Its been a hectic couple of weeks here at And hence no blogs for a while!

We have been doing some research into the latest statistics for online video marketing – looking at the benefits to our clients and thought it only fair really to share this with you guys. Our findings have been astounding.

When And was created back in 2009, we knew that there was a huge market for online film, and we could see it growing. What we didnt anticipate, was how much it would grow.

FACT: Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL are among the hundreds of search engines that give   priority listings to websites that host video content. In addition to this, you can build in ‘tags’ on the video and this enhances it’s potential on the internet.

FACT: The number of people viewing video on mobile devices has increased 66 percent in the past year to 12.1 million mobile consumers across the EU5 countries (U.K., France, Germany, Spain and Italy).

FACT: 5.5 billion videos were watched in the UK in February 2010.

FACT: In March 2009, 80.1 percent of the total UK Internet audience viewed online video.

FACT: More than 27.4 million UK Internet users (78% of the total UK Internet audience) viewed 3.2 billion videos online in June 2008.

FACT: In 2008, 16.46 million UK households had Internet access. This represented 65 per cent of households and an increase of 1.23 million households since 2007.

FACT: Almost 85 million viewers (84.8 to be exact) watched 4.3 billion videos (Thats “B’ as in BILLION!) on YouTube, alone!

FACT: Viral video marketing campaigns increase clickthrough rates by 750%.

FACT: 68% of people who watch online videos, will in turn, pass links for these videos onto their friends…turning them into viral traffic machines.

FACT: More than 65% of the people who watch online videos are between the ages of 35 and 64 (and 67% of these folks earn middle to high incomes).

Really fascinating isn’t  it!? Give us a shout to find out how And can advise you further.

Cheers,

Heather- Producer, And Productions Limited.

Sources: MarketingExperiments.com, November 2006, comScore, 2008 – 2010 and National Statistics Office

If you’ve been on Facebook over the last few days then you’ll have no doubt seen the latest craze sweeping through the social media platform; ‘The Museum of Me’. This very clever little interactive campaign has been designed by Intel to promote their new Core i5 processor.

The app invites you to create your own virtual museum of your social life. Upon connecting to Facebook (where you will have to agree to allow the app access to all of your personal data) the application pulls a broad range of information: friends, likes, wall posts, videos etc, and loads them into a beautifully designed virtual museum of you.

The result: A 3 minute video tour through your museum, taking you through rooms which display different elements of your social media life. It’s quite strange to see your social media persona displayed so well, with your friends photos neatly displayed on the museum walls, and a video wall of you likes and status updates, but we have to say this is a beautiful example of a very clever tool.

You can create your own museum here, one thing we will say is although this is one of the best promotions that utilises Facebook integrations we’ve come across, we wonder how many of the end users will really think ‘Intel Core i5, that’s the processor for me!’ after seeing it….

Giggs has now launched legal proceedings against Twitter itself and various ‘persons unknown’ who named him on Twitter, for being in breach of the injunction (which, in our opinion, makes him look worse!) and indeed the High Court has thus far not overturned the injunction, despite the fact that every person, every media organisation and even MP’s are talking about it. Which begs the question, how can these types of laws be maintained in the digital age? Can individuals who tweet or blog be accountable under the same laws that the media are, and what does this mean for freedom of speech on the micro-blogging site?

At first everyone assumed that Twitter would be safe, as a US company the UK courts have no jurisdiction over it. It turns out however that Twitter may have to now react. Head of European operations Tony Wang has said:

“If we’re legally required to turn over user information, to the extent that we can, we want to notify the user involved – let them know and let them exercise their rights under their own jurisdiction.” So basically, if they are ordered to hand over user account details they may have no choice, but they would notify the account holder in question first to let them know what is happening and give them the chance to defend themselves.

“Platforms should have responsibility not to defend the user, but to protect that user’s right to defend him or herself,” said Wang. Fair play to Twitter we think.

