Showing posts with label Fractionalized Content. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fractionalized Content. Show all posts

Thursday, April 6, 2017

Creating Successful Social Media Marketing Videos?


Five years ago, companies would come to our agency with a fairly simple demand: "I need a social media video."


To fulfill this request, we'd identify the customer's target demographic, develop appealing creative for that group, and deliver a single video for the brand to publish on Facebook and potentially Instagram.


Due to the emergence of Snapchat, Instagram Stories, and a revamped ad platform on Facebook, creating one piece of content for video campaigns is no longer an effective strategy. Modern consumers have become masterful ad-skippers. According to a Mirriad study, 90% of consumers regularly click the "skip" button when marketing videos invade their browsing experience. Unfortunately for marketers, outlets like Snapchat and Instagram Stories only make ad-skipping easier.

Consumers have turned to social media platforms because they want to receive news, entertainment and information that is specifically tailored to their interests. Along the way, they've learned to completely ignore pieces of content and messages that don't immediately grab their attention.


Dozens of social platforms exist and each one features a unique group of people with unique desires. It's foolish to believe that posting the same video everywhere will drive results. If agencies and brands want their content to be seen, they need to make it fit into this highly selective climate.

The Bite-Sized Approach

Rather than distribute a single video throughout every social media platform, modern agencies should instead embrace a fractionalized approach in which the "big idea" (or the backbone) of a campaign is custom-tailored to each site.


This means strategically creating several videos instead of one big video - something my agency recently did for Red Bull. To promote the upcoming Red Bull Air Race in San Diego, we filmed stunt pilot Kirby Chambliss zipping around the sky while skydivers in wingsuits performed aerobatics around him. After shooting with over a dozen cameras, we cut the video into seven unique deliverable's that would each fit seamlessly into a social outlet: Facebook, Instagram, Instagram Stories, YouTube and Red Bull's website.


Video marketing has evolved into an entirely different beast and we have to constantly adapt to stay relevant. Here are three principles that help our agency create successful campaigns in this new climate:

1. Urgency

TIME Magazine declared that goldfish now have longer attention spans than humans. Keep this top of mind when creating videos for social media, as you'll have between half a second and five seconds to capture users' attention.

Work hard to hook viewers with stunning imagery within the first few frames of the video, but no matter how tempting it is, don't lure them in by flashing something irrelevant on the screen. Instead, try having the first few seconds of an ad provide a visual teaser of the best, most relevant part of the video.


For example, if you're promoting a direct-to-consumer fashion line, starting your spot with a time-lapse unboxing segment will be much more engaging than simple product shots. After you've hooked the audience, you can cut away to the explanation of how your product or service works.


Movie studios, in particular, have taken note of the way digital audiences view content. Many promotional trailers - like this one for Jason Bourne - now broadcast brief ads for themselves before the actual trailer begins.

2. Relevance

Consumers visit certain social media platforms to see specific types of content. For example, according to Pew Research, a majority of Twitter and Facebook users are there to gather news. As such, you should publish timely, newsy content on these platforms - such as videos that announce new product lines.


Users on Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest, on the other hand, are looking to build their skills and feel inspired. According to Google, YouTube searches containing the phrase "how-to" are growing by 70% each year. So on these platforms, try to provide tip-based marketing videos for the DIY crowd.

You should also allow demographics data to drive your creative decision-making. For example, eMarketer predicts that two-thirds of all millennials will have Instagram accounts by 2019, and The Wall Street Journal recently reported that 41% of 18- to 34-year-olds in the U.S. can be found on Snapchat. Integrating young actors or influencers on these platforms can lead to better results.


3. Style

Understanding the different types of users on each social platform is just part of the equation; you also need to know what the content they consume looks like.


Given that users are uploading iPhone-shot photos and videos to Snapchat, don't even think about using high-gloss cinematography. The content you create should look like it authentically fits with the content that consumers already engage with.

Also, be wary of the vertical or horizontal formats that are inherent to each social media site. Facebook and Instagram, for example, both recently switched to vertical formats. Creating horizontal videos may not be as effective as square or vertical content, especially if you're targeting mobile audiences.

The traditional one-size-fits-all approach to social media video marketing simply doesn't work anymore. Today's consumers have extremely short, extremely picky attention spans, and hitting that "skip" button has become second nature to them. In order to thrive in the future and have your content be seen, it's time for marketing agencies to embrace the new era of bite-sized, fractionalized video content.

Guest Authored By Chris Carter. Chris Carter is an Entrepreneur, Speaker, the CMO of REP Interactive, co-author of "VideoFort" debuting in May of 2017. Follow Chris on Twitter.





"In order to thrive in the future and have your content be seen, it's time for marketing agencies to embrace the new era of bite-sized, fractionalized video content.."


    • Authored by:
      Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
    Follow Me Yonder..                     Instagram
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    Thursday, March 2, 2017

    Your Fractionalized Video Marketing Content?


    There once was a time when marketers could command every consumer's attention, ask, “Where’s the beef?” and make their brand a national phenomenon..


    That was back when video marketing was a relatively straightforward undertaking. All brands needed to do was create a few television commercials, book airtime on a dozen or so networks and voila, the entire country was exposed to its content. There were no "skip" buttons or fast-forward features; every consumer was forced to watch every ad for every product.



