My thoughts exactly... on
VIDEO AND AUDIO MARKETING
Twitter Product Gifs
Using video doesn't have to be complicated. Here I put my hands together for Datum and their clever use of gifs on Twitter.
I love the way Datum are using gifs to promote their product range.
Simple. So, so simple.
These 'videos' jump out of my noisy Twitter feed.
Using their 'need a hand?' motif from their site they quickly grab attention.
You may have to hit 'play' on these below, but the way they auto-play on Twitter works a dream.
Why I love them
- Bright colours jump out of the Twitter feed
- Auto-play
- Work without sound
- Cut to the action - before you can scroll past
- Our eyes notice the change, if it were a still image we'd probably scroll on past
- Our attention grabbed we then move to the text call-to-action
- Even if we don't click through... this tactic when repeated again and again seeps into our consciousness; a range of products tied together visually
- Totally on brand with their site - using the colours and 'need a hand' motif
- No wifi? (gasp) Even on 3G these gifs load quickly so they won't get missed
- These kind of gifs would also work really well in email - yep they're the gif that keeps on giving
Let's put our hands together for Datum.
Sure, you might argue that these aren't videos. But they are.
They're short sequences of moving images right? The file type just happens to be a gif.
But why are you even arguing the toss when you could be out there creating short engaging content like this for your business?
As I've written about before, product videos matter - turns out, the file type doesn't.
Coveragebook have it covered
When your product solves a pain point... use it to emotionally connect with your audience with video.
When your product or service exists to solve a problem, make sure you use video to visually and emotionally get that point across.
Here's what Coveragebook are doing so well.
What I love about this...
- the tweet is being promoted to anyone following people to do with PR
- the tweet itself is encouraging you to share it with friends in PR to help them out, notice that? It's not hard-sell at all
- the video doesn't launch into how lovely their software is straight away... instead it draws out just how insanely painful the current way of doing things is
- instead of making this short and punchy they really have let the process play out; if you're not interested you'll soon skip on and that's fine, BUT if this pain point resonates with you, you'll carry through to the Coveragebook solution and you'll be sold
- break it down: we get one minute of pain, then they say 'check this out, it'll blow your mind'... well, you're not going to stop watching then are you?
- the same video is used on their homepage and the call-to-action at the end is directly in the player itself, when you click it you get a sign up page for their free trial
- the video on on their home page is hosted using Wistia, so other than the call-to-action they'll get a stack of useful marketing metrics that they can make the most of
- and check out that call-to-action itself (below) - all of their language is on brand, it's so friendly, cheeky, subversive - disrupting the norm just like their product
In fact my only beef would be that there seems to be an aching void of white near the end of video that lingers for 20 seconds or so (or, there is as a I write this). Which kind of feels a bit sloppy when you're trying to impress people. BUT if people were suitably impressed hopefully they'll already be clicking through to your site by this point or signing up for a free trial.
BUT that's not the only way these guys are using video
They make it really easy to get up and running with their product with a range of video walkthroughs (below) that take you through the product in a friendly, visual way.
How does this relate to your business?
- how can you show the pain points and the solutions?
- think 'how will the viewer feel' when they're watching? How will they connect?
- how can you use twitter (or Facebook) to reach an audience that could be interested?
- what else can you get across in a video that will be helpful? Can you make How-to's? or FAQs?
Budweiser's Dream Social Video
Bud's using user generated content, social and a love of football for their Dream Goal campaign.
Budweiser UK have a great social media promotion that encourages user generated content, social shares, voting and competition. It alligns the brand with the UK's love of football.
The concept
The idea is simple: film your ground roots game of football and if they score a 'dream goal' upload it! Goals get shared in a gallery on Budweiser's site and the best get seen on TV and judged by famous pundits. Grants worth up to £50,000 can be netted too.
It's hugely effective on Facebook where the comments, shares and likes are in full flow.
You can also see above that Sky Sports have also shared it to great effect. Whether that was a paid for collaboration (I'd imagine so) or just because the content was so good it was worth sharing... it's clearly working. The key audience is being reached.
What's so great?
- It appeals to their core audience
- It appeals to an anticipated audience (ie, young sports fans not old enough to drink, but who can start to love the brand - not that Bud would admit to this I'm sure, but still, it's a reality despite putting an 'age limit' entry gate on their site)
- They get audience created content which drives the clubs supporters to the brand
- It's brilliantly visual so grabs attention in social
- It's short, snappy, REAL and works well without sound on social 'autoplay'
- It's very viral; the content of great goals is very likeable and shareable
- They paid to promote on social, but the organic reach is substantial
- They posted the tweets in the lead up to and during a key FA Cup match using hash tags that meant a wider audience will have seen this tweet organically as well
- They partnered with other relevant companies to piggyback on their audience, such as this...
