Are you sick of reading corporate branding that’s as basic as the marketing scheme hanging out next store? You hear ‘born out of…’ and ‘pushing the boundaries’ over and over again. You’ve heard the phrase, ‘people buy from people,’ but how can you use that in your company?
It’s all just as bland as the fact that the same movies are remade every three years because a few companies own pretty much all media.
Creating a corporate narrative is more than just listing the timeline of your business and repeating history. It’s about creating and showing off your business’ unique personality because if you are a successful business, your making history. It’s about balancing who are you with how you can help customers.
A strong corporate identity helps to generate trust and a good reputation. It’s why Patagonia is known for its sustainability measures and why RedBull is famous for extreme sports(even though it might actually end up giving you a heart attack).
When you build a company narrative into your corporate branding in a meaningful way, you’ll see more loyalty, more customers, and more recognition.
Sound fascinating? Let’s take a look at how you can achieve serious results through creating a strong narrative-the right way.
So many businesses’ About pages could be cut and pasted from hundreds of other companies. They use vague adjectives and impressive words that mean very little. They don’t give the reader a trustworthy impression of who the company truly is or what they stand for, much less why they should go with them.
Creating a company about page (often ‘Our Story’) gives you a massive opportunity to blow your readers away. By the end, you could’ve convinced them to become a customer even if they’ve barely glanced at your products.
That’s how compelling a good narrative can be. So how do you do it?
A successful narrative can show the following:
A strong narrative is as much about your company as it is about how your company can help the reader. This can be either implied or explicitly stated. Either way, the reader needs to finish the page understanding that you’d be a great company to buy from without feeling sold to.
The human element is crucial to a company narrative and talking about and showing your team is a great way of doing this. Giving the backgrounds of the founders helps show readers why your company exists in the first place.
Let’s face it; starting a business is challenging. It took Apple 28 years to break even, and they are still in debt.But you had an idea and went with it, and that takes a lot of courage, hardship, and pure child’s play.
If a photograph speaks a thousand words, a video tells a thousand more. Narrative company videos have the power to captivate your audience and show them who your business really is.
We created our company video to allow us to show our audience what goes into the work that we do. We wanted to be transparent in the effort we go to when creating client work.
Narrative videos allow you to establish a real, human connection with your audience. This transparency builds genuine trust and an understanding of your business.
You can highlight the areas of your brand story that you are most proud of too. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is a great example of how a company highlights its social mission, using staff interviews and storytelling.
When creating your corporate story video, you can tell your entire backstory or focus on a specific part. By highlighting how you’ve built your brand, who your staff is, and how you work, you’re giving life to the heartbeat of your creation.
Your narrative story aids your corporate branding by giving it a deeper context than merely presenting your products or services. When customers can see who you are and why you do what you do, they’ll have a better concept of why they should choose you.
Your story shouldn’t just languish on a single tab at the top of your website. Your story should be shared as something that you are proud of-go out and shout it to the world. This is where breaking your company narrative into different formats is important.
While your website About page can include a full-length story and an embedded narrative video, other platforms have different requirements.
For each platform, your narrative story will be cohesive and the same. The difference will be in the length.
By sharing your story across every platform you use, you can weave it into your corporate branding. This means that no matter where your audience finds you first, they’ll instantly be able to see who you are, what you do, and how you can help them.
Your corporate branding is unique to your business, and a strong narrative adds a context and a human element that your audience will resonate with. Any company can sell a product, but when you tell your story, you’ll be selling products for a purpose that customers can understand.
The human element is what drives business and why we feel uncomfortable with faceless corporations. By revealing how your company came to be, you’re extending a friendly hand to the reader and inviting them to be part of the story.
Because narrative stories show the faces, history, and processes behind your company, readers will see how you can help them. And if how you can help is clear, you’ve won yourself a new customer.
If you want to create a compelling company narrative that strengthens your corporate branding, get in touch with us today. We’re experts in corporate storytelling and work with businesses just like yours to touch the hearts of many through creative thought.
According to survey results, 83% of buyers rank images as the #1 deciding factor when making a purchase decision. Product images also outranked all other decision-swaying factors such as product reviews, star ratings, and even specs.
This means that taking crisp, compelling, and powerful product images is absolutely key to e-commerce success.
How does one take high quality, seamless product images that look 100% professional and will be able to compete with other products?
If you want to learn how to how to take professional photos of your products, keep reading. We are about to share with you everything you need to know about professional-grade product photography.
The first essential step for product photography for beginners is to assemble the necessary equipment.
For professional grade product photography, use a DSLR camera. You can start with a medium to entry-level camera, however, if you are planning on doing product photography long term, you can also opt to invest in a good DSLR.
Additionally, you will need a tripod in order to take steady, sharp shots.
Two very handy camera accessories to have are a shutter release remote and a tether cable. The remote shutter release can further reduce blurring.
A tether cable allows you to see images in a larger format, in real-time as you take them, on a monitor or laptop. This allows you to fix small issues you wouldn’t spot on the small DSLR screen.
For lighting, you can utilize natural light or softbox lights.
If you do not have a good source of natural light available (soft diffused light, generally found by large windows) you might also want to invest in a lightbox. This acts as a portable lighting setup for small products.
You will need a white infinity backdrop to shoot your products against.
To manipulate lighting, you can also invest in or make some simple reflector cards, which can either bounce light or absorb it to enhance or soften shadows.
If acquiring the necessary gear and finding space for shooting is an issue, you can also consider renting a studio.
Both buying gear or hiring space and equipment can seem like a costly venture. However, it is important to remember that e-commerce consumers make almost all of their buying decisions from your product images. Therefore investing in high-quality images is critical.
To achieve professional product images you will also need good editing software, and become familiar with how to use it.
For customers to be able to zoom in on your products you need to take high-resolution images. To do this, make sure that the quality setting on your DSLR is set to the RAW format.
You can later resize the images if need be to reduce file sizes.
According to published research on the popularity of images on Facebook, brightness is one of the four essential elements of photos with the highest engagement. The other elements are clarity, liveliness, and ingenuity.
To get customers to engage with the product image you need to create bright images. However, do not be tempted to use your camera’s flash, as most flashes will produce harsh, washed-out photos.
By utilizing adequate lighting and the right aperture settings on your camera you can achieve bright photos without the need for a flash.
As consumers are attracted to images that feature liveliness and ingenuity, you might want to incorporate creative, attention-drawing elements in your product photography.
At the same time, you also need to ensure you do not in any way mislead the customer into thinking that props or additional items are included in the product.
Also, be sure not to let props overwhelm or draw attention away from the products.
As e-commerce buyers have only the product photos to go by, make sure you capture all angles of a product, even the bottom in some cases.
Survey results reveal that most shoppers expect to see at least 6 images of a product when shopping online, so do not worry if this creates a lot of images, as this is a good thing.
23% of e-commerce returns are thanks to products looking different in real life than in the product images.
To avoid returns, one of the best product photography tips is to show scale. You can do this by placing a ruler next to the product in one image.
A great way to add appeal to your product images is to shoot them in situ. This gives buyers an idea of what the item will look like in their home, worn, used, etc.
A crucial component of product photography is to effectively brand your product images. To do this you will need to create a cohesive look and feel across all of your brand’s product images.
In order to achieve successful image branding and consistent quality, start building a set of photography guidelines for your shoots.
These can include things like:
You can also create templates in your photo editing software to control the size and the scale of products within images.
Now that you know about these tips on how to take professional photos, all that is left is to get set-up, and get shooting!
Remember that product photography, like anything, takes time and practice, so don’t be disheartened if it takes a little time to achieve the results that you want.
If you feel in any way daunted by the process—and you feel you want to call in the pros for your products—you can also browse our services or contact us to see how we can help you. And if you want more value-driven content like this, be sure to sign up for our newsletter.
Ahhh Fyre Festival. By now everyone’s heard of the greatest festival that never was. The event promised a celebrity experience with food from celebrity chefs at Pablo Escobar’s private island. Sounds cool and all. To everyones surprise, none of that ever happened.
But we all heard about it.
We know what Fyre Festival did was wrong. There’s no if, ands, or buts about that. But there’s one thing it did right…and it did it really well.
Marketing.
If there’s one lesson that businesses should take away from Fyre Festival, it’s that marketing is everything.
Here are 8 ways to do it right.
The creators of Fyre Festival, Billy McFarland and Ja Rule knew exactly who their audience was. Rich millennials with major fear of missing out (FOMO). People who were willing to spend thousands of dollars on tickets just so they could be part of it.
The first step for successful marketing is to define your target market. Then you’ll be able to align your marketing efforts with your activities and get them in front of the people who you want to convert to customers.
To do this effectively, you’ll need to create buyer personas for each of your ideal customers. Once you have those identified, you can plan marketing activities that will make an impact on your target audience.
Promoters for Fyre Festival used celebrity events and parties to get everyone amped up about the event. The did a lot of word of mouth, with the founders promoting the festival on various media outlets.
This shows the power of multifaceted marketing. Digital marketing is highly effective…but don’t underestimate the power of print and word of mouth. Attend industry events that your target audience frequents and hand out brochures. Print is also part of an effective marketing strategy–and it’ll help you stand out since it’s not as frequently used these days.
Find events where you can be a featured speaker. The more you attend, the more your audience will get to know and trust you and your brand.
The founders of Fyre Festival certainly knew how to use channels like Instagram to their benefit. Their social media strategy was well thought out and aesthetically pleasing.
It left everyone wanting to know more and the event spread like fire. However, no social strategy can make up for a bad product.
Fyre Festival’s social strategy worked because of the visual interest it created.
Use social media to your brand’s advantage by coming up with a unique way to promote your next event and tease the audience with little snippets of what’s to come.
Tell a story. Tell a great, compelling story that makes people want to know you and use your products or services. Just make sure it’s true.
Fyre Festival told an excellent story. The problem was that it was in fact just a story. Your audience wants to know about you and your brand. They want to see the authentic you.
Use content marketing and social media to provide insight into what goes on behind the “scenes” at your company. Whether it’s preparing for an event or live blogging during an event, let your audience see you and the people behind your brand.
Fyre Festival’s marketing worked so well because it tapped into the audience’s FOMO. They wanted to be a part of everything they were seeing promoted on social media, by their favorite influencers.
This tactic works in the real world too. If you want to get someone interested in what you’re offering, put an expiration date on it. It creates urgency and instills that fear of missing out in your audience.
To really get them interested, put together a promotional video and show what your product or service can do for them.
You shouldn’t just sell products… to really grab attention you need to sell an experience. Fyre Festival did this really well.
It sold promotional experiences like jet-skiing with models and the opportunity to participate in a treasure hunt (imagine the treasures they promised).
You can do the same. For example, partner with another company to provide concert tickets or some other incentive that will make them choose you over a competitor. This way they’re not just getting the end product, they’re getting an experience as well.
You shouldn’t just sell products… to really grab attention you need to sell an experience. Fyre Festival did this really well.
It sold promotional experiences like jet-skiing with models and the opportunity to participate in a treasure hunt (imagine the treasures they promised).
You can do the same. For example, partner with another company to provide concert tickets or some other incentive that will make them choose you over a competitor. This way they’re not just getting the end product, they’re getting an experience as well.
When things went (visibly) wrong, rather than own up to their mistakes, the creators of Fyre Festival maintained that they did nothing wrong.
This is never a good approach.
Make sure you have a crisis management plan already in place. It should outline the key people who are in charge of various aspects–such as public relations and legal matters. You should also have a press release ready to go.
Ideally, you won’t ever have to use your plan. But if you do, you’ll be able to address any issues quickly and start getting back on your feet.
If Fyre Festival founders had taken their event and the promises behind it as seriously as they took their marketing, the outcome would have been drastically different.
However, you can take these lessons learned and apply them the right way to see success in your marketing efforts.
Contact us today for creative ideas that will make your brand stand out.
Blackmagic Design, the gold sponsor of Editfest 2019, invited us to speak at the annual editing fair after finding our studio on social media. Josh Miller, our CEO, presented on the subject of creativity and how Blackmagic’s software creates avenues for artists to personalize and elevate their artwork in real-time.
We revamped our social media game this year to showcase more of the work we do inside the studio. A lot of our social media promotes ongoing video series we’re producing. Most of the productions spotlight artists in the communities we work in. Primarily South Florida, Los Angeles, and NYC.
For example, we created a cool series that links South Florida rappers and hip hop artists in an ongoing freestyle. It’s called Freestyle Friday and it’s all about putting the South Florida rap and hip hop scene on the international map.
Another cool series we produce weekly is #UncreativeRadio. This is a video podcast featuring guests from all walks of life. They all have one thing in common: that they are some of the brightest, most determined and outgoing creative professionals in their industries. The video podcasts run from about 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the episode, and touch upon crucial topics, like the US presidency, harnessing creativity, self-promotion and the messengers of our generation.
You can check out all of the Freestyle Friday episodes on our Youtube Channel. You can join us on Uncreative Radio every Thursday at 6 PM. If you want to see what we have been discussing the past few weeks, head to our website.
One of our video editors, JT Niemeyer, is a pro with Blackmagic Design’s post-production editing software, Resolve. We posted a video of him editing a video for one of our clients and that caught Blackmagic’s attention. Apparently, they like the work we do in the studio, because they invited our video production team to Editfest 2019 and asked Josh if he would present.
Below is the video of JT Niemeyer at work, which is what encouraged Blackmagic Design to reach out to us! The video above is a recap of our time at Editfest 2019 sponsored by Blackmagic Design.
It’s really awesome being able to connect with other professionals who share a passion for creativity. When we were invited to Editfest 2019 sponsored by Blackmagic Design, one of our favorite companies, we were thrilled! It proved a few things to us:
We all know the power of social media; how it is a direct line of communication to consumers, businesses, and brand ambassadors. We know this, but that does not always mean that social media yields the results we expect from it. You can have the coolest content and the dopest copy, but that does not guarantee your audience (or even viewers outside your audience) will pay attention to you.
One the reasons it is so hard to be heard on social media platforms is because they are flooded with content — oversaturated to the point of consumer fatigue. So, the fact the Blackmagic Design saw our video, paused, watched it, and agreed with our message to the point that they reached out to our team and asked that we would present at Editfest 2019 on their behalf, well that’s pretty amazing.
Below is some BTS of our team at Editfest 2019 sponsored by Blackmagic Design. The production value isn’t as great as the videos above. But, then again, they were filmed on iPhones. Even still, check it out!
Have you ever thought about how powerful a story is? How stories have been around since the beginning? But what makes a good story? If you’re looking for some advice, we’ve put together an article that features our top 5 Ted Talks on storytelling.
If that sounds like something that might help you, keep reading.
Don’t just read about storytelling, take some time to actually listen to these phenomenal storytellers tell you about storytelling.
Learn from their craft, pick up on their ques, and jot down some pointers as you prepare to tell your own stories!
If you enjoyed movies like, “StarWars: The Force Awakens” or “Star Trek” or “Super 8” or shows like “Lost” why not take a few notes from the guy who created them?
In this Ted Talk, legendary filmmaker J.J. Abrams shares how the concept of a mysteryhas served as a catalyst in his creative endeavors.
He works the audience through his early childhood and has a few props from a magic store he used to visit, landing on the final: a mysterious box.
Have you considered the element of mystery in your stories? True storytellers are able to implement this element early on and know when to reveal the mystery versus keep it bottled up.
