Tag Archives: marketing

What works for the web doesn’t always work in a TV commercial. That’s my conclusion after viewing a series of videos produced by the NCAA.

The series is called, the Buick Human Highlight Reel. The videos feature former NCAA athletes who are now making a difference in their communities off the field.

I came across the series while watching last weekend’s Big 10 Football Championship game. There was a commercial promoting the series and encouraging people to go to the website to watch the videos.

I jumped right on it, but here’s the thing… there’s a bunch of videos… all of them about 5-minutes long. It was overwhelming. I didn’t know where to start, and I found myself only watching pieces of the videos.

Then I “liked” the NCAA on Facebook, which is ironic since I pretty much can’t stand the NCAA, but that’s another blog post. Once I started getting the NCAA on my Facebook Wall, the series started making sense.

I still think the videos are a tad too long.  Okay, way too long, but getting them sent to me in small doses via social media made the series much more manageable to watch.

TV sent me to the series, but it didn’t hold my attention. It took social media to really grab me and reel me in.

–Tony Gnau

One of the great things about video is that it’s versatile. Sales, marketing, recruiting, public relations… even internal communications can it use to connect with people.

That makes it very important to focus attention on the task at hand. The likelihood that you’ll create a single video to satisfy all of those needs is pretty slim, so figure out a plan in advance.

Maybe you want to start with a video your marketing team has been itching to produce. Then move on to something specific your sales force says they need. There’s no perfect plan, just pick the one that’s right for you.

Whatever you choose, always look at who the audience is and create videos that target them… not your department heads.

–Tony Gnau

Is your company or organizations setting goals for 2012? If one of them is to communicate better, video might be your answer.

Whether you’re attempting to position yourself in front of customers or trying to send an important message to employees… video can do the job and do it in a way that’s better than words alone.

Video delivers information, but it also does it in a way that makes an impact on the audience. It’s not some simple message that gets thrown in the trash. A video makes people sit up and pay attention.

How’s that for satisfying your communication goals?

–Tony Gnau

December… the home stretch. Chances are you’re already making plans for 2012, and if those plans include new PR and marketing initiatives it’s time to think about video.

You can get good quality video storytelling produced for as little as $5,000. Nice to know if you’re working on budgets. You and I know it’s worth the cash.

Once that’s in order, it’s time to hire a production company. Remember, there’s tons of people who can produce video that looks and sounds good from a technical perspective, but don’t settle for that.

You need to find a storyteller. Someone who can take your marketing plan and create a story that’s going to be a good fit.

–Tony

So… American Airlines filed for bankruptcy yesterday and they issued an online video. They get in front of the issue and we get a valuable lesson.

First, some kudos… American Airlines officials clearly understand that video is a terrific way to reach millions of people. I’m glad to see them explaining the situation using the medium.

Second, some advice for you… the business leader, marketing professional, public relations expert. Ditch the script.

American’s CEO is clearly reading from one and it makes him sound… corporate… like a phony. Not to mention the legalese at the very beginning… talk about stripping away any notion of sincerity.

Video is all about emotion, so speak from the heart. This goes for any video, whether it’s a basic profile on your company or breaking bad news to employees, stockholders, and customers.

Go ahead and write down some bullet points, but don’t script a speech. It just doesn’t sound genuine.

In the end, you still get to control the message whether you script it in advance or not. It’s your video. You don’t have to post it unless you feel like it will work for you.

–Tony Gnau

If you can’t afford a professionally produced video, I understand. By all means, do your best to produce your own video.

Think about it though. Remember, this is something you’re sending out into the world. It’s going to reflect on you. A bad video will make a bad impression.

There’s no sense in producing something that isn’t going to impress your prospects.

–Tony Gnau

IKEA held me hostage this weekend. I mean that literally. I entered the store at 9:30 a.m., and store personnel held me against my will until 9:55 a.m.

The store apparently doesn’t open until 10 a.m., but they start serving breakfast in the third floor cafeteria at 9:30 a.m. I had no idea. I simply saw the doors were open and people heading upstairs on the escalator, so I went in expecting to shop.

When I got up to the third floor, I figured it out. I was trying to pop in and out as quickly as possible, so when I realized the store was closed I looked for an exit.

The elevators… not running. The escalators… blocked. I asked an employee how I could get out and was informed I couldn’t… I’d have to wait until they open at 10 a.m.

It took me speaking with two different managers before someone got a clue and escorted me out. I seriously had to explain to them that they couldn’t hold me against my will in their store. It was ridiculous.

Here’s my point… what if this had been my first trip to an IKEA? What kind of impression would that have made on me as a customer? Luckily for them, I’ve had enough good experiences with IKEA that this won’t impact future purchases… although I refused to wait the additional five minutes to then make my purchase on this particular day. Principle.

Anyway, this is why your video content is so important. You only get one chance to make a first impression. Many of your prospects who seek you out will surf the web and watch whatever PR/marketing videos you’ve produced. A bad video makes a bad first impression.

In a way, you’re holding them hostage too… watching a bad video is a waist of their time.

A good video makes a solid first impression and creates a foundation for a happy client.

–Tony Gnau

Courtesy: Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines posted a really cool story yesterday on its blog. It’s about a customer who tweeted during a flight about a terrific flight attendant. They promised to always fly Southwest if the airline would do something nice for the woman.

By the time the plane was on the ground, Southwest officials were at the gate waiting for the flight attendant with a present from a local bakery.

GREAT story! Things like this aren’t going to pop up all the time, so businesses need to have their antenna up to spot them. As much as I like the blog post, this had the potential to be a GREAT video.

Now, Southwest’s people had to think fast on their feet to do what they did.  Unless they had a veteran video producer on hand, shooting a good video might have been too much for them to handle here.  The lesson for PR and marketing teams is to be on the lookout for these opportunities. They might not always deal with such a quick turnaround.

Using a quality storyteller to creating a video in situations like this would be a great way to connect with an audience… making them feel like they were part of something special.

–Tony Gnau

Client testimonials are a great way to show prospects that you’re a trusted company. Posting a quote on your website is nice, but producing a video sends an even stronger message.

Don’t take my word for it. Companies like Bank of America invest in testimonial storytelling. The financial giant is producing a series of videos in multiple cities highlighting how it’s helping local businesses.

I discovered the series through an ad on Facebook. It jumped out because the ad featured one of our clients, Northern Illinois Food Bank. A series like this provides an obvious benefit to Bank of America. Having clients talk about their situations and how the bank has helped them is a nice promotion for the bank, but there’s another benefit as well.

The Bank of America clients that are featured get a healthy dose of free publicity. What a great way to honor clients and foster the relationship with them.

Client testimonials are a win-win for both organizations that take part.

–Tony Gnau

Videos may inform, they may educate, but words on a page or screen can do the same thing for less money. The reason smart marketers choose video is because video is much more likely to stir emotions and connect with an audience.

Looking for an example? Look at how college football programs market to their fans.

One of the biggest upsets of the weekend involved USC knocking off #4 Oregon. The Trojans create a video to show the team before every game, and they also share it on YouTube for all their alumni and fans.

Normally, it’s simply highlights set to rap or rock music, but this week USC kicked it up a notch. They took an inspirational speech by defensive line coach Ed Orgeron and spun it into a video that stirred emotions. The Trojans aren’t often the underdogs, but the school’s video team played up the role to perfection.

Good written content paired with music and beautiful images… storytelling at its best. Businesses need to pay attention. Video is a way for companies to connect with clients and prospects.

Could words alone have done this? Maybe. But I challenge anyone to tell me they’d be more effective than this video.

–Tony Gnau