a place to curate content; it's a place where we're seeing people using the channel for direct marketing.
"Cure Bad Breath, for example, is a YouTube that's all about moving product, moving the Orabrush. We've just done a brand new channel for IBM that's about curating the best IBM content on the web on YouTube and bringing it into one place.
"When we talk about value of video content, we're looking at engagement, at views plus length of view and completion rates. At Ogilvy, we talk about PPI -- post play interaction. We help our clients identify what the next click should be in their strategy. Is it direct marketing, is it lead generation, is it awareness, is it about viewing more videos or going to a landing page and getting into the sales funnel. Different strategies require different measurements.
"Branded content is a major part of what we're doing. We're still focusing on VSEO (video search engine optimization) for a lot of the content we're creating. It's finding the right blend to get the eyeballs to the branded content. We're not leaving out the notion of blogger outreach and influencers, either. [The strategy involves] getting the content into the right hands so your audience finds the content where they are participating, rather than the old method of trying to drive them to a url.
[In branded channel TV] you want high production values. You don't want to cut corners on the content. The industry is ready for it, although the Internet audience may not be totally ready for it just yet. But I think it can happen. Technology is in place for this year -- 2011 -- to be the year."
And then there's Social TV. Even if you're not developing branded content for your own TV channel, you will probably be pulled into Social TV before long. So what is that?
If the MIT Technology Review on Social TV in 2010 is correct, it's coming on strong. In fact, social TV was named by this group as one of the 10 most important emerging technologies.
How about some real-life examples? Maybe you'll recall seeing Twitter integrated into a TV show. Or maybe you were part of Facebook reactions to the U.S. team's rise and fall at the Women's World Cup. Check out these and more at "Social TV," a blog on the subject.
LostRemote is another blog that covers the social TV scene. One story describes integrating TV into socialization via the Dexter app that allows users to set up their own text-messaging group chat surrounding Showtime's "Dexter" TV show.
And then there's Miso, a phone app designed to notify friends which TV shows you're watching. The process works much like Foursquare, as participants "check in" to report viewing.
Mashable gives us a quick run-down of how social TV is faring, according to TV Guide research. Surprise, Smallville, a program that's one of Nielsen's lowest-rated, has a huge social media following.
Content options provide audiences with additional content that is engaging, unique, and innovative, so that the experience is simultaneously available across platforms.
Wikipedia describes the burgeoning phenomenon this way: "Social TV is creating the cyber-living-room and cyber-bar to enable increased interactivity around shared programming, both live and time-shifted."
See you on the telly.
-- scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Thursday, June 16, 2011
If You’re Making a Video, Don’t Hire Just Any Writer. Here’s What You Need Instead.
In putting the August issue of DMAW's Marketing AdVents together, I received an awesome article from Bob James, the Mighty Copywriter.
Bob put together a seriously good wrap-up of what’s going on in the direct marketing copywriting business. He talked to a number of colleagues who described how the profession has changed and the sorts of new projects copywriters are undertaking.
In reading Bob’s piece, I noticed that more than a few of the folks he talked to said they were writing fewer direct mail letters and more video scripts. I was surprised.
I have great respect for my fellow copywriters. Intuitively, though, it seems to be that, in the same way copywriting is a specialty, so is video scripting.
For years, direct marketing copywriters have been saying that “not just anyone” can write direct mail. It’s a special type of writing. I know that’s true. Not all journalists can be feature writers; not all authors can write poetry; not all business writers can be technical writers; certainly not all writers can be editors; and not all copywriters can be scriptwriters.
So, in putting this blog post together, I talked to short-film maker and corporate video consultant, Deryck White (DCW Concepts.) “Can somebody simply switch from copywriting to scriptwriting?” I asked.
“There's no reason a copywriter can't write for video,” Deryck says, “but scriptwriting is a beast of a different nature and writers should be aware of the special considerations inherent in this type of work – and it is work.”
Deryck clarified the differences of which writers should be most aware.
