I had a few things planned for this week, but I’m putting them on hold. I received word over the weekend that T60 has won its 12th Telly Award, so over the next few days we’re going to look back at some previous winners that provide video production lessons. Then, on Thursday, I’ll reveal this year’s winning entry and provide good insights to take-away from its production.

Okay… today I’m going to write a little about having a vision and/or having a plan for your videos. It may sound like a pretty basic concept, but the truth is a lot of people go into their projects with very little thought put into them. They understand the power of video, they want to put it to work for their business or brand, but they don’t have a vision for what that’s going to look like.

Client Case Study

Goose Island Beer Company is not one of those businesses. I’ve had the privilege of working with the Goose Island team on more than a dozen videos. One was a series of videos and a couple of them were just individual projects. The common thread among them was that Goose Island leaders had a plan. They knew their audience and they had a goal for the videos.

Those might be the two most important things you need when starting a project. We’ve won a few Telly Awards for our Goose Island work, but the one I’ll feature today is a good example of how planning makes a difference.

Know Your Audience, Have a Goal

The Goose Island team produces a lot of videos to better educate their wholesale and retail partners. In most cases, it’s educating them on the beers, but in this case they wanted to make sure they all understood the company’s dedication to promoting its 312 brand.

Makes sense… the more Goose Island promotes a brand to the public, the easier it is for the wholesalers and retailers to sell. The plan for the video was to highlight all the different kinds of events 312 is sponsoring. They had a list of events they wanted us to shoot and it was a project that would take all summer.

Goose Island leaders relied on T60 for the creative end of the production. They filled us in on the audience and the goal, told us they wanted to inspire confidence in the brand, and we were off and running.

Having a vision and plan for the video paid off. Being able to clearly identify the audience and what they wanted from the video allowed us to focus our creative energy on achieving their goal. The end result speaks for itself… the video is AWESOME! 

A vision and plan can take your video production to the next level.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

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Big Data… BIG DATA… BIG DATA! If you’re a marketing or public relations pro, those are two words you’ve been reading a lot about lately. All the data that’s out there promising to help you gain insights about customers and prospects.

Well, now’s your opportunity to learn more and really bring the issue to life. The ChicagoAMA (American Marketing Association) is hosting at event tonight at 1871 called, Evening with an Expert: Big Data…Big Relevance & ROI (see video below).

I got a chance to interview two of the experts for the preview T60 produced (we’re a ChicagoAMA sponsor), and I was pretty blown away. These guys are taking 1’s and 0’s and turning them into big $ for businesses.

So… a simple plug today for what should be an interesting event. Hope to see you there!

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

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We’re finalizing a deal this week to revamp some marketing videos we produced for a client a couple of years ago. It’s something business leaders should think about as things change at their companies. The best part…  it’s something that can be done on the cheap without looking that way.

Think about it. This particular client is completing physical renovations to their facility. Heck… they’re adding an entire building. They could do a new series of videos on the project, but no surprise it’s not part of the budget.

Sales Team Saves The Day

The sales team is doing the next best thing though. They looked at the existing marketing videos and saw that they can simply swap out some old video of the site with newly shot stuff. It’s an economical way to freshen things up.

Once the update is done, they can start sending video links to clients and prospects touting the newly renovated facilities. They’re breathing new life into a existing video series that would otherwise be out-of-date.

Many companies produce videos and kind of forget about them once the new car smell has worn off. This client of ours shows how to re-imagine a past video and make it work just as well today as it did when it was first produced.

–Tony Gnau

 Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

It’s funny. I actually just revised that headline. I originally typed, “Number One Thing Killing Your Amateur Marketing Videos.” See, I’d like to pin this problem on all the companies out there producing their own marketing videos, but the truth is I’ve seen plenty of examples of pros who blow this as well.

Video can be a deceptive medium. We see it appear on our screen, so we immediately think it’s a visual medium when the truth is video is a marriage between sight and sound.

Many people do alright with the first part. Heck, the cameras these days are so good if you shoot off a tripod it’s nearly impossible to mess-up the visual aspect. That’s not the issue.

Your Audio Sucks

Audio, audio, audio! When something is wrong with it, your marketing video is doomed. At the very least, it pegs your video as amateurish. Neither is something you want when you’re promoting your brand or company.

I hate to pick on this this startup company, but it’s a great example and they’ve met their fundraising goal so I don’t feel too bad. I found it on kickstarter.com for Storytime Toys.

There’s a lot this video does well. Nice videography, pretty good graphics, but the audio is terrible. It sounds to me like the two entrepreneurs narrating are being picked up by the microphone mounted on the camera. They’re not wearing professional microphones that block out the hallow, ambient room noise. They sound like they’re in a tunnel.

Why It Matters

In this case, it’s no big deal. This is a video for a startup company. Our expectations as viewers are pretty stinkin’ low for something them. The tragedy is this is something a lot of companies do wrong… established businesses with reputations to protect.