Abram’s uses his mystery box to springboard into the conversation about how a blank page serves as a mystery box. And that as creative storyteller, the blank page offers endless opportunities. It itself is begging questions.
The idea of a Teaser also comes up in how, as creative storytellers, you must balance mystery with reveal to keep your audience hooked. A true teaser creates a balance between suspense and reveal. Too much revelation will feel unnatural, whereas too many questions can tire your audience out.
Check out J.J. Abrams’ Ted Talk on storytelling if this sounds like an area of the storytelling craft you’re interested in learning more about.
In addition to an interesting story, a true story is a must.
And we don’t mean truth as in a factual, or real-life story. We mean believable and flushed out.
But what does flushed out really mean?
Chimamanda Adichie talks her audience through one of the most profound Ted Talks we’ve heard explaining how stories are a way to tell of a people, but not define a people.
A danger early storytellers often face is in only showing one side of a demographic, and that one side becomes susceptible to stereotypes or racisms.
An example is how when people write about characters from other countries they often rely on stereotypes such as people from England enjoy tea and people from third-world countries are all desperate. This, as Adichie explains, is false and makes for poor stories.
A well-rounded, engaging story gives people the chance to continue exploring beyond the story-realm. It means that characters are multi-dimensional and exist beyond the page. This concept helps keep the narrative alive even after the final sentence.
It’s important for people to experience diverse stories, with characters that challenge stereotypes. Stories that look like us, sound like us, and act like us are not genuine and they don’t push readers or viewers to grow, thus making the experience feel boring or dull.
A single-story is one where you group a people under a defining umbrella rather than listen to who they are as unique people.
Having a story that pushes people to consider others in multidimensional ways is far more engaging than a story with flat, one-sided characters.
For more on this conversation, check out Chimamanda Adichie’s Ted Talk on “The Danger of a Single Story.”
Warning: Strong Language
This Ted Talk is sure to get you a laugh, and hopefully, you’ll learn a thing or two about storytelling.
An understanding of the Human Condition is something storytellers spend a lot of time working into their crafts.
The Human Condition is about what it means to be alive. It’s often what people are trying to talk about when they call a story “relatable.”
Stories bring us together, they unite us, and they give us something to bond over, as Andrew Stanton explains. But understanding how all of those mechanics work together can get a little abstract.
Spend some time with the man that helped bring us “Toy Story” and “Wall-E” to learn more about the Human Condition. How stories give people purpose, recognition, and interconnectivity in ways that nothing else can.
If that sounds like an area of storytelling you need to work on, check out Andrew Stanton’s Ted Talk: “The Clues to a Great Story.”
Have you ever wondered about the sciences behind storytelling?
What exactly goes on in the brain? How do images and relationships work within the mind and how does the brain chemically respond?
Storytellers interested in multimodal storytelling should check this video out as it might help forge ideas on how to reshape a story. Have you considered presenting your story in a different genre such as digital, or interactive, or as a website?
If this conversation sounds like something you’d value learning about, David JP. Phillips’s Ted Talk might be right up your alley.
David runs his audience through an example of how stories have raised the value of objects by significant margins. Like making them worth x10 or more what they were original.
This Ted Talk is perfect if you want a crash course on how we got to the stories we have today.
We’re not talking about how classics became cannon or where original epics originated from, but how our means of telling a story has evolved from the written word to what we have in the digital age.
We recommend Joe Sabia’s “The Technology of Storytelling” as a way to view the layers of a story and better understand sensory detail.
In storytelling, the five senses are key.
Everything from sound, juxtaposition, appearance, and timing all come up in this Ted Talk. Have you considered these elements in your own stories?
By watching this Ted Talk we hope you’ll develop a better understanding of sensory detail because with better understanding comes a better implementation of these elements in your own stories!
If you’re looking for how to work every little component of a story this Ted Talk is for you!
We hope these Top 5 Ted Talks on storytelling have inspired you, challenged you, perked your interest, and made you want to go out and tell amazing tales. If you’re looking for more information on how to create an audience through video production, check out some of our services.
If you don’t see what you’re looking for on our blog page, or want to know a little more about our story, or if you have a story idea you want to bring to life, feel free to reach out and contact us! We’re always happy to chat!
Every day more than 100 billion hours of videos are watched through Facebook. More than five billion videos are watched on YouTube each day.
As you can see, video is not only a smart marketing move; it’s essential when it comes to reaching customers. Are you using video marketing efforts? If not, you are missing out on a significant amount of traffic to your site, which could lead to more conversions and more profits.
Are you still wondering if video marketing is right for your business? After all, it represents a new and potentially significant marketing investment. However, it’s well worth it.
Keep reading to learn more about the benefits offered by video marketing and why you need to start using it today.
It’s important to view video marketing as an investment. When you add a video on your landing page, it can increase conversions by up to 80 percent.
Viewing a compelling presenter video can be a huge influence on buying behavior and persuade a visitor to convert into a lead, rather than having them re-read the same information. By conveying the right emotions through video, you are harnessing the power of a powerful selling tool.
The right message in your video can also serve as a tutorial or a testimonial. It all depends on the angle you are trying to achieve.
Producing a video takes time, money, and effort. Not all businesses have the resources to do this successfully.
What you may wonder is – is it worth the investment? The answer is a resounding, “yes.”
Videos generate more trust in consumers than content – every time. A shocking 79 percent of consumers would rather spend their time watching a video to learn about a service or product than reading written content. Additionally, 84 percent are more likely to make a purchase after watching the brand’s video.
Think about how this can make a difference in your conversion rate, and you can begin to understand why video is becoming more of an indispensable tool in your bigger marketing arsenal.
Videos also help to increase customer attention – more so than any other medium. Since the internet is a place where information overload is a huge factor, your brand won’t succeed if you aren’t able to stand out from the crowd by presenting your unique story.
The good news is, with video marketing, you can create a compelling pitch much faster than reading would. It also helps you easily get your message three, and when done properly, it can grab a customer’s attention without much issue.
Everyone gets inundated with emails, and getting a potential customer to open it is a bigger challenge than ever before. By adding “video” to your subject line can help to increase open rates while decreasing unsubscribe rates.
The fact of the matter is, it’s much easier to watch a well-produced video than to sit and read something, right? This is especially effective if you are showing how to use a specific product or to express something you’re unable to get across using text.
To help you get even more excited about video marketing, a large number of businesses say that video provides a great return on investment. While video production isn’t the cheapest or easiest task, it can pay off big time.
Also, online video editing tools are evolving all the time and becoming more and more affordable. You can even use your smartphone to make decent videos.
Another bit of good news is that your videos don’t have to be perfect. It’s what they showcase that matters. New research shows that users are usually put off by a video that doesn’t fully explain a service or product clearly and concisely.
Search engines love content that engages viewers. Nothing can entice more views and longer views than a video. Additionally, YouTube is the second largest search engine, coming in behind Google.
If you decide to put your video on YouTube and your website, your overall visibility and the opportunity you have to appear in search engines is increased significantly. If you take it a step further and promote your video on social media, the chances you will be found are increased significantly.
Mobile and video go hand in hand. A large number of people watch video from their mobile devices. Mobile video consumption is going up by more than 100 percent each year.
Because people enjoy watching videos while on the go, the total number of smartphone users is increasing significantly. As a result, your audience is going to continue getting bigger and bigger.
This is the age of the viral video. People love videos, and people share videos.
What does this mean for your business?
It’s your chance to have a bit of fun and show what your company is all about. Plus, people love transparency in a company.
As you can see, video marketing has quite a bit to offer. If you haven’t yet implemented this in your marketing plan, now is the time to try it. You can see a significant increase in traffic and conversions by using this strategy.
If you aren’t sure how to get started, then contact us today. Our team can help you develop a strong video marketing campaign that will help you achieve the goals you have for your brand.
Getting that perfect bit of advertising is a struggle between medium, creative content, and pinpoint information.
The balance of creative content and pinpoint information will always be a matter of taste and timing, but finding that perfect medium can be elusive.
That perfect medium may already be here. Video advertising has many strengths and using them can be easy with some advice.
Curious how you can make the most out of video advertising? Let us show you the ropes.
Video content is everywhere, in case you hadn’t noticed. Smartphones stream hours and hours of video content every day. Big websites like YouTube are overflowing with popular content and laced with good advertising.
The market is there, but what makes video advertising so potent?
A big reason is that our brain absorbs visual content easier than any other content.
This combination of market and science has made video advertising a powerhouse. The trick comes from finding the right balance that fits your business and strikes out a successful campaign.
Taking the video advertising market by storm isn’t a simple matter of posting video advertising content. There are millions of competitors doing the same thing.
You need to stand out, and that means understanding what makes video advertising successful. Taking these tips to heart can put you over the edge when it comes to advertising.
Optimization is a very important idea in any business venture. This becomes even more important with something so technical.
When you optimize, you need to think about three major things. They are bandwidth, video quality, and the major streaming platforms.
First, we talk about bandwidth.
No video is helpful or fun if it never loads. Optimizing for bandwidth requires a bit of technical knowledge, but the most important aspect is video design.
Shorter videos have two qualities. They are easier to load, but a large majority of the younger audience has grown up to short and to-the-point commercials. Getting your point across before your video has a chance to be boring is big.
Second, we have video quality.
A lot of this comes from technology. Several advances in streaming can help you get the best quality video out without tanking bandwidth or other resources.
The last optimization issue comes from major platforms.
There is a pile of different social media platforms, and each of them comes with different methods that work best. What works on YouTube might not be the best case on Facebook.
Make sure you review the technical basics of every platform, too. Aspect ratios and maximum video lengths will mean you may need multiple videos to cover all of the social media platforms.
Bringing value to marketing can come with any medium, but video advertising takes it even farther.
You need to know what you want your video to do. Figure out what it is advertising. After that, though, you need to know to not drown your audience in an outpouring of forced advertisement.
Incorporate things that connect with your audience on a personal level. You want something memorable that a customer would find positive with or without the advertisement involved.
This requires a heavy understanding of what your target audience wants and likes. Combine market research and creativity to focus on the customers instead of the product.
If the customers find your advertising appealing, their love for your product can follow suit.
When your videos are succinct and target who you want to target, sometimes you may find it hard to push your own brand. A lot of that has to come from marketing style instead of marketing content.
