The Future of Content – Power of PR Video By Catherine Bayfi eld

020 7240 7373 hello@shoutcommunications.co.uk www.shoutcommunications.co.uk@shoutcomms

Watching video online is now a mainstream activity - 78% of people watch at least one video online each week and 55% of us watch every day.

There’s no denying that video has become an increasingly powerful tool for PR and marketing but it’s not just that video is big right now – it’s that it’s getting bigger.

Introduction:

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In fact, the video content for brands has evolved into a major new force of social networking that is either directly profitable or brand-building.

Slowly, marketers are taking advantage of the huge potential of online video content - in 2013 76% of PR professionals prioritised developing video content over Facebook, Twitter and blog integration [1].

Billions of pounds are generated in revenue from click-through “display” adverts on video platforms such as YouTube, Vevo and Facebook, but brands are increasingly reaching out to consumers in online editorial campaigns to increase recognition andcreate a buzz in online branded videos rather than advertisements.

In general YouTube averages one billion unique users a day - and the massive rise in tablet adoption has made videos more accessible for mobile viewers as well.

Video content has also become relatively easier and less costly to produce than ever before.

As video-viewing habits change, PR broadcast consultancy and production companies have responded - for example, adapting to the now nearly 25% of internet usage from mobile/tablet devices [2] by producing video suitable for both small and traditional screens.

Video content is now recognised as a major PR tool and with creative production, can be a great way to maximise brand coverage and awareness.

This e book will look at current PR video and marketing trends, the different types of online video and explain how to maximise coverage online.

Video can establish a closer relationship between consumer and brand:

A growth of 42% in the amount of time spent by the UK video watching audience and an increased PR awareness about the potential of video marketing has led to real innovation and development.

For companies, interest in video content is obviously linked to the popularity of online video.

Cisco predict it would take an individual over 5 million years to watch the amount of video that will cross global IP networks each month in 2017. Every second, nearly a million minutes of video content will cross the network in 2017.

Video-on-demand traffic will nearly triple by 2017. The amount of VoD traffic in 2017 will be equivalent to 6 billion DVDs per month.

Globally, consumer internet video traffic will be 69 percent of all consumer internet traffic in 2017, up from 57 percent in 2012. This percentage does not include video exchanged through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing. The sum of all forms of video (TV, video on demand [VoD], internet, and P2P) will be in the range of 80 to 90 percent of global consumer traffic by 2017.

Internet video to TV will continue to grow at a rapid pace, increasing fivefold by 2017. Internet video to TV traffic will be 14 percent of consumer internet video traffic in 2017, up from 9 percent in 2012.. Global Consumer Internet Video, 2012-2017

Video Predictions:

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Consumer Internet Video 2012-2017

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 CAGR 2012-2017

By Network (PB per Month)

Fixed 10,230 16,430 19,980 24,994 31,722 40,532 32%

Mobile 193 450 924 1,729 3,033 4,749 90%

By Category (PB per Month)

Video 13,483 17,850 22,950 29,050 36,742 46,237 28%

Internet video to TV 1,335 2,005 2,851 3,913 5,174 6,515 37%

By Geography (PB per Month)

Asia Pacific 4,960 6,716 8,800 11,460 14,894 19,309 31%

North America 4,545 6,049 7,822 10,004 12,761 15,905 28%

Western Europe 2,584 3,280 4,103 5,036 6,273 7,813 25%

Latin America 1,507 2,062 2,634 3,169 3,674 4,184 23%

Central and Eastern Europe 984 1,355 1,832 2,392 3,034 3,749 31%

Middle East and Africa 238 393 609 901 1,280 1,793 50%

Total (PB per Month)

Consumer Internet video 14,818 19,855 25,800 32,962 41,916 52,752 29%

Source: Cisco VNI, 2013

Well it takes a lot less skill and effort to watch something for 10 minutes than to read for 10 minutes. Wherever video is an option, it usually wins out over the written word because seeing is believing - and it’s more entertaining.

