Education

Adapt in the Industry

"If you have only shot wedding videos and then you want to make a brand promo, there is a bit of a disconnect, you know? But if you think, right now, like "Hey! What are people going to need? What businesses are open? Or what are the current problems right now?" and if you explore that a little bit and you're willing to adapt or change what you're doing or what you're offering or..."

This quote from Reema Dutt highlights how being agile and adaptable to change helps pinpoint what the current needs are in the respective industry. Reema is the co-founder and head of business development at Luminoustudios, an all-female video production company who has worked with brands such as Polaroid, UC Irvine, Google, The Smithsonian Institute, and Fiverr. Listen to this amazing podcast episode again as we explored topics of transitioning from filmmaking to producing branded content, the importance of balancing business with creativity, the process of building and managing a media agency, and how she gets her inspiration from conversations and analyzing ads.

The full episode is on Apple Podcasts at Creative Haven Here: Building A Media Agency, Balancing Business And Creativity And Adapting to Covid-19

Social Media Video Marketing Tips Every Small Business Owner Should Know

ben-FM5MM0_cWZk-unsplash.jpg

Are you a small business owner and are struggling with your online presence? Have you considered uploading videos about you and your company to social media? Videos on social media are only increasing, with Facebook seeing a 258% increase in branded videos from 2016-2017. Your videos will have a higher chance of getting noticed if you follow these following tips.

Outside of your goals for your business, consider adding these to your video marketing strategy. Create videos that draw your viewers' attention, sustain their attention, and leads them to an action outside the video. To start, think of the social media user in mind when you create your appealing video. Looking for ideas on what to post? Look no further than in your FAQ section. Your frequently asked questions section is a fantastic source for video content because you will be creating videos that answer your target audience’s questions and shows that you acknowledge their questions. Have some background footage from a recent company video? Post it! Don’t have a video? Do it live! Live-streaming is an excellent way to authentically show who you and your company are while interacting and informing viewers on company news or a product or service your company has to offer.

Another opportunity for engagement is to create short attention-grabbing videos. Focus on grabbing their attention in the first 30 seconds of your video. Telling an enriching story that draws your viewers in and connects them to the story is an idea. Think about creating short informational or how-to videos that appeal to a customer’s question or pain point that leaves the customer wanting more videos. When they’re looking for more of your videos or how to interact with your company, the best place to tell them is in a CTA. Include a Call-to-Action at the end of your video that directs viewers, whether it’s to sign up for an email list or to click a link for related material; make the CTA clear and actionable.

Once you’ve created your engaging video, upload it natively. Native videos play automatically on the platform it was uploaded to, as opposed to external video links. Your viewers want to watch videos on the platform their currently watching videos on. Taking them away to YouTube when they were on Facebook won’t help your Facebook video’s engagement as expressed by the 478% more shares Facebook native videos have than external video links, in a study by Quintly. Uploading engaging short native videos will do wonders for your business! For more information about how social media videos can help your business, check out more tips in the article!

Credit: Written by Sean 7 Social Media Video Marketing Tips for Your Small Business

Buying the Right Camera

Buying the right camera that matches your skill level? Help us narrow down your camera list with choices of the best cameras suited for the type of video you want to create and your level. In this clip from our video content course, we list the recommended cameras for the beginner, intermediate, and advanced stages.

Dynamo Dream Teaser Shot

In this world, everything is an illusion. Watch below how the special effects transform this shot from the Dynamo Dream teaser by Ian Hubertz🚈

Learning To Evolve Your Art

"We're always trying to also taking that seed of what we've done by keep evolving it over time. I think this is where the collaboration between us, our team, and constantly brainstorming about like, "We've done this before, how do we do it differently?"

This quote from Jenny Wu, indicates how reflecting on the past work to create something new in the present, will allow one to evolve their work into interesting dynamic pieces.

Jenny Wu is a designer and the founder of a 3D printing jewelry brand called LACE, as well as a partner of an award-winning architecture firm called Oyler Wu Collaborative. Revisit this episode with Jenny as we discussed the importance of learning new technologies to enhance creative workflow, the importance of trusting a team to execute creative ideas to free personal time and how merging the technical and creative side of design is crucial for the future.

The full episode is available under Creative Haven on iTunes Here: Leading Creative Teams, 3D Printing Jewelry, and Merging Technology with Creativity for Innovation

Read This First Before Creating a Video Marketing Strategy

will-porada-bvIR0ywa3Ts-unsplash.jpg

Technology continues to rise, with marketers implementing strategies that work best for their company. One of these strategies is video marketing. About 76% of businesses who use this strategy recorded an increase in traffic due to video and 78% of people watch online videos every week, according to Report42. So what can you do with video marketing? Well, if you’ve got an idea in mind for a video for your company, then you’re one step closer to your video marketing strategy.

As you create a video marketing strategy, focus on the purpose of the video, who it’s going to, and how you’ll measure the success of the video. For starters, your target audience plays a special role in your videos. Create a buyer persona that specifies what the audience needs, wants, and has questions about. Not only will this help you create content that is catered to them but will also give you plenty of ideas. The next step is to define your video marketing goals. Setting measurable clear goals such as increasing brand awareness or an email list, will guide you and hold you accountable when reviewing the video outcomes.

During the planning stage of your strategy, you need to think about if you plan on spending any money on video creation. Your budget depends greatly on the type of videos you want to create and your video schedule frequency. It’s important to consider whether the video and the content fall in line with your customer buyer journey, whether you choose to create a demo, how-to, animated, or combination video. Consider the ultimate reason why you’re creating videos. If you’re creating videos as part of a campaign or as part of a regular content strategy, then decide if hiring a video production team, freelancing, or creating videos yourself is ideal for your strategy. Overall, choose a video type that aligns with your budget, business, and target audience.

Once the video is uploaded, it’s time to measure your video’s performance. Keep these metrics in mind as you review your own metrics:engagement rate, view count, likes and comments, and conversion growth.Reviewing these key metrics will help you determine if you need to adjust your strategy to meet your business goals. For more useful statistics on how video marketing is essential for your business,view the article below. The cats out of the bag when it comes to this video marketing strategy. Now it’s up to you to d’s out of the bag when it comes to this video marketing strategy. Now it’s up to you to decide what you want to do with it.

Credit: Written by Mila Bera 6 key tips to consider when creating a video marketing strategy [Infographic]

Understanding Pre-Production

Are you prepared for your shoot? Have you captured the direction of your video through a script or outline? Pre-production is the stage where you get all your creative and operational tasks organized and finalized before you start filming. A good amount of time must go into this planning stage as this determines what your story is, who is your cast and crew, when you're filming, how you're shooting the video, where the video takes place, and other critical elements. In this clip from our video content course, we explain the essential elements that go into the pre-production stage.

Drink Behind the Scenes Collaboration

Delightful behind the scenes clip of a drink display by Amr El Saadany. Watch below the camera highlights the many components of the drink.🍹

Thinking and Reflecting- Julia Fullerton-Batten Podcast

"This is the time when people could just calm down and as you say, reflect on their lives and also on their future. What do people want to do in the future? Do they want to change their careers? Utilize this time on thinking and reflecting."

Julia Fullerton-Batten's quote offers thoughtful advice on what people should do during this pandemic. Julia is a commercial and fine art photographer who was the first female photographer to shoot for the famous Campari calendar in 2015 and became a Hasselblad Master in 2008. Continue listening to this conversation on how to deal with the coronavirus lockdown as an artist, the good or bad results of needing to create to sustain happiness, art for therapy, confronting fears, speaking on social issues, and how you shouldn't be pressured to create because of the lockdown.

The full episode is on Apple Podcasts at Creative Haven here Dealing With COVID-19 As A Professional Artist, Using Art As Therapy, And Using Photography To Speak On Social Issues!

Visually Speaking, You Need Video Marketing

andrew-seaman-5BPmpJHl4Es-unsplash.jpg

Video content is proven to be an effective method in content strategy, so why aren’t you implementing it into your own? Recognize the impact of implementing videos into your digital marketing strategy has on your business. If you aren’t aware, read on and discover what videos can do for you.

The content in your video means everything to your video. If your video has a fantastic production quality but lacks in grabbing the audience in, then you’re going to lose that audience retention. Try incorporating storytelling into your video content. Storytelling is a huge factor in social media success. Business owners and creatives post about their products and services, updates about the company, and their audience in the form of images, blogs, or other written material. What would be better than to combine those two types of content into a video? According to a research study reported in the article, “our brain can process 60,000 times faster than text”. A video that connects the audience should also further direct the audience to perform an action outside the video with a call to action, such as sharing the video or signing up for a course. When you put storytelling in a video format, make sure you are doing it in an authentic way that positively showcases who you are and what your video is about.

Videos are captivating devices that allow your story to be seen and heard. The audience that views the video will be left with the experience that further connects them with your brand. An increase in website and search engine traffic, social media clicks and followers is likely to grow more, especially when about 52% of marketers agree that videos have a great return of investment when implemented well. More and more companies are taking advantage of video content marketing, and with more than 80% of online content video marketing, it only makes sense to create some authentic engaging videos!

Credit: Written by: Fred Chua Boost Traffic, Clicks, And Followers Using Video Marketing

The Creative Brief

Do you have a written guideline that outlines your project's strategy for everyone involved? Without a document like a creative brief, your creative video or project can be directed off course and can lose sight of the original intentions of the project. A creative brief will guide you in the direction and outcome you want to take with your project. In this clip from our video content course, we discuss the important elements that go into a creative brief.

Nike Documentary BTS Clip

Amazing shot for a Nike documentary by Bubba’s.

See how the robot moves the camera to showcase the shoes.🦾👟

Watch the video below:

The Importance of Creativity- Alejandra Carles-Tolra Podcast Clip

"Creativity is what can really help our mental health in finding different solutions in thinking outside the box and really trying to find positivity and to see light where we just see darkness. So I think creativity is important in any field because it can push people to look at something from a different perspective which I think is valuable."

This insightful quote came from Alejandra Carles-Tolra as she noted how much of a positive impact using creativity has on mental health and in our daily activities. Alejandra is a visual artist and photography facilitator whose work has been been published by CNN, The Huffington Post, and the Wuhuan Art Museum. Listen to more of this podcast episode as we talk about using art to give individuals a voice in vulnerable communities, the importance of creativity in everyday life, and using the time with the lockdown to make art with what's around you.

The full episode is on Apple Podcasts at Creative Haven Here: Using Photography to Give Voice to The Vulnerable Communities, The Importance of Connecting With Nature, And Exploring Various Creative Domains During Lockdown

If you want to learn more about Alejandra and purchase her work, visit the links below!

IG Account - @alejandractr

Website - www.alejandractr.com

Work for sale can be found here https://www.fiftydots.com/en/categoria-producto/artists/alejandra-carles-tolra-en/ 

Elevate Your Videos Professionally Following This Beginner Guide

alexander-henke-y6JfEPDXY_o-unsplash.jpg

How do you make your videos stand out? Are you new to creating videos and are thinking about retreating to when you never had videos in your content strategy? Don’t give up hope yet! Our guide goes through all the components necessary to make professional videos without needing professional equipment.

No need to purchase a new camera! Use your cellphone or borrow/rent a camera as you get used to creating videos. Before you pick up a camera and start recording, know that the content in your video matters more than the video itself. Plan out your script and include your target audience’s persona in your plan and how you want to edit the video. What do you want to convey to your audience? Have these in mind before hitting record.

Now that you know the target of your video, it’s time to pick your video's location: indoors or outdoors. If you choose to film indoors, you have the option to film behind a real background, such as an office space or behind a solid background, like a green screen. If you choose to film outdoors, film in an area that does not have a lot of noise. Either way, film in lighting that is natural, soft, and not harsh on you or your subject. Choose the background that is consistent and suits your type of video best.