They put all sorts of effort into making sure the video looks good, they completely fall flat with the audio. Whether they’ve produced it on their own or hired the wrong production company, it’s a big mistake audiences will pick up on immediately.

It takes what looks like a professional video and turns it into amateur hour.

–Tony Gnau

 Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

I hate missed opportunities. There are a lot of businesses out there producing marketing videos, but in many cases they fall short.

Maybe the production value stinks. Just because everyone has a video camera in their phone doesn’t mean they know how to shoot and edit good video.

HOW SOME VIDEOS GO WRONG

Maybe there’s no story. Storytelling is an art. Professionals like myself dedicate our lives to honing our craft. Storytelling is a skill just like anything else.

Unavailable resources are another cause. Sometimes the video you need to tell the story just isn’t available.

Throw in laziness and you can build quite a laundry list for why some marketing videos miss their mark.

If your videos are suffering from any of these things… stop. Stop making them. You could be doing your business a big disservice.

THE STORY BEHIND THIS STORY

Where’s this triad coming from? Well, thanks for asking. Major League Baseball. Actually, it’s mlb.com. They posted an article yesterday about all the various ballpark across the country performing tributes to the people of Boston. They all played “Sweet Caroline” during their game… a Fenway Park tradition… and people ate it up.

The story was great. The accompanying video… terrible. The article mentioned a bunch of ballparks, but the edited video only showed a few. As a Cubs fan, I was bummed they didn’t have any shots from Wrigley Field.

This wasn’t a marketing video, but it still got me thinking about them.

WHY THIS MATTERS

People who are watching your videos are busy, and they’re all video critics. They’ve seen good and bad videos, and they can spot a bad one a mile away. That means if you’re churning out bad videos, you’re probably leaving a bad taste in their mouths.

I was really excited to watch the mlb.com video, but I left it feeling mad. It was a total let-down.

Watching a bad video is irritating. It’s a waste of time. Your audience is going to judge your business by those videos, so why would you put out garbage?

Make sure to produce something you can be proud of.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

The Boston Marathon bombing has rightly captured the American people’s attention. It was a horrific attack and many of the images will be etched in our minds forever, and believe it or not there’s a lesson there for business leaders and marketing professionals.

VIDEO RULES

I was talking with a friend yesterday who mentioned all the stories he had read, and all the photos he had seen covering the terrorist attack. His comment, “You know what, none of it compares to the video.”

He’s right. The explosion, the chaos, the heroes who stepped forward to help… the Boston video was awe-inspiring. It’s what video does better than any other medium. It transports the viewer to the scene.

WORKS FOR BUSINESSES TOO

Corporate leaders can take advantage of this ability as well. They can use video to transport customers and prospects to their business via the web.

Good video paired with a compelling story makes a great impression on people.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.

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The Masters wrapped up yesterday. I can’t help watching a major golf tournament without thinking about one of our biggest projects ever. In 2006, we produced a DVD for Medinah Country Club that was the mother or all event videos T60 has ever produced.

For those of you not into golf, Medinah Country Club is Chicago’s championship golf club. It has hosted three U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships and last year… the Ryder Cup. You can be anywhere in the world and say, “Medinah,” and golf fans know what you’re talking about. As a golf fan, you can imagine how honored I was to work on this project.

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

Club leaders wanted a keepsake they could give to members after hosting the 2006 PGA Championship. Putting on one of golf’s major championships is a huge undertaking. Hundreds of members volunteer a lot of time and effort to make sure every detail is covered. The club leadership wanted to give every member a gift as a thank you.

It’s common at many tournaments for members to get a video… all the highlights, interviews with the golfers, things like that. What the club’s leaders wanted in this case was something different. They essentially proposed producing a 30-minute special on all the efforts to put on the tournament. So while Tiger Woods won the 2006 PGA Championship, he wasn’t the focus of the video… the members were.

See… they understood their audience. GIve the members a highlight video, some may watch, some may not. Give them a video featuring themselves and all their friends… everyone will watch. At the very least, they’ll want to see who made it into the video. It was a great idea, and it was a huge success.

EVENT PLANNING TAKEAWAY

Most events don’t need a 30-minute show produced, but they do need a little something. A short video, maybe 1-3 minutes long is just fine. Something to share with people who attended, those who couldn’t make it and anyone else who might be interested.

Why? People like to know they were a part of something special. Putting it on video and sharing it with them, and allowing them to share it with their friends and colleagues makes them feel like they were.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years. 

See one segment of T60’s video for Medinah Country Club…

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One of the many things I’m considering for T60 this year is whether or not to switch from Final Cut Pro 7 to Final Cut Pro X. For those of you not into video editing, I won’t bore you with why it’s a tough decision. Suffice to say Apple made some software changes and professional editors revolted. Now, Apple is trying to win them back with a marketing campaign, but here’s the crazy part… the campaign’s webpage doesn’t contain any video.