1. Good scriptwriters think visually first, verbally second. Effective copywriters do the opposite.
2. A copywriter spends hours polishing the narrative and picking over colorful words that will speak to the reader. A video/film scriptwriter is crafting a message that will be funneled through one other person – an actor or voiceover narrator, for example – before it reaches the viewer. In short, words that read well on the printed page may translate less well when delivered in speech.
3. Writing low-cost is an art. The story a video/film scriptwriter can afford to tell is limited by what the client can afford – in dollars-- to show on screen. Copywriters are constrained by length too, of course, but the “cost-per-word” calculation in video and film is far higher.
4. A video/film scriptwriter often must write for non-professionals not quite able to deliver the words as written or conceived. These intermediaries (actors, staff) will stand between the writer’s words and the viewer's eye, so the scriptwriter must be able to write for them, too.
5. Scriptwriting has to take into account the capabilities of the performers and also be adaptable to acting/directing/shooting dynamics.
6. Scriptwriters must work with a range of professionals with whom they may be unfamiliar: the director, the actor, the producer, and the film editor. This may be a team of creatives with whom most copywriters have never collaborated.
So, write on, everybody. But write right!
-- scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Bob put together a seriously good wrap-up of what’s going on in the direct marketing copywriting business. He talked to a number of colleagues who described how the profession has changed and the sorts of new projects copywriters are undertaking.
In reading Bob’s piece, I noticed that more than a few of the folks he talked to said they were writing fewer direct mail letters and more video scripts. I was surprised.
I have great respect for my fellow copywriters. Intuitively, though, it seems to be that, in the same way copywriting is a specialty, so is video scripting.
For years, direct marketing copywriters have been saying that “not just anyone” can write direct mail. It’s a special type of writing. I know that’s true. Not all journalists can be feature writers; not all authors can write poetry; not all business writers can be technical writers; certainly not all writers can be editors; and not all copywriters can be scriptwriters.
So, in putting this blog post together, I talked to short-film maker and corporate video consultant, Deryck White (DCW Concepts.) “Can somebody simply switch from copywriting to scriptwriting?” I asked.
“There's no reason a copywriter can't write for video,” Deryck says, “but scriptwriting is a beast of a different nature and writers should be aware of the special considerations inherent in this type of work – and it is work.”
Deryck clarified the differences of which writers should be most aware.
1. Good scriptwriters think visually first, verbally second. Effective copywriters do the opposite.
2. A copywriter spends hours polishing the narrative and picking over colorful words that will speak to the reader. A video/film scriptwriter is crafting a message that will be funneled through one other person – an actor or voiceover narrator, for example – before it reaches the viewer. In short, words that read well on the printed page may translate less well when delivered in speech.
3. Writing low-cost is an art. The story a video/film scriptwriter can afford to tell is limited by what the client can afford – in dollars-- to show on screen. Copywriters are constrained by length too, of course, but the “cost-per-word” calculation in video and film is far higher.
4. A video/film scriptwriter often must write for non-professionals not quite able to deliver the words as written or conceived. These intermediaries (actors, staff) will stand between the writer’s words and the viewer's eye, so the scriptwriter must be able to write for them, too.
5. Scriptwriting has to take into account the capabilities of the performers and also be adaptable to acting/directing/shooting dynamics.
6. Scriptwriters must work with a range of professionals with whom they may be unfamiliar: the director, the actor, the producer, and the film editor. This may be a team of creatives with whom most copywriters have never collaborated.
So, write on, everybody. But write right!
-- scrubbed by MarketingBrillo
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Today's NEW Marketing Report (For Today Only)
Saturday's email and Twit-fodder spotlighted trends in today's marketing ("today" being April 17; this will all change tomorrow).
1. We've gone to the movies.. the SHORT movies. Meet the irresistible Loic Le Meur and his report of YouTube mastery. Loic describes himself as a "French entrepreneur who lives in San Francisco, and is founder of Seemic and LeWeb conference." Loic told Twitter followers that he's posting a new YouTube daily, getting 3,000 hits a day, and has logged 1.7 million views. I believe it. This guy rocks (today). See a sample here.
