Tuesday 24 November 2009

Business video is changing ... let your clients speak for you

Don't get caught in the trap of creating a video so that you and your colleagues can pat each other on the back and say 'don't we look good, aren't we great'
Instead you should be thinking about your customers issues and needs that will be solved or improved by using your product or service. How can you help to make their lives easier or better. It sounds dramatic I know, but think about it - what is the end result of a customer coming to you instead of one of your competitors?
For me the answer is easy - now I've taken the time to talk to my customers and find out. Our clients say that they appreciate working with New Edge because of the added value that our expertise in video communication brings to a project. Have a look at the Video Testimonials from the home page introduction on the New Edge website to see what our clients have to say:

People buy from people, and a set of video testimonials like this lets your clients do the selling for you. Viewers can tell that the video is genuine and not set up in any way. Contrast the natural style of this film to the ‘Daz’ washing powder adverts we all know and love to hate:

Do you really believe that the lady in the advert did not know Danny Baker was about to knock on the door?

Compare this style with the video testimonials and interview with the MD in the general overview film we recorded for Blue Chip.

For most of you the key messages of this film are very specific to IBM server maintenance, but imagine that the film was your clients talking about your business.
Here is another example from the optical sector for No7 Contact Lenses  Imagine that you own an independent optical practice – what would you feel about using No.7 as a supplier after watching this film?

My only criticism with both these companies is that they have decided to hide the videos on a back page of their website only accessible through the menu. I believe that these messages should be ‘shouted it from the rooftops’ in a prominent position on the homepage - they are a great introduction to the company, it’s ethos and it’s values.

This type of film suits the British approach to business perfectly. You get all the information you need to make an initial judgment about the company, which is qualified by significant personnel from well known brands speaking on the company’s behalf.

In contrast here is a video demonstrating a new cheap video solution borrowed from the US. Do you believe that the presenter is from the company? Is she an expert in IT data recovery? Do you feel informed enough to make a judgment on working with the company?

If you are in any doubt she is clearly a busy lady – here she is again selling cleaning materials…. And again selling beds

What do you think, am I right?

I’d appreciate your views

Tuesday 17 November 2009

Webcam Wizardry 2 - lights, camera, action

Number 2 from a series of 8 video tutorials called Webcam Wizardry. In this film business video expert Richard Flewitt speaks about setting up your equipment to look and sound good when using a webcam to create video messages.



See the rest of the series on my YouTube channel

Monday 9 November 2009

Webcam Wizardry; helping you make the most of your webcam

This is the introduction to a series of short video tutorials that will help
you make the most of your webcam. Whether for video messaging, video
emails or video blogging, the advice from Business Video Expert Richard
Flewitt will help you to look good, and make sure your viewers want to
watch and listen. Richard is the proprietor and Creative Director at
New Edge business video productions