We prefer the immediacy of the moving images and the sense of personal connection we feel with a film. We are more engaged and more convinced by seeing things for ourselves in moving images rather than deciphering static words on a page.

Why do we love video?

Shout! Communications | The Future of Content – Power of PR Video Why do we love video? 4

Short and simplePeople are busy and impatient and have very short attention spans, so it’s important that you don’t try to make your online video overly long.

The average news story is 1 minute and 30 seconds, so keep that in mind if you’re planning to sell in your video online. Experts agree that even for internet video, the goal should be no more than two minutes to tell your story.

In a nutshell: When it comes to on-demand video content, shorter is better.

Most experts will tell you that studies show viewer retention tends to drop off around the 60 second to two-minute mark. But does that necessarily mean that all of your marketing videos need to stick to a 120-second cutoff? Probably, but not necessarily.For example, according to ReelSEO, the average length of the top 10 most shared global video ads is 4 minutes 11 seconds, which helps prove that if your content is compelling, people will spend more time watching it.

In my experience, the general online audience has a lower attention span for business-focused video content than it does for something that’s entertaining YouTube fare.

At the end of the day, however, the most important thing is that your marketing content is long enough to:

A) Get your message across sufficiently, and…

B) Include an appropriate call to action

You should also track and monitor viewer retention for all your video content. If most people are leaving before viewing at least 80% of your videos, you need to tighten things up and re-work your messaging.

When creating an online video aimed at promoting a brand or organisation, there are a few things to consider. Often this type of content is tailored to a particular website’s needs and this can be really impacted by who the target audience is. In planning content it is best to anticipate a wider demographic really in the same way as you would for radio and TV.

PR generated content:

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Associated Press said recently “while viewership for TV news still easily outpaces those consuming news on YouTube, the video-sharing site is a growing digital environment where professional journalism mingles with citizen content.” More than a third of the most-watched videos came from YouTube users. More than half came from news organizations, but footage in those videos sometimes incorporated footage shot by users.

In the realm of pure entertainment, YouTube sensations like Jenna Marbles are acquiring cult following and viewing figures that mainstream screen stars can only dream of. The Daily Mail reported in April 2013 that the 25-year-old Jenna has racked up more than 8.2 million subscribers and a whopping 1 billion hits on low-production-value “no-holds-barred, profanity-laced” videos that she shoots in her home, often after downing a few too many cocktails.

Her “drunk makeup tutorial” wasn’t the result of months of writing, revising, honing and editing. It was spontaneous, impromptu and immediate. It wouldn’t have taken off if the traditional news gatekeeper system were still in effect. It wouldn’t have even been aired. But now it has made her rich and has amused millions of teenage girls.

The traditional owned-media routes to celebrity still exist and are still controlled by corporations and brands. But there’s a growing band of self-created celebrities such as Jenna and Pete Cashmore (founder ofMashable) who have made their mark independently through creative and astute use of social media.

It is critical that you plan your content e.g provide short key take-always that will benefit the viewer.

The footage doesn’t necessarily need to be in a chronological order. But it does need to be logical. My recommendation is to put your best pictures at the beginning – and you might say something to intrigue – anything to keep your viewer hooked!

Key messages are also vital along with the tone – which again depends on who your audience is. I can’t stress enough how important it is to decide who your video is aimed at before you even think about turning the camera on. Then you can decide if your video will be serious or humorous, light or dark, epic or understated.

Visuals also need to be fantastic, spokespeople engaging and not too corporate and if you want it go viral, then you need a creative, unusual idea.

Humour is also worth considering but be mindful of being cheesy!

Video production sounds so exciting doesn’t it? But the best videos involve the more mundane to begin with. First thing you need to do is make a plan – decide on a budget and a realistic timeline.

Producing an effective online video:

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You expect to produce a story board before we begin – that can either be in the form of pictures – or it can be told in words. Basically it sets the tone for the video so you can begin to imagine what the final product will be like.

A good production company or agency should be brimming with good ideas for the creative treatment of the video. And you should be given the opportunity to yay or nay them.