Of course, there’s no way that all the users in question could possibly be indentified and sued, and let’s not forget, it’s easy enough to set up a Twitter account with a temporary email address, block your IP and use public networks to upload, making the whole ‘give us the users!’ argument pretty defunct.

For the law makers it’s now a case of having to review the way that these laws are made and enforced. The globalised nature of Twitter, and the huge viral capacity of its content, means that you can’t keep a cat in the bag for long, or necessarily prosecute those who flaunt it successfully. Of course on the flip side of this, some information is hidden from the public for good reason; we’re not talking football affairs here, but sensitive security information, for example.

And so the debate rattles on, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on events as they unfold…but for now we’ll keep on tweeting.

Interactive video takes video marketing and viral campaigns to a whole new level, allowing for direct interaction from the end user, and allowing for some really interesting campaigns. At first this technique was mainly pioneered by amateur film makers just for fun, however a range of brands are now starting to use this interesting technology to great effect.

so, what makes a good interactive video, and does it work?

Some content can be made interactive simply with some clever thinking. Take for instance the great Skittles Touch the Rainbow campaign. This series of virals have been shot so that the action takes place around a point on the screen where you place your finger. Simply place your finger on the screen and watch the action happen around you! This series was made without deploying any of the annotation tools that are now in place, demonstrating how you can develop a really clever interactive viral simply by planning the creative with that thought in mind.

If you want to take things a step further, you can use the annotations to place additional content, links and time coding into your video. This is a tool that exists in YouTube, so it is a case of adding these additional elements in post production, however, to really get the best from these tools your video should be planned and shot around how you will add annotations at the editing stage.

Annotations can be speech bubbles, menus, commentary, links to other videos (great for creating multiple-ending stories) or time code links within the main clip.

Here’s a great example from Save the Children which demonstrates simply and effectively how annotations work. This video was designed to utilise the annotation tools right from the off, and is a simple yet effective campaign. You the viewer, are uncovering the core messages of the charity as you watch, as with most great charity campaigns, it’s simple yet highly effective.

Another annotation tool is time coding. This is where you create hyperlinks within the video that link to different points in the content. Here is a good example of time coding at work.

If you watch the clip from start to finish, you’ll notice that each ‘rhythm’ is played through in sequence. Each of the clickable pads on the right is linked to a different point in the video, meaning you can switch from one sound to another to create your own combination of sounds, all without leaving the main video.

creating narrative.

Annotations can be used to place links to other sites and videos as well, which works really well when creating ‘you control the story’ style campaigns. In this example, a range of different story lines are shot are loaded on to YouTube, plot options are added into the videos, hyper linking to the different scenarios to create a fully controllable narrative.

There are hundreds of great examples of these, however we think this one, which was commissioned by London Metropolitan Police to demonstrate the dangers of knife culture, really shows how effective these types of campaigns can be, and is a great vehicle for reaching their target demographic.

Of course, we have barely touched on the thousands of creative ways that annotations and interactive content have been deployed here, however its easy to see from these few clips just how many creative avenues this technology can lead too, and how, with a bit of clever thinking, your viral can engage with your target audience like never before.

So to leave you, here are a few more of our favourite interactive videos.

If you want to find out more about using this exciting platform in your campaigns then drop us a line on hello@andproductions.co.uk, or call 01604 704101

This interactive video allows you to play the base by using the number keys – for a treat let it load fully, press play and then type this sequence:

1543285432854342.

You may need to load in Youtube to get the full effect.

The infamous Tippex bear- Please be aware of the language in this one if at work!

An finally, here is a link to an amazing card trick, really, we can’t work it out!

http://youtu.be/tbEei0I3kMQ

Without doubt one of the most famous viral successes ever, comes in the form of Susan Boyle and the clip of her audition from the 2009 show. Hailed as one of the biggest YouTube successes ever, Boyles rendition of ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ was a global phenomenon. Appearing on the show on the 9^th April, some statistics claim that via the main YouTube video- and the addition of other videos referencing the original (a topic we’ll be covering in a few weeks time), her performance had been viewed over 100 million times within three weeks. Numbers on a global scale which really demonstrate how, thanks to the internet and viral marketing, the number of people who saw her audition was multiplied ten times over from the original show stats. The main audition clip alone has now seen over 65 million hits since it was first launched on the web 2 years ago.

