Martini Media

Vlog - Nike Tiger Woods Ad: Earl and Tiger

2010-04-15T10:18:00.000-07:00

Michelle, Martin, and Rich discuss Nike Golf's latest commercial featuring Tiger Woods and his dead father, Earl Woods.

Nike Tiger Woods Ad: Earl and Tiger - Martini Media Vlog from Martini Media on Vimeo.

Using Video to Increase Conversion Rates

2010-03-31T15:03:00.000-07:00

Jeremy Scott wrote an excellent piece today about the importance of goal setting when creating videos that convert. In his piece, he wrote that conversions are not the same thing as sales; too often, business decision makers use these terms interchangeably, and marketers need to remind them that there are other ways to measure if a viewer converts besides an increase in sales.

In addition to sales, increasing web traffic, increasing awareness and share of voice, and changing perception are three other common forms of conversion that your video can help you increase.

As Mr. Scott mentioned, a producer should not start any video project without having a clear idea of what the goals of the project are. Likewise, you should not launch a video without fully understanding where your starting position is. Key questions to ask before launch are as follows:

What is my current site traffic like? How are visitors interacting with my website?
Approximately how much traffic do my competitors get?
Besides my company website, what is my brand presence online? What is your competitors' online brand presence?
How often is my industry discussed on blogs, forums, or social networks? Who is doing the talking?
How often are my competitors discussed on blogs, forums, or social networks? Is the sentiment positive, negative, or a mixture of both?
How often is my business discussed on blogs, forums, or social networks? Is the sentiment positive, negative, or a mixture of both?

Web traffic is the easiest metric to measure. If you have analytics installed on your site, you can easily see where your traffic is coming from and what paths the users take once on your site. Using Google Analytics, you can set up goals and funnels to see how many people perform a certain action on your site (like sign up for a newsletter or submit a form), then see how they got to that point with funnel visualization. By connecting the entrance source to the goal, you can see how many people not only came to your site from the video, but if those visitors performed a desirable action.

Using sites like compete.com and quantcast.com, you can obtain some basic information about your competitors' sites as well. Although not completely accurate, this data can give you a good gauge for how you stack up against your competitors, and if your video marketing efforts are helping you increase your share of voice.

If you a new company, and your goal is to merely get some brand recognition and establish differentiation. Creating a memorable and relevant video is an easy way to increase awareness for your brand. Because video is compact and transferable, you can post video content in multiple sites and increase your exposure.

We recommend posting content to multiple video shares, posting on your social networks, and submitting to social bookmarking sites. Track your awareness by views on these sites. There are several free tools to monitor your mentions, including Google Alerts, Twitter search, and Social Mention. There are also several tools that are available for a low monthly fee and offer more robust ways to monitor the web.

How do you measure if you've changed the way a person thinks about your brand? Perception or sentiment can be measured by listening to your audience. Often, when your brand awareness increases through video, people will begin to talk about your content and your brand. Listen to them and interact. Use social networks as a customer service channel to respond to advocates and critics. Interact with viewers in the comments section on your video shares. You can create conversations in the comments that will extend your brand's message beyond the video.

Traffic, awareness, and perception often do lead to sales, but if increased sales is the only conversion rate you are measuring, you are probably missing opportunities to build your brand and create advocates. By starting a video project with clear goals, establishing a starting point for measurement, measuring your results, and acting upon those results, you can create a successful video campaign to increase your conversion rates, whatever they may be.

Vlog - Lady Gaga's "Telephone"

2010-03-30T11:22:00.000-07:00

Michelle, Rich, and Martin discuss Lady Gaga's latest video "Telephone," featuring Beyonce and a LOT of product placement.

Lady Gaga - Telephone ft. Beyonce - Martini Media Vlog from Martini Media on Vimeo.

Video Marketing and Optimization Presentation

2010-03-19T13:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone that came to our presentation at the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce yesterday. For those that missed it, you can watch the Ustream video or view the presentation below.

Online Video Marketing and Optimization

View more presentations from Elizabeth Adams.

SlideShare does not allow for embedded videos; view those below.

Seattle Computer Whisperer from Martini Media on Vimeo.

Heavy lifting tool for do-it-yourself gardeners, landscapers from Martini Media on Vimeo.

Vlog - Chuck Liddell's Naked Workout and Reebok Easytones

2010-03-11T11:29:00.000-08:00

Viral Buzz - March Madness is on!