Here, Bud tie in nicely for a giveaway with another huge brand - EE - Genius! Cameras you can film action with and a phone network keen to promote 4G for uploading/streaming. Look at the social reaction... And this will have been seen by EE's followers as well. Relevant. Smart.
Video on their site
The Dream Goal section of their site is rich in video as well.
- You have additional content where TV pundits are shown giving their opinions on the footage, just as they might for a Premier League goal
- You have a gallery of 'dream goals' to enjoy
- They use ultra-short videos to 'teach' the process of how to get involved (see below). The first one of which is particularly interesting as it demonstrates to people that they should hold the phone landscape to film. Of course that'll make it look better when being shared and ultimately, potentially, on TV! Never take it for granted that people know what to do, especially when it comes to filming. Give them examples and they will follow...
Could you do this?
It's a smart, well executed social video campaign.
Of course it has a huge team behind it, but look at the ingredients that make it successful.
Could you do something like this? Sure you could!
It doesn't have to be on this scale to be effective, it depends on (forgive me) what your goals are.
Also, can you tie in with another brand as they have with Sky Sports and EE? So long as they're relevant, your message spreads further and you give extra value to your audience.
And they're key. Don't forget at the heart of this campaign is the audience.
Who are you trying to reach? What do they like doing? How can you harness that?
5 Great Examples Of Twitter Video for Chinese New Year
Brands jumping on Twitter's #chinesenewyear hash tag with video - But are they just monkeying around?
When scheduling content across the year, the likes of Chinese New Year are bound to jump out for marketers.
So here are five examples of brands using Twitter video in a pretty smart way for the Year of The Monkey. Erm, and then one from the UK Government.
Each using the topical trending hashtag #chinesenewyear for discovery - but what else are they doing well?
Jamie Oliver
- Direct clickable link to an article about ginger on Jamie's site (from the video itself)
- Works brilliantly silent
- Engaging, fun, shareable
- Great click-bait title
- Re-purposed - notice that this content, whilst being used for Chinese New Year is actually totally evergreen (the music is SO Chinese right?). There's no mention of Chinese food anywhere in the actual video. But it doesn't feel like they've crow-barred it in. Smart.
- If my wife's reading this, please send biscuits
Biscuiteers
(Why send flowers when you can send buiscuiteers!)
- Short and sweet
- Eyecatching
- Using one of their products (the iced dragon head)
- I'd never heard of this brand, so it goes to show it works, I was intrigued to stop, watch again, watch again and then click their Twitter bio to discover more. Shame there's no click-through though.
Waitrose
- Evergreen content again: this is great use of video they already have being scheduled for a particular calendar event with the #
- Makes us aware that Waitrose TV exists, a place for more recipes like this
- Pretty long though, this feels more like a Facebook/YouTube video, a shorter version snapping through the processes, leading to us clicking through to the actual Waitrose TV site would have been better
Morrisons
- specific Chinese New Year content here and because of the monkey only works this year, I hope, since they went to the trouble, that they made extra versions with toy chickens, dragons, etc
- fun, Twitter friendly video, works well with no sound
- shows us the ingredients we can find in store
Digi
- eye catching
- fun, shareable, but WTF?
- bit long for Twitter, but totally engrossing
- link through to site and competition
Digi are a Malaysian mobile phone company. They've created this content to encourage us to 'score big points' with our Chinese families this year by using their correct titles when speaking to them (using our Digi mobiles of course)
You owe me one for figuring it out for you. Fun though, right?!
It links through to a page with more on Chinese New Year, further video and a chance to win an iPhone 6s
David Cameron
- good use of subtitles
Okay, that's kind of the only plus point.
It's long, pretty dull, but nice to hear him say 'Fire Monkey'.
You can keep watching but, like me, you'll be gutted the Cabinet don't appear doing a Chinese Dragon dance behind him towards the end (missed opportunity for Osborne!).
And man, did they open him up to a LOT of responses like this.
And this is the cleanest.
Cancer Research Videos
Great examples of a charity using video and social media together. Join them.
I don't have to tell you what a horrible thing cancer is.
Just ask anyone and they'll have been affected in some way it seems. I know my family has.
It's an absolute arse.
Which is why an organisation like Cancer Research UK making the most of the power of video, makes me happy. I'm writing this on World Cancer Day, which is where we start...
Video made for Social media
Their Tweet below is a perfect example of creating a video for Social.
- it works brilliantly silent
- nice clear message
- short and shareable
- bright, colourful, bold, eye catching
- a clear call to action
Yes, you may well hear sound on this, but mute it. See how powerful a visual it is?
Here's another example from Facebook.
It's said you have 8 seconds to grab someone's attention. Notice how the first 10 seconds is bold colur, text and emotive visuals? If you've grabbed my eyes by then, I'll click to unmute and hear what is said after that... This is definitely going to stand out as I absentmindedly scroll, scroll, scroll.
