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If You’re a Nonprofit, Here’s How We Fit In

Face of young adult from Best Foot Forward

Nonprofits Are Essential To Our Communities. If You’re a Nonprofit, Here’s How We Fit In.

Every nonprofit has a story. Nonprofits usually fill a very serious need in our community; and one of the biggest challenges nonprofits face is the need for money. Money that helps the nonprofits satisfy the need and pay its employees. When we talk to Executive Directors of nonprofits, they share with us their frustration of telling the story effectively and efficiently so as to bring in as much money as needed to fill the gap. This is not an easy task.

Imagine if you could tell the story without having to sound like it’s been told a hundred times. What if the story could be told using the faces of those who benefited by the nonprofit? Wouldn’t that be the best way to tell the story? It would…In fact, a video can do exactly that.

The person(s) who benefited from the nonprofit would be the best person to tell the story. It’s a first person account of the difference the nonprofit made in their life. Without the nonprofit, where would they be? By having them tell your story, a possible donor can see the how their donation will help make a difference. Powerful stuff.

But, Plum Productions doesn’t just do the video; we help you reduce the cost of the video by working with your corporate sponsors. We all know companies that want to help their community, but they also want the community to know how much they impact their surrounding area. One way to work together is to let Plum Productions work with your Corporate Sponsor(s) to off-set the cost of your video.

A powerful, emotional video can bring in donations beyond expectations. We fit in because we want to tell the story. The story of how you, the nonprofit, helps our community. Below is a sample of just one of our nonprofits we’ve highlighted. Take a look…and try not to cry.

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Office Tours – Showcase Your Space!

empty office

Looking For a Video Idea?

If you work in a field where customers come to your office, you probably keep it looking pretty spiffy.  The level of comfort your clients have in your space is likely important to them, and in turn, you. Virtual Office Tours have become really popular on websites for this exact reason.  A potential client can have a look around the office before they schedule an appointment.  If you run a hotel, medical facility, or even a spa, virtual tours are a really valuable selling tool.  Today, most virtual tours are created with still photos and software that “seams” the shots together giving a 3D effect.  It’s a great tool, but we at Plum Productions think it’s a missed opportunity.

A Video Tour Can Do Everything a Virtual Tour Does – With a Much Greater Marketing Impact.

  • Firstly, they’re narrated.  The viewer can actually hear information about the space they’re seeing.
  • Second, in the narration, they can also hear about different services that are provided in the different spaces.  It’s a marketing video and video tour in one.
  • Lastly, if you feature someone prominent from the office, it also becomes a “Meet the Doctor” or “Meet the Staff” video.

Recently, we created a Video Tour for a local medical office. The video was hosted by the doctor, so patients got a look at his beautiful office, and an idea of who would be providing their treatment.  You’ve have to take a look:

Every business looks for ways to save money, and combining an Office Tour, Marketing video and Meet the Staff video is a great deal. Happy Video Marketing! Jenn

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What Can TV Teach Us About the New Video Revolution?

old time television

TV went through a revolution some years ago. Remember when cable first began? Remember when people were asking, “Why do we need a channel just for weather?” or “Why do we need a channel with 24 hour news?” 20 years later, we know we can’t live without the 24 hour news cycle (well most of us). Given this, what can we learn from history when it comes to video? Here are a few things we can pull from the history playbook.

TV History – A Big Lesson

In Video, Content is King!

Throughout history of television, there has never been a shortage of ideas. Television went from sitcoms to reality TV and back to sitcoms. Television has gone through drastic changes, only to come back to where it began. Not surprising. People like stories. People like to watch reality and sitcoms. They’re very similar in nature.

What does that mean for you? Since content is king, you’ll need to focus on how to create content. Think of Google as the masses (the millions of TV viewers)…constantly looking for something new, better, and entertaining. Your goal should be to continue to come up with new material to share. Whether it’s a marketing video, an informational/testimonial video, demonstration video, a training video, or just a recording of an in depth discussion about a topic relevant to a specific niche, new information (content) is king.

Your Action Item: Take approximately 30 minutes to play on YouTube. First, develop a list of keywords to search. See what you find. Watch 5 videos, but only for 30 seconds each. Write down notes about what you learned from each video. Next, search through the most popular videos and channels. Do the same thing, watch for 30 to 60 seconds. What did you learn/experience? Keys to pay attention to are the format each used, the techniques they used (sales), the techniques they used (production), the length of each video, etc. Use this information to come up with new approaches to video and to content.