Huh? You read that right. Apple… trying to win back professional video editors… no marketing videos.

TELLING VIDEO PRO’S STORIES

The campaign is called, Final Cut In Action. It features positive articles about how some pros are starting to use Final Cut Pro X and the results they’re getting. “Articles” being the key word here. Six articles… NO VIDEOS!

I can’t believe I’m even writing this. Apple is known for its marketing videos. Shopping for a MacBook Pro? There’s a video. How about an iPhone? There’s a bunch of videos. The Final Cut Pro X page does feature video, but not the page specifically focused on marketing to video professionals.

You know how many of those articles I read? Zero. I briefly scanned them. If they had produced videos to tell those stories I probably would have watch all of them. That’s a missed opportunity.

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

I am not a marketer by nature. I provide a tool for marketers to use. However, I know enough that your marketing tactics need to align with your target audience.

I’ve always believed our best marketing tools at T60 are our clients’ videos. I’m proud of the work we do and I’m happy to share it with clients and prospects alike. Having said that… we do have marketing videos about T60. Can you imagine a video production company not using video to tell its own story?

I love Apple products. I’ve been buying and using them for about 25-years. I may still take the plunge and get Final Cut Pro X. I just expected a little something better from the company’s marketing team.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years. 

NAB is the premiere trade show for broadcasting and video professionals, and it’s the subject of tons of tweets, shares and blog posts. One post that caught my eye yesterday came from my favorite royalty-free music site (premiumbeat.com). Its blog mentioned how important it is for NAB exhibitors to have a product launch marketing plan that includes video.

I especially like this subhead… Invest In Great Videos. I wish more business professionals would look at it that way. I’ve met a lot of corporate types who lump video into one of two categories.

VIDEO IS SUPER FUN

First, they think… wouldn’t it be fun to do a video! Well, sure. Video is fun. The problem is they don’t understand it’s also an art. While anyone can “do” a video these days, it takes a skilled professional to produce one that’s going to actually appeal to a broad audience. When you go into it thinking it’s just about fun, you actually miss the golden opportunity capture people’s attention and deliver great content.

THIS IS GOING TO SUCK

Second, some think… ugg, we have to produce a video. They envision a lot of work for them, draining valuable funds and resources that could be spent other places. These are clearly people who haven’t discovered the power of video. They also haven’t realized there are dedicated professionals who can make it a painless process that will provide them with a valuable tool to help sell their products and/or services.

PRODUCT LAUNCH FIRST IMPRESSION

A good video is an investment. When a company launches a new product, a compelling video can make a terrific first impression on consumers. It can not only inform them about what makes the product great, it can actually generate enthusiasm.

See… video is all about emotion. When done right, a good video grabs hold of us. A professional storyteller knows this and finds a way to create something that heightens the emotion they’re looking to elicit.

Is that a marketing tool worthy of an investment?

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 11 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.  

Okay, you no longer need convincing. You understand the power of video and want to put it to work for your business. The problem is you’ve never been involved with video production so you have no idea how much your project is going to cost.

Here’s some things a lot of newbies fail to consider…

1. think about the reputation of your company

There are companies that spend tens of thousands of dollars on stationary and business cards, and at the same time they skimp on video production. Think about it. Those business cards and stationary are destined for the recycle bin, but they fork over good money because they want to make a good impression through those things.

A company video will be beamed across the web and possibly live on indefinitely. Someone who comes across it is far more likely to watch that video that read a ton of text about a business. That video is going to be the first impression many people have of that business.

Now, why exactly are these businesses producing videos on the cheap? It’s ridiculous. This is your company’s reputation on the line.

2. video isn’t a widget you buy, it’s art

Video is a creative endeavor. It’s a mistake to go into a production the same way you would build a widget.

You’ve heard of the “creative process?” Guess what… it applies here. When you start a new production there’s no telling what’s going to happen. I’ve had fantastic plans heading into a first shoot, only to scrap everything after a couple of interviews.

Yes, you are paying for a product. At the end of a project, you walk away with a video you can share with your audience. What you are actually paying for, however, is the skill and talents of the person/people putting it together.

Anyone can paint a painting, and these days anyone can shoot and edit video. Talent is what sets one artist apart from the other.

3. you get what you pay for.

I hate to say it, but it’s the truth. You can occasionally find a craigslist producer who knocks your video out of the park. More often than not though if you want to produce a video on the cheap, that’s exactly what you’re going to end up with… a cheap looking video.

In my experience, a lot of business people expect a Mercedes-Benz at Kia prices. In this way, video is like any other business… if you want quality, you have to pay for it.

Don’t let that discourage you though. There are plenty of companies and independent producers who create incredible videos at reasonable prices (cough, cough… T60). You can find value and bargains in video production just like anything else.

–Tony Gnau