Fear of The Camera

There are a lot of potential fears associated with joining the business video revolution. Some are understandable, some are universal, many are misplaced, and most can be overcome. There seem to be two main types. Fear of failure. Of not delivering to the potential of you and the business you represent. Of letting yourself down. Fear of being judged. Of looking a fool in the eyes of others. Of being viewed as dressing ‘wrongly’, looking ‘funny’ or delivering ‘poorly’. Even experienced actors get nervous before going on stage. Even newsreaders fluff their lines sometimes. Few end up summarily dismissed. read more

Seminar / Presentation / Workshop filming Tips

Filming presentations is a great way to generate cost-effective content. The material is already in place, as is the venue, and nerves are not focussed on performance for the camera. You can even generate multiple videos from the same presentation. If the presentation is being professionally shot, here are some pointers for you, the speaker, to help get the most from the project; read more

What does ‘consistency’ mean when it comes to video marketing?

Fundamentally there are two aspects – Brand consistency, and Production consistency. Brand consistency tells us that all aspects of the marketing mix must be not only identifiable with the business (logo, use of colours, fonts, tone of voice), but they must share an appropriate theme or approach. For video this means that the content itself must have production values which reflect both the vertical in which the business operates, and the position within the hierarchy. That is to say that the ‘look and feel’ of the video will differ between a builder and a law firm, and also between a ‘man and van’ builder and a property development company. Getting this wrong risks alienating the audience – because naturally the target audience are looking to see a representation of the brand values the company espouses elsewhere. read more

Do you want to be in the minority?

With half of Internet traffic accounted for by video, businesses generating content or promoting themselves online without including video in the marketing mix may be getting less than half the traction they could. It could be worse. A business could be in the majority category. The difference is that this majority represents businesses that are already using video as part of their strategy, but aren't getting the results they could. read more

True Value of Video

A key criticism often levelled at social media is that it is hard to measure ROI, and yet it is a tool that consumes many hours of time. Because it is simple, prevalent and flexible, it is often undertaken without regard to the real cost and the real value. Similarly with blogging and video blogging, tools for effective business communication are more rife than ever, and their widespread adoption must mean that they work. And, yes, we all know that video works too. We love our TVs, our YouTube. But yet the playing field is not level. Why? What is the true value of video? read more

Successful video marketing campaigns

Reward, in many areas, is highly dependant on knowledge and effort. Success through luck is all very nice, but not an ideal business strategy. Creating a 'viral' video is not a matter of science, otherwise it would be replicable by anyone. Luck is a big element. Most businesses don't want video content that promotes their business to go viral, they just want it to hit the target audience and move them up the buying curve. This reward is dependant on knowledge and effort. read more

Creating a successful Video campaign

Video as a leading delivery mechanism for great content is almost undeniable, but with the opportunity for audience engagement comes risk. Not a bad ‘Gerald Ratner’ risk, but specifically a ‘defeat from the jaws of victory’ risk. Creating a program of informative videos stands its best chance of success when approached with a planned release strategy (assuming you define success as high viewership). Shooting short videos in bulk is an efficient way to work in terms of your own time, and can make using a professional very cost-effective. As a guideline, I recently shot 20 ‘tips’ videos in 2 hours, and including editing this could work out at just £25 per video! read more

YouTube for business - are you hiding in the light?

Let’s say that as a business owner you have decided to embrace this whole ‘social media’ lark. You have realized that it is not a fad but the new world order. You have recognised that content, engagement and conversations are the ways to build a brand, be credible, and avoid a ‘shouting’ approach to marketing. So the first thing you do is get going on Twitter. You choose the best handle you can. You create an informative bio, you make sure your website is listed. You banish the ‘egg’ and put a logo or picture on your profile. You make sure the background colour or image is consistent with your brand. You start locating your audience, and you engage with them. You put a little icon or Follow button on your website so your customers can link to your Twitter account. read more

Video marketing campaigns

Would you commission a TV advert and run it once on one day and then never again? Would you send out a single email newsletter and then stop? Would you open a Twitter account, tweet once, and then stop? Marketing is not a cost, it is an investment. Yes, it needs an ROI, but ROE (Return on Engagement) is far more relevant in a social media world. read more

Video Marketing Investment

Video is just one element of a marketing strategy that could (should?) include a web presence, social media, email marketing, offline channels and perhaps networking. Marketing is an investment, not an expense. It is designed to generate ROI, just like video should. It continually amazes (and disappoints) me how many businesses that have already taken the plunge into video are missing great opportunities to actually get this content in front of their potential customers. This underlines the fact that video must not be treated as a standalone effort – it must be well considered and properly leveraged. read more