    Unless you've been living off the grid for the past decade, it's pretty apparent that the video marketing game is now much more complex. Cable and satellite television packages exploded to offer thousands of niche channels; digital-video recorders emerged to allow viewers to skip ads; and one-quarter of American households aren't subscribed to any form of television.

    Simply put, single-channel/commercial video marketing campaigns are dead, as your audience has not only migrated online, but has also become accustomed to parking its attention on its favorite platform, social media or website.

    There will be a place for television in the future, and the "water-cooler" effect is a powerful phenomenon. However, in order to develop a direct line of communication with your audience, you need to know where it is and what it's interested in and develop marketing content that's relative to those interests.


    Plenty of brands have taken notice of this shift, but not nearly enough are adjusting their video marketing strategies accordingly. They're still creating the same type of content people ran away from on television, so it shouldn't be surprising that 90 percent of consumers consistently skip the video ads they see online.

    The Power of Fractionalization

    On social media, consumers are living in an on-demand world. With just one click, they can skip, close or scroll away from any video advertisement that doesn't immediately appear to be relevant to their interests. Beyond that, no two social media sites are the same. Each features a specific demographic of users who are expecting to have a specific type of experience.

    Related Article: 2017 Video and Social Media Marketing?

    In such a climate, it's essential to take a fractionalized approach to video marketing. Rather than using their whole budget to create one or two ads that try to appeal to a mass audience, brands can improve their return on investment by using that same budget to craft many smaller pieces of content that are geared toward niche audiences across a variety of social channels.


    This does take more time and creative elbow grease than the traditional way of doing things, but it’s what the online era demands—and it's not as difficult as it may sound.

    Here's How To Get Started

    Develop your big idea: Even with fractionalized content, the first step of a video campaign is the same as it's always been—identifying your core offering and your core audience. This will reveal your "big idea" and provide the guide to your fractionalization.


    It's quite obvious that a razor brand's core offering is razors and its core audience consists of people who want to have a great shave. In order to achieve its main objective of demonstrating that its razor line is of superior quality and to motivate men to care more about shaving, it developed the big idea of "Shave Matters." This hypothetical big idea highlights the fact that men should care more about shaving, and this razor company has products that matter most for men of all ages, races and stages of shaving.


    There are many different types of shavers in the world who all have different desires, and they're all frequenting different social channels. This is where fractionalization comes into play.

    Identify your specific subsets: Let's take a closer look at the various types of people (or subsets) who fall into our imaginary razor brand's core audience of men: frequent shavers, infrequent shavers, an array of age and income demographics—the list can go on and on. Especially on social media, it would be impossible for any brand to engage all of these unique potential customers in one 30-second ad.


    By taking a fractionalized approach, brands choose to produce multiple ads that each broadcast a specific message that speaks directly to a subset. The ads match the look and feel of whichever social media platforms they are published on, thus ensuring that they effectively grab consumers' attention.


    Alter your content for each platform: Continuing with the razor company example, let's pretend it wants to build awareness around three particular products: a cheap disposable razor that comes in several fun colors, an expensive everyday razor for men and a brand-new single-edged razor for experienced shavers.

    Each product warrants a series of videos that showcases the brand's big idea ("Shave Matters") in a way that directly resonates with specific subsets on social media.


    For example, knowing that colorful disposable razors are likely to appeal to younger consumers, the brand could hire a millennial spokesperson for a series of Instagram and Snapchat ads that promote the product through copy that highlights the fact that even though you may not be shaving very frequently, your shave still matters if you want to get the girl, get the job, get the promotion.


    By using verbiage and selling points that only other millennial shavers would care about, these particular videos must take into account the fact that young people have incredibly short attention spans. The average Snapchat ad is viewed for less than three seconds, and because these ads don't play until users click on them, each one must immediately feature eye-grabbing visuals and text that cause consumers to stop and watch.

    The same logic and approach should apply to the other two products. Older men, for example, are more likely to use a more expensive everyday razor. Therefore, the brand should hire a silver-haired gentleman for that product's series of videos. He should speak in terms that resonate with other grizzled shavers, and these ads should be posted on social media sites that possess high populations of this subset. Facebook would qualify as one such platform.


    Lastly, the single-edged razor would be best marketed toward more adventurous shavers, such as hipsters who are looking to carve snazzy, sharp lines into their facial hair.


    The spokesperson hired to promote this product should fit the bill, the social media outlets that broadcast this ad should be full of people just like him and the key copy and story of the commercials will still highlight the big idea that "Shave Matters."

    Marketers are gradually learning that the most effective video content on social media is fractionalized and tailored to specific audiences. Understanding your demographic is just one piece of the puzzle, though; truly effective ads also stand out within each respective social media ecosystem.

    Guest Authored By Chris Carter. Chris is Chief Marketing Officer of REP Interactive, which is focused on helping brands take a holistic approach to their video initiatives. Follow Chris on Twitter.





    “Determine your big idea, identify your subsets and create unique content that speaks directly to a specific social media audience.."


      • Authored by:
        Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
      Follow Me Yonder..                     Instagram
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