2010-03-09T14:43:00.000-08:00

This time of year seems to bring out the sporty in everyone. Maybe that's why this month's most infectious viral videos so far seem to be sports themed, minus the jerseys. That's right: a little sun break from winter and all the sudden nakedness is in full bloom. You can thank your lucky sneakers for it, provided they're Reeboks.

First up is the infamous Chuck Lidell naked workout video:
Chuck Liddell Naked Workout

I doubt anyone was ever really fooled, but does it matter? It's the best of the best, all the infamy of a leaked sex video without the shame and bad night vision shots. Actually there may be some shame involved, but nothing that fat endorsement check from Reebok can't wash away faster than any cold shower ever could.

Speaking of a cold shower, if Chuck's girlfriend ran any longer on that treadmill most viewers would be forced to take one themselves. But if she wasn't enough to sell shoes, Reebok closes the deal with this next ad, featuring talking female body parts:
Reebok Easy Tone Shoes

Obviously targeted to both sexes, the ad messages well. If you buy a new pair of shoes, your body improves. In fact, parts of your body may even begin talking. Maybe that's not such a good thing, especially considering how caddy a pair of scorned breasts could be. But nonetheless, who doesn't like self-improvement? The only silent body part seemed to be the butt. Maybe THAT is a good thing.

What the ads also say is that Reebok is going all in. They don't seem to mind offending someone/anyone. Sooner or later nudity is bound to make someone uncomfortable, and I don't just mean guys worrying about Chuck's junk getting smashed on squat rack during a awkward forced rep.

No, we mean there are bound to be women's groups in an uproar over both ads, angry at the objectification of women. Point taken. Of course, life on the internet is full of opportunities for offending, which is precisely why Reebok chose the internet for these ads. People who get offended tend to voice their opinions in the comments field. Which of course lead to...you guessed it; more hits.

The internet offers a lot of leeway broadcast media doesn't, in terms of production values, product messaging, etc. Unfortunately nothing is sacred, any YouTube comment will tell you that. If the goal is to get attention, Reebok certainly scored. As far as brand presence and image goes, well...Reebok is taking a chance, flying by the seat of their pants. That is...if they're wearing any pants. Only time and the almighty hit counter will tell if it was indeed worth the risks taken.

Online Video Marketing and Optimization - Seattle Chamber Presentation 3/18

2010-02-22T22:26:00.000-08:00

Join the Martini Media team on Thursday, March 18, 2010 at the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce for in interactive presentation about online video marketing and optimization. Our talk is part of their Technology Thursday series - a lunch program that focuses on business technology solutions. Our goal for this discussion is to not only talk about video marketing and the types of online videos a business can create, but also to show how to use technology to increase views and measure success.

Topics for the discussion include:

Why you should use video to market your business online: This will be a discussion about the key business cases for using video online.
What types of sales-oriented videos should you create for your business: Here we will dive deeper into the types of videos you can create, giving an example of each one and a possible scenario it should be used in.
Using social networks and search to increase views: Once a video is created, you have a single piece of content that can be transferred and embedded online. We call this concept the "Viral Ecosystem." The second part of this equation is optimizing your video content so it is discoverable by searchers.
Understanding analytics and how to measure success: Many business owners or marketers get caught up on views, but there are other analytics that should be considered when evaluating a video campaign. We will discuss the most popular tools here, and we will cite examples where video gave marketers measurable results.

Visit the Chamber website to register for the session, or learn more about the Chamber and the other programs they offer. If you are attending the session, feel free to email me any questions you have prior to the event. We hope to see you there!

Video and E-Commerce: Using Video to Sell Your Products Online

2010-02-15T23:47:00.000-08:00

There is no doubt about it - a well-produced video sells products. In an A to B study by online retailer eBags, conversion rates increased 50 percent on pages with video when the play button was clicked over pages with no video. That conversion rate increased to 138 percent when the user watched the entire video. Video turns shoppers into buyers.

Video helps your customers understand what your products are, how they can use them, and what they need to do to make the purchase.

