StoryTeller Media & Communications
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Archive for December, 2008
Minnesota Golfers Trent Peterson and Joel Johnson: A Pair of Winners in 2008
Charley Walters, columnist for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, friend to StoryTeller Media & Communications and Minnesota golf, wrote a great piece yesterday about amateur golfer Trent Peterson and fellow golfer, Joel Johnson. It recaps their unpredictable and touching encounter on the golf course earlier this year. If you’re looking for a nice feel good story of the year, this is one of them. Here’s the link:
http://www.twincities.com/ci_11340369?IADID=Search-www.twincities.com-www.twincities.com
And here’s the piece:
Foss Swim School Opens Registration for Winter Sessions
Foss Swim School, the Twin Cities’ premier learn-to-swim program, has opened registrations for its winter 2009 session. The winter session runs from Jan. 2 – March 19 at all Twin Cities Foss Swim School locations, including Blaine, Chanhassen, Eden Prairie, Lakeville, Maple Grove, Savage, St. Louis Park and Woodbury.
How to Increase Views to Your On-Line Videos
There are some interesting numbers floating around out there about video on the internet. A few that catch my attention are: 100 million videos on YouTube, more than 65,000 videos posted to YouTube each day and during March of 2008, 11.5 billion U.S. internet users watched internet videos. What’s crazy is that the numbers are growing and more and more people are finding interesting and informative content online. Not really surprising stuff, considering we are living in the age of “on demand” and if you want to get the 411 on something that’s of interest to you, it’s all out there on the world wide web. Do you want to faux finish a room? Sear scallops? Get swimming tips? YouTube it. Vimeo it. Digg it. It’s all out there.
The fascinating thing about web video is how popular it is becoming, yet many organizations that have produced video for their site, bury it. Rather than put it out front and make it easy to find, so often video content is it at least two clicks into the site. Increase views of your video by making it easy for people to find. Here are a few thoughts on why video should be featured or at least promoted, on the home page:
Engagement. I’m not a huge fan of the videos that play as soon as you hit the site. ESPN does this with their site and it always drives me a little batty when I go there. Dump the auto play, but why not have a thumbnail plugging the video on the home page? We launched storytellermn.com in November with the idea that we want people to know video is one of our core competencies. You don’t need to go to the extent we did, but we wanted the player to be a visible invitation to watch.
Limited attention span. Most people aren’t going to take the time to cruise through your site if it’s not engaging at the home page. Hook the visitor with a quick click and introduce them to who you are and why you’re important.
The Elevator Speech theory. Okay, so I don’t think it’s really a theory, but it’s the belief that you need to be able to tell your story quickly. Use video on your home page to showoff. Say “hello,” show your visitors around and give them the quick elevator speech. Keep the intro short, but engaging.
Video Killed the Radio Star…and soon the print star (copyright The Buggles). This is actually one of my great fears for modern societies: who will know how to read and write 100 years from now? Each year young people are entering the workforce who have grown up with a television or computer in front of them and this demographic consumes online video like no other sector. Appeal to those who have become accustomed to watching online video quickly.
Remember, if you’re marketing with video, you need views - YouTube views, Vimeo Views, online views in general. Get noticed because, it’s likely that over 11.5 billion videos will be viewed online this year. If you have a marketing video, get the most of your investment and make sure it gets its share of hits.extarea>
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Raising Money and Building Business with Online Video
The Wired Wealthy bandwagon
Earlier this year I was turned on to a white paper called “The Wired Wealthy.” The piece talked about fundraising to the internet donors and the growing number of people willing to make donations to a charity of their choice online. The big takeaway for me was the need for non-profits to constantly provide reasons for supporters to continue to engage in the mission of the organization.
One way non-profits can quickly and effectively connect with supporters and prospects is through online video. With online fundraising hitting it’s stride, there may be no better way to tell your story than through video. Fundraisers for non-profit organizations, like galas, are getting more and more competitive and both volunteer and professional fundraisers alike are looking for new tools.
Video Library
Through the use of monthly videos as part of an online video library, organizations have the ability to engage and stay in front of their supporters in an intimate manner. They can announce significant events on their website through video, email links to supporters that take them back to the non-profit site, they can say thank you to participants, volunteers and sponsors (as we did with the Walk for Fraser) and they can share unique, heart warming stories. Through online video, organizations can bring their non-profit to their supporters and prospects instead of waiting for the prospects to come to them.
The beauty is, it doesn’t stop with non-profits. Business clients are also trying to continue to engage their customers (supporters) in an ongoing dialogue: How can we help? What services do you need? Which of our products will help solve your problems? Our clients are trying to give their customers and prospects reason to shop again, buy more goods and/or services. In fact, in a down economy isn’t loyalty marketing a really good thing? Add value to the relationship.
For the online world, none of the videos in an online library should be in excess of 3:00. In fact, I think anything longer than 2:30 and people get the itchy mouse.
The age of online video is here on the web folks. The key for many now is bringing it to life on your website and making it work for you. Put the videos on your site, link them to e-blasts that go out to loyalty groups or supporters and then put them all on to your Twitter page. What’s Twitter, you ask? Whew, that’s another discussion.
Ed Heil is the owner and president of StoryTeller Media & Communications an inbound marketing and public relations agency and video production company based in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Ed blogs on topics related to inbound marketing, social media, media relations, news media, video production and crisis communications.
Allied Executives to Host 2009 Economic Symposium, JAN. 27
Nine High Profile Business Leaders to Share Expert Insight
In the current economic climate, business leaders around the world and throughout the Twin Cities are wondering what 2009 has in store. What are the appropriate strategies for small and medium sized business owners? Should they scale back or charge forward? How should they plan for the future? To answer that question, Allied Executives will host Business and Economic Outlook 2009: a symposium featuring nine expert panelists on Jan. 27.
Raising Money with the Fresh Prince Himself ~ Mr. Will Smith
I am one of the lucky few that managed to win tickets (courtesy of my fabulous colleague, Angie) to see both the premiere of “Seven Pounds” and the film’s star, Will Smith, when he visited the Twin Cities on Friday, Dec. 12. I froze my feet off standing outside of Southdale AMC Theaters waiting to get Smith’s John Hancock on a copy of “Hitch,” along with an estimated 1,500 other people waiting patiently to get a glimpse of him.
2008 MIMA Summit: A Perspective You Didn’t Get on Twitter
On October 1, we partnered with the Minnesota Interactive Marketing Association (MIMA) to capture the flavor of the 2008 MIMA Summit which was held at The Depot in downtown Minneapolis.
Olympic Gold Medalist Jason Lezak to Visit Foss Swim Schools Saturday, Dec. 6
Olympic medalist Jason Lezak will visit two Foss Swim School locations in the Twin Cities as part of the school’s Gold Medal program. Lezak, who won gold in the 4×100 freestyle and medley relays at the Beijing Olympics, will speak with current and former Foss swimmers, sign autographs and conduct in-water demonstrations.
The event is sold out and not open for general admission.
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