But before you even get that far you should be thinking WHAT YOU WANT THE VIDEO TO DO. Is it a sales tool? For brand awareness? For promoting a particular brand or service?

Image is a key thing to think about. What sort of im-age do you want to present?

Who will be the spokesperson – or presenter – will influence that. Do you want a professional voice over – which can sound slick and corporate but needs to be scripted in advance? Or do you prefer “real” peo-ple to tell the story – including perhaps the company’s employees. Male, female….ethnicity….young, old….accent or Queen’s English – it all makes a difference.

Location also really matters. Will you shoot it in your offices, or at a client’s? These would be all things that we’d ask at the beginning of a project – and we’d seek those permissions to film.

But it’s your video so you have to visualise

what you would like the end result to be

like.

Pictures are what make a video interesting though.

Back to back talking heads is dull. If there are lots of interviews pictures should be used over some of the interview clips too.

A corporate video is your video - so it can be as branded as you like. This is very different from PR generated video content where you cannot be too commercial. Branding can come in various forms – and we would recommend using them all. So the interviewees or script should mention the company and there should be visual checks too. Make sure your logo is featured where you shoot. If a company spokesperson is interviewed for the video then put the company name up on the screen, underneath the person’s name and title… Brand away!

Corporate Video:

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A word on statistics too…Try to keep stats and figures down to a limit – it’s not like a newspaper where people can re-read the content. If you do have to use a lot of numbers it’s better to use graphics than just refer to numbers verbally.

As for basic shooting tips, you want to keep your video interesting. Ten minutes of a static talking-head will be boring to most audiences. Think about the story you are trying to tell and the pictures that will help to tell that story. Is what you are shooting relevant to your story? Will your audience understand the relevance? And do you have enough picture other than your interviews – you’ll need plenty more than just interviewees to make an engaging video.

Shoot a variety of angles and shot types. Cut-aways and graphics are a great way break from the talking head, and will be helpful in covering any jump cuts you may have when editing. Remember, it’s always better to shoot too much, than to be wishing you had more options once you begin post production.

Know your audience – if you’re pitching smoothie drinks to sports fanatics the tone and content of your video will be quite different from a video aimed at city investors. A corporate video is a sales tool - and just in the same way your sales team would identify a customer you need to tailor your video accordingly.

Most of us are not naturals on screen - but thank goodness with corporate videos there’s editing! A good interviewer will try and make the interviewee relax. A natural conversational style is best. Certainly don’t let the interviewee try and learn a script!

Most people warm up during an interview. One of the things I’ve always done as a producer is to give the interviewee a couple of throw away questions -answers that I don’t want to use, but allow them a bit of time to get used to being on camera. If that doesn’t work I may ask them to repeat some answerstowards the end of the interview once they’ve warmed up.

Keep the video short – whether it’s going to be shown online, or at a trade show, most viewers have a short attention span. It’s amazing what you can say in a couple of minutes – and that’s the sort of time we’re talking about. You get 3 words to a second – so you can still say quite a lot, just say it succinctly! Less is very much more in this case.

Research shows viewers often switch off after viewing around a minute of video. So a good producer will think of some visual or audible change at that point – a bit of a wakeup call to the viewer to keep them engaged.

Video Advertorial:

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Online advertorials can take many forms – it could for example be a series of cooking videos featuring a particular brand or case studies of people recommending a particular product. I think ‘how to’ videos, such as cooking, applying make-up, DIY, etc work best.

Most mainstream online media outlets require that such content is clearly labelled or noted as such.

Many established media outlets are now producing “native content,” which is a new term for advertorials that note the sponsoring commercial interest(s) but, like such content in the past, presents the information as if it were produced to the same standards and for the same intentions as the non commercial content that appears around it.

Advertorials are in widespread use today, whether they’re called by that or any other names.

What sometimes doesn’t sit well with online users is that the piece is biased towards a product or opinion.

Some people may argue that if there’s something truly newsworthy about your company, product, people, or plans, it probably qualifies for actual news or feature coverage therefore its exposure doesn’t need to be bought. The key is how it is produced – subtlety is crucial and the content needs to be engaging well produced and polished.

An advertorial is a PR paid for ad created to appear as journalistic content, giving it credibility as appears to be non-marketing material.

Web television shows can be a one-off programme, a chat show or - like a regular TV series - broken up into episodes, each one around ten to thirty minutes long.They work particularly well for sensitive subjects, or, in the case of a web-chat, if you want interaction with a target audience.

Web TV allows clients to produce an entertaining programme, funded by them, ensuring key messages are conveyed without the constraints normally imposed by Ofcom.

Web TV:

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Webinars:Live webinars and events are a great way to reach an online audience. Once the event is over, many companies opt to release presentations as on-demand videos to be viewed online, extending the life of their webinar or event content.

Repurposing video content in this way is a good strategy. The only problem is that presentations like these tend to be LONG. It’s not uncommon for live webinars to last anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour.

So while posting presentations in their entirety can make sense you can get even more value by pulling out smaller easily consumable pieces and making them available as on-demand videos as well. That way, you can create short targeted content to extend the reach of your messaging with video, while maintaining your full-length presentations for lead generation after the event is over. Best of both worlds!

Web TV shows typically serve a very specificaudience and can establish personal connections with viewers.

If you’re keen to achieve editorial coverage for your story, but don’t want to pay for an advertorial then a news package or vodcast may be the way forward. A news package is usually a series of interview clips with a spokesperson or spokespeople along with lots of pictures that illustrate what they are saying. It would be shot and edited in a straight news style, with simple title graphics naming the interviewees and no music.

News Packages and Vodcasts:

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A vodcast is usually a jazzier version of a news package with more contemporary filming and editing techniques, music and graphics to make the piece more engaging.

The key to creating a successful news package or vodcast is not to overbrand the video as then websites will not run it as news. If journalists see the story as an advert then they will not run it as editorial content, so make sure that branding is kept to a minimum in order to maximise coverage.

EPKs (Electronic Press Kits) are press kits produced for use by broadcast and online media. TraditionallyEPKs consisted of a collection of interviews from film or music video shoots etc with key cast and crew members, and some behind the scenes footage, plus in some cases a selection of final film clips, and possibly a trailer. However, EPKs are now being filmed more widely by PRs at a range of events and stunts in order to maximise potential coverage for their brand.

EPK’S:

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EPKs are normally around 10 minutes long in total – though they are usually composed of different elements which may be two or three minutes long each. For example an EPK might include interview clips with talent, behind the scenes b-roll of the talent at a shoot, final clips from the show and an edited vodcast or news package for online. The footage is then distributed to online and/or broadcast media and uploaded to video sharing sites like YouTube and Vimeo. This makes it easy for bloggers to use/embed, and allows it to spread further.

When producing b-roll as part of your EPK package to send to the media don’t use any graphics on the b-roll, so the outlet can add their own. A common mistake is to put the title of the person speaking at the bottom of the screen – instead, use a title card (or slate) before or after to provide that information. If the video is branded with graphics, it may make it unusable for journalists or broadcasters.

To share video with the media in real-time, provide them with access to a .mov file on an FTP site so they can download it. Sending videos using sites like WeTransfer or Hightail can also be a good option, but remember that the higher quality a video file is, the bigger the file will be, and some sharing websites have a limit to the file sizes that you can send on them. Dropbox is another useful tool if you have lots of files or need a central folder for all project material.

A good broadcast PR agency or production company will have a designated distribution site where journalists can stream or down load a preview copy of each video file, and then download the full quality files once they have viewed the content in a lower (quicker to download) resolution.

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What can you expect to pay for a professional online video? Budget on a minimum spend of around £2,500 plus VAT. Be realistic and tell your suppliers what your budget is and let them make recommendations. Don’t be afraid to talk price as there are compromises that can be made, but be aware that extra costs can include graphics and music and that the more slick you want your video to look, the more it is likely to cost.

Budget: