Video

Why Startups Need a Demo Video

By Mark Evans in Startups 2 Comments Tags: , , ,

A key challenge for startups is developing compelling ways to tell the world who they are and what they do.

It’s a straightforward proposition but it’s an easier said than done said process. Most startups do a good job to create products or services but they’re not as good at storytelling because it isn’t part of their core expertise.

There are different ways to tell stories but among the most engaging is the demo video. Whether they’re animated or live-action, demo videos are a great way to show people in a user-friendly way what they do and why anyone would be interested in, ideally, 120 seconds or less.

So why video?

Perhaps the biggest reason is people like videos. Given the choice between text and a video, people will pick a video most of the time. Videos are easy to consume because they require less work, a big consideration for people who are time-strapped and multi-tasking.

As well, videos can be used in a variety of ways. They can play a key role within a Web site, and serve as sales and marketing tools. Videos can also be easily shared via social media and, as important, search engines love videos so there is a solid SEO angle.

So what does a video cost?

It depends on your budget but a high-quality video can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $15,000, depending on the kind of video and production involved.

So how much should a startup spend? While it depends on marketing budgets, I recommend spending more than less because a video should be seen as a long-term investment that can be amortized over time and multiple uses.

A video that looks good and tells a compelling story can play a key role for startups looking for ways to capture peoples’ attention. A bad video such as a do-it-yourself screen capture project can hurt a startup because it creates the perception the product or service is low-quality as well.

In the scheme of things, a video should be a high priority for startups, even it means biting the financial bullet in the short term. Along with a good Web site, a video can be a way for startups to break out from the pack.

Speaking of video, ITBusiness is running a demo video contest with a $1,000 prize.

Is “Just” Blogging Going to be Enough?

By Mark Evans in Blogs 7 Comments Tags: , ,

As someone who spent nearly 15 years as an ink-stained newspaper reporter, my passion is writing, which explains why I produce lots of content for this blog, the Sysomos blog and my Globe & Mail “Start” column.

I pound out the words, find an interesting image, and hit “publish”. Done.

I’m starting to think, however, it might not be enough to simply write blog posts. In many ways, I’m starting to feel my content needs to have more variety to engage readers and deliver different types of stories.

It’s one of the reasons why I have been actively exploring the idea of video recently – a hat tip to Marcus Sheridan who contends the only way to get good at making videos is by doing them.

Truth be told, I haven’t done many videos because it’s not part of my “reporting DNA”. I’m a notetaker, not a video guy.But I think that is going to change for a few reasons: Video is sexy content. People like videos, Google likes videos, and it is a different way to tell stories. Video is also easy. I just got a iPhone 4S, dug up my Kodak Zi6, and started mucking around with iMovie.

My interest in exploring the world beyond words was captured by Trevor Young in a blog post for Edelman Australia. He talked about bloggers becoming “micro-publishers”, who deliver content in multiple ways: blogs, videos, newsletters, photos, etc.

Perhaps this represents the evolution of blogging as opposed to Young’s suggestion “it’s the end of blogging as we know it”. As blogging matures, it needs to become a richer, more compelling and engaging experience. Social media has changed how people consume content, while video has become ubiquitous and user-friendly for both consumers and creators.

The challenge for many bloggers is shifting editorial gears. Those of us happy behind the keyboard will have to adopt new tools, embrace the idea that video is as powerful a medium as words, and look to tell stories differently.

For some of us, it may not be an easy transition because we’re so used to creating content in a particular way. For others, having new ways to tell stories will be a positive thing. It will be a refreshing editorial challenge, it will force us to learn new tools, change how to “report”, and provide audiences with new insight and perspective.

Personally, I’m excited about becoming a multi-dimensional storyteller because change is good. While I will continue to be a hard-core  blogging advocate, blogs that stand out from the crowd will have different editorial angles. This is not to suggest people who stick to words will be left behind but I do think offering posts and other kinds of content is an attractive option for bloggers and blog readers.

What do you think? Is text enough for bloggers?

Could You Cut the Cable or Satellite Cord?

By Mark Evans in Media 12 Comments Tags: , , , ,

Although it’s more of a murmur than a rumble, there appears to be growing attention on cord-cutting. I’m not talking about wood as those of us north of border prepare for another long, cold winter but people who have decided they no longer need cable or satellite service because most, if not all, of their video needs are being met by online services.

Fabrice Taylor had an interesting column in yesterday’s Globe & Mail that talked about his own decision to cut the chord, as well as the fact the number of U.S. cable and satellite subscribers dropped by 216,000 in the second-quarter, the first time it had ever declined.

In the scheme of things 216,000 is a drop in the bucket compared with the 10s of millions of subscribers still coughing up a growing amount of dollars each and every month. But it does signal that consumers now have an option to get their video fix – be it movies, documentaries or television shows. With higher-speed networks and a growing number of devices to watch video, the Web is becoming a more viable and attractive platform.

This is a movement that will likely gain more traction as services such as Hulu, NetFlix and iTunes make it even easier to access online video anywhere, any time on any device, including smartphones.