Video can show what a product does when words and photos fail to illustrate. The less time it takes for your consumer to understand what your product does, the more likely they will purchase it.
Video can show how a product or services solves a problem, giving the user more motivation to make the purchase to solve their own problems. This is especially useful if you are able to craft a story line about your products use. This story line doesn't have to be too complicated - it could be as simple as setting up a problem and showing how your product solves it. Our Potlifter video is a great example of this. By showing multiple uses for the product, we give the audience more ways to apply the product's use to their lives.
With video, you can deliver a complete sales message - from problem, to solution, to call to action - all under a minute. Once you are finished telling your product's story, tell them how to order it. If the video is on your product detail page, tell the viewer what button they need to click on to add it to their shopping cart. If the video is on YouTube, include a link to where they can order the product on your website. You've made it easy for your viewer to understand what your product does and why they need it, now make it easy for them to actually buy it.

There are a few things to consider if you are going to produce videos of your products for your e-commerce site. First, just like how you wouldn't post poor-quality photos on your site, your videos shouldn't be poor quality either. They should be well produced, so hire a professional to help you if you don't have the equipment or a producer to do it in house. They should also be well written - prepare a script for each product or hire a writer to help you.

And these videos can be used offline as well. Burn them onto a DVD to include with your media kit, or loop them to play at a trade show. With some planning and professional help, you can create a library of videos to help you sell your products or services both online and off.

Superbowl Ads - Best Of

2010-02-08T13:40:00.000-08:00

Well, the big game is always the stage for the advertising industry's blockbuster ads, their spielbergian moment to capture the collective imagination of the largest viewing audience possible, as well as its disposable income.

From a viral and internet marketing perspective, what stands out is broadcast media borrowing heavily from hits on the web. There seemed to be a high perponderance of cute, feral creatures playing violin or watching car ads, something that is always sure on the internet to increase your YouTube hits. And the vizio ad featured a greatest hits collection of the last few years's most popular viral sensations. What it all adds up to is this; viral marketing doesn't stop where the internet ends. It can find itself at a front row seat on the greatest show on earth, without the sting of the 1 million dollar minimum media buys.

Overall, there were a couple of real standouts. The Volkswagen ad with Stevie Wonder was simply brilliant. By referencing the "slugbug" phenomena everyone has particpated in at one point in their lives, it formed a very simple, easygoing connection with their audience. Following that up with a great Stevie Wonder scene at the end...well...was a home run (or shall we say...touchdown)?

On the down side, there was a lot of weirdness. And a lot of men in their underwear. Maybe this is the dark side of viral marketing rearing its ugly head. Viral and internet marketing have raised the bar in terms of what really entertains people. Ads can no longer afford not to be entertaining to some degree. Taking risks is essential, and not every risk panned out. The Taco Bell ad with Charles Barkley was chaos. The GoDaddy ads were, well...just cheezy. All in all, risks do have to be taken, but execution is everything.

From a marketing point of view, it all ads up to the fact that viral internet marketing has never been more influencial. Usually Superbowl Sunday sets the tone for a company's ad campaign for the year to come. Now, the Big Game finds itself playing no-huddle hurry up offense, trying to beat its young internet brother to the punchline.

A Beginner's Guide to Video SEO

2010-02-01T22:36:00.000-08:00

Video is a great tool to teach your customers about your product or service's competitive advantage, but it can also be used as a tool to help your potential customers find you. Below are some tips to help improve your exposure in search results using video shares.

Use keywords in your video title: This is probably the most important factor influencing placement in search results. If you want more customers to find your video, use relevant keywords - such as your business type and location - in the title rather than just your business name.
Use keywords in your description text and tags: Like the video title, descriptions and tags also factor in search results. After the title, users will read the description in search results. Above all else, the description should make sense and accurately describe the video, so focus on readability over keyword stuffing. If needed, place your excess keywords in the tag field.
Caption your video: As discussed in a prior post, Google is rolling out a feature that will automatically caption YouTube videos, helping your SEO by making it easier for search engines to read your content. Until then, there are a few easy options to caption videos. Use CaptionTube to manually add text and easily time it to your video. Or you can use Google Voice's technology to automatically time your captions using an uploaded transcript.
Post to multiple shares: Although YouTube is by far the most popular, each video share has a different audience. Posting to multiple shares will help you capture the most audience. This could also be an opportunity to test different title, description, and tag text.
Share with your friends and encourage comments: As we move to real-time search, it is more important to make sure users are continuing to engage with your content. Share with your family and friends. Pass your videos along to potential customers. Use the comment section to engage with viewers and encourage conversation.

Before you try to reach new customers through video SEO, make sure that your content is professionally shot and edited. A poorly executed and produced video will not portray credibility to the viewer. As part of our baseline production package, Martini Media optimizes our client's video content by performing steps 1 through 4 above. We leave the fun part up to you - sharing with your friends and customers!