Got an idea for a great video? Let us know. Want help coming up with one? Let us know.

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If a Picture Is Worth 1000 Words…Video is Worth 1,800,000!

image of person holding sign that says a picture is worth a thousand words

We’ve had people ask, how in the world do you get 1.8 million words from a video? So, let us show you (I know, the picture says 1 million, but it’s actually 1.8 million).

If we all agree that a picture is worth 1,000 words… And we shoot video at 30 frames per second (fps) That gives us 1000 x 30 = 30,000 words every second!

And we shoot the video to a length of 60 seconds…

30,000 words / second * 60 seconds =

1.8 million words!

Why is this important? If you are thinking about resetting your website or changing the way it looks, a video is a great way to add a stronger message or call to action. Nothing says “Here’s what we do,” “Here’s what are customers say,” and “Here are the results,” better than video!

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Website Video Idea – Employee Spotlight

Employee Spotlight Video

Do your customers know who they are talking to when they call your business line? How about your potential customers. Ideally, they don’t know you or haven’t met you directly. This would mean that they found you online through a search engine and have made the decision to call you. Wouldn’t it be nice if they had some idea of who they were talking to when they call? Now they can!

We believe that potential customers would like to feel comfortable calling a business. We also believe that a business can move the level of comfort for potential customers to the positive by supplying the customers with an Employee Spotlight video. This allows the customer to know who they are talking to. We’ve all seen the About Us pages on websites that usually contain a photo with a brief description of their role. Why not change this? Why not make this a video introduction supported by the brief job description of the employee? This can significantly improve search engine performance for each person’s name as well as the name of the business.

Who Needs an Employee Spotlight Video?

This works particularly well with organizations like law firms, partnerships, ad agencies, and chambers of commerce. These tend to have lower turnover allowing the video to have a longer shelf life. Even if turnover is a little higher, shooting a video highlighting high-level employees can improve morale and make the employees feel a bit more connected to the company/firm.

If you’re considering a video that spotlights the employees and partners in the business, contact us today to learn more about how we can help.

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Simple Video Blog Ideas

projector graphics

You’re probably reading this because you want to improve your website’s SEO. You’ve heard that video on your website can help SEO, but you’re looking at your computer and decided, you need a topic. You could write about your topic, or you could do a video. While we’ve given tips about How To Set Up Your Video Correctly, coming up with the topic can be a little difficult. This blog post is about picking a topic and running with it!

The How-To-Video

Videos that describe how to do something can be very helpful for your potential customer. After all, they need help. Why not be the solution? For example, about 4 weeks ago I needed to learn how to hang a flat screen television to a wall. The directions that came with the hardware wasn’t helpful, so I Googled it. I found hundreds of videos, but I selected the one that was titled correctly and after a few seconds began to teach me how to successfully hang the TV. (Side note, the TV is still hanging on the wall — Success!)

ScreenCasting

A different version of a video How-To-Video, but an important one. If you have something to show or describe on your computer screen, use ScreenCast or CamStudio. They capture what you are doing on your computer screen. I have used this program when I need to show someone how to set up an account on a website or how to make changes to a computer setting for better video viewing.

Video Interview

This is where we can come in to compliment your activities. Conducting interviews of clients or important people in your field of business can add value to your website. We’ll help you make the interview look professional and insightful. We’ll make sure you stay on topic and relevant to your audience.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Do you have a list of questions that potential clients ask frequently? Or do you have a list of questions that existing customers ask? Put together a list of frequently asked questions for them to refer to before sitting down with you. For example, a dentist might answer questions such as, “How do I prepare for my root canal operation?” or an Estate Planner might do an FAQ video about, “What documents do I need before I meet with my Estate Planner?” These can assist in SEO as well as help your customers/clients.

These are just a few options when deciding on what type of videos you can use for a blog and how you can use them. If you would like us to help you plan some of these out, simply give us a call.

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How Long Should My Video Be On My Website?

stopwatch

Length of Video

Did you know that 50% more people will complete a 1 minute video than a 2 minute video? That’s significant considering most businesses want to post longer videos. We tend to recommend that if you want to post a video, that it be under 1 minute…and if you have more to say, let’s find a way to break it into smaller, bite-sized pieces. This allows the viewer to continue to click through the important portions of your videos (education) while also identifying what is important to potential customers…or what is not said efficiently somewhere else on the website.