Think about the content that people remember. The Old Spice commercials are a great example. They were bizarre, fast-paced, and witty. People remembered them.
Getting your advertisements to make an impression means finding a unique voice to broadcast out there.
Can your brand be comedic? Would it excel with potent drama? Do you have or need a mascot of some kind.
Figure out what uniqueness you can offer, and make sure that comes across throughout your campaign. You want people to recognize your advertising the moment it comes on.
A clear call to action drives the customer to buy into your product using the interest driven by your advertising. They need to be clear, concise, but not too demanding.
A call to action can be at the beginning, to make sure they hear it no matter if they finish the video. It can come at the end after they have full investment, or anywhere in between.
Somewhere in the middle may end up being the best option, where they are already invested but you haven’t risked droning on.
Keeping call to actions subtle can be hard. If you get that right nudge though, either through a sincere bond of interest or clever product placement, you will be golden.
People watch videos in a massive number of ways. In addition to people closing the video before it completes, they may also opt out of other details.
Sound is a big thing that can often get left out. Many platforms have an autoplay feature that does not trigger audio. Some people may also turn off the sound. Some of your target audience could be deaf!
If any one part of your video fails, then it has to rely on its other parts to succeed. A good video advertisement can get the point across no matter what is missing.
Incorporate your message straight into the videos. Pique people’s curiosity with visuals. Make your brand name and product recognizable without a single mention in sound.
If you can get all of this to work without the full video, imagine what a full video could do!
Video advertising has a lot of nuances to it, and it will be rare that any one company makes a perfect campaign in one shot.
We here at C&I aim to make advertising a brilliant experience. If you wish to learn more about what we can do to help get you moving, contact us today.
Let’s give it up to Nylle Thebes for this dope freestlye on this week’s episode of Freestyle Friday! Be sure to follow Nylle Thebes on Instagram to help get his name out there!
If you possess lyrical skills to compete with the best then hit us up to be featured on the next Freestyle Friday. If you aren’t a lyrical wordsmith but do appreciate artist profiles and spotlights on local talent, then subscribe to our Youtube Channel. We add fresh, original content weekly and just relaunched the ongoing Dailies series with brand new episodes, which now invite you to experience life at C&I Studios.
We have studio locations all over the world, from Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, D.C., London and Fort Lauderdale. Our main headquarters is our Fort Lauderdale office so we have a deep bond with artists in the area. Whenever we aren’t working on projects for our clients, we are doing whatever we can to help other artists build up an audience. Freestyle Friday is one of these intitiatives.
So far, we have worked with some of the best South Florida rappers, like Sam Stan. In fact, Sam Stan was recently a guest on #UNCREATIVERadio talking about the release of his new album, Happy Campers. You should definitely check it out!
90% of people affirm that product videos are useful in their decision-making process.
With stakes this high, it has never been more pertinent for businesses and brands to seek every advantage in video marketing. One wrong move and your revenue taps could run dry.
In a bid to stand out, video content creators are focusing not just on the quality of production but also the content. No matter how good the cameras and editing are, if the material itself isn’t compelling, then it will be a dud.
Consequently, firms are investing heavily in high-value storytelling videos. But what are the keys to excellent video storytelling? Read on as we outline three essential pillars for your next great video.
No matter what medium is used to tell a story, there is one thing that stands true. Every story has a hero, and that hero ultimately plays a critical role in helping to build brands and communities.
When your audience is watching your video, the hero is more than a reflection of themselves. The hero is actually an expression of themselves in different contexts, and as such, they relate with their character.
Since the audience connects to the hero on a deeper level, the connection stimulates an emotional response in the viewers.
In light of this, you need to put a great deal of thought into your hero early on as you develop the story.
The kind of hero you bring to life will have the power to define both the audience you want to address and the problems the viewers face.
Your hero will also directly influence the tone your storytelling video will take as it reaches its point of resolution.
When you are thinking through your hero, you have to understand your viewers. A lot of targeted research has to go into understanding what issues concerning your audience the hero will reflect to connect with them.
In today’s world, you can use social media to gain insights into your audience and what motivates them. Through their online activities, you can accurately determine the aspirations of your target audience and build your hero on that.
Do not feel the pressure to create an extensive background on your hero. Instead, try to make it as easy for your audience to fill in the gaps about the hero’s background by using obvious character traits and signals.
There is no great story if there is no problem to overcome. If your customer or product is the hero, then the problem becomes the villain.
Once the audience connects with the hero, they will pay attention to the problem at hand.
The driving force for them will be to avoid whatever issue you are portraying from befalling them like it has the character in the video.
To your audience, the particular pain point is an enemy to their happiness. When you set the ground using this tool, you are in essence, getting the audience in shape to be receptive to the solution that your video just so happens to have.
Just like with the hero you do not need to go into the deep background on the villain or problem.
You can also use obvious signals and character traits to help the audience instinctively understand them.
For example, a video advocating for bug spray will tend to use insects and pests that the audience does not like to personify the problem.
If the video uses a talking fly, it can add stink visuals to signal filth and dirt before serving up the solution.
One reason why having a clearly articulated pain point is critical is that it helps you place yourself in the audience’s decision-making process. You can point them to your solution.
As you craft, your problem remember that it has to be easy to understand. Plan to introduce it in the early stages of the video. If you’re doing a short form video, for example, introduce it within the first 30 seconds.
Do not overdo the problem so as to not overwhelm your audience. Use it as a hook to your pitch but leave some room to reel them in.
So far you have introduced a hero who evokes strong emotions in your audience and you have set up the problem as well. Now the fun part begins for your video storytelling strategy.
The third piece in the storytelling puzzle is to deliver the solution with as much pomp as is practical.
When your audience began watching your video they endured the harder parts so that they could finally experience the desired outcome. Here is where you get to make your service or product stand out from the pack.
It is advisable for you to try and combine the problem you want to solve and the solution your product or service gives as close together as possible.
That way the audience is able to intuitively connect the two in their minds without having to struggle too much thinking through it.
In fact, if the arch in your story can focus on the bigger picture that is your audience’s problem you will strike a chord with them.
An example of this is when a payroll company decided to create a video on their software that chose to focus on real-life situations their customers face.
By showcasing relatable moments in their audience’s lives and seamlessly adding their solution, they hit home. The amazing bit is that they did not even have to talk explicitly about their product.
Remember that your goal is to influence the audience’s decision in favor of your product or service.
If you reel them in right they will talk about your story and even share it.
Video is now firmly entrenched as king in the content marketing space. In the race for customer attention, many brands and businesses are investing in developing storytelling videos relevant to their mission.
A good story will hook your customers and reel them in ultimately growing your bottom line.
C&I Studios is an idea agency that thrives on creating media to educate, empower, and inspire greatness. Contact us today to find out how we can help you develop a compelling story for your business.
Give Marnino Toussaint a hand for turning up on this week’s episode of Freestyle Friday and be sure to follow him on Instagram.
If you possess lyrical skills of your own, hit us up to be featured on the next Freestyle Friday. If you are not a lyrical wordsmith but do appreciate artist profiles and spotlights illuminating local talent, then subscribe to our Youtube Channel. We add fresh, original content weekly and just relaunched the ongoing Dailies series with brand new episodes, which now invite you to experience life at C&I Studios.
We are passionate about helping other artists wherever we can. Since our headquarters is in Fort Lauderdale, we focus a lot of our attention on South Florida artists–musicians, models, poets, and creative entrepreneurs (to name a few). Freestyle Friday is our way of giving South Florida rappers a stage to share their talents and establish South Florida rap music as an elite micro-genre.
We feel it’s important to give artists a place to grow their audience; to market themselves beyond the scope of their network. In fact, that is literally what #UNCREATIVE is all about! If you’ve never checked out our blog, you’re missing out. There is a ton of awesome content to inspire your craft.
You should definitely follow our Youtube Channel, too, if you want to see more original content. Oh, and if you are an artist looking to be featured in an upcoming series, don’t hesitate to reach out!
Are you running a business? How do you plan on hyping it up, and getting the buzz around? We recommend using a North American Rainmaking ritual if you are going through a dry spell.
Okay, okay- this may help call upon the skies and make it rain, but what will really make it rein is creating artistic video content.
Creative engaging video content for your audience is essential if you’re running a business.
Whether you’re aiming to create a product spotlight or an informational series, a video agency will take your concept and pour it across what we like to call the internet clouds.
With the help of a video agency, all of your best creative ideas can get the technology and expertise they deserve.
Bringing art to life for your business has never been so easy- put on those dancing shoes.
It has also never been so important (don’t forget your hat). Creativity utilizes a different part of the brain, enhances intrigue, and sends sparks of pizzaz deep into your consumer’s mind.
However, that doesn’t mean you have all the information you need to work with a video agency right away.
If you’ve never worked with a video production company before, there are a few things you need to know.
Here are the key points any beginner should know before jumping in with cold feet.
Anyone can take a video on their smartphone, and billions of people put it right up on youtube.
What separates video production is that it means much more than an average video among the Youtube plethora, both from a technical and artistic standpoint.
At its most basic, video production refers to capturing video and then editing it to tell a story.
Think graphics, think engagement, think real planning and execution, think magic. Anything is possible in video production.
When you work with a video production company, there’s much more artistic liberty involved.
Creating an effective video involves both artistic and strategic planning in pre-production and a video crew who fully understands the vision.
But of course, the editing and production magic doesn’t happen until post-production when everything starts really coming together.
A legitimate video production company will clue you in on every step of the process.
They will know what’s hip, what works, and what will catch the eye of a human mind.
These two terms are used synonymously. They both represent a company whose major role is to work collaboratively with clients and create high-quality videos.
Whether a company calls itself a video production company or a video agency, they will both use the same process of video production to deliver the product you need.
The key to selecting one company over the other is whether or not they align with your values and your vision.
But more importantly, look into what they have created for other companies in the past. Is it compelling? Engaging? Artistic?
Lights. Camera. Action- duh. Okay, so there is much more.
Once you submit a concept to a video production agency, it is used to start formulating a tangible idea for your video.
It takes technical knowledge and creativity combined with excellent video quality. Keep calm and rest easy knowing that video production agencies have an abundance of both.
Most importantly, you’ll be kept in the loop during every step of the process.
