Client Spotlight: Fifth Gear

Now here’s a company that gets it! Fifth Gear recently asked us to produce a marketing video for its home page to help promote the company’s new brand.

[click here to watch]

“Our first thought was ‘let’s do it ourselves,’” says Kim Brandt, who heads Fifth Gear’s Marketing operations. “But, we realized that with a new brand, we needed a professional approach. We needed to tell a story – something more than a casual walk-through of our warehouse.”

The Indianapolis based company provides e-commerce support, such as packaging, order processing, shipping and marketing, to online retailers. To give clients a “behind the scenes” look at its Missouri warehouse, FPS shot, wrote and edited a 60-second video showcasing its operations and employees.

“All of our clients are e-commerce. It’s important to show them that we’re using the same tools that they’re using,” says Brandt, who explained that the video was just one component of Fifth Gear’s SEO efforts. “We looked at a lot of companies before hiring Focal Point Studios and ultimately chose Brien because of his location in Indianapolis. It was important to us to be able to meet face-to-face and the production process was very smooth.”

Stay tuned: Fifth Gear has at least three more in the works.

Use Video. But, not just any video.

There are many different approaches used with video production, but most projects share the same goals: to engage, educate and motivate viewers. The right professional will help you figure out what style works best and what will be most effective in telling your story.

Engage

Video needs to grab viewers’ attention. In today’s busy cyber-world, we need to work quickly – sometimes we have only seconds to grab the viewers’ attention and keep them from leaving your website. Experienced creative services professionals know how to identify your target audience and then connect with those viewers by using a combination of music, video, sound bites, narration, natural sound, graphics.

Educate

This is about telling your story. Whether your selling a product or service, fundraising, or training employees, you need to inform viewers – and the message must resonate with them and be clearly communicated. The right professional begins by getting to know you and your company – so he or she can then effectively use the right approach and techniques to tell your story. Some professionals have been telling stories for years and, quite simply, just know what works.

Motivate

In other words: moved to action. Buy your product, hire your firm’s services, give money to your case, etc… There ‘s lots consider: should you use emotional sound bites? Include narration? Fast paced editing? What type of music? Professionals experienced in using various different techniques know what elements will best motivate viewers to go the next step and “buy into” whatever you’re selling or promoting.

Some people choose to shoot and edit their own video to save money. And, that’s OK, if it works. But, if a video is done incorrectly - if it’s missing basic storytelling techniques, if it doesn’t produce results - it gets expensive in the long run, if you have to then hire a professional to get the job done correctly. If you are looking for professional help, choose a creative services firm that has a comprehensive understanding of the marketing process – to best communicate your message using the appropriate tools and technology.

If you haven’t been convinced that your business needs video on its website yet, consider this:

• Video in email can increase click-through rates as much as 2-3 times
• 84% of Americans watch online video and in Nov 2010 alone, that equaled 5.1 billion video sessions
• When there’s video on a homepage, up to 80% of visitors will click that first, so it better be good!

Video is the buzz, especially with Social Media. According to comScore – a leader in measuring the digital world – video is the “sleeping giant” of 2011. Among some people, there’s a sense of urgency to get video posted on Facebook pages, websites, and You Tube. I don’t disagree. I just believe it can’t be any video. It’s needs to be good.