Is communication an illusion?

To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw. 

"The biggest single problem in social media marketing is the illusion that communication has actually taken place."

How do you judge the success of your communications? 

Clicks, hits, views, likes, etc. Do not indicate that communication has taken place. The whole purpose of social media is to build a dialogue. For that dialogue to happen there must be someone there to respond to enquiries and most importantly make the sale.

Too often I see ad's vlog's blog's or even hear a podcast that piques my interest, I need to know more. I make further enquiries to find a website that is down and no one to answer my enquiries. By then I am talking to someone else who can answer my questions and convinces me that I really do need what they are offering and can negotiate a good deal. 

So, your advertising and marketing has worked, congratulations. Yet without someone there who can take the calls, field the enquiries, to make the sales. You have just given business away to your competitors.

Before embarking on an advertising or marketing campaign you MUST ensure that you have the infrastructure in place to handle the enquiries and sales that it will generate. If you don't someone else will.

Without effective communication, you have no sales. Without sales, you don't have a business.

Gavin Bryan-Tansley

VidFX+ Advertising.

Simple tips for video editing.

Editing starts when the editor receives the raw footage, the script, shooting schedule and the continuity notes. The editor works with the director to produce the editing script.

8 simple tips tips for video editing

1. Read the script for the video.You would be amazed at the number of editors who neglect this crucial stage.

2. Reach for a pad of paper and a pencil, layout a timeline of the exact duration, and block in the main components from the video script.

3. Review the continuity notes and shooting schedule, to help you select the 'good takes' from the raw footage.

4. Review and select the B-roll and alternative footage to insert into and intercut with the timeline.

5. Mark the clip names/numbers on the main time line. Assess if they are going to fill or overrun the set duration, decide what could be cut or inserted to bring it to the exact duration.

6. Open a basic editing program, rough cut and assembly edit the raw footage to make a preliminary edit.

7. Review preliminary edit with the director and colleagues, look out for missing or additional items, where improvements can be made etc.

8. You don’t have to have the very latest Pro editing suite. A basic editing program can produce good results if you know what you are doing. Once the edit has been made no one should be able to tell in which suite the video was edited.

The 3 basic mistakes in video editing

1. You are working with audio and visual elements. The audio needs as much attention as the visual.

2. You will watch a clip dozen of times in the editing process. Having seen it three or four times it is tempting just to skip to the end, DON'T. Always play a clip through to the end, it is easy to lose an entry or outpoint to a clip when editing.

3. Don't put something into the edit, just because you can. People will watch your video for its content, not because of your editing. The very best editing passes unnoticed, so keep it simple.

Gavin Bryan-Tansley Owner Vid-FX+

Nobody is buying!

You have an innovative product, fantastic service and an award winning business.

The crowds should be all over you, clamouring to buy. Yet you are not attracting enough business to even cover your costs. 

Why?

A lot of businesses think a good product alone is all that is needed. How many times have you heard, 'Build it and they will come'? Well, this is a line from popular entertainment, not the sage business advice that it is thought to be.

What you have to do is 'sell your business'. If your potential customers do not know who you are, what you do or where they can find you, how do you expect them to buy from you.

In short if you are not doing anything to advertise your business, how do you expect to be in business? Passing trade, word of mouth etc., are all largely redundant in this day and age. For passing trade, you have to place yourself where someone is likely to pass. You have to have an enticing display to attract the potential customer who is outside to come inside. These days this is your Webverts and SEO. The videos and images on your website have become your shop front and store.

Word of mouth and recommendations do not take place over the garden fence any more. They happen in social media. If you do not have an online presence and do something to justify this, how can your satisfied customers refer their social circle to you?

The art of advertising has not changed, only the media we use and the pace at which we work has. It is still all about attracting customers to buy from you and not from someone else. To do that we have to give them the reasons they need to make that choice.

We have to change, 

an interest into a like
, 
a like into a desire
, 
the desire into a want
 
and the want into a need.

An example

At one time hand made axes were the low end of the market. The logging industry needed high volumes of a consistent quality that the small hand forges could not produce, so they moved to axes made industrially.

Today that situation has changed there is no real need for axes anymore. The logging industry has been mechanised and loggers work from the comfort of an air-conditioned cab.

Yet today, axes are selling at premium prices! Not just any axe but hand made axes from the small forges that a few decades ago were forced to find other product lines because they could not compete.
 Industrially produced axes are now retailing for around $20 -$60 hand made axes $200 to $600 each!

So what changed?

Making logging and axe skills into a sport generated the interest, rebranding small axes and hatchets as camping and outdoor survival tools took care of the rest.

This is called associative or aspirational advertising. In this case the foundries associated their axes with a life style to which people could aspire. Even if you could not give it all up and go live in the high woods. That axe becomes a promise to yourself, that one day, even if only for a few weeks, you could live your dream of a simpler life.



Tricky? No, just an understanding of human nature and how purchasing decisions are made. That is what advertising is, letting people know what you have for sale. Then giving them the reasons why they should buy from you rather than from another.

Gavin Bryan-Tansley Owner Vid-FX+ Advertising

Getting it right

Getting it wrong could cost you more than just money.

Creating commercial advertising requires creative skills that will set the advert apart from surrounding content. 

Thinking outside the box to create advertisements that are true to the brand, as well as selling a product. Yet different enough to stand out is one thing. To remain within the law and the codes of practice are another. What seems such a good idea in the pub or the closed environment of the office, often falls flat when it reaches a dispassionate audience.

A recent advert, a very clever spoof of a popular TV program, Animal Hospital. Received no less than 250 complaints about the association of a commercial product with animal cruelty. While the advert was legal in all aspects, it still caused offence. These errors in judgement could become obvious if it is test marketed before release. The footage could then possibly be reused with a slight change of emphasis or re-editied to change the offending scenes. 

Regrettably this is a stage often overlooked or dismissed as an unnecessary expense by far to many advertisers. The cost of testing is often far less than the costs associated with having your adverts withdrawn. 

The advantages of using a professional agency is that they deal with these kind of issues all the time. They also kept up to date with various trends and topical issues through their professional associations and trade press. They can help in avoiding these situations by bringing years or decades of commercial experience to your advertising.

Gavin Bryan-Tansley Owner Vid-FX+

Business to business networking

Networking! Geese do it…
Ok it is a bit of a stretch but it makes a better photograph than a room full of people in suits!

Business to business networking is often looked upon as so difficult that many businesses refuse to even try!

The classic business persons response to networking prompted a short series of videos we made for 4Networking a few years back. Featuring Colin McKeand, of Nutri-Tox, giving advice on networking for businesses. Although technologically aged, the advice in these videos holds true today. This is well worth the time to view these videos and to review them from time to time to keep your essential networking skills honed to perfection.

Networking Part-1

Networking is one of the hardest skills for the business person to master. Colin helps you understand what you need to do to become and effective networker.

Networking Part-2

The second part of Colin McKeand's talk on networking at 4Networking Fife. 'How to introduce yourself and your business.'

Networking Part-3

Colin Mckeand concludes his talk on networking. 'How to make your networking effective by following up.'

-Gavin Bryan-Tansley Owner Vid-FX+