YouTube Launches HTML5 Video, Music Service, and New Design

2010-01-22T13:49:00.000-08:00

What a week on YouTube. First, they launched an experimental version of an HTML5-supported player in TestTube. This new player means that the user no-longer needs a Flash plug-in to view YouTube content. Although the majority of users already have Flash installed on their machines, this will speed up playback, as HTML is the native language for browsers. I've had a chance to play around with it, and there are a few limitations with the experimental version.

It's not available in all browsers yet. If you are using Chrome, Safari, or ChromeFrame for IE you can start using it. Firefox, Opera, and IE users will have to wait.
It doesn't support videos with ads, captions, or annotations yet. If you are viewing a video that has those, then YouTube will automatically switch over to Flash.
It doesn't appear to support HD playback yet. We'll see what happens in the next few months - I bet that all the issues above will be resolved by April. Vimeo also launched an HTML5 player this week.

YouTube also launched a music discovery service that will compete with Songza, Pandora, and Last.fm. We're big Songza fans at Martini, but I LOVE the URL youtube.com/disco. The search button even says "Disco!" Yes, complete with an exclamation point. I entered "Hot Chip" (then pressed "Disco!"), and YouTube listed all of Hot Chip's videos and started playing the video for "Ready for the Floor," the first on the list. There was also a band bio section, related artists, and a suggested "Mix Tape" with Hot Chip and other titles I might like. Like the other services, I can save the songs I like in my playlist. Pretty impressed so far.

The last major announcement is their redesign. They've done away with the 5-star rating system and replaced it with like and dislike buttons, which makes more sense since that's how people think. There is also a much greater emphasis on sharing (bigger buttons) and viewing related videos (related videos now take up the whole right panel). Saving and statistics also received a greater emphasis. There is no longer an "HD" option - that has been replaced with 360p, 480p, and 720p, perhaps reflected the growth of HD content online and a more video-savvy audience. The new design can be seen here, you can opt out by selecting "Return to the old YouTube" in the upper-right corner.

Video can quickly teach your customers about your company and your product’s competitive advantage.

2010-01-20T13:12:00.001-08:00

They say presentation is everything, and with the attention span most people have these days, you've only got a few moments to hook your audience before they meander off into internet oblivion. And let's face it, who wants to watch a Power Point on the web or, God forbid, actually read something?

What makes video so engaging with your audience is that it is a passive user-experience. It doesn't take much mental effort to click play. And with motion picture being around for close to over a 100 years now, audiences are conditioned to the expectation of video as a form of entertainment.. That's right, entertainment. Who doesn't want to be entertained?

They also say a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, imagine how many more thousands of words a moving picture is worth? Imagine your business being able to communicate its mission statement, product, and competitive advantage in one concise and entertaining package?

This is the power of video. The power to keep your customer's trigger finger off the mouse and on your website. And that...is good business indeed.

Three Ways to Use Video to Increase Your Online Presence

2010-01-20T12:44:00.000-08:00

One reason we love video is that we hate reading. The other reason is that one piece of content can be used in so many ways - whether for broadcast, at trade shows, in sales meetings, or online. Knowing a few things about how to use video online can greatly increase your presence without the added cost of a media buy.

Here are three simple tips to use video online:

Place the video on your homepage. Studies have shown that a well-named video has a 50 times better chance of appearing on the first page of search results than a text-alone page.
Upload your video to a video share. We use Tubemogul to push video content out to several shares with just one upload. These sites all have different markets, so it is important to try to upload to as many as you can.
Share your video with your network. Video's advantage is that it is compact and shareable, so having a well-crafted video can quickly tell your story and make it easier to spread your message. Post it to your social networking sites and share with your friends and customers.

Using video online has never been easier, allowing you to reach more people simply and more effectively.

High costs of video have come down dramatically

2010-01-20T12:43:00.000-08:00

Producing video used to be a very labor-intensive technical process, involving both high costs in equipment and personnel. A typical video shoot 10 years ago for a 30 second cable TV commercial would run anywhere from 50-100k, if not more! Equipment rentals, post-production costs, media buys, and actor and writing fees all added up to a costly budget for your video.

Now, with both the costs associated with hardware and equipment coming down and easier access to an audience via the web, video production is much more cost-effective and affordable. HD cameras are cheaper than ever, and video post-production is no longer a budget-eating endeavor with the proliferation of home computer editing software. You can shoot and edit video on a much more reasonable budget, without sacrificing the quality.

