Sunpop

The Most Common Mistake in Web Video Marketing

Rex Williams — Wed, 18 May 2011 18:58:56 +0000

BOOM! A great marketing idea hits you like a truck.

The video in your head looks amazing. The message is smooth, the visuals are compelling, and it fits nicely within your budget.

It’s inspired, imaginative, and clever. The team adores your creative vision. People toss around the word, “viral”. Your video will soon exist.

But should it?

Most marketers and advertisers get their ideas like this. Inspiration strikes, a vision is pitched, the production team brings it to life. What’s the problem here?

I’m going to tell you the biggest reason why most web video marketing is doomed from the start.

Putting the cart before the horse.

It’s easy to get excited about the creative process. You’re imagination is unleashed. Ideas are flowing. It’s all falling into place.

Here’s the problem. When you begin with creativity, you’re neglecting strategy.

“Strategy” can be an abstract idea, but in this context it’s simple. Your web video marketing strategy is the step-by-step plan to turn video viewers into customers.

These are questions of a strategic planning process.

What is the specific goal for your web video?
Why are people watching this video?
Does your goal fall in line with what people want to watch?
How do we effectively present the information they want?
What action do we want viewers to take?
When they take action, what will they find?

And the list goes on.

The point is, if you start with a creative vision, your video won’t be very effective. It doesn’t matter how brilliantly creative your video is, if it doesn’t result in a stronger brand or fatter bottom line, it’s a failure.

Are you making a slick and creative video, or are you making a web video that grows your business?

Of course, you can have both. The best web videos are often creative. But fleshing out a creative idea without a strong strategy is like saying, “Ready… FIRE!… Aim…”

Creative ideas are a dime-a-dozen. A strong strategy is a King maker.

Plan your video around a strong marketing strategy.
Make your creativity support that specific marketing strategy.
Launch your video.
Measure the results.
Take what you learned and make it better.

When you’re doing it right, video marketing doesn’t have to be very complicated. A smart plan implemented with consistency will soon bring the numbers you’re looking for.

The Cost of Online Video Production

Rex Williams — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:43:07 +0000

The prospect of getting a business video produced is littered with potential hurdles, and the first one is a biggie.

Cost.

Most businesses have no idea what is takes to produce a professional video. There’s a very simple reason for that.

Asking, “How much does a video cost?” is like saying, “How much does a car cost?” They can be dirt cheap or obscenely expensive.

But don’t worry. Just like most people have a certain price range for a car, there’s a common price range for video productions as well.

Here are some fairly thorough write-ups detailing the costs of video productions.

“ You are still looking at a starting price of around $200 for a very simple one camera, no lights, microphone on a camera shoot with not much editing done other than getting it ready for the web. A more realistic approach is to figure that a finished video will cost anywhere from $200 to $2000 for every finished minute. (That $200 is rock bottom by the way and is rarely met.) Given that range, a 3 minute video could cost anywhere from $600 to $6000. Some folks would even say that $6000 is too cheap for making a good production.”
- New Path Media

One Market Media details many of the specific factors that effect cost.

“ Taking all of the above into consideration, there are reasonable ballpark figures that you can use as a guidepost for budget purposes. A two to three minute web-based corporate video presentation might cost between $2500 and $7500 depending on the variables mentioned above. If you use the time honored “$1,000 a minute” for a professionally produced online corporate video as a starting point, that will give you a reasonable idea of where to begin in the budgeting process.” – One Market Media

With the average video industry rate for a very basic video rate at $1,000 per finished minute, most small businesses are hesitant to go any further than occasionally dipping a toe in the water.