So, I Shouldn’t Post A Long Video?

Not necessarily. It really depends on the type of video.

  1. Commercials. Many companies need to education potential customers about what they do or the benefits of the product. This can usually be done within 30 seconds.
  2. How To. Some companies need to educate current customers about how to use a product, such as how to assemble it or how to use it safely. In these cases, the length of the video is less important; however, it is important that the video get to the point quickly or the viewer will think the video will be a waste of their time.
  3. Testimonials. Testimonial videos can be up to 2 minutes. People like to watch other people give testimonials before they buy to help them determine if they are making a good choice. By providing sufficient time for multiple testimonials, the potential customer can watch as many or as few testimonials as needed to help them make a decision.

We hope this helps you make an educated decision on how long your video should be. Whether we produce it for you or someone else, make sure the length of the video is correct for it’s use. Contact us if you have any questions.

 

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How To Be Ready For Your Video Production Shoot Day

sony video camera

By following these tips, you’ll find you will save a little time, aggravation, and money on your shoot day. You’ve hired the production team; they’ve created the script, scouted the location, and started the planning process. They may have even hired some professional actors for the shoot. Here are the steps you can take to improve the video outcome.

Solidify Your Needs

Knowing what your objectives are for shooting is important. Defining them early is even more important. There is nothing more frustrating for a client when they change directions, change objectives, and find out how much it will cost them because the script doesn’t accomplish these tasks. Anytime a client decides to change directions, a cost is incurred later. Clarify your objective and needs before doing anything else.

Communication with the Producer is Critical

Do you know what you’re going to do with the video? Communicate it with the producer. Do you know you’re going to need commercial for TV at a later date? Communicate it with the producer. Do you know that you are going to use these for multiple websites or multiple blog postings? Communicate it with the producer. The more the producer knows in the beginning, the better the planning will go and the better the results of the project.

Save Time (& Money) in the Edit Suite

Video production includes editing, cutting clips together, importing video, color correcting, adjusting audio levels, and exporting. All of these tasks take time. Editors work on an hourly rate, so if you can assist in the planning stage, you can often save time in the editing portion of the project. Time saving happens when the editor is able to ‘batch tasks’ and completing multiple projects simultaneously. When this happens, you save cash.

Do you need some help in the video production planning stage? We can help.

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Is Video Good For Business?

How Video Helps

Studies have shown that consumers will search Google, Bing, or another search engine for information about your business before buying. Some businesses use this to their advantage while some do not. The goal is to have great quality content posted on a consistent basis along with engaging information. That’s where video comes in.

Video In Action

Here’s a great example of how an organization needed video to show the benefits of their services. Roominate showed how girls and boys not only learn differently but can add a significant value to the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math.  They highlight the skills women bring to the table that might not otherwise be noticed or acknowledged. Additionally, they show how their products engage young girls in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math.

Organizations that want to express a challenge in the marketplace and how their product or service can solve that problem should use video to express all the benefits in one place.    As a client told us the other day, if a picture is worth a thousand words, a video is worth millions. We couldn’t agree more! A video fully expresses the most critical components in a concise method. Without video, an organization like Roominate might not get their point across about how important it is for girls to experience science, technology, engineering, and math. Their video is able to express all the important components of sharing key buying decisions for those who visit their website. This is why we say that a website without video is like reading a newspaper. One can get the information they need, but it’s a lot more fun learning via a video.

Creating a web video is simple. Contact us for information about scripts, web video components, and video campaigns that can help you drive your placement in SEO.

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When Video Speaks for Itself

Let’s face it: It’s not often that we get to create a piece on a subject matter so visually amazing that we can let the video speak for itself.  Here’s the story of Robert Wick, a bronze sculptor who draws inspiration from his surroundings in the remote desert of Arizona. This video features classic editing: virtually no graphics, no fancy tricks, just the sights and sounds of Robert at work.  Imaging being there, in the desert viewing his artwork. The attention to detail and the intricate work he does to put his masterpiece to the test of time. This included an interview and some voice over to capture the story of why he works with bronze and how he finds it’s flexibility easier to work with.

If you’re an artist and want to highlight your work, what better way than via a video that tells your story. What makes an artist good enough to warrant a video? Several things. For starters, having work on display for the public provides viewers a sense of awe. When you visit this location, you’ll find you’re in nature.

Sit back and take a break from your busy workday with this one!

OR Click here: Robert Wick, Plum Productions