2. Coupons Are Selling Us Out. Comrade Gabe Goldberg linked to a New York Times article that reported on information-gathering (some might say "spying") capabilities of online coupon vendors. If you're inclined to paranoia, don't read this -- especially the part that says barcodes on some of these coupons have the user's Facebook information embedded. (Does that include the office party photos? Ooops.)
3. Banks Want To Talk To Us. Well, they don't really want to talk to us; they want to "connect" with us online. (No, not in line; they don't want to talk to us at all in line. Online. Get it?) The Marketing Vox reports that banks are turning to social media to make "real, live" connections with customers. The horse left through the barn door long ago on that one, guys, but ... Bank of America's is reportedly using "many different strategies" to build -- or rebuild -- conversations with customers. (I suggest checking in with Frank Eliason, who's tweeting as "comcastcares" to see how that's working out.)
4. Social Media Friends Aren't All That. Writing on SmartBlog, Jesse Stanchak reports on Edleman's 2010 survey that says peers trust one another 20% less than they did in 2008. Edelman blames the recession, but Stanchak says social media may have redefined whom we consider peers, to wit: "The challenge is clear: We have a long way to go in understanding how relationships are formed, what they’re based on and how influence spreads. For now, we only know that consumers are becoming more discerning." (And just when we thought it was safe to go on Twitter...)
Speaking of social media gone bad, could "live, present, and in person" be the hot new secret marketing weapon? You heard it here first. And that's enough shocking news for one day.
--scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
1. We've gone to the movies.. the SHORT movies. Meet the irresistible Loic Le Meur and his report of YouTube mastery. Loic describes himself as a "French entrepreneur who lives in San Francisco, and is founder of Seemic and LeWeb conference." Loic told Twitter followers that he's posting a new YouTube daily, getting 3,000 hits a day, and has logged 1.7 million views. I believe it. This guy rocks (today). See a sample here.
2. Coupons Are Selling Us Out. Comrade Gabe Goldberg linked to a New York Times article that reported on information-gathering (some might say "spying") capabilities of online coupon vendors. If you're inclined to paranoia, don't read this -- especially the part that says barcodes on some of these coupons have the user's Facebook information embedded. (Does that include the office party photos? Ooops.)
3. Banks Want To Talk To Us. Well, they don't really want to talk to us; they want to "connect" with us online. (No, not in line; they don't want to talk to us at all in line. Online. Get it?) The Marketing Vox reports that banks are turning to social media to make "real, live" connections with customers. The horse left through the barn door long ago on that one, guys, but ... Bank of America's is reportedly using "many different strategies" to build -- or rebuild -- conversations with customers. (I suggest checking in with Frank Eliason, who's tweeting as "comcastcares" to see how that's working out.)
4. Social Media Friends Aren't All That. Writing on SmartBlog, Jesse Stanchak reports on Edleman's 2010 survey that says peers trust one another 20% less than they did in 2008. Edelman blames the recession, but Stanchak says social media may have redefined whom we consider peers, to wit: "The challenge is clear: We have a long way to go in understanding how relationships are formed, what they’re based on and how influence spreads. For now, we only know that consumers are becoming more discerning." (And just when we thought it was safe to go on Twitter...)
Speaking of social media gone bad, could "live, present, and in person" be the hot new secret marketing weapon? You heard it here first. And that's enough shocking news for one day.
--scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Business Video Grows, Improves, Advances, and Influences
Last week, Mashable featured some eye-popping numbers about video use. To wit: 84.4% of U.S. Internet users watched at least one online video in October and the average person watched 10.8 hours of video. Indeed, online video continues to grow and the end is nowhere in site. In fact, video is fast on its way to becoming the radical (for now, but not for long) human learning tool.
BVo supports that notion. Created in the spring of 2008 in association with IBM, BVo founder Anthony Gell says: ".. quite frankly, we got tired of scrolling through online video sites looking for business inspiration, only to find some very strange homemade movies. So we launched The Business Voice (BVo) - world leaders at your desk."
BVo interviews business leaders and vlogs the clips. American Express Open Forum does much the same thing. Both are excellent learning tools, well-funded, and exceptionally well produced. Efforts like these are raising the bar on online education. Expect more of the same.
-- scrubbed by marketing brillo
BVo supports that notion. Created in the spring of 2008 in association with IBM, BVo founder Anthony Gell says: ".. quite frankly, we got tired of scrolling through online video sites looking for business inspiration, only to find some very strange homemade movies. So we launched The Business Voice (BVo) - world leaders at your desk."
BVo interviews business leaders and vlogs the clips. American Express Open Forum does much the same thing. Both are excellent learning tools, well-funded, and exceptionally well produced. Efforts like these are raising the bar on online education. Expect more of the same.
-- scrubbed by marketing brillo
Monday, November 23, 2009
Dear Info Manager: Your New Job Is Video, Concept Is King, and Here's What You Need
If you're a marketing or communications manager, information video is about to become part of your job responsibility. Here's the why, how, and who.
Why? Most people are read-up and fed up.
Lucy Kellaway writing in the U.K.’s Financial Times says employees faced with information overload are stuffing their ears, closing the blinds, and shutting down. “... the written word has lost almost all its power. No one reads e-mails any more - with the exception of those from the boss. Messages from anyone else are either deleted unread or given a cursory glance and then ignored.”
Kellaway says management, too, is getting rid of information. “... companies have decided to deal with too much information by giving up any attempt to manage it on the grounds that to do so costs too much. Since the recession began, many have closed their libraries and taken the axe to their knowledge management divisions, set up with such pride and optimism barely a decade ago."
But people still want to watch. In fact, they want to watch more.
The buzz that prompted Kellaway’s article emanated from Carol Bartz, president and CEO of Yahoo, who contributes to The Economists’s “The World in 2010.” Bartz says, “That’s why the greatest mandate for leadership in business is the ability to cut through the information clutter and make clear decisions without apology.” How to cut through the clutter? Bartz alludes to video “snacks,” calling video the “cornerstone” of Yahoo’s strategy.
At first glance, I wondered if Bartz was snacking on something more potent than video, but then I remembered that a colleague told me her middle school niece goes first to YouTube, then to Wikipedia, in researching any paper for school. For information ... first to YouTube! Wow.
Today's volume of information demands that users must both see and hear in order to process. For information architects and managers of all ilk, the message becomes an irresistible mandate to evolve written stories and messages to visual stories and messages.
In short, we're moving from a written world to a video world, and nothing can change that. So -- if you're an information or marketing manager today, what is the mindset that will take you to the next step? That would be the ability to think.
To conquer, conceptualize.
Effective video demands that we conceptualize first. Concept in hand, we can execute the steps that go into effective video -- research, locate, listen, see, coagulate, film, process, edit, and -- ultimately -- communicate.
The film documentarian -- that dedicated man or woman who has something to say and follows it to the ends of the earth -- personifies the new communications model for information video. Think of The Discovery Channels amazing "Planet Earth" series; Ken Burns Civil War masterpiece on PBS, Michael Moore's "Capitalism" grappling with complex economic theories. These are massive undertakings of research, interview, selection, and presentation that make The Watergate Papers pale in comparison. All are draped in detail, but heavy on concept.
Bottom line: Concept Is King.
If this level of information delivery is where snack video is going -- and surely it is-- we're also talking about new definitions for career genius and a great many new jobs. Here's the management team you'll need for effective information video. Some of these folks may already be on staff, others not; plus, any one of these folks probably needs myriad assistants:
• Leader (you?): The One who can conceptualize a project, develop a message, build the team, and sign-off along the way.
• Executionary (production person?): The One who can take a plan, oversee the team, devise and enforce schedules, crack whips.
• Information Architect (writer?): The One who can string together the narrative, find and coagulate bits of message, and schlog through raw footage for "that's it!"
• Film Maker (could be a designer, but you likely don't have this one yet...): The One who can appreciate the message, tell people where to stand, and get great-looking film into the camera.
• Editor (another newbie ..): The One who "gets the message" and puts it together for maximum effect.
-- scrubbed Marketing Brillo
Why? Most people are read-up and fed up.
Lucy Kellaway writing in the U.K.’s Financial Times says employees faced with information overload are stuffing their ears, closing the blinds, and shutting down. “... the written word has lost almost all its power. No one reads e-mails any more - with the exception of those from the boss. Messages from anyone else are either deleted unread or given a cursory glance and then ignored.”
Kellaway says management, too, is getting rid of information. “... companies have decided to deal with too much information by giving up any attempt to manage it on the grounds that to do so costs too much. Since the recession began, many have closed their libraries and taken the axe to their knowledge management divisions, set up with such pride and optimism barely a decade ago."
But people still want to watch. In fact, they want to watch more.
The buzz that prompted Kellaway’s article emanated from Carol Bartz, president and CEO of Yahoo, who contributes to The Economists’s “The World in 2010.” Bartz says, “That’s why the greatest mandate for leadership in business is the ability to cut through the information clutter and make clear decisions without apology.” How to cut through the clutter? Bartz alludes to video “snacks,” calling video the “cornerstone” of Yahoo’s strategy.
At first glance, I wondered if Bartz was snacking on something more potent than video, but then I remembered that a colleague told me her middle school niece goes first to YouTube, then to Wikipedia, in researching any paper for school. For information ... first to YouTube! Wow.
Today's volume of information demands that users must both see and hear in order to process. For information architects and managers of all ilk, the message becomes an irresistible mandate to evolve written stories and messages to visual stories and messages.
In short, we're moving from a written world to a video world, and nothing can change that. So -- if you're an information or marketing manager today, what is the mindset that will take you to the next step? That would be the ability to think.
To conquer, conceptualize.
Effective video demands that we conceptualize first. Concept in hand, we can execute the steps that go into effective video -- research, locate, listen, see, coagulate, film, process, edit, and -- ultimately -- communicate.
The film documentarian -- that dedicated man or woman who has something to say and follows it to the ends of the earth -- personifies the new communications model for information video. Think of The Discovery Channels amazing "Planet Earth" series; Ken Burns Civil War masterpiece on PBS, Michael Moore's "Capitalism" grappling with complex economic theories. These are massive undertakings of research, interview, selection, and presentation that make The Watergate Papers pale in comparison. All are draped in detail, but heavy on concept.
Bottom line: Concept Is King.
If this level of information delivery is where snack video is going -- and surely it is-- we're also talking about new definitions for career genius and a great many new jobs. Here's the management team you'll need for effective information video. Some of these folks may already be on staff, others not; plus, any one of these folks probably needs myriad assistants:
• Leader (you?): The One who can conceptualize a project, develop a message, build the team, and sign-off along the way.
• Executionary (production person?): The One who can take a plan, oversee the team, devise and enforce schedules, crack whips.
• Information Architect (writer?): The One who can string together the narrative, find and coagulate bits of message, and schlog through raw footage for "that's it!"
• Film Maker (could be a designer, but you likely don't have this one yet...): The One who can appreciate the message, tell people where to stand, and get great-looking film into the camera.
• Editor (another newbie ..): The One who "gets the message" and puts it together for maximum effect.
-- scrubbed Marketing Brillo
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Will Vlogging Replace Blogging? Will Actors Replace Writers? Maybe.
Some people would say Blog = info, and Vlog = entertainment. Loïc Le Meur, CEO of Seesmic, doesn't care to split that hair.
On November first, Le Meur posted “30 Predictions for the Future of Twitter.” In the post, he used both blogging and vlogging formats. Check his post for a great predictive wrap-up that shows how written bulleted points can play nicely with longer, more detailed video (19 minutes worth, actually).
One of BusinessWeek’s “25 Most Influential People on the Web,” Le Meur writes, “I am blogging every day a video on loic.tv about (almost) everything I do as I start Seesmic. I also constantly post short thoughts to twitter and often my pictures on Flickr.”
Highlights of Le Mur's view of the future of Twitter include:
• Twitter will still be dominant in status updates; it's the motherboard to which we plug in.
• Twitter might replace Chat for many people.
• Vertical Twitter apps will start to appear; Stocktweets is the first one.
• There will be less and less bullshit in public events and in general.
