Blogs
Online video as SEO
Dec 13th
As we mentioned in a previous post, YouTube is now the second biggest search engine in the world after Google. By creating a channel and regular, engaging content, businesses can expand their online marketing reach beyond just websites and social media.
With even a single video on YouTube, a search on Google for your product or brand will take prospective customers to what you want them to see. With a well-made video and a well-crafted channel, you can convert these interested potential clients and customers into buyers.
We’ve also mentioned before that online video isn’t just about viral. Driving traffic from a video to your site and converting that into sales can be far more effective than having millions of people seeing your content. Aiming for viral is like advertising men’s razors in Vogue; sure, you’ll make a few sales from gift-buyers who’ve stumbled across it, but most of the views will be wasted when it comes to totting up your sales figures.
Brand awareness and putting yourself on top of the search listings can be reason enough to put a video out there. Giving people a variety of ways to discover and engage with your brand can help not only your wider digital marketing strategy, but also your ultimate bottom line.
If you’d like to talk to us about how we can create a great YouTube channel with frequent, engaging content that connects with your audience, get in touch.
Amazing trailer for remarkable film
Dec 8th
Here at markthree media, we love watching films nearly as much as we love making them. This little gem caught our eye this week, so we thought we’d share it with you. Keep an eye on the blog to see more of our favourite discoveries from around the web soon.
TimeScapes is a project that filmmaker Tom Lowe has been working on with numerous partners for the last few years, developing systems and technology to help him achieve his vision of startling images of things we rarely appreciate.
The live-action elements and slow-motion were shot with a Red Epic camera, with the timelapse sequences (the beautiful night skies you see in the trailer) shot on a Canon stills camera.
Here’s the trailer for the film. To get the best out of it, make sure HD is turned on and, if you can, watch it on a BIG monitor. Inspiring stuff.
TimeScapes 4K from Tom Lowe on Vimeo.
For more information on how it was shot (and the dramatic 4K resolution, if you’re a tech geek like me), click over to the video’s Vimeo Page. For more on the film itself, visit their website or Twitter page.
Using online video as part of a wider digital marketing strategy
Nov 28th
Digital marketing is a diverse field covering everything from Google Adwords to social media engagement to Facebook pay-per-click. Online video can play a vital role in your wider digital marketing strategy by providing an extra point of contact with your customers and clients.
Video can encompass many different things from straight-forward, TV-style 30-second ad spots to fully-fictional worlds that highlight your brand ideals as opposed to a specific product. From viral ads to instructional videos, choosing the right video for your company and brand is crucial to its eventual success.
In addition to the benefits of having video on your website, having any kind of presence on YouTube can be a major boost for your brand. YouTube is now the second biggest search engine on the planet, after its parent company Google. That means more people search on YouTube than on Yahoo, Ask or anything else. Web video puts your brand front-and-centre and offers an extra layer of search engine optimisation, with great-quality content for people to discover, too.
Interesting, thought provoking or controversial video also offers a great opportunity to create an interaction with your fans on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Google+. By posting a video and inviting comments, you’re creating a valuable opportunity for interaction with the people who matter most to your business: the people who will buy from you.
Video doesn’t have to be a standalone strategy for increasing brand – or product – awareness. As part of a sophisticated, focused digital marketing strategy, film and video can have an impact across all areas of your brand.
3 Things To Remember About Online Video
Oct 12th
Video is becoming a bigger and bigger sales tool for businesses, whether ‘real-world’ or online. Video can help highlight features of your product or service, establish a connection with your brand or its people and provide you with a window into the wider world.
As more and more people turn to online video, here are a few things to remember when you’re planning video content for your site:
1. It’s not always about ‘viral’
Yes, funny, creative or controversial videos can potentially go viral and put your brand in front of millions of people, but that’s not always what online video should be about.
Online retailers have discovered that simply showcasing their products in a video – even as simply as holding up a pair of shoes and showing them off – can significantly increase sales. Videos of products aren’t going to go viral, but they may make the difference between someone clicking on “Buy” or clicking off to another site.
2. Brevity is the soul of everything
With the exception of instructional videos, there is little point in having a video online that lasts longer than 3 minutes. Studies have shown that average viewing times of online video are around 1min 30secs and that the number of people who view an entire video falls off exponentially over 1 minute in length.
If you can’t say all you need to say in three minutes consider breaking your message up into several “episodes” or re-thinking what you’re trying to communicate into a more simple form. Is your idea simply too complex to describe/explain in a three-minute video?
3. Treat it like TV
You may not have the marketing budget to pay for a multi-million pound commercial, but you should treat everything you put online as a piece of broadcast television. It’s a theory that underlines everything we do at markthree and something we believe in strongly.
Online video represents your brand and you want it to reflect the qualities you believe in. Treating your films like TV will make sure you’re presenting yourself to your customers and clients in the very best way possible.
Above all, talk about what you want to achieve with your production company and never be afraid to ask for more.
Our Guide To Getting The Best From Your Web Videos
Sep 14th
Web video is huge right now. If you read our last post, you’ll know the top 3 ways in which it can help enhance and promote your brand, but how do you, as the client, get what you want from the video you’re paying for? Well, with our expertise of working on both sides of the fence, here’s a brief guide to what you can do to get the most you can from your vision, and ultimately, your money.
Be Clear About Its Purpose
Like any marketing or advertising, you have to know who you’re aiming the campaign at. Are you trying to hook customers directly, or is your target audience other professionals who will refer their business to you?
While this may sound obvious, it’s surprising how easy it can be to get so focused on style that you lose sight of who your viewers are going to be. If that happens, your film will never fulfil its true potential. Being clear on the purpose of the video from the outset will ensure the production company makes something that fits with the market it’s aimed at. Always keep your audience at the core of everything you do.
Help Us Understand Your Company
Quite simply, the more we know about your company, your organisation or your brand, the better we can help represent you in the right way! And we’re not just talking about brand guidelines and dry marketing speak – tell us who you are, really. People are engaged by other people, and by stories. Talk to people – what’s unique about you? What do you really want to shout about with your video?
Know What Video Can and Can’t Do
We’ll do everything we can to create the perfect video for you, and, if you understand the capabilities of web video and what they do best, it’ll help make the process a lot smoother.
Of course, we’ll talk you through what we think works and what is better communicated using other media, but the more knowledge you have going into production, the more likely we are to be able to match your ideas and vision.
Production companies are fuelled by creative people, and we’re no exception. At markthree we work with a number of highly skilled, brilliant creative minds and we take pride in all the work we do. We want to make the very best videos every single time and working with your brand is no exception. The best stories come from conversations, not from briefs. So talk to us. We’re a friendly bunch. Who knows, it may just be the start of a beautiful friendship.
Top 3 Things Video Can Do For Your Brand
Jul 27th
Your website is brilliant. Your social media strategy is firmly in place and attracting followers, fans and engagement. What’s missing from your brand’s online presence? Web video.
Here are the top three things online video can do for your brand:
