Marketing video tips – part 6

By David StrelitzNo Comments
In this 6th and final part of marketing video tips, here are some general points to tidy up. Allow plenty of time for any video shoot you are involved in. Generally, it will take a lot longer to get things right and that’s before you start working with the things that move, AKA the talent. Horror stories abound where the super efficient PA to the CEO has graciously allocated 10 minutes to film a 5 minute piece, of which CEO has barely had sight of or it is being rewritten and not even ready for the tele-prompter or the talent insists they will do it on the fly... and then like a recent keynote political speech, their most important point gets forgotten. Agree any costs and specs to carry out all work to completion. Make sure you know what likely extras have not been agreed,  i.e. music licensing, stock footage and specialised animated graphics. This will upset many pros but if you...
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Marketing video tips part 5 – audio and graphics

By David StrelitzNo Comments
In this 5th part of marketing Video Tips, we will “listen” to our audio and “look” at our graphics. Audio. Good audio is so important. If you are making your own video don’t rely on just a camera microphone. For the simplest Pieces to Camera, even an inexpensive tie clip mic from Maplin etc will give better sound by being closer in proximity and will eliminate “boomy” sound. HOWEVER, there is always a however… pros will often use mics costing several hundred pounds to get the characteristics and extra audio quality required as well as having a selection of different types for different situations, so there will always be limitations as to what quality can be achieved for "thirty quid". For narrations / voiceovers a microphone (even a camera mic, placed 12-18 inches from the “voice” will sound so much better than being four feet away. Whatever audio you record, LISTEN to it with headphones and make sure it is not distorting....
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Marketing video tips 4 – appearance and locations

By David StrelitzNo Comments
We are now ready to shoot our video, so in this 4th part of the marketing Video Tips let’s look at appearance and locations. Appearance. If you are appearing in front of the camera, even if you are just doing a testimonial for another business, do think about your dress attire. From a technical viewpoint, do not wear check or polka dot shirts / blouses etc as the camera will produce moiré patterns. Appropriate clothing will vary depending on the content, trade, profession and just like going to meetings you can never get it totally right. Clean and smart, is mandatory, even if you are a car mechanic! From an aesthetic viewpoint, dare I say ...and I will anyway – hairy chests, ample cleavages and tattoos should not appear within a business orientated video, so keep them covered up...unless of course you are a hairy cleavage tattooist then I suppose it may be the way ahead! I have to just mention make-up. The...
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Marketing video tips – Part 1

By David StrelitzNo Comments
I was asked to put some marketing video tips together for The Marketing Compass. Requirements could range from a first web presence to updating or creating a corporate video, so with that in mind, here are the first two areas for consideration. Just because you shoot a mean holiday video doesn’t mean it is right for your business. It is your company’s image you are promoting. Get it wrong and it may damage, not enhance, your business. Check out what a professional will do with a wealth of experience and kit. I’m not a fan of testimonials shot on a phone in glorious “wobblevision”. If you must do them, be mindful of eye lines. Eyes should be in the top third of the screen. (If in doubt, look at any TV news presenter). There are some amazing “Phone video’s” on the web, but usually they are shot by experienced pros, sometimes with ancillary equipment and lots of experience. Self made...
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YouTube meta data and SEO

By David StrelitzNo Comments
It wasn’t so long ago that what was known as 'web video' tended to be simple graphics messages, or single person presentations to camera with or without some extra enhancements. The image size you saw was quite small, by today's standards. However, the advent of higher speed broadband and sophisticated servers, that allow more data to be delivered to our devices, means that today nothing is off limits, with even Hollywood movies being delivered on the web. At one time, YouTube was only for Skateboarding Cats - but now household name companies not only use YouTube for announcements, promotions and product demonstrations, but they also reinforce their brand by producing short instructional 'How To' programmes. Ironically, just as I was writing this, an email came in from Machine Mart promoting their web videos on a range of products. With YouTube offering the same opportunities for inserting meta data (i.e. Tags) as can be used within a website and being part of Google,...
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Video production tips

By David StrelitzNo Comments
Video communication is great for websites and SEO and here are some practical video production tips. I will formulate a top 10. However, in the meantime if anyone has any questions regarding video production, feel free to post here or contact me. Many people like to film themselves for their websites. Invariably what lets these videos down is the audio. On board mics on cameras and phones won’t cut it, so invest in a proper mic. A wired tie clip mic will give you clearer sound and reduce the 'boomy' effect that comes from the mic being non directional and too far away. If you intend to work with a professional company, get some ideas together about your business before you meet them. You know more than they ever will about your business. If it is a simple presentation to camera, don’t expect it will take five minutes. Allow plenty of time. Don’t just take the back of a flyer/brochure and think that it will...
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How to go viral on YouTube

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
YouTube is currently the world's second favourite search engine, after Google itself. I am often asked how to go viral on YouTube. The primary answer is that you have to be creative. You have to do something different. Having taught creative thinking for 12 years at CIM (the Chartered Institute of Marketing), I can tell you this is a challenge for many of us. It's much safer to 'stay in the groove', do what we did last year and adopt so called 'industry best practice', which translates as "do what everyone else is doing". The secondary answer is to produce an emotional reaction in the viewer, for example, laughter. Professional marketers have known for a long time that an emotional appeal is more effective than a logical argument. Dave Clark from NRG Business Networks brought the following video to my attention. As Dave says, it is well worth watching. As you will see, it's creative and generates an emotional reaction. A dramatic surprise on...
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