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Establish Trust With A Front Page Web Video

Dave Neelsen — Fri, 17 May 2013 23:53:34 +0000

Putting a web video on page one of your website is not about information, it is not about product presentation, it is about trust establishment. As this article will explain, giving visitors to your website a chance to see you the owner – face-to-face in a web video – will immediately begin to establish trust in you and facilitate their decision to want to do business with you.

It may be a surprise to realize that people can have trust in someone who is unethical or even criminal. Having trust is more about believing in another person. However, the degree to which one person trusts another is a reflection of belief in the other person’s honesty, fairness, and benevolence. Important for establishing initial trust in business is that fact that a failure in trust is more easily forgiven if it is due to a failure in competence rather than a lack of benevolence or honesty. As a result, sometimes a business providing inferior services may fare better with their customers than a company providing superior services – at least temporarily – if people feel the first company is honest and means well.

The phenomenon of trust is summed up in the following definition. It is described as a “heuristic decision rule, allowing the human to deal with complexities that would require unrealistic effort in rational reasoning.” Lets break this definition down. Heuristic processes are trial and error approaches to problem solving which begin with the most accessible solution and go on to another solution, only if the first solution doesn’t solve the problem. In terms of business, if a customer finds himself interacting with a business owner that he intrinsically wishes to trust because the owner appears benevolent, good-natured, and well meaning – then the customer will prefer to trust the owner and do business rather than get involved into complex rational thought about what might go wrong in the business relationship.

So, what does this have to do with putting a video on page ONE of your website have to do with trust?. When a surfer goes onto your website and thinks about doing business with you – someone he’s never met – he can rapidly be won over by a short online video of you talking with him. If he is engaged by your story and connects with your personality then he will immediately wish to trust you and do business you – because that will be the easiest solution for him to take.

And this leaves us with one more important take-away lesson. A front page video needn’t trouble itself with a description of company features and benefits. It simply needs to provide a relevant reason for the user to trust the owner / business. A short 1 to 2 minute story, passionately told by the owner saying that he established the family potato chip business 30 years ago because he wanted to provide people with a crispy chip that wouldn’t lose its favor in the package is a fine example that will win trust right away.

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Ten compelling reasons to add video to your website and beyond.

Dave Neelsen — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 18:32:31 +0000

Here at StoryFirst we share every day our belief that telling your story via web video makes a big difference in your business. It makes your website more human, more accessible, and more appealing. And, when engaged in your other communications channels your videos will improve the effectiveness of those as well.

However telling stories via video is what we do at StoryFirst, and you’d probably expect us to say that. So, to support our story of “the power of web video” – here are ten top statistics from research findings of recent industry studies. We think you’ll agree that these statistics make quite a compelling case for web video to tell your stories!

1. “Brands using online video have seen lifts of 20% to 40% in terms of incremental buying, with conversions that are twice the rate of other media.” (1)
2. 21% of retail web video viewers make a purchase online. (1)
3. 26% of retail web video viewers visit a store. (2)
4. 21% of retail web video viewers request more information. (1)
5. Video landing pages generate four to seven times higher engagement and response rates than static image and text landing pages. (3)
6. Well-optimized video is fifty-three times more likely than text to appear on the front page of Google. (4)
7. 68% of the top 50 Internet retailers use web video. (5)
8. 71% of Internet users watch video. (1)
9. 65% of all videos are viewed between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. (1)
10. 33% of middle managers under 50 view work-related videos every day. (1)

SOURCES:
(1) Chris Crafton, CMO, eCorpTV.com, reported by Target Marketing at a Philadelphia
Direct Marketing Association networking and breakfast meeting.
(2) BIA/Kelsey User View study data, February 2010, reported by Turnhere.com.
(3) SearchEngineWatch, February 2010.
(4) Forrester Research, January 2010.
(5) Internet Retailer, July 2010.

What are your experiences with using video on your website and to tell your stories? Please share with us!
And, if you’d like to talk further about how web video can help you or your organization in Madison, give us a call – In Madison, WI 608-576-0174 or Austin, TX 512-782-9992.

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Mad Men’s Don Draper Would Be Dead Well Before The Online Video Era, Says Show Creator

Dave Neelsen — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 21:57:15 +0000

Love this column by Grant Crowell over at REELSEO. If you enjoy Mad Men as much as we do at StoryFirst, you’ll love this read as well!

By Grant Crowell at REELSEO …
I was the first reporter to gleam this information from Matt Weiner, creator of the critically acclaimed TV show Mad Men at the 2010 NAB Show in Las Vegas, as part of the 2nd day opening session titled “In Conversation With: Matthew Weiner.” Read about what Matt says are the parallels, and differences, with the 1960’s Madison Avenue age depicted in the popular show, to 2010’s “online video age.”

