Using youtube to market?

Well, I guess you did ask.......

In my short time as a member of this forum I’m beginning to appreciate how Simon Cowell must feel…..

Again, I’m really very sorry that this will seem negative and quite harsh, as always no disrespect is intended but as a professional producer and lecturer in video production I’d rather give you an honest professional opinion than beat around the bush…

To be fair you do seem to be aiming at a specialist market; no doubt with it’s own demands, and I’m being a little unfair perhaps in viewing your video as a ‘general’ business tool, and possibly too as a professional production. Also, I’m not sure what sort of critique you’re looking for; The production aspects? The script? Technical considerations?

From the outset I have to say that this REALLY doesn’t look like a competent corporate video. It’s seems more like an in-house effort, or something produced by a ‘semi-pro’ (ludicrous term; one either IS or one ISN’T!) “videographer”. It could be a cultural thing but I don't think the majority of my customers (who do use video as a marketing tool) would find this acceptable. And if you’re promoting yourself as a marketeer it seems, well, uninspiring that you wouldn’t immediately recognise the shortcomings of this piece.

But then of course many don’t recognise the possible damaging effects of poor quality promotional material. And In fact a large section of my new business does come from clients who have produced this sort of thing in-house (usually via a well-meaning employee or relative) and discovered the shortcomings...... Often the hard way by being made to look foolish in front of potential clients.

It’s the old story; Friends, family, the unfussy and the Company yes-men nod approvingly; it’s not ‘till it hits the exhibition floor and the sniggers start do they realise something’s wrong!

I think most of the information is probably pretty sound. Although I would disagree with the point of not 'copying' big business. Many of my clients are head-to-head with major multinationals. The main reason they come to me is that they need marketing tools that can help them play the corporate monsters at their own game. What you say may be true for some business (No point in a corner shop trying to emulate Safeways perhaps) but almost certainly can't be held as an overall generalisation.

In terms of pacing and style I'd have said it was repetitive to the point of being patronising; possibly necessary for some audiences but I think most people in business are fairly intelligent (even if they're ‘apparently’ not well read or overtly ‘intellectual’) and will actually resent being spoken down to in this way. Again that’s a message I often get from clients, particularly those in the ‘manual’ industries such as garage trades and landscape gardening. Perhaps this is another U.K. thing; a result of our ‘classist’ culture…. Often these guys have people ‘looking down their nose’ at them; and they just aren’t going to be ‘spoken at’ in that way by a video!

Visually I found the extensive use of ‘rostrum stills’ and zooms disturbing and the (stock?) music; very '80's American sit-com' ; Frankly, it’s a cop-out. This gives a really 'low budget' feel as if corners were cut and the whole thing was done very-much on the cheap; ‘we couldn't be bothered/afford to get out and do a live shoot; so we've just used some rostrum stills instead.....’ Fine up to a point, but again and again and again it just looks cheesy and very low-rent... The pro-wrap video I've seen before; Those shots are really VERY badly lit and just shouldn't be included.

As a marketing tool video (like photography, print and design) is best not used at all unless it is used reasonably well; and that needn't be expensive....

That really means getting out there and shooting live footage and most of all hiring the right people to do the job! It's not about the equipment or format used, it's about the shooting skills, lighting, sound, scripting and execution.... But hey! Everyone’s a video producer nowadays…… I suppose it’s a bit like landscape gardening; Any mug can mow a lawn, dig some flower beds and plant a few bulbs…. Why bother hiring a pro?

Possibly this is the sort of video that's more suited to exhibition use (where the audience are transient) than 'captive' viewing. Again this really could be a cultural thing; I often find myself re-making corporate videos for client who source products from the U.S. or have U.S. parent companies. And I've seen an awful lot of videos in this vein sourced from the states.. I don't know if this has to do with the sheer size of the corporate video market in the U.S. or different viewer expectations.

I think YouTube DOES have great potential as a platform for video that has a promotional agenda; Quite rightly it's rules (if my recollections are correct) prohibit this being too overt…. Well made informative videos most certainly have potential in this respect. But frankly, poorly made amateurish efforts stand to do your business more harm than good. Most people nowadays wouldn’t produce a brochure by photocopying some badly-typed copy punctuated with a few fuzzy photographs (quite common at one time) It seems bizarre therefore that anyone would trust their business reputation to a home movie……

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Matt Quinn.

www.tfgtv.com

Corporate Communication for SMALL Businesses!