Expertise is still needed however, in managing the scripting and shooting process itself. The camera does need to be in focus, and bad writing can't be edited out once your video has been shot. It pays to find the right creative professionals to help you develop your video's vision.

But gone are the days when exuberant production costs meant video production was an impossible dream for many. With an online audience of billions waiting to see your video, the only thing separating you from this audience is a creative, cost-effective video broadcasting your business to the world!

Google Announces New Technology That Will Caption YouTube Videos

2009-11-30T15:30:00.000-08:00

Google announced last week that they will release a new feature on YouTube that automatically captions YouTube videos. This means that not only will videos be more accessible to people with disabilities, but they can also be translated into other languages based on browser settings. These are two huge barriers for video content that will be overcome once Google starts rolling out the technology to a broader audience.

This news also means that video content will be more searchable. Currently, most video SEO is determined by titles, file names, and various tagging. With the new caption system, searchers can achieve richer results by discovering snippets of text that may have been left out of the tags or titles. We're excited to see the captions when they launch, and to see the results they can bring for our clients!

Enveletters - HD Video Demo for Inside Out and Backwards

2009-10-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

Our recent video for Inside Out and Backwards is a great example of how video can sell a product. This video accomplished what words on a website could not - it effectively demonstrated how to use the product while delivering key sales messaging and a call to action, all in about one minute.

It's Time for Business! Martini Design and Media Debut Video at the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting

2009-09-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

Our video for the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce debuted yesterday at the 127th Annual Meeting, marking the official start of the campaign It's Time for Business: Leading the Regional Economic Recovery. The video features members of the Seattle business glitterati, including regional Chase CEO Phyllis Campbell, Governor Christine Gregoire, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Tom Douglas, Teatro Zinzanni, Mariners' Manager Don Wakamatsu, Wing-it Productions Creative Director Andrew McMasters, and Ezell's Chicken founder Lewis Rudd. Special thanks also goes to Starbucks Coffee, Pike Place Market, Ivar's, and Qwest for appearing in the film.

Visit the official It's Time for Business website to post jobs, share your business story, see upcoming events and more.

Martini Design and Martini Media are Seeking an Office Administrator

2009-09-23T12:46:00.000-07:00

Martini Design is seeking an office administrator for its Greenlake office. Responsibilities include basic administration duties (filing, answering phones, greeting visitors, opening mail) as well as some light bookkeeping. This person will also be assisting the company principals as needed.

Key Qualifications/Experience
- Must be happy, boisterous, outgoing! We have a fun and creative office, and we'd like to keep it that way (No haters).
- Must be detail-oriented.
- Familiarity with Quickbooks or another accounting software is preferred (we can train).
- Must have excellent communication skills.
- Must know MS Office suite.
- Bookkeeping experience a plus.
- Reception/Administration experience required.
- Valid drivers license required.
- Love of cooking a plus.

Please email blog@martinidesign.com with resumes or questions.

Potlifter Video Posted on Martinimedia.com

2009-09-20T10:46:00.000-07:00

A new video is up on Martini Media website. Potlifter is a tool the helps gardeners and do-it-yourselfers lift and move large items. This video is a good example of how you can take our basic full-day shoot and add a few simple touches to enrich the experience. In this case, we added some simple animations and voiceover. View the finished video here. To find out more about Potlifter, visit their website.

Martini Media Debuts "It's Time for Business" at Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting

2009-09-19T15:47:00.001-07:00

We're very excited to announce that we will be debuting our latest video, "It's Time for Business," at the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce's Annual Meeting next Friday, September 25. This event hosts more than 1,000 of the region's business and civic leaders. Jeff Raikes of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will present the keynote address, and featured speakers include current and former Chamber chairs Kirk Nelson and Tayloe Washburn. Register for the event on the chamber website. We hope to see you there!

ACS Video and Dental Video Now Live on Martinimedia.com

2009-07-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

We've posted two new video production projects on the Martini Media video site this week. The first is a video we produced for the American Cancer Society's Hope Gala. This event helps fund a lot of the activities at the ACS, and tickets are still available! Visit their website for more information.

The second video is for the redesigned Web site of TenderCare Dental Center in Beaverton, OR. Both of these videos are really good examples of our one-day shoots, and both were produced for prices that most small businesses can afford. Keep checking the Martini Media site for projects as they go up.