Yes, I admit it… MAD MEN is a show I’ve watched on a near-religious basis, since being introduced to it during the beginning of its 2nd season on television (and rented all the back episodes on Netflix since). I’ve even watched all of the video parodies of the show online. You probably already know about the SNL clips, and the Sesame Street and Simpsons parodies, but I actually find the Mad Women parody to be my fav.

For the rest of this great read, click here.

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The 7 Steps to Creating a Social Media Strategy

Dave Neelsen — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 17:38:52 +0000

Below is an excellent recent post by Jay Baer from his blog Convince and Convert. It speaks volumes about the value of putting a plan first, not the tools. And, while Jay does not say it directly, his step #6: How Will You Be Human?, speaks directly to why your story is so important. Your story makes you human to your audience. At the core people connect with people through stories. So, indeed let your guard down when engaging through social medias. Tell me a story. Tell me why you’re passionate about what you do or sell, and I just may join you in your passion.

Great post Jay! For more and to see Jay’s SlideShare on this topic go to Jay’s blog post at Convince and Convert.

The 7 Steps to Creating a Social Media Strategy

Before you begin, commit to worrying about social media tools last, not first. Why? Because tools will change. They always do. There was a time when Netscape seemed invincible. Yahoo, too. Myspace also. If you fall in love with tools, you’ll constantly be changing directions, with no real plan to guide your way.

1. What’s Your Pitch?
The elevator pitch is dead. Can you describe what your company does in 120 characters or less?

2. What’s the Point?
What type of program is this? Awareness, Sales, or Loyalty? Pick one.

3. What’s Your Relationship with Your Audience?
What does your audience know about you today?

* Nothing
* Aware of you, but never acted
* Acted once
* Repeat actions/enthusiasts
* Advocates

Pick up to two of these segments to focus upon, but make sure they are adjacent on this scale. It’s too confusing to have a strategy that targets advocates AND people that have never heard of you. That would be two strategies, not one.

4. How Does Your Audience Use Social Media?
Using the Forrester Social Technographics Ladder, understand how your target audience (as defined by gender, age, and geography) uses social media. If your audience skews older, you may not want to engage in a lot of “make a video” contests, since that segment indexes low on the “Creator” scale.

You can play with the Social Technographics Ladder data right here:

5. What’s Your One Thing?
What’s the soul of your brand. What’s the one thing that defines you – and it’s not features and benefits. Volvo = Safety. Apple = Innovation. Disney = Magic. What’s on the other side of your = sign?

Note: This is not easy to figure out. You may need to engage in some brand anthropology, and have an agency help you find your one thing.

6. How Will You Be Human?
Social media is about people, not logos. How will you let down your guard? If you’re a small company, congratulations, this should be pretty easy. If you’re a big company, how can you act small again?

7. How Will You Measure Success?
Lots of ways to measure social media success, so make sure you determine your key metrics BEFORE you get started. I recommend picking three solid metrics to track. Appropriate metrics differ based on what your objective is for the program. See Jay’s slide deck for details.

Now, you can worry about tools, and outposts, and social media tactics.

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7 of the Most Inspiring Video Stories on the Web

Dave Neelsen — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:16:08 +0000

By Josh Catone – Mashable.com

Video is the perfect vehicle for an inspiring story because it can make the story come alive like no other medium.

Below is a list of 7 of the most of the inspiring videos on the web, embedded so you can watch them here. Each video, which range in length from 3 to 20 minutes, has an inspirational message to impart. If you know of any other inspiring videos, please share them in the comments.

1. William Kamkwamba: Harnessing the Wind

William Kamkwamba was 14 when he built a windmill from scrap parts in order to provide enough electricity to power 4 lightbulbs and 2 radios in his home in his tiny village in Malawi. Kamkwamba’s story first came into the global spotlight when he spoke at the TED conference. He recently did a followup TED talk.

Kwakwamba’s inspiring story teaches us to dream big.

2. Jason McElwain: Autistic Basketball Player

Autistic basketball player Jason McElwain spent most of his high school career cheering his team on from the bench as team manager — until the final 4 minutes of his final game as a senior. McElwain didn’t waste any of his opportunity to get in the game, pouring in 7 shots and finishing the game as high scorer.

McElwain, who never complained about being left off the roster, shows us that attitude is everything.

See the remaining 5 inspiring stories at Mashable.com

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Six Reasons Videos That Don’t Go Viral Are Valuable

Dave Neelsen — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:11:15 +0000

When people talk about online video they typically talk about videos like this one, the Minnesota wedding entrance choreographed to the Chris Brown ballad Forever.

The video was published July 19, 2009, and it now has nearly 30 million views. It had nearly 19 million views in the first three weeks after posting.

That’s what you call a viral video. It’s the stuff marketers dream of — 19 million people reached with no money spent on distribution or production. Businesses that achieve that kind of reach profit enormously. If you have any doubts, checkout what it did to Forever’s iTunes sales.