That’s a shame. When you dig into the numbers, you can see why video has become one of the most effective business tools in history. (a bold claim, so here’s the information)

Web Video is 40% more likely to grab attention than text – Comscore
Video landing pages generate 4-7X higher engagement and response rates than static image and text landing pages. — SearchEngineWatch, February 2010
Customers who watch videos on product pages converted at twice the rate of customers who did not. — Internet Retailer, August 2010
With Online Video: 21% of video viewers make a purchase. 21% of video viewers request more info. 26% of video viewers visit a store. – BIA/Kelsey User View Study, February 2010.
Video is the fastest-growing web site feature, according to a survey of 12,000 growing businesses – WebVisible, Forrester
73% + of top 20 companies in each business sector use web video as part of their strategy – VideoBloom

So what solution did we come up with for the cost issue? We streamlined every part of the video production process, resulting in a simple, affordable, and professional way to produce custom videos for your business. Need a business video production of your own?

Where Your Customers Went

Rex Williams — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:35:33 +0000

Each month: 168 million online viewers watch an average of 10 hours of video online. That’s 26 Billion views every month and climbing.

The first, “Online Video Continues Ridiculous Trajectory”, provides a nice synopsis on some ComScore numbers. A few choice quotes pretty much makes my point for me.

…the average video watched is now 3.8 minutes in length…

In terms of web visitors, 3.8 minutes is an eternity, and most webmasters would kill for an attention span like that. If everything else we’ve said before today hasn’t already convinced you to jump into online video, then zero in and focus on just this metric. What would it be worth to you to hold your visitors’ attention for four minutes?

The article “Video Marketing Tops Search Marketing as a #1 Priority for Brands and Agencies in 2010?” reveals that across a wide range of companies, the top priority for their marketing strategy is web video.

All of the above are simple facts.

Our take: The stampede to online video is a no-brainer when you think take into account the strengths of the media.

Web video is available 24/7/365
They view it by choice, not as an interruption
Versatility: social media, newsletters, blogs, homepages, etc.

The question isn’t whether it’s time use web videos, but how to you do it quickly and effectively.

Babysteps.

There are dozens of ways to use video. Start with your strongest asset, on your home turf. Get a video featuring you in your own website.

You can do it, we can help.

"People can copy the format, but they can’t clone you."

Rex Williams — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 20:07:12 +0000

Our job is fun. We get to meet passionate people from across North America and learn about who they are and their life’s work. Pennie Hunt is a great example of somebody interesting who taught us things even as we worked together.

Nobody at Sunpop previously knew there was an industry such as Pennie’s in Wyoming Health Resources Network; but now it makes perfect sense. It’s even better when the video is really making waves!

In a recent email, Pennie sent us the following:

I wanted to share something with you….. recently I was talking to the Ex. Director of 3RNET, a national organization that I sit on the board of. I had him go to our website. He saw the video and sent it out across the country to our 48 state membership. I thought my computer was going to smoke from all of the responses – some about me, some about the website, but all spurred by the video. I thought you would like to see what they said.

and a few quick excerpts from the response she’s already received:

“Absolutely awesome! Great idea, Pennie! Very unique and original way to get your (our) message across. Impressive…”
“WOW.
Pennie, this is amazing. I’m ready to move to Wyoming right now!
But seriously, what an awesome way to use current media to attract and retain folks in Wyoming.
I’m already pestering my powers that be to do something similar. (Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?)”
“Consulting…can we hire her to be the face for rural…You not only sounded great but you looked marvelous
Great job, well done and very professional”
“Great site and nicely done. I like the personal touch.”
“Amazing!! A great website and I agree—post the video on youtube!
I think the video is brilliant. That is attention grabbing.”
“Fantastic job, Penny! A great-looking website and an outstanding video to boot!! (No pun intended, Wyoming!)”
“You make it great. People can copy the format but they can’t clone you.”

I especially like the last quote, “People can copy the format but they can’t clone you.”

It’s true, nothing’s as powerful as someone like Pennie showing the world what she has to offer. It’s impossible to duplicate or synthesize.

When trust is built, and the offering is relevant, people buy.

Did I mention our job is fun?

A Sunpop Video in the Wild

Rex Williams — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:44:38 +0000

We made a new video (and a new friendship) with a recent client named Jean Carpenter Backus. Ever since, she’s sent us multiple emails as more and more people are “meeting” her through the video.

