Video increases a viewers time on a website. That’s quite a generalisation but in most cases it’s true. Video keeps visitors watching and when they watch they become accustomed to the website. That means that they’re more likely to use your website then and more likely to use it in the future. Continue reading
Making a video infographic has made me realise the importance of non-motion, time to absorb and read information. Because that’s what’s needed in an infographic.
It sounds simple enough and really, it should be. However, editing a motion graphics piece takes a long time, watching repeatedly and in the end you begin to know it like the back of your hand. The result of that it becomes difficult to read the content and absorb it as if you were for the first time. Of course having fresh eyes watching it and giving feedback is a great way to overcome this, another may be to put the music on (if you have it), and read the information out before you start editing, record the timings which seem comfortable to you on a piece of paper and use that as your guide. This isn’t earth shattering advice, but ti might just help the next time you go for an informative video. Not just in infographics, but in all motion graphics and video. It’s important to allow reflection and space, just like white space in editorial design.
Another outcome from the existience of this “white time” is something that works for me and has become a rule in my editing. Always edit to 4 bars like your editing music. Keep a rhythm and your video will magically flow better. Sometimes I’ll find a song that inspires me to create the video I want to make. Edit to that and keep it in time. Let the music show off your video, make your video show off the music. Even if you don’t use that track in the end (which you would want) due to editorial or audience or cost, it’ll make your video better. Replace it with another that fits in or don’t use any at all. Human beings are tuned into the rhythm and will appreciate the flow of the film anyway.
Making high quality emails isn’t quick and it’s not always easy. It takes time to write, design, test and most likely rewrite, adapt and test over and over.
And fortunately for us, there’s a point to that, it’s what separates your brand from the others and if you’re consistent, it brings in a better return. I like to segment my market into 3 very important catagories to start with which can then be broken down into more. Continue reading
Here’s a breakdown of the top tools we use to stay on top of this ever changing, ever challenging environment.
Twitter: Chances are you know what Twitter is, perhaps you’re here because you saw the link on twitter. It’s great for business, how you use it is a whole different ball game but, once you are using it, it’s time you managed it.
Yahoo! Pipes + Twitterfeed – These can be pretty tricky so search around on how to make them, there are loads you can easily “clone” for your own use, the point of them is to capture and post twitter content for you automatically. Be careful with what you auto-tweet because you never know what it might throw up.
Bit.ly – This service shortens your links so that they don’t take up your precious 14o characters but wait, it does more! If you were to sign up on their website, you could see how many fellow bit.ly-ers shared the same link, how many times people clicked your one and how affective your social media link sharing is. Where and to what people click most and if you’re not thinking strategy by now then think… link strategy.
Facebook: Facebook is the other social mega-giant, it’s more for friends and real people but business’ use it to dominate every angle of someone’s life, in a non-scary way. Instead of linking or voicing, Facebook is a great place to share ideas, discuss and show what you do. If Twitter is the networking event, Facebook is the pub afterwards.
Static HTML - This is an app on Facebook which takes all of the hassle out of making a custom Facebook page. It lets you write HTML code (what websites run off) to be shown to the Facebook user. If that’s confusing then definitely don’t go near the custom app route. If it doesn’t, then we like it because it means no SSL requirements for us.
LinkedIn: Essential for the aspiring business, set it up, link it to your other social accounts like Twitter and let it roll on. Perhaps join some interesting groups to see what’s going on and try to contribute as much as possible to make a reputation for your expertise.
Blog – We use WordPress to get this done, launch a well rounded site in as little time as possible. Our site is built on WordPress and as it becomes more and more a content management system rather than a blogging system, it’s plays even more into our keen hands.
Hits, results and visits – Google Analytics provides a great way to track visitors, see how people use your site and how to capitalise on it
Viral Marketing – AddThis / ShareThis buttons add a way for visitors to share your articles with their friends, easy. We’d all love to be able to do it without them but unfortunately we need to “impress” people.
Keywords – Google Webmaster Tools helps you find what keywords people use that eventually lands them on your site. Great for optimising your SEO.
Layout, navigation, titles, meta – Whitepapers and common sense help us out here. Here are some great sources to get reading into, if you’re using WordPress then we suggest using the Ultimate SEO plugin for some amazing granularity on your articles.
YouTube: A huge audience and reliable service means that you can be sure your video is at least accessible. YouTube takes all the complicated hassle out of online video distribution at the cost of allowing to be freely available, which in most circumstances is the perfect situation.
BitsontheRun: This service allows you to control your videos with utmost precision. We use it for private shows or to “whitelabel” it to our brand.
I’ve been doing some searching and found some really good videos on how “creativity” comes about.
Creativity isn’t as much of a random spark as a collection of ideas and tools working together. With this insight, businesses can use the power of creativity to innovate, creativity should be seen as an investment to the future, just like spending money on a new website or buying new machinery, creative investment can help secure future success.
So that begs the question, what is creative investment? I would argue that creative investment is freedom for employees and an open mindset. An atmosphere of exploration and a commitment to thinking differently and recording ideas. It’s not as clear as other investments but the results aren’t as standard.
Abstract
On February 28th 2011, Ofcom, the UK television regulator relaxed its rules on product placement in the UK. With these changes it has become possible for brands to pay to place their products inside television programs to be displayed and interacted with. As consumers become more aware of traditional advertising and broadcasters look to find new avenues of monetising their programs, embedding advertising into other media avenues is becoming a growing phenomenon.
The product placement industry is well established in the US and relies heavily on trust between the broadcasters, the placement agencies and the brands. This complicated network of relationships depends on each looking to mutually assist the quality of the program with the benefit of increasing profits.
There have been different studies that aim to measure the effectiveness of product placements. These have been challenged by the qualitative and ambiguous nature of placements. By using sophisticated techniques and indistinct perceptions of valuation, research has tried to encapsulate the entirety of the outcomes from product placement in the US.
There are cultural differences between the UK and the US in their propensity to be advertised to. By taking into consideration and understanding these differences, it is possible to apply the studies to the UK audience. This project looks into the potential effectiveness of product placement in the UK and how it should be implemented to ensure it is a success.
This report suggests that there is potential to use product placement in the UK successfully as long as cultural sensitivity is preserved and program quality is maintained. There will be experimentation required to meet the right balance between monetising programming and not alienating viewers. The cultural uniqueness must be accommodated for and further research could be used to explore the deeper effects of product placement in the UK.