If you are an integrated media producer at an ad agency or a marketing executive at a fortune 500 brand then you have already dealt with creating an online video campaign. And whether your goals where to build brand awareness, drive online sales, capture emails or simply to educate your customers the sheer number of options, collaborators and budget constrains likely made the experience challenging.

In our experience the most common challenges are:

1. Figuring out what to do and how to get consensus amongst your many stakeholders

2. Maintaining expectations during the production of your campaign

3. Follow-up after the launching your campaign

We have talked to integrated media producers, marketing executives and countless others and determined that there is no clear agreement on what makes a good online video campaign. The one thing that remains constant is that with the increased complexity and quantity of moving parts you have to take a more strategic approach to solving these three challenges. In our experience we have found that the same tools developed to create successful user experiences for websites apply to creating video. With that in mind we have created 6 rules that you can apply to your online video campaign website.

Here are the six rules:

Rule #1. Have a shared language:

Have everyone agree on who your viewsers are and what is important to them. It allows the teams to ask the question “does this idea or solution work for our viewser”.

We helped Savings.com rally around their viewsers’ needs and created a common language from which to frame our conversation. This can sometimes be dismissed as “fluff” but if used correctly can be an effective way to communicate and produce better results.

Rule # 2. Have clear measurable goals:

Create simple measurable goals. For example: To increase return visitors by 10% in one month.
Instead of having your team focused on a set number of features, “shots” or functions have them ask “what will it take to meet our goal?”

In The Groop school of thought we use the Agile concept of the “Global Business Objective” as one of our tools to help keep the team focused on “the prize” not fighting over some of the minutia.

Rule # 3. Create approach consensus:

Working to define your goals together allows for both creative and technology partners to feel part of the process. The traditional hand-down from strategy or planning to creative to technology simply does not work.

Our experience has been that consensus is best reached when all of the parties involved participate in
the process of defining the goals and the viewsers for the campaign.

Rule # 4. Have flexible execution:

As with most websites it is better to release less features that are awesome versus more features that are mediocre. Quality of experience trumps quantity of options. More importantly even if you plan well things will change and you will have to be comfortable with cutting features to meet your deadlines and budget caps.

We use a project approach that resembles film and animation methods used today by companies such as PIXAR and Dreamworks. Shorter cycles with more with frequent adjustments towards a shared goal.

Rule # 5. Measure often but plan it well:

Measuring often is much easier than knowing what to do with the data. For optimal data analysis make sure that you plan your tests, and conduct A/B or multivariate testing. That is what makes online video campaigns so awesome. It’s like TV but you can fine tune even after “airing” the campaign.

Google Analytics, Omniture, Webtrends and others provide you with the tools and metrics that you need but only if you use them with A. a cleal goal and B. Well planned analysis will you get optimal results.

Rule # 6. Plan to Adjust:

Launching is only half the battle, the real work begins in the small adjustments that you will continue to make on an ongoing basis. Always plan for several releases in the life cycle of an online video campaign. It’s ok if you don’t get it exactly right the first time, you can adjust it.

To the left is the first design of a Savings.com coupon page. To the right you can see the evolution of the design based on the results of multiple rounds of testing.

We would love to hear what you think. What are your experiences? Leave us your comments below.

José Caballer
Chief Visionary, The Groop

For more information about The Groop’s online video capabilities please email us at video@thegroop.net

You can also call us at 213.613.0066

A lot of online video campaigns are overproduced because “that’s the way we always do it” or “if it doesn’t look like a polished campaign, then it won’t work”. And, on the other end of the spectrum, there is a ton of poorly (low quality/low impact) done video out there.

If the endgame is to combine IMPACT + QUALITY and deliver on business objectives such as increasing product awareness, increasing sales or educating customers – how do you achieve both strategic impact and creative quality for a fraction of the price?

Here are three ways:

1. Recruit members of your community to shoot their own videos:

Every week Savings.com expert users provide the community with a “Deal of the Week” on video. We helped Savings.com package user generated video created by their expert users with an animated intro and end-tag that includes audio branding. In addition we created a customized look for their YouTube channel – This Week in Deals.

Why it Works:

It’s Real! These are real people helping you save. Savings.com could have developed funny clips or cute skits to communicate with their audience, but it would have been inauthentic. Your customers know when something is not authentic, more importantly they like it when you provide them with valuable tips and money savings.
In our increasingly transparent online world, authenticity is powerful.

Conclusion:

User generated video + high quality graphics package = Win, win for the community of users and brand alike.

2. Produce documentary style “testimonials” featuring your customers.

The next level up from user generated is “pro-sumer” quality content. It is well shot and well edited. Though the content is more “produced” the brand spirit/authenticity still comes across and feels human. Having a clear value proposition defined allows for you to direct and edit the video more efficiently and allows for clarity as in this video we produced for Jib Jab’s venture capital firm.

Why it Works:

It is simple, authentic and easy to produce, shoot and edit.

Conclusion:

Pro-sumer quality video documentaries featuring your customers and directed + clear value proposition= Win, win for the customer and brand alike.

3. Shoot a million dollar commercial for less than 250K.

We recently shot a campaign for Suzuki using 2 Canon 7d’s which are DSLR’s. If there is one trend you want to be up on, THIS IS IT. Canon has installed a cinema level image in a $2000 camera. Directors, cinematographers and even George Lucas are putting these cameras up against the biggest and best equipment out there and choosing DSLR’s as a important tool. Last week, while attending Createasphere, we heard reknowned director Tony Kay share his experience shooting his latest feature film on several Canon 7D’s. The bottom line is this, DSLR technology (along with a strong director and creative) is allowing feature film level quality content to be created affordably.

Why it Works:

The technology is at par with more expensive and difficult to operate cameras.

Conclusion:

New lower cost DSLR cameras and lenses + experienced director and crew = million dollar quality for a fraction of the price.

Read recent features written about this shoot:

Photo Cine News: 02/19/2010
Digital Cinema Foundry 02/24/2010

What makes it possible to execute these different options for online video campaigns?

Experience

Having actually shot million dollar commercials and created motion graphic packages for the worlds top brands leads to faster and more efficient production.

Creativity

There is no substitute for having great ideas and making them look amazing. When this is combined with a strong strategic understanding of your business you have a powerful and effective combination to create effective online video campaigns.

Technology

Whether it be a Canon 7D SLR camera that shoots HD or shooting on an iPhone – today’s available tools allow for professionals and semi-pro’s to create compelling content.

Hybrid Work Flow

Flowing smoothly from strategy to creative to technology come from being able to speak all three languages and having a framework for an integrated work flow.

We would love to hear from you. What are your experiences? Leave me your comments below.

Seth Epstein

Chief Catalyst

For more information about The Groop’s online video capabilities please email us at video@thegroop.net

You can also call us at 213.613.0066

How do you educate a generation of students eternally distracted by the internet, cellphones and video games? Easy. You enable them by handing out free iPhones — and then integrating the gadget into your curriculum.

That’s the idea Abilene Christian University has to refresh classroom learning. Located in Texas, the private university just finished its first year of a pilot program, in which 1,000 freshman students had the choice between a free iPhone or an iPod Touch.

Read Entire Post on Wired

Since our founding we have helped over 20 start-ups at different stages in their development and needless to say we have learned a lot from each of those experiences.

Important: You can find many if not all of essentials I am sharing around the web and in many books.
However the five that I have put together are based on my personal experience as a principal and strategist at The Groop. I can’t claim I am right, but it does genuinely pain me to see fellow entrepreneurs spend a lot of time and money to learn these same lessons.

If you are an entrepreneur, before you choose to work with The Groop please read this post. And read the books it recommends.

1. Build Less. Spend Less. Release More.

No matter how many features we have seen a start-up build into their software it has very little bearing on their success. For example in 2004-5 The Groop worked with Entrepreneur Zak Kahn to build TalentBoom. He spend a lot (a lot) of money to build then redesign and rebuild TalentBoom until it had enough features and he felt it was different enough from his competitors and had the right “design.”

Early on I told him to release (launch), release, release what he had so far and start monetizing it. He did not follow my advice.

Today the market leader is still Breakdown services and TalentBoom is still looking to gain traction.

Zak called me recently and let me know “You were right, I should have followed your advice.” More importantly he said that I could share my story with you.

I told him this before I had read Getting Real by 37signals the makers of the successful online project management tool BaseCamp. From Getting Real:

“If you want to build a company that follows, you might as well put down this book now.

So what to do then? The answer is less. Do less than your competitors to beat them. Solve the simple problems and leave the hairy, difficult, nasty problems to everyone else. Instead of oneupping, try one-downing. Instead of outdoing, try underdoing.”
From Getting Real

If you have not read the book you should read it now.
Is it the absolute truth in how to do an online start-up? I don’t know, but BaseCamp is an extremely successful subscription service. We use it and pay for it, you might too.

2. Design does not matter.

Yes, I said that. And yes by trade I am a very well trained Graphic Designer who paid a lot of money to attend Art Center College of Design, one of the top design schools in the world. And yes The Groop has designed and built many beautiful websites for great brands over the 9 years of its existence. And yes Apple is an amazing example of how Design (big D) matters.

“So dude, why are you saying such blasphemy?!” you might ask.

First let’s make some important distinctions that will help:
By “Design” I mean visual language such as your logo and what exact color your links are and the style of photography you might use.
By “Does Not Matter” I mean “matters less than the whole” in the context of adoption and monetization. (People using your online product or service and you making money from it.)

So what matters?

The next three principles outline what matters. And to illustrate each point I will use one of the most important client relationships in my 15-year web career. One who happens to be in a business that many might not deem as “sexy”, but that is executing very well. I am talking about the coupon and deal site Savings.com .

3. Execute your business evenly and in the right order.

Like a rotisserie chicken. Don’t let one side cook too long before tending the other side. Your customers won’t like a half crispy and half raw chicken.

You have heard me call this “Total Brand Execution.”

Though Savings.com monetized well the Savings.com team who designed it felt it could be better both from a user experience point of view and from a brand identity point of view.

Savings.com generated revenue well and was growing. What allowed for that? The mechanics of its business model. It’s design (little d) or more accurately it’s user experience supported the affiliate business model sufficiently well, regardless of how it looked.

Before:

After:

Ebay in its heyday, MySpace in its heyday, Craigslist today are not the best looking sites and all three have been or are very successful.

I won’t even talk about Microsoft Windows, (predating Vista and 7) and a slew of other software products that succeed not on looks but on their business model and an acceptable if less than ideal user experience.

4. Have a business model and work from there.

Preferably one that your customers want or need urgently enough.

For Savings.com, brands and merchants need to sell more online and customers want deals on products/brands they need or desire. A customer who already has the intent to buy and is at the beginning or the end of the purchase funnel will be readily inclined to use a coupon or deal.

In other examples, people want to sell the contents of their garage, find a job or find workers, Craigslist brings them together. In these cases it involves one or both of the parties making money; in the case of Savings.com it involves saving money.

What does your online product provide your user?
Have you defined why your customer should care about your product?

More importantly what business model are you starting with?

And before you say I need a product before giving it a business model let me warn you that putting in place the mechanics of an affiliate model is far easier and far cheaper than building a product that looks awesome but is looking for a business model.

You can succeed either way but the latter will take a lot more capital and a lot longer. The heavier the rocket you want to launch the more fuel you need, it’s basic physics.