We don’t usually share the specific positive responses we often receive, but the latest blog entry talking about Jean is so compelling, we have to share the link.

The post: Ricci Neer writes “How I Met Jean Carpenter Backus”

Big things tend to happen when you have as much to offer as Jean does. Wish I could take all the credit, but we just pulled back the curtain.

Why All the Fuss: Online Video for Small/Medium Businesses

Rex Williams — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:30:35 +0000

I came across a decent little article at www.seopointz.net about online Video for SMB’s. (small / medium businesses).

It’s been said before, but bears reiterating: Online video can level the playing field for the small business people of the world, by providing an affordable and interesting way to showcase points of differentiation from bigger competitors.

When strong content and production values meet an affordable media that can spread your message exponentially…

Yah, it’s time to make a fuss.

Sunpop’s New Expansion Studio

Rex Williams — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:35:37 +0000

We’re truly thrilled to finally announce the successful launch of our expansion recording studio in Toronto, Ontario. After working with Rick Henry and Debbie Armstrong for many months already, I can say with confidence that they are recording clients who display the same level of unposed authenticity and comfortable credibility that typifies a SunPop production. These people really get it, they’re already out of the starting gate and making great shoots happen.

I’ve long recognized that the travel barrier is the main obstacle holding most people back from choosing to hire SunPop Studios, and so it’s really exciting to have such a skillful team in the fifth-most populous municipality in all of North America.

We’ll still be doing all of the actual editing here at SunPop Austin, so my personal studio will continue to work our magic on the Toronto footage using all the techniques we’ve invented and refined over the years. This frees up Rick and Debbie to give their undivided attention on optimizing the conversational recording experience into the best it can possibly be for our clients.

If you’re interested in knowing more about Rick, Debbie, and the expansion studio, why not watch both of their online video introductions on the SunPopCanada.com homepage and the About Us page and meet them yourself?

TheStreet.com Cites SunPop: Why Your Business Needs Web Videos

Rex Williams — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 16:54:39 +0000

Steve Cooper discusses the rising need for quality website videos, citing myself and two other experts in his four page article. It’s absolutely worth the read if you’re interested. I was particularly tickled by the first statistic, indicating that the website video industry is expected to nearly quadruple its earnings in the next four years.

This enormous growth is itself compelling news for business owners, as Edward Royce says, it’s time to get serious about web video “because competitors are going to do it.”

The article also reiterates the same point I’ve been making for years: a lot of people claim to be a production studio, pointing to their cameras and computers as evidence, but none of that matters to you and your potential customers if they use mediocre techniques to make impotent videos.

So check the article out if you want to get a better sense of where Web Videos are right now and where they’re going, as well as gaining some insights into the process.

Down with Posing! Up with Lomogra-huh?

Rex Williams — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 16:16:13 +0000

I want to give you a quick glimpse into one our creative inspirations. It’s a method of taking pictures that results in breathtaking images, compositions, and “moments of truth”.

Lomography seems very “zen” to me. I don’t mean that in a spiritual way. Just a natural, effortless approach to taking photographs.

How many of you have posed for a picture and stared at the camera for an uncomfortable amount of time until it finally flashes. The results? Predictable.

Do you shoot pictures that way? Holding the camera eye level with the subject. Making sure you don’t cut off anything. Everyone looking right at you and smiling.

*click* … booorrriiinnnggg.

But don’t feel bad. Most of the camera carrying public takes pictures like that.

Chances are you have a digital camera. If you want to take more real, dynamic, or interesting photos, give this stuff a shot. (lame pun intended.)

Put yourself in the right place, time, frame of mind and boom – you can get awesome images. Success has less to do with how hard you’re trying, and everything to do with how flexible you’re willing to be.

Somewhere there’s a metaphor in there for smart video marketing. You figure it out. I’m going to take some pictures.