Of course, the chances of your company creating a video that reaches 19 million people in three weeks are essentially zero. It’s not going to happen, so don’t bother.

Most marketers understand that truly viral videos are almost impossible to create — and they use this as a reason to abandon video altogether.

That’s a mistake.

Video doesn’t need to be viral to have an impact on your business. In fact, any robust inbound marketing content strategy should include a video component, designed with assumption that none of the videos will “go viral.” Instead, businesses should put time into video for at least six other reasons:

(1) Video Gives Your Business A Voice — It’s one thing to read a paragraph about a company, but it’s a completely different thing to spend two minutes listening to a business owner and staff share the story, vision, and purpose of their business. Video adds a personal dimension to company websites, which are typically heavy on impersonal text.

(2) Videos Are Marketing Annuities — Like a blog post, videos are annuities; once you’ve published your video and it passes its initial burst of traffic, you’ll continue to get traffic and banding value indefinitely.

(3) Videos Build Company Culture — Videos are fun and they show that your company can have fun. They serve as morale builders within the company, and recruiting tools outside the company.

(4) Video Is Another Channel for Your Content — Effective inbound marketing content strategies need to be executed in multiple media types. Some forms of information are best communicated in blog posts; some in photos or graphics; some in webinars; others in video. If you’re not using or even experimenting with a combination of these channels, you’re missing potential customers.

(5) Videos Are Not As Involved To Produce As You May Think — If your business has stories, and all do, videos will be easy to produce. Don’t get sucked into the traditional details of video production. To plan your video, define your stories, schedule time to shoot it – with outside help if you wish – and make sure the shooting doesn’t drag on. It doesn’t need to be perfect, it simply needs to be authentic, relevant, and a bit entertaining.

(6) More Video, More Likely to Have a Big Success — Just like venture capital or movie production, online marketing video is portfolio business. No successful movie studio bets their year on a single film. They spread their resources across multiple films, and hope they’ll get one money-maker out of their portfolio. You should approach your marketing videos the same way. Don’t stop telling your stories and those of your employees, customers, collaborative partners, neighborhood, etc. Ask yourself – would my customers find this story interesting? – if so, tell it.

Does your company / business currently use video for marketing? How? Why? What else should be on this list?

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Get Ready. You No Longer Own Your Website.

Dave Neelsen — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:21:51 +0000

Heard about Google Sidewiki? You need to check it out. This is important. Sidewiki is basically a collapsible browser sidebar (available by free download) that currently works with Firefox (as part of the Google toolbar) and IE. It allows anyone to comment on any website. People can also share what they commented on Twitter, Facebook or by email. (So if you’ve decided to have a blog which doesn’t allow comments, you’re SOL on that one. It’s only a matter of time.)

You can “claim” your site with a comment that stays at the top. Here’s a link with the details …
https://www.google.com/support/toolbar/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=157270

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Oh, Yeah? Give Me One Good Reason.

Dave Neelsen — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:32:39 +0000

“Marketers who embrace demand generation and lead nurturing programs must generate a lot of content to keep those programs running,” Ardath Albee notes in a recent post at the Marketing Interactions blog. But generating content for content’s sake alone never gets the job done, she adds. To be effective, lead-gen content must have a solid business reason behind it, she says.

“Regardless of the role (audience/segment) your content is designed to engage,” Albee explains, “it must lead with a business reason that resonates with your prospects and customers in order to get their attention.”

Lucky for us, Albee offers her insights into what a proper business reason really is. To be clear, she says, a business reason should:

Have movement: increase, decrease, accelerate, grow.

Add value: improve, simplify, drive, eliminate, connect.

Integrate: merge, pull, push, combine.

Align with objectives: match, parallel, cooperate.

To further clarify her point, Albee stresses what a business reason definitely is not:

A sales offer

Discounted pricing

A free iPod, T-shirt or Starbucks gift card

Your product or solution

Something based on a request for information

“The next time you want to tell everyone about the great new feature your product development folks just rolled out, STOP,” she insists. Instead, try to:

Ask yourself what impact that feature delivers to your customers.
Find out how it delivered that impact.
Collect the evidence available to support your claims.
“Now, write your marketing content based on [that] business reason,” she concludes.

The Point: It really is all about them. To include a solid business reason in your outreach copy, always consider your product or service from your recipients’ point of view, and write accordingly.

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Give Your Website a Personal Touch – connecting with customers – Entrepreneur.com

Dave Neelsen — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:21:06 +0000

Give Your Website a Personal Touch – connecting with customers – Entrepreneur.com

Posted using ShareThis

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100 Greatest Hits of YouTube in 4 Minutes

Dave Neelsen — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:37:45 +0000

Who has the time to watch all the viral youtube hits of the last few years?

Well clearly it appears I do after recognizing nearly all of the top 100 greatest hits of YouTube cleverly packed into 4 Minutes:

Which one puts the biggest smile on your face?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BudhFVnN2o0

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