Fake Aussie commercial wins internet

A testament to creativity on a budget.

Set Yourself Free has found viral success over the last few days on Youtube and has been featured on news sites around the world as a legitimate Public Service Announcement. The video got close to 7 million views over three days and at the time of writing this article Google Plus ripples showed 4986 public shares.

The Ad was made by local Perth filmmaker/comedians Aaron McCaan and Henry Englis. The duo have made paid viral promotions before. So when institutions such as the Fremantle Film and Television institute shared their latest clip people automatically thought it was legitimate public service announcement. The fake ad had such high production value that it’s validity wasn’t questioned by most viewers. So far the Perth film making duo haven't come clean and declared the ad a fake but a quick search of whoismydomain.com reveals that the learnforlifewa.org.au domain name belongs to L.Elliot (producer), H.C Inglis  (Henry) and (Aaron) A.W McCaan.    

After I shared the Ad to my GooglePlus business page I had a curious professional marketer ask the question “is it real”. At the time I wasn’t sure if it was real or not, but my post opened up a debate on the ability of film makers to create effective commercials without the guidance or collaboration of professional agencies.The question of whether Youtube was a valid Advertising medium also came up, which I naturally defended. Youtube is a Google product and as such it is the second the biggest search engine in the world after Google Search, so why wouldn't it be a valid advertising medium?

The point I would like to make is that this Ad was made on a shoestring budget by a group of film makers using loaned equipment and it won the internet as a legitimate commercial. This is where we are now in 2014 with video marketing! 

A wise film lecturer once told me that “creativity flourishes within boundaries”.

Anybody with creative vision and access to the right filmmakers can create commercials that look and feel like big budget paid agency ads. Not only can trained filmmakers make great looking commercials with Hollywood style effects, they can broadcast them for free and get worldwide attention. Sadly not enough business owners are willing enough to push the boundaries and create content that is so out of the square it goes viral.

I can hear the Ad Agency Directors screaming at their Ipads and spilling their coffee right now as they read this “But film makers aren’t professional Marketers”. Maybe not, but as a business owner you know who your customers are and where they are. You don’t need to pay an agency a premium fee so they can source a screen content creator for you or to tell you who your customers are and how to reach them. A professional Youtube content creator can plan, shoot and broadcast your video content on Youtube as well as provide you with comprehensive analytics that will allow you to determine the return on your investment. 

I hope this fake commercial lifts the standard both locally and internationally, allowing film makers and business owners alike to find the courage to think outside the box and to push the boundaries of creativity with there content creation. Congratulations Aaron and Henry, you... gentlemen... will be remembered as pioneers.

Image via Youtube by © Perfectly Adequate 2014

Why the YouTube/Google Plus integration is good for your business.

Today YouTube and Google plus integrated their comment systems. There has been plenty of outrage from both the YouTube Community and Google Plus Community.

A mini riot broke out across the internet as two different communities vented their frustration at the new update by Google. 

What the integration means.

If you are a Google Plus user that shares a YouTube video on Google Plus, then the dialogue that accompanies your post appears as a YouTube comment. If your Google Plus post gets comments, then those comments appear on both the original post within Google Plus and on YouTube. Now here is the clincher... If your post on Google Plus gets a fair amount of comments, then it may end up as the top comment for that video on YouTube.

A large amount of personal Google Plus users are outraged that their posts and their followers comments are appearing in the YouTube comment stream. Depending on the type of video content you have shared and the types of comments that have been made, you may well have cause for concern. 

How this change can work to your businesses advantage

If we stop and think outside the box for a second and get our business hats on, we can take full advantage of this new system as astute Google Plus Business Page users. If you aren’t a Google Plus Business Page user then this is a good reason to become one (among many others). 

Here is how it works; 

Step One;   Make sure your Business Page has a YouTube Channel 

                    (A link below will show you how to link your Page to a Channel)

Step Two;   Find a popular YouTube video that compliments your business.

Step Three; Share the video to Google Plus as your Google Plus Business Page.

                   Be sure to include an engaging and interesting summary of the video.

Step Four;   Post the video to Google Plus.

Step Five;    Respond to comments on your post and share your expertise on the topic. 

If your post gets a large amount of comments, then YouTube will recognise it as a top comment and it will show your business page name as a clickable link along with your full conversation on the topic of the video. Now your business name complete with a link will be associated with relevant and popular video content on YouTube. Additionally it will appear directly below the video description.