Once the script has been locked (approved by you and the director), shooting will begin. During this phase, the director will be in charge of production and direct the rest of the members involved.
In some instances, video companies will also incorporate photography services to capture behind the scenes and other memorable moments.
You can use some of these photos on your social media as a teaser for your customers.
When it comes to visuals like video, lead-up marketing is just as important as the premiere of the video itself.
The entire experience is quite exhilarating, so posting on social feeds should be a breeze. It’ll grasp attention and brace viewers for the excitement to come.
This type of video marketing strategy is highly effective in creating a rein of rhythm around your brand just before its launch.
At least 86% of businesses use video on their website as a marketing tool.
Considering that, it’s safe to say that working with a video agency has its fair share of advantages. Namely, getting your idea out there!
You may not have enough time and resources to produce a high-quality video on your own.
And among all the iPhone videos on youtube alone, yours may be lost among the abyss and drown in the never to be shown.
Fortunately, video production agencies have the equipment and expertise to help you put stellar video content into the globe and send the word spinning.
Video content is no longer about shooting for the sake of having videos on your website, but a way to create awareness, gather more leads and show people why your message can make a difference in their world.
In this case, you need an agency that knows how to use video content as a means of communicating above the sea of content that trickles down through the technology clouds.
Whether you want to shoot a video to sell products or one that tells your company’s story, you need an agency that uses creativity to breathe concepts to life.
You may not have the time or resources to produce your own videos to the level of quality you need.
But working with a video production agency ensures that you have the shaman of creativity and innovation at your side.
Contact C&I Studios today, we are an idea agency that defines creativity- let’s make it rein.
Utilizing video is a powerful strategy that you can implement as an entrepreneur. Not only will it provide a way for you to showcase your products and services, but it will also give your audience insight into your brand’s personality.
But, video storytelling formats are just as important as the content itself, and you’ll need to optimize both if you want the best results.
Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, we got you covered.
Let’s take a look at everything you need to know.
One of the most common reasons brands use video is to show their audience who they are. And, telling your brand’s personal story is a solid method to connect with your audience.
Common concepts for this type of video include brand origin stories, information about the early days of the company, and background about the founder(s). The aim here is to remind your audience that your company is run by actual people and isn’t a faceless business that exists solely to generate revenue.
If your company’s story is particularly inspiring, dedicating the video to how you got things up and running is a solid option. At the very least, you can give a brief synopsis of who created the company, why, and what your brand currently aims to do.
Your personal story can go a long way when it comes to building an audience, and it can also serve as a driving force for other people to turn their dreams into a reality.
Then, your photography agency will design the creativity behind the story and burst it into- lights, camera, buyer action.
Showcasing what your past customers have to say is a great way to get more people interested in what you have to offer.
But, this type of storytelling format isn’t limited to how much your audience likes your product or service.
Instead, it can be an opportunity for your consumers to tell their own personal stories while also providing insight into how your brand has impacted them. This is especially common for companies that offer clothing like athletic apparel.
You could also offer some sort of reward for the best customer submission, such as discounts, exclusive products, or even cash.
Giving your customers a platform to express yourself will show that you care about the people who make your business a success. This type of positivity will serve to draw in even more consumers.
How-to videos are some of the most watched types of content on the Internet. So, it’s only natural that you should take this into consideration when making a video for your brand.
Particularly useful things to teach your audience about include cooking, equipment repair or maintenance, and grooming. In general, the easier it is for your audience to follow along with your guide (in terms of complexity, tools, etc.), the better results you’ll get from making it.
It’s also a good idea to consider turning your guide videos into a series. For example, you could offer new how-to content once per week, a few times per month, etc.
Over time, you’ll build a huge catalog of how-to videos and guides that people will be likely to find on their own through Google. This, of course, is great for brand awareness and can serve as a stepping stone to new heights for your company.
Depending on the industry you’re involved in, there may be some changes going on that your audience needs someone to explain to them. Or, there may be something controversial that somebody needs to openly talk about.
Regardless of what it may be, you can make a video to discuss it and offer your take. You can also encourage feedback from your viewers and have a discussion with them.
If there isn’t anything noteworthy occurring in your industry at the moment, you could use the opportunity to show off your company’s culture instead.
Things like employee testimonials, a virtual company tour, and the highlights of working at your firm all fit well in this category. People love transparency, so give them a look at anything that isn’t confidential.
But, you can even take this one step further.
This is a storytelling framework that gets a lot of people’s attention as a result of the behind-the-scenes glimpses views will get.
People will often have no idea how your company is run. They might not be aware of the size of your team, the day-to-day operations, or the intricacies involved in managing and completing projects.
If your company has anything unique about it that you wouldn’t find at a conventional firm, take a moment to showcase it.
For example, Google has a room dedicated to providing employees with access to showers, coffee, and even a place to nap. Needless to say, this information caught a lot of attention when it was made public!
This form of storytelling can also be very entertaining to create, as it will offer a look at your employees’ personalities, how they interact with each other, and how the overall atmosphere is at your company.
But it doesn’t have to be.
With the above information about video storytelling formats in mind, you’ll be well on your way to providing the best experience possible to your audience.
Want to learn more about creative thinking can benefit your business? Make sure to check out the rest of our blog!