collaboration

Why Video Content Matters

~ whiteknighthub ~ Leave a comment

If you have a business of any kind chances are that you could benefit by engaging in conversation with your current and future customers. Anyone can start a blog or post on social media, but what’s a little trickier is coming up with a strategy around what you’re saying, and finding a way to make sure people are paying attention.

If you want to make sure that the odds of a successful campaign are in your favor then you may want to consider including video in your mix. While today’s consumers are looking for relevant and useful information, they are less likely than ever to want to actually read long blocks of text. You only have three seconds in which to capture someone’s attention, and video helps to stack the odds in your favor.

It also allows you to create a personal connection with your audience and to show – not tell – what your business is all about. People still like doing business with those who they connect with, like and trust, and with video your authentic and true self can shine through.

But don’t just take my word for it. The anecdotal evidence and statistics speak for themselves. Social media posts with video are 1200% more likely to be shared, and according to Wirebuzz, viewers retain 95% of the message when they watch it in a video as opposed to just 10% when reading it in text. “How to” searches on YouTube have grown by more than 70% in the past year and will continue to increase, according to projections. That’s pretty impressive, especially as YouTube is already the second largest search engine.

You probably don’t need to be convinced that video is relevant, but how can you use it to grow your business? The possibilities are endless, really. You can introduce your staff or product, give a behind-the-scenes tour of your offices or showcase client testimonials. And if you don’t like being in front of the camera, there are dozens of ways to create videos that can keep you safely behind the scenes.

Because of the nature of our business we see successes just about every single day. I have a client that didn’t even have a YouTube channel a few months ago, and now, after a couple of months of Video Crisps content, she is coming up number one in a YouTube search. It’s exciting and it proves that there’s no time like the present to get started in making video work for you.

Elin Barton is the President of White Knight Productions and the host of the podcast, Ready, Set, Grit.  Her first book, Ready, Set, Grit: How to Turn Your Daydream Into a Phenomenal Success, will be released in the Fall of 2017. To find out more about how you can use video to grow your business visit our website.

Tribe it Up

~ whiteknighthub ~ 2 Comments

The other day I had lunch with my friend and fellow entrepreneur. We spoke candidly about some of the challenges in our respective businesses, and as we were getting ready to leave the restaurant she said to me, “I’m so relieved that I’m not the only one who goes through this stuff.”

That statement struck a cord with me because so often as entrepreneurs and small business owners we do feel like we have to figure everything out on our own, and that can be a very lonely position to take. The truth of the matter is, we have more in common than we realize. Even though we may be running businesses in different industries with our own very specific challenges, on a slightly higher level we are all the same.

We face issues and questions around cash flow, sales, employee recruitment and retention. We have to pay attention to marketing, advertising, culture and reputation. As our companies grow we most likely have a team in place to assist with many of these items, but ultimately, as a small business owner, the buck does stop with us.

But that doesn’t mean we have to go it alone.

Taking the time to intentionally seek out and build a support network for yourself is, I believe, key for the success of a business. At a minimum you may want to consider hiring a business coach or a mentor, but beyond that setting up a “mastermind” group of trusted peers will help you to keep challenges – and successes – in perspective.

Elin Barton is the President of White Knight Productions and the host of the podcast, Ready, Set, Grit.  Her first book, Ready, Set, Grit: How to Turn Your Daydream Into a Phenomenal Success, will be released in the Fall of 2017.

The Power of Video

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At White Knight we do a lot of things but