For more online video content tips add +Manticore Creative to your circles now.

Learn how to integrate your Google Plus Business Page and YouTube Channel here; 

http://goo.gl/rgavK5

Photo credit http://www.flickr.com/photos/swanksalot/5673173163

Three business video ideas for Auto Awesome

Google just made video content creation a whole lot easier.

"Auto Awesome" for video, is the newest addition to Google's social media platform Google Plus.

Businesses using Google Plus already understand that using a social media platform built by the worlds biggest search engine makes sense if they are looking for maximum exposure. Now users will have the ability to shoot and upload a series of short clips, which Auto Awesome will auto edit complete with free music into one awesome montage.

Here are three quick tips on how and where you could use Google Plus Auto Awesome for Business.

1) Moving or establishing new business premises? 

Take a series of photos and short videos that document the whole process and upload them to Auto Awesome. Now use the video as part of an update post for your         customers on your Google Plus business page. 

2) Attending a conference? 

Seek out some thought leaders and ask for a photo or video with them (always get permission). Shoot video of magic moments and your company logos at the conference. Add all of the days shots to Auto Awesome and share on your business page.

3) Company picnic day

Get some key staff members to shoot video of random magic moments throughout the day. Bluetooth or share the videos to one central device. Have that one device create an Auto Awesome clip for your next Google Plus post.

Don't forget that Google plus posts can be embedded into websites, blogs and newsletters. Any Auto Awesome videos you create on GooglePlus can be used as ongoing content for your business.

Checkout this video to get some inspiration and see what this app can do;

For more information and ideas on how to easily create video content for your business, feel free to subscribe to this blog.

Image credit; http://www.flickr.com/photos/drhorowitz/6833578896

How to use video to grow your crowd funding Campaign.

Nobody said that crowd funding is easy. In fact it is one of the hardest online business activities you will undertake and It will be a roller coaster of emotion from start to finish. Without a great video to enhance your campaign you could find yourself in a world of hurt wondering "where are all the people?".

Inspire with video

Nobody cares about your idea except for you. Your job is to stir your potential funders passion and get them “imagining”. Your funders need to feel as if they are co-owners of your idea. So you need to stir their passion. Nothing stirs passion more then video right? If you are a film maker then you are telling stories with moving pictures and now it’s time to tell your own compelling story using a video camera. If you aren't a filmmaker and don't have video experience, then go find someone that does. There are thousands of graduate filmmakers looking to get a portfolio piece made and you are potentially able to help them make their first commercial video out of college.

Keep the video short

You need to star in and present your own case in a short video. Keep the video under two minutes. Statistics show that online viewers will click away before that time. Make sure that your video is of the highest quality and don’t skimp on sound. That means if you are shooting on a DSLR then you need to get external sound from a dedicated broadcast quality industry mic. Look professional and light yourself properly.

If you are asking people to give you money to make a film to appear in festivals but you are unable to put together a professional looking pitch video then you are going to lose all credibility before you even get started.

Your verbal message

Look professional and light yourself properly. Don’t beg for money in your video. Instead offer your funders a “fair exchange” for their money. Telling them they will be doing you a big favor will not win them over. However, telling them that they will have the kudos of being the “pioneers that help make it happen” just might stir some desire. Give your funders the opportunity to be part of some elite group. Script your video message and make it the most attractive sales package on the net, because after-all you are competing with millions of other net users for the consumers dollar. 

Most of your funds will come from people you already know, however that is not an excuse to be unprofessional in your video. Providing you put in the work...there will come a point in your campaign when you have built so much momentum, that funds from strangers start appearing. It is always good to give your friends and family a shock with your level of seriousness as it shows them a side to you they might not know existed. They may be shocked into contributing.

It is extremely important to have a compelling call to action at the end of your clip. Instruct your audience on where to go to make a payment. The payment process needs to be kept as simple as possible.

Hosting your video online

Youtube will get your campaign found and can help drive traffic to your crowd funding campaign. If you are worried about spam comments and trolls on Youtube then tick the  “allow comments after approval” setting and monitor your account. You can expect to be spending two hours online everyday driving your campaign anyway, so monitoring your Youtube account will be easy.

Learn how to use Youtube to it’s maximum capability.  Learn how to embed your clip in your campaign and how to disable the videos that appear as recommended views when your clip has finished playing. You don’t need “redneck fights” appearing in your player after your crowd funding video finishes playing.

Ultimately crowd funding is a numbers game that breaks down to the amount of views your campaign gets. So you need to implement some video SEO (search engine optimization) aka get found tactics. Use the transcribe option an manually add captions to your video by writing all of the spoken script into text captions. You don’t need to have these captions displayed as the google search bots will find them anyway and help you appear more in search when people use those keywords to search.

Have more then just a pitch video. Create a few short viral type clips that also drive traffic back to your campaign. To drive traffic back to your campaign you need to include links in your video description and actually ask people in your video to go to your campaign if they aren’t already watching it on your campaign page.

Campaign views equal donations.

There is a campaign viewer ratio that you need to be aware of. If you have a convincing campaign then you should get one dollar per view. That means if 3000 people view your crowd funding page then you should average donations of 3000 dollars. I am not guaranteeing these figures and they are merely and observation from my own successful campaign. Your campaign host will have an analytics page so that you can monitor your progress.

It is essential that you get 20% of your targeted goal of donations in the first 48hrs. You can organize this by letting your obligatory family donators know when your campaign will be live and prepping them for it. Having people go to your campaign to see that it doesn’t yet have funders is like arriving early at an empty party.

Donation size.

Statistics show that perks priced between 25 and 50 dollars are the most popular.

You need to give value for money. You can’t expect 25 dollars in exchange for a thank you letter. Souvenirs and one off memorabilia items are winners. Be sure that postage doesn’t eat up your funds. A t-shirt might seem like a good idea until you have to post a hundred of them individually to international addresses. Posters, limited edition dvds, free online downloads, and other small collectables work well.

Be bold and offer a few limited perks of up to 2000 dollars for executives. There are a few people out there with this kind of money as pocket change and if you appeal to their desires then they might just fund you. Perks for these funders can include a day on set with a photo opportunity. For some strange reason these one off large donations will also add up within your overall viewer/donation ratio. To catch a big fish you sometimes need to catch lots of small ones first.

The size and influence of your campaign team

The more people you have in your fundraising team the better. You need to reach as many people as possible. Campaigns with large teams have a greater impact on social media.

Someone on your team might have a big following on Twitter while others may have a large list of friends on FB. Be careful not to spam your networks. Be informative but not pushy. Once a contact gets sick of “your begging” and mutes your posts, you have lost them forever and you will never know. 

Good luck with your crowd funding campaign and feel free to follow me for more tips on maximising online video for marketing.

Photo courtesy of flickr.com/photos/everypassingminute/4202593609

Four questions your video producer must ask you.

If you are thinking of spending money on an online business marketing video, don’t. 

At least not until you have a viewer strategy in place. With YouTube averaging 4 billion daily views and 61% of B2B marketers using video to extend the reach of their services, without a defined plan, your video could get lost in the sea of clips.  

While researching the Perth video marketing industry, I watched a lot of web videos from small to medium sized businesses on their youtube channels. A large amount of Perth business videos had minimal views. When I say minimal, I mean that the video was uploaded in the last six to twelve months and had around two hundred or less views.

I am willing to bet that a majority of those views came from obligatory friends and family of the business owners, followed by potential clients of the video producer. For those Perth business owners it seemed like a good idea to make a video because that was the upward trend, but without strategic planning, time and money has been wasted. It is not acceptable to create a boring video that looks like a corporate style television commercial to put on Youtube and share to Facebook one time in the hope that it goes “viral”.

To avoid wasting time and money on your business marketing video, here are four fundamental questions a video producer should be asking you;

Who is your intended market?

Where do they spend their time online?

What is your core message?

What is your marketing goal?

Once these questions are answered, a video marketing strategy can be implemented. Your marketing strategy needs to produce measurable results. Otherwise there won’t be a visible return on your investment. Most video hosting services and social media platforms have detailed analytics that can show you which demographic your views are coming from as well as their geographical location and the action your viewers take.

A Youtube Adwords campaign is a good example of targeted video marketing and clear analytics. 

If you create an online video marketing campaign that combines Youtube with other platforms such as LinkedIn video ads,http://marketing.linkedin.com/video-on-linkedin-ads Facebook Advertising and Twitter to name a few, you will start getting the views and return on investment that makes producing an online video worthwhile. Other campaigns can include organic (non paid) social media strategies and methods that help get your video found and viewed.

If reading this blog has inspired you to finally take action on making that business video that you have been thinking about, call me (Damian) and we can have an informal chat about your options +64 450408013