Gotta love that last one. As always, don’t miss the comments.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
On November first, Le Meur posted “30 Predictions for the Future of Twitter.” In the post, he used both blogging and vlogging formats. Check his post for a great predictive wrap-up that shows how written bulleted points can play nicely with longer, more detailed video (19 minutes worth, actually).
One of BusinessWeek’s “25 Most Influential People on the Web,” Le Meur writes, “I am blogging every day a video on loic.tv about (almost) everything I do as I start Seesmic. I also constantly post short thoughts to twitter and often my pictures on Flickr.”
Highlights of Le Mur's view of the future of Twitter include:
• Twitter will still be dominant in status updates; it's the motherboard to which we plug in.
• Twitter might replace Chat for many people.
• Vertical Twitter apps will start to appear; Stocktweets is the first one.
• There will be less and less bullshit in public events and in general.
Gotta love that last one. As always, don’t miss the comments.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
Monday, September 21, 2009
Tidbits on the new Video-In-Print Technology
Technology from Americahip can embed a video chip in a print product like a magazine. The technology was launched in the September 18 issue of Entertainment Weekly. As Julian Gratton, Red C’s creative director explains, “The video advert will work by having slim screens inserted into the magazine that are activated when the magazine pages are opened – kinda like what happens on greeting cards.”
How does it work? “Each chip that feeds the screen can hold up to 40 minutes of video with the battery that powers the chip and screen being able to play for about 65 to 70 minutes. This battery can then be recharged by plugging in a mini USB cord and once you’ve got bored of the content contained in the chip… you can download additional content from the Web.”
As Gratton noted, it “sounds clever, and expensive… so will it take off?” Comments on LinkedIn’s Direct Mail Group expressed curiosity and reservation.
Miri Thomas, Editor at Catalog e-business saw possibilities for retailers. “Imagine what catalogues could do using the moving image. We could soon see product demonstrations, catwalk videos, and nonselling content such as interviews with celebrities/brand experts within their pages.”
John Noble, owner of the UK's Pro-Active Business Information Limited, shed light on practical aspects – and high costs -- of the technology in talking about his own company’s involvement in the production of the first speaking magazine advert.
"At Pro-Active, we were involved in the production of the world's first speaking magazine advert. It was in Media Week and the advert was for Radio advertising. The centrefold of the magazine was blank, and on opening the centre pages, the voice module was activated (extolling the virtues of radio advertising). It was a very powerful campaign. The cost of the voice modules was not too bad, the challenge was to implant them in the spine of the magazine. This proved to be tricky and could only be done manually. The labour costs of implanting the modules was the most expensive part. This also had a bearing on turnaround times as each magazine (from a total of 50,000) had to have each implant placed, primed and tested. Voice modules, however, must be far more cost effective to produce than video as the use of voice modules (especially in greeting & birthday cards) are widely available. If anyone fancies having a voiceover for their magazine advert, get in touch as we can help on the physical production side. As for the moving images, although the technology may be coming down in price, surely the largest cost is in the execution? If so, then surely overall production costs would only come down once the affixing or implanting becomes automated? I can certainly see this type of approach taking off as it breathes new life into print media."
Gratton noted journalistic as well as advertising applications. "If this technology is used in support of articles there are clear benefits. No more can people in the public eye claim to be misquoted… especially when news stories and articles where they are featured have them speaking in full colour on the page. And instead of sports writers trying to tell us that a goal was spectacular or a tackle was horrendous… we can actually watch it back ourselves in full colour… in print and on the train to work."
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
How does it work? “Each chip that feeds the screen can hold up to 40 minutes of video with the battery that powers the chip and screen being able to play for about 65 to 70 minutes. This battery can then be recharged by plugging in a mini USB cord and once you’ve got bored of the content contained in the chip… you can download additional content from the Web.”
As Gratton noted, it “sounds clever, and expensive… so will it take off?” Comments on LinkedIn’s Direct Mail Group expressed curiosity and reservation.
Miri Thomas, Editor at Catalog e-business saw possibilities for retailers. “Imagine what catalogues could do using the moving image. We could soon see product demonstrations, catwalk videos, and nonselling content such as interviews with celebrities/brand experts within their pages.”