It may take you more time in post-production to edit out what you don’t want in the video. To save you time, film in short segments. Make a note in your planning stage of these segments, that way you’ll know when to start and stop your video. While you’re experimenting with video cuts, experiment with how you film; which can ease the transition to the next segment and change the emotion! Now you’re ready to upload your professional video to various social media sites and your website following the specific video specifications! For more tips on how to create professional videos, click the link below!

Credit: Written by Peri Elmokadem 8 Beginner Tips for Making Professional-Looking Videos

Social Media Video Optimization

Are your videos optimized for mobile viewing? Take into consideration how your viewers are watching your videos. Your viewers need to see and hear everything on your video, no matter what device they watch videos on. In this clip from our video content course, we go over the different social media video specifications recommended for better optimization within a platform and device.

Why Not Share It?- Ali Spagnola Podcast Clip

"It's an active choice to be like, why would I not share this with my audience? Why would I not make this a part of my story? And so if it's something I want to do, then it's only making sense to me that I would film it."

This quote came from episode 19 of our podcast as guest Ali Spagnola shared how she brings her audience along in the activities that interest her. Ali also offered her insight on how she tackles writer's block by sticking to a designated timeframe and getting to work. Ali is a musician with her music featured on MTV’s “The Real World” and Oxygen’s “Bad Girls Club”; comedian, influencer, and holds 3 Guinness World records.

Follow along in this conversation as we talked about topics including how to optimize traffic, trusting your team to create and innovate, knowing trends to keep content relevant and increase engagement, and being authentic to build a loyal following so you can be yourself on and off-camera. Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts here: Optimize Your Content While Being Yourself To Attract Your Ideal Audience And Hire A Strong Team To Produce Prolific Content

Video Marketing on Instagram: Reasons Will Convince You

patrick-tomasso-KGcLJwIYiac-unsplash.jpg

Instagram is a platform that many people, business owners, and creatives alike, can utilize to increase their brand equity on the platform. Is your Instagram lacking videos that showcase you and your company? Curious what the outcome may be if you decide to upload a video? Video marketing is vital to include in your strategy, especially on a photo and video display platform like Instagram, and here are reasons why you need videos hosted on Instagram.

Your social media presence is very important to maintain. Instagram is the platform to help you and your company get the awareness you desire! According to Facebook, users spend about 20% of their time on the Explore tab on Instagram. That is a considerable amount of time and shows that users are looking for new content and brands to engage with. This is also a great opportunity to make your videos seen on the Explore tab. Consumers are even more likely to browse a company’s social media accounts, with 32% of them viewing social media before viewing their website, in an Animoto survey.

Videos are also seen as a favorable form of content for consumers as they tend to purchase more products or services from brands after watching a video on social media over a photo, text, or link. They are an excellent alternative for those who don’t have a lot of photos on their feed as it showcases more of their offerings to viewers. To increase your reach on your videos, include relevant hashtags, geolocation, or tagging others in your caption. Don’t just stop at posting videos on your feed! Try uploading a video to Instagram Stories, video ads, or IGTV! 47% of viewers enjoy watching Instagram Stories ads, and 70% watched a branded IGTV video, according to an Animoto survey. Include Instagram to your video marketing strategy and seek the opportunity for your business needs.

Credit: Written by: Becky Brooks 5 Reasons to Use Video Marketing on Instagram

Platform Research

Let's focus on the platforms your videos will be displayed on after you've created a video creation strategy. Understanding what and how your ideal customer engages in video content will help you determine where and how to reach your viewers. In this clip from our video content course, we also uncover the benefits of posting videos natively on platforms.

Undervalue Of Creativity In Marketing, The Importance Of Working In A Team, And Why Organization Is Important

Listen to our latest podcast episode with guest Ryan Mills! Through his experience as an executive producer and media sales manager at Rowlbertos Media, a media production company located in San Diego, we discussed how organization is important and how sales, marketing, and project management influence creativity. We also shed some light on how to remain adaptable as a business during COVID-19 and how to remain authentic to your brand and mindful when sending messages regarding the BLM political climate.

Listen to episode 30 on iTunes here:Undervalue Of Creativity In Marketing, The Importance Of Working In A Team, And Why Organization Is Important