Interestingly, this particular clip, the highest ranking on YouTube, was not uploaded by Britain’s got talent directly; the version on the official Britain’s got talent YouTube channel ‘only’ has just under 17 million hits, and is second on the most viewed with Natalie Okri enjoying nearly double the amount of hits. What this demonstrates is that the Britain’s Got Talent producers were perhaps slow to realise the huge viral potential of this type of content, and indeed of the great range of characters that talent shows attract.

Not this year though, the team at BGT have well and truly jumped on the viral bandwagon, keen to ensure that any ‘viral phenomenon’s’ that come from this year’s show have been maximised with branding potential. Clips from the show are on the YouTube channel within a day of airing, complete with an edited-on intro and watermarked web address of the main BGT website. The YouTube channel is fully skinned with the show’s graphics and images of the presenters. What’s more, head over to the main talent.ITV.com website and you’ll find a full range of YouTube embedded videos on the site, offering maximum brand integration between the primary site and the YouTube channel. This is one year that will see any internet success kept firmly in the hands of the producers, thus driving the ‘Got talent’ brand on a global scale, with copycat versions being syndicated in a range of countries across the globe.

The YouTube integration has been taken a step further this year. For the first time ever applicants have been able to audition directly via YouTube, thus laying the seed for YouTube integration before the main program has even started. What’s more, this type of function ensures that the interactivity between viewer and content, which is such a core element of the success of these types of shows, is taken to a new level, driving brand penetration even further, and it has ensured a great range of viral ready clips created by the viewer that requires no input from the BGT brand, yet still directly promotes it, clever stuff.

But, lining Simon Cowell’s pockets aside, what is it that makes this type of content so viral friendly? It’s simple really; we all like to see normal people do extraordinary things. Would Susan Boyle have been such a hit if she looked like Elle McPherson? Probably not. We love to see an underdog do well, and equally the strange and bizarre, and of course the downright ridiculous, are prime viral fodder. Look back to a time when ‘virals’ were an organic thing, before the marketers got hold of it, and you’ll find the most successful videos are those that feature ordinary people having some kind of wow factor, be it because they have an amazing gift, or are pure comedy. The formula hasn’t changed, content is king in the YouTube stakes, and BGT have demonstrated how to take that formula and brand it to within an inch of its life. A prefect recipe for a commercial brand achieving viral domination.

Want to know more about how viral marketing can help drive your brand profile? Drop us a line to find out more via hello@andproductions.co.uk or call 01604 704101

Some of our Favourtie BGT clips: (who interestingly have disabled access to the embedding code on most clips, another example of trying to keep everything on brand?)

An amazing body popper from last year’s series, look at him go!

http://www.youtube.com/user/BritainsGotTalent09#p/u/6/2GE2V1qyYFE

Worst stand up comedian ever – really, she is awful!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGQHKVdEGJ4

Animals always seem to get the public on side:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J18qJO1x3Z0&NR=1

Singer Edward Reid brings a touch of comedy to his performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HbCdrRU4_0

We have however been able to embed this gem from ‘So you think you can Dance’ – A Friday treat, enjoy!

from script to screen

So what do we do? And Productions are a full creative film production company. That means we cover everything from script to screen. Literally. A production house like And are able to manage every aspect of your film project. We think about strategically working your film into all campaigns that you are undertaking and how to find a best fit with your brand. We don’t just produce a film and leave you to get it ‘out there’, that’s unless you want us to of course…

video marketing

This is where our expertise really stands out; we understand how to marry film and web perfectly to create great video marketing campaigns. Video marketing is one the most proven, and measurable communication tools available, and what’s more you don’t have to have a huge budget to deliver a really great campaign.

Whether you are planning a social media viral, or a film to sit alongside a multi-strand marketing campaign, we are experts in ensuring your video really works for you. Video content can increase web click through’s by up to 750%, and when you look at the ROI, video is generally the most cost effective and impactful marketing tool available. In today’s multi-media age, the question is really; can you afford not to use film in your communications strategy?

project management

One of our first tasks with any new project is to understand what your goals are, both commercially and creatively, and we ensure we understand exactly what you hope to achieve from your project. Everything from here on in, regardless of how complex the film itself is, should link back to these goals. We have the experience to know what will and won’t work, and will be on hand to advise and guide your project to ensure you get the best solution for your needs. We pride ourselves on having hands-on project management, ensuring we consider every element of your film and keep the project on track and within budget. As a full service production company we take care of every single element of your project, and we have a bank of hugely experienced technical and creative staff on call.

great creative

Here’s where the fun starts Great films start with great concepts, so even if you have no idea how to communicate your message, we’ll be here to deliver the creative kick needed to ensure your film is compelling and engaging (or funny, or emotive, or educational, remember our creative comes from your goals). From devising the concepts, to script writing, scene planning, set design and casting, we work with you to manage all the creative elements of your film, and we have a broad network of talented people to call on. What’s more we’re always sensitive to your target audience, and our concepts will reflect this.

film, cut, audio, edit

Once filming is wrapped it’s on to one of the most technical and important parts of the whole film process, the edit. Our in-house editing facilities are state of the art, and we can use a range of techniques to make the final edit something really special. What’s more we’ll handle laying the audio, music sourcing, and graphics and effects as needed, ensuring the final result is visually everything you want it to be. We can even do multiple versions as required, and will communicate with you every step of the way. What’s more, ALL of our work is full HD as standard, making it broadcast ready if needed.

why video marketing?

Simple:

• Video marketing, and video content, is proven to be one of the most effective ways to communicate with your target audience.

• A few minutes of video can tell your audience the same amount of information that it would take a 20-page document to achieve (and that’s if you can even get people to read it).

• Video content can increase web click through rates by up to 750%

• 68% of people who watch video online will then pass links to these videos to their friends, creating a viral marketing machine.

• This is the most cost effective, measurable marketing and brand positioning tool you can lay your hands on.

some of our work

We have worked with a range of clients, big and small. From international product launches, to highly targeted charity campaigns, we have been able to provide film production services and marketing and social media expertise to a range of brands, and are proud to have worked on some amazing projects. Have a look at some of our latest work here.

want to know more?

If you want to find out more about why film is the right marketing choice for you, then all we ask is that you spare 30-45 minutes of your time. We can come to you, and spend a bit of time getting to know you, you organisation, and what you hope to achieve. We’ll be able to explain in more detail how we are able to make video marketing work for you and just why it’s so effective, and all we ask is for a cup of tea in return.

Drop us a note on hello@andproductions.co.uk or call us on 01604 704101

First up- the Good.

This viral has been produced by flashmob experts T-mobile. This time round they pick up on the trend for ‘best wedding dance videos’ and give it a royal twist. We really were blown away with this hommage to Wills and Kate’s big day:

Our favourite has got to be the Arch Bishop of Canterbury, and good old prince Harry. A perfect viral that’s topical and funny. There is also a great behind the scenes video to support the campaign, explaining the thought process behind this online viral, produced in partnership with Saatchi and Saatchi, and choreographed, apparently, by Louis Spence!

The Funny: Kate Middleton sings ‘The Royal Heir’

This comedy song, produced by Alice Bason and Ally Potter had us in pieces! Watch out for Kate begging for the royal wedding fund.

The Bizzare – Knit Your Own Royal Wedding – Directors Cut

We’re not really sure what is going on with this one. Apparatly there has been a ‘Knit your own Royal Wedding’ phenomenon that we have missed, either way, this viral is just Bizzare, although the queen does have some good moves.

The Cool – Lego Royal Wedding.

The guys at lego world have been busy building a full hommage to the royal day, in lego! Not so much a royal viral, but some pretty impressive lego building nether the less.

Hopefully that should be plenty to get you in the mood for the big day! If you’ve come across any other great royal wedding virals we’d love to see them. Pop over to our Facebook page and get posting.

Have a great day, the And Productions team.

This very in-depth flash based interactive game allows you to control the ‘Magnum Woman’ (we are of course talking ice cream here) as she hunts the internet seeking pleasures and collecting bonbons. The aim of the game is to collect as many bonbons as you can in the best time possible, and to keep the game interesting for multiple-play there are lots of hidden jumps and tricks that can be discovered. The playability is great, with lots of little quirks thrown in as our character moves through an internet of pleasures. From the character running through a YouTube video, to driving a Saab out of their website graphic, there are nonstop surprises as you move through the game play. What really makes this campaign stand out however is the great use of brand integration, the way the film content is brought to life via the flash platform, and its viral capacity.

brand integration

As our character moves through the internet on the search for bonbons, we are taken through a variety of ‘websites’ of leading luxury brands. Everyone from Dove, to Saab to Samsung to Spotify is represented in this viral. These are of course mock-ups of each brands websites that are integrated into the flash design, but the concept itself is fantastic, the idea being that the internet is full of pleasures to be sought out. The detail of the design of each of the brands platforms is incredible, with embedded video content, complex graphics and full brand identity, making this one of the best multi-brand campaigns we have come across.

design and video integration

What makes the game so visually stunning is the way that film elements are used. The main character is real, and would have been filmed on green screen before being integrated into the flash game, and there are character interactions and close up’s of her as she reaches different elements in the game. The marrying of these elements ensures that you feel as if you are floating through the internet, where you would find video content, as opposed to being in a flash game, and helps to give the whole campaign a highly polished feel.

viral and social media integration

Of course the sheer wow factor and playability of this game make its viral potential great, it’s something you would want to pass on to your friends. Upon completion you have the option to post your results directly to Twitter or Facebook, meaning there is a good basic level of social media integration. However when you visit the Magnum Facebook page the ‘Pleasure Hunt’ campaign is a few tabs down rather than the first thing you see, which is surprising when you think about how much time and money it would have taken to create. You can however challenge your friends to beat you on Facebook, meaning that the viral potential is undoubtedly there, and with the buzz we have seen on Twitter over the last week it’s safe to say that this campaign is already a huge hit.

What makes this campaign stand out for us is the way that each of the individual elements is so perfectly executed. The film integration is really well done, the creative is very well thought out, and the brand partnerships make it a real groundbreaker. It’s a great example of how an integrated digital campaign that marries all of these elements will stand far above something that stands alone.

And Productions has partnered with a range of other digital creative’s to help marry film and other creative strands to create multi-tiered campaigns. Drop us a line if you want to find out more.

See the campaign here

i’ll have a go at that!

There are countless examples of perfectly executed film campaigns, and, of course there are thousands of failures that never see the light of day. With the advent of YouTube and other video broadcasting websites, and the ease of hosting videos, huge swells of productions are undertaken every day. With film technology becoming more and more affordable to the consumer, (a HD camcorder is a 5^th of the price now as it was 3 or 4 years ago) many budding marketers and film makers are thinking, hang on, I can master this film malarkey, it can’t be that complicated can it?

Well, in truth, yes it can! We come across badly produced films every day in our line of work, and if you want your company to be taken seriously, and you want to get a return on investment from your film project, you really do need to get the professionals in. If you have an idea that you want to turn into a successful film, it takes knowledge and experience to make that vision come to life. Of course you can tap into the amateur market, which is fine if you want something cheap and simple- but remember, if that’s how you choose to appoint your film maker, than that’s very likely to be what your end product is too, cheap and simple.

so why use a production house?

We speak to people all the time who come to us with a concept for a film project, and often they may have had a quote from a ‘man with a camera’ or a friend of a friends great aunties second cousin who is a budding film enthusiast. One of our main goals is to work with them to understand, what is it you’ve been quoted on here? As an experienced production company we know there are lots of hidden costs in film productions that amateur film makers, not for the want of trying, fail to anticipate. The end result? You spend twice as much as anticipated, cut corners and the final product is not what you envisioned. It’s important to remember – All of your target audience are film experts. They may not realise it, but thanks to the multi-media age we live in, we can all spot poor editing or bad set design, or a bad sound recording a mile off.

A Production company does much more than sort you out a camera man (although we do know some rather lovely ones). A good production house is effectively your management team, working with you to project manage every detail of your film project. From helping you hone your creative concepts, to script development, to location sourcing, to casting, directing and editing. A good producer will plan your project scene by scene. They will know what areas you can take shortcuts on, and what areas must be perfect. A producer thinks about the final edit, taking time to offer fantastic creativity as well as practicality. They understand the logistical and technical requirements, and of course the very important legal requirement s and health and safety laws that any commercial film project must adhere too. What’s more they have valuable contacts that can be utilised on your project.

Aside from the planning (which, trust us, must be done to extreme detail) your producer will be able to manage the shoot process itself, pulling all the many functions together to ensure the project is kept on time and on budget. Your producer is your key point of contact throughout the project and will trouble shoot anything that could go wrong. They take every single aspect, all those little things you probably wouldn’t have considered into account, quite simply because they have the experience to do so.

so why go with a production company?

It’s simple really; it’s about having professional project management, skills, contacts, experience and creativity to bring your ideas to life. Making a film without a producer is like building a house without an architect (and Grand Design fans all know how that can end). In the long run, you’ll spend more time and money for, often, a lesser product, and you’ll wish you went to the experts all along.  In short, it’s a false economy. Like with any professional service, you get what you pay for.

Let And Productions show you what we’re all about, get in touch for an informal chat and we’ll show you just why, when it comes to film production, we’re the bee’s knees.

Although, of course, ad-hoc projects will always crop up throughout the year, it’s important to develop a clear marketing plan. This should be done before you even look at divvying up your budget into specific areas. In developing a marketing plan you should be able to have a clear vision for what you want your marketing and communication activity to achieve:

• Are you pushing some specific projects or launches this year?
• Is there a healthy mix of customer retention v’s new business generation?
• Do you have a clear brand indentify and is this carried through all of your communication channels?

These are just some of the questions you need to be asking, and of course once you have indentified what your objectives are, it’s important to ask, what gives me the best ROI?

One of the things we always discuss with our customers when it comes to a film project, is how is this project going to be integrated into the rest of your communications strategy? Of course, video can work great as standalone communication tool. You may be making a corporate video to play at a conference, or to sit on your website, or you may have a product you want to show off, and a simple film can achieve your goals. However when it comes to video marketing, a combined strategy can propel your film far and above a project that stands alone.

So what do we mean by having a combined strategy? Well it comes down to planning a multi-tiered communications model – to put it simply:

Film + E Marketing + Web Advertising + Social Media Integration + Direct Mail etc.

It’s about have a single message and using all of your communication tools to deliver that message. One of the great things about video is the way you can deliver a message that speaks directly to your audience, its sticks in the mind, triggers emotions, and ultimately can influence buying decisions in a much more direct way then traditional communication tools. People want to see something before they read something. By developing an integrated strategy you can maximise the impact of your film by driving further traffic to your video, and by repeating its core messages throughout the rest of your marketing activity- giving you much more impact.

What’s more, the return on investment from video marketing can, and is, so much more fruitful than just using stand alone traditional marketing channels. Why? Because its 100% measureable.

With the ongoing continued growth in multi-media, web use and social media use, film more now than ever before should be at the heart of your communications strategy. And Productions are experts in video marketing; what’s more, we are able to work in partnership with your internal marketing departments, or your existing marketing agency, to help you develop a combined communications strategy with film at its heart, giving you the best possible return on investment.

Drop us a line to find out more.