John Noble, owner of the UK's Pro-Active Business Information Limited, shed light on practical aspects – and high costs -- of the technology in talking about his own company’s involvement in the production of the first speaking magazine advert.
"At Pro-Active, we were involved in the production of the world's first speaking magazine advert. It was in Media Week and the advert was for Radio advertising. The centrefold of the magazine was blank, and on opening the centre pages, the voice module was activated (extolling the virtues of radio advertising). It was a very powerful campaign. The cost of the voice modules was not too bad, the challenge was to implant them in the spine of the magazine. This proved to be tricky and could only be done manually. The labour costs of implanting the modules was the most expensive part. This also had a bearing on turnaround times as each magazine (from a total of 50,000) had to have each implant placed, primed and tested. Voice modules, however, must be far more cost effective to produce than video as the use of voice modules (especially in greeting & birthday cards) are widely available. If anyone fancies having a voiceover for their magazine advert, get in touch as we can help on the physical production side. As for the moving images, although the technology may be coming down in price, surely the largest cost is in the execution? If so, then surely overall production costs would only come down once the affixing or implanting becomes automated? I can certainly see this type of approach taking off as it breathes new life into print media."
Gratton noted journalistic as well as advertising applications. "If this technology is used in support of articles there are clear benefits. No more can people in the public eye claim to be misquoted… especially when news stories and articles where they are featured have them speaking in full colour on the page. And instead of sports writers trying to tell us that a goal was spectacular or a tackle was horrendous… we can actually watch it back ourselves in full colour… in print and on the train to work."
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Do-It-Yourself Business Video Is Worth A Look
I’ve never used this Instant Video Presenter software, but it looks cool on the website.
The sales pitch says the software lets you use your own computer’s desktop as the background of the video you are recording. Instead of you in front of a potted plant, you get an effect similar to that you see in weather or news reports, with somebody talking into the camera and lots of active, dynamic stuff on a screen behind. That feature sets the end product apart from so much of the homegrown, static video you see online right now. You can work with multiple, dynamic backgrounds -- videos, pictures, websites, slide presentations, applications, or anything else you can get on your computer screen.
With the exploding demand for commercial video, this product would appear to deserve a look. Ideally, though, even a project tagged as "simple" as this one probably would benefit from a producer with some film sense.
And, no, I'm not aligned with the product. Instant Video Presenter is only available on Windows machines.. no Mac version yet. Mac folks tend to be in the creative side of marketing and probably are using high-end recorders and Final Cut Pro to make their videos. Still – at $259.99 (basic) or $358.94 (professional) -- this looks like a seriously useful program to me. If I weren’t on a Mac, I’d give it a twirl.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
The sales pitch says the software lets you use your own computer’s desktop as the background of the video you are recording. Instead of you in front of a potted plant, you get an effect similar to that you see in weather or news reports, with somebody talking into the camera and lots of active, dynamic stuff on a screen behind. That feature sets the end product apart from so much of the homegrown, static video you see online right now. You can work with multiple, dynamic backgrounds -- videos, pictures, websites, slide presentations, applications, or anything else you can get on your computer screen.
With the exploding demand for commercial video, this product would appear to deserve a look. Ideally, though, even a project tagged as "simple" as this one probably would benefit from a producer with some film sense.
And, no, I'm not aligned with the product. Instant Video Presenter is only available on Windows machines.. no Mac version yet. Mac folks tend to be in the creative side of marketing and probably are using high-end recorders and Final Cut Pro to make their videos. Still – at $259.99 (basic) or $358.94 (professional) -- this looks like a seriously useful program to me. If I weren’t on a Mac, I’d give it a twirl.
-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Before You Post Video on the Web, Read This
I got interested in making short narrative films about five years ago. Since then, I've produced several. I started out knowing nothing, so I read a lot, talked to folks with experience, practiced, and learned by trial and error.