5. Know your user (singular) well. Delight them. Repeat.

The more type of users (customers) you can please the better your product will do.
That does sound right. Because more is better. Wrong. This mistake is replicated over, and over and over and over and over and over. And it’s wrong in so many ways. Let me count them.

- The more users you want to please, the more features you will need to create. Which violates the first essential principle in this list. Just like Issac Asimov’s rules for robotics.

-The more users you want to please the more confused they will be as to what makes you unique.

- The more users you want to please the more confusing your product will be to use. How many features do you use in Microsoft Excel?

And on and on.

Savings.com first focused on getting their core users to use the product more often. That is the first goal we were given in our brief. It also happens to be the first rule in sales, sell to your existing customer base first.

Together we segmented their users into three user profiles and aggressively aimed to delight the SMALLEST number but most INFLUENCIAL segment of their customers. Using essential principle number three above they executed evenly across social media, PR, design, user experience, content (and etc.) including the one place that matters most. The real world. They flew 30 of the most influential of their customers to San Francisco for a one day “Save Up” conference.

I can’t begin to express how successful that was.

Finally, until now I have not had the courage to urge my start-up clients to think radically different from their urge to follow and make “me to” decisions. Marty Nuemeir  in his book  ZAG, The #1 Strategy of High-Performance Brands explains it well:

“If nobody’s doing it, you’d be crazy to do it yourself, right? Wrong. In fact, if you’re looking to become the leader in a new market space, the rule is just the opposite. If ANYBODY’S doing it, you’d be crazy to do it yourself…”

…radical differentiation doesn’t test well in focus groups. When you ask people what they want, they’ll invariably say they want more of the same, only with better features, a lower price or both.”

Next:

You can read the entire Getting Real book online here:
http://gettingreal.37signals.com/

And you can start reading Zag here:
http://www.zagbook.com/

Some of the reviews:

“Jammed packed with info!”

“Honest testimony, passion, thoughtful information”

“Loved the open and informative atmosphere”

“Engaging speakers, relevant discussion”

By Patrick Moran | From Mashable

It’s no secret that online video is hot. A recent study by comScore revealed that in October 2009, more than 167 million viewers in the U.S. watched an average of 167 videos each, while YouTube (YouTube) reached 1 billion views per day – or 41 million views per hour – in the same month.

At my company, we’ve seen our own surge in video viewing. Video (video) now accounts for the largest number of files uploaded into online meetings on our platform.

1. Punch Up Your Web Site
The easiest way get started is simply to embed your videos on your Web site. You can use YouTube to do this, or alternatives like Vimeo or Sorenson Media. Once you’ve got the videos playing on your site, make sure they are easy to share by adding a “share this” button on each video so that viewers can pass them along via Twitter (Twitter), Facebook (Facebook), and other viral channels. Already on Twitter, 8 percent of all shared URLs are links to videos on YouTube.

2. Use Video to Sell
We’ve found that our sales reps see 20 percent higher close rates when they play a video at the beginning of their virtual sales demo. Other online services report similar results: Jivox, an online video ad platform, used this video demo on their web site to increase registrations by 25 percent – they even embedded a signup form right on the demo page to collect registrations. You can also use services like Wistia to share a video with prospects and track how they interact with the video.

Read Full List on Mashable

From The Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital:

Game On: Time Inc. Shows Off a Tabletized Sports Illustrated

Read Full Article Here

Or watch video below.

iPhone Film for Church of Twitter from The Groop on Vimeo.

Thank you to all who participated in making Bookmeat a success. The Side Street staff, the board and the event committee.
And thanks to the Groopies who gave of their time to help with the event marketing, AV and nifty video below.

Visit Side Street

Design is more than a pretty face.
Successful collaboration between designer and client is proven to improve business by many measurements.
Three designers and their clients present case stories demonstrating the value of design to the business enterprise.

Tonight November 19th, 2009
6:30PM to 8:30PM

Details Below.