The big obstacle facing cord-cutting is live sports – something that is available on pay-per-view but not readily available through an online service. If the professional sports leagues come around to offering games on a pay-as-you-go basis, it could dramatically jump-start the cord-cutting trend.

Last weekend, for example, I watched an NFL football game via online service. It wasn’t a legitimate service but, nevertheless, hinted at what was possible. If I could purchase the game of the week (e.g. New England vs. the New York Jets) for let’s say $4.99 from NFL.com, that would completely change how I would consume television.

That said, I do not expect the professional sports leagues in North America to change how they do business in the near future. The television deals from ESPN, NBC, Fox and CBS are too lucrative to consideration alternatives. We’re talking about hundreds of billions of dollars.

So while professional sports may not be part of the cord-cutting movement, everything else is on the table. As more services become available and more people get their heads around the fact they really don’t need to have cable or satellite service, cord-cutting could go from a murmur to a rumble in no time at all.

Have you cut the cord? If so, how do you consume your video these days, and what services do you use?

The Power of the Corporate Demo Video

By Mark Evans in Video No Comments Tags: , , ,

As an ex-journalist, words have power. They can deliver a wide variety of messages and stories that can resonate with readers across the spectrum of emotions.

Despite my enthusiasm for wordsmithing, I’m also a huge fan of the demo video to help companies communicate who they are and why it matters. In a world in which people are multi-tasking and increasingly time-strapped, I tell clients that you can offer people compelling and well-written text but, if given the choice, they will watch a demo video most of the time.

It was interesting to read a post this morning by Michael Arrington about a new demo video for Blippy, the social service in which you share purchases publicly by providing the company with your credit card information. The video was done by Transvideo Studios, whose clients include Mint and Box.net.

The video is certainly good but I would suggest (and this is a very un-Canadian thing to do, especially on July 4) that some of the videos that Seth Singer and myself have created recently compare favourably.

We’re particularly excited of a demo video done for GridCentric, a Rogers Ventures portfolio company that makes virtualization software so companies can scale their computing resources in real-time to meet demand as opposed to having excess “just in case” capacity. In creating the video, we not only gave GridCentric something they could use for sales, marketing and financing purposes but helped them with their core messaging.

Here’s a video that we created for Sysomos for a new service called Audience that will measure social media ROI.

Demo videos are not inexpensive, which can be surprising given the online world’s obsession with free. But – and this is clearly self-serving – they are very solid investments with a great ROI because they can be used for a variety of things – everything from explaining to consumers what you do to marketing, sales, business development and finances.

If you’re interested in learning more about what’s involved in creating a corporate demo video, drop me an e-mail at mark@markevans.ca.

Some Real-Life Privacy Insight

By Mark Evans in Social Media 1 Comment Tags: , , ,

Last week, Seth Singer and I hit the streets of Toronto to shoot a video for Sysomos. It was a simple and fun proposition: we wanted people to take a shot at saying “Sysomos” given Sysomos is frequently mispronounced.

Given we live in a world in which a growing number of people disclose all kinds of personal and professional information on social networks, I thought it would be relatively easy getting people to help us with the video. I figured we could easily get all the interviews we needed in a couple of hours.

It was surprising, however, to see how many people politely declined when they learned the video was going to appear on the Web. There are actually people who apparently still care about personal privacy, which is a refreshing perspective compared with the full-disclosure nature of social media.

At the same time, there were plenty of people happy to participate, which also suggests that people are still willing and enthusiastic about lending a hand.

Here’s the Sysomos video:

Why and How Do Videos Go Viral?

By Mark Evans in Social Media 2 Comments Tags: , , , ,

Earlier this week, I did an interview with the CBC in Thunder Bay about a video by a local rap singer that had gone viral with more than 150,000 views. For a small city such as Thunder Bay, this was a major news story because the video went from being the toast the town to being an online phenomena in a few days.

One of the questions asked by the CBC host was how and why videos go viral. The answer is far from simple because it can be a difficult, if not impossible, to pinpoint why a video captures the imagination of people to the point where they enthusiastically share it with other people, who share it with other people, and so on.

So what does a video need to go viral?

Perhaps the most important element is it needs to be entertaining to engage people enough that they want to pass it around to other people. “Entertaining” can be defined as funny, silly, captivating, enjoyable, interesting, different or immersive. It can apply to a song, a dance such the “Evolution of Dance“, a stunt such as putting Mentos in Diet Coke or just be something out of the ordinary such as steps that play music.

A viral video also needs a social media spark. It needs a person with a following or someone seen as an influencer to elevate the video to another level where it can be exposed to a larger audience.

In the “Tipping Point”, Malcolm Gladwell described these people as “mavens” who accumulate knowledge, especially about the marketplace, and know how to share it with others.

For viral videos, there’s also an element of luck and being at the right place at the right time, which is probably more difficult to define or capture.

So, what are you thoughts about how a video goes viral? How would you explain it?

Note: This post originally appeared on the Sysomos blog

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