I don't pretend to be an expert, but I'm seeing a hunk of unnecessarily ugly vlogging and video on the Web. I thought maybe I could spare us all some pain by sharing what I've learned, which is:
In order to produce a decent piece of film, consider the follow components in the process:
A Producer—that organized, energetic, multi-tasking, diplomatic somebody who can work with creative people, quirky egos, technical types, guys who haul cable, and animals (human and otherwise).
Production Values—the attention to visual detail that makes us say “Ah, nice!” In short, production values seamlessly make the video look good. Most people know production values when they see them, but have no idea how they happen (well, actually, they don't just happen; they're planned .. carefully).
Location Scouting—the art of finding just the right spot to enhance the message (it’s probably not in a chair, inside an office, with a blank wall and a potted plan behind the "speaker" ... and it’s quite possibly more than one spot, even for a three-minute film).
Casting—the insight of a person familiar with what an actor can bring to the video party, along with a knowledge of who can work behind a camera, who can’t, and why.
A Director’s Touch— a firm grasp of such film production techniques as camera angles, long, medium, and close-up shots, framing the shot for optimum visual interest, and the seamless, intuitive human interaction that brings out the best in everybody who will be on camera.
A Cinematographer/Art Director’s Eye—which is different from point-and-click shooting, different from the way a weekend photographer sees things, and the difference between desktop publishing and Vogue magazine: in other words, no comparison. Much more than a shooter, this guy or gal is an artist.
Lighting, Sound, and Gear Professionals—the crew gets film in the can that looks, sounds, and plays as it should. We all know what imperfect looks like—sound that vacillates between loud and soft, camera work that jiggles and blurs, lighting that's too dark, etc. An experienced crew has been there and doesn't do that.
A Film Editor—in these hands, everything comes together. Film editing is art and science. It takes considerable technical expertise, an investment in learning, and—most of all—a deep love of and familiarity with what “works” on screen. If you make only one investment in your video, do multiple takes from multiple angles and then get an experienced film editor.
Bottom line: Web video looks better shot in a filmmaker's light. It's harder than it looks, but easier when you consider the proper components. See you on set ...
- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
I don't pretend to be an expert, but I'm seeing a hunk of unnecessarily ugly vlogging and video on the Web. I thought maybe I could spare us all some pain by sharing what I've learned, which is:
In order to produce a decent piece of film, consider the follow components in the process:
A Producer—that organized, energetic, multi-tasking, diplomatic somebody who can work with creative people, quirky egos, technical types, guys who haul cable, and animals (human and otherwise).
Production Values—the attention to visual detail that makes us say “Ah, nice!” In short, production values seamlessly make the video look good. Most people know production values when they see them, but have no idea how they happen (well, actually, they don't just happen; they're planned .. carefully).
Location Scouting—the art of finding just the right spot to enhance the message (it’s probably not in a chair, inside an office, with a blank wall and a potted plan behind the "speaker" ... and it’s quite possibly more than one spot, even for a three-minute film).
Casting—the insight of a person familiar with what an actor can bring to the video party, along with a knowledge of who can work behind a camera, who can’t, and why.
A Director’s Touch— a firm grasp of such film production techniques as camera angles, long, medium, and close-up shots, framing the shot for optimum visual interest, and the seamless, intuitive human interaction that brings out the best in everybody who will be on camera.
A Cinematographer/Art Director’s Eye—which is different from point-and-click shooting, different from the way a weekend photographer sees things, and the difference between desktop publishing and Vogue magazine: in other words, no comparison. Much more than a shooter, this guy or gal is an artist.
Lighting, Sound, and Gear Professionals—the crew gets film in the can that looks, sounds, and plays as it should. We all know what imperfect looks like—sound that vacillates between loud and soft, camera work that jiggles and blurs, lighting that's too dark, etc. An experienced crew has been there and doesn't do that.
A Film Editor—in these hands, everything comes together. Film editing is art and science. It takes considerable technical expertise, an investment in learning, and—most of all—a deep love of and familiarity with what “works” on screen. If you make only one investment in your video, do multiple takes from multiple angles and then get an experienced film editor.
Bottom line: Web video looks better shot in a filmmaker's light. It's harder than it looks, but easier when you consider the proper components. See you on set ...
- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo
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