Structured YouTube
Their YouTube channel is a hub for inspiration and information.
They've made perfect use of YouTube's playlists so they can categorise their (many) videos. Different types of cancer, fundraising ideas, research...
A charity making the most of the power of online video, far far beyond what a TV advert can do.
I love it.
You can donate to Cancer Research UK here.
5 Ways To Get Your Videos Seen Using Twitter
Making your video is just part of the job.
Now you need to make it work for you. You need to get it seen.
Twitter's a great way of getting your video content out there in front of people.
Here are my favourite free and paid methods to do just that...
1. Post your YouTube content
This feels like the 'old' traditional way of sharing your videos on Twitter. It still works well.
Simply post the url and Twitter embeds it to play (when clicked) within your tweet. A bit like this handsome devil did:
AND - it's not just about YouTube - you can post your Vimeo of course and Vines as well.
You might think: 'why wouldn't I just post all of my videos like this and be done with it?'
Well, if you drive people to your site/YouTube channel/Facebook page instead - here they will encounter more content and maybe purchase from you, or hit 'subcribe' to your channel or e-news letter etc.
So that's why another option is to post a thumbnail of your video and a link to the page you'd rather they visit, like this:
2. Upload direct to Twitter
You can upload video 'native' to Twitter. The benefit? It will play automatically in people's feeds (just like Facebook native video does on FB). You can even capture video directly from the app.
Keep in mind that tweets soon drop down feeds so if you've created something specifically for Twitter, it's worth paying to promote your tweet.
Short form video works best and Twitter limits you to 30 seconds.*
(*although big brands partnering with Twitter can upload longer)
So, either make nice snappy content:
Or, if you have longer form content, try making a Twitter trailer.
I love this example by Wistia. When they made their longer video tutorial, they took time to create this Twitter specific promo and then paid to promote it.
Here's another example from GoPro. Notice how they've specifically made a short form video for Twitter but in the text direct us to the full video on YouTube.
Plus, this from Stella Artois during The Open, is a standalone trailer... but rollover the video and you see a YouTube link that takes you through to the full length 90 second edit.
And here's General Electric promoting their live Periscope video streaming event (on Twitter) by using a native Twitter promo. Yep, they're all over it. And not being remotely 'general' about it.
Which leads us nicely into...
3. Live Stream 'Behind The Scenes'
Using Periscope or Meerkat apps you can share live video via your twitter feed.
Why not share the process of your normal video content being made? Draw in the audience, make them aware of what you make; people love 'behind the scenes' sneaky views. It doesn't just have to the 'filming', you could chat through your post-production process too.
Gary Vaynerchuk streams the filming of his YouTube/Facebook/Podcast show '#AskGaryVee' for example.
Meanwhile Landrover used Periscope to show live filming of a video for their rugby social content.
AND - remember, these apps also allow the live audience to interact with you, so take time out from your shoot to chat to them, that engagement strengthens the relationship with you/your brand and ultimately will bring them back to your core content: they'll want to see how the video they watched being made actually turned out and will discover your other videos too.
4. Get other people to share your content
It may seem obvious, but it's easy to overlook: Twitter is SOCIAL - you want people to share your content right?
But as well as making something cool/emotive and hoping people will share it, you can also be deliberate about this.
Take this example of a Red Bull tweet containing video being shared by Absolute Radio.
Above - the original tweet from Red Bull UK
Notice how the original tweet by Red Bull includes the twitter handles of presenters @OC and @RichieFirth along with @AbsoluteRadio and also @GoProUK (it was shot on GoPro) - ALL of whom could share that video.
So if you make a video that includes someone else, include them in the tweet - get them sharing!
You might even go out of your way to include other people/businesses in your videos for this very purpose. If you've filmed someone at your business/event get their Twitter details there and then to make this easy!
5. Twitter Cards
'Cards' are one of the way Twitter ads put your content in front of people. The crucial difference between a Card and a promoted tweet is the Call To Action Button.
Button text can be whatever you like: 'Install Now', 'Buy Now', of course you want to say 'Watch Now' or 'View Now'. Don't forget 'Now' - it makes a difference.
Here's what they look like in action:
Pay attention to your thumbnail image and sub-headlines as well - powerful tools you don't get in a normal Tweet.
Cards also have the advantage of taking people away from Twitter and on to your own site. So instead of watching your video on Twitter and then getting distracted by something else, the viewer stays engaged with your site/content/brand.
Yes, you have to pay... but if you have the budget to do so, cards are a great technique to try out.
Experiment
Video marketing, social marketing - it's all very much experimental right now. So try things out and see what works for your brand and your audience. Even changing the wording of your tweets, or the time you post can dramatically alter your success rate.
Don't just make a video, make it work for you.
Get on Twitter.
Get it seen.
I'd love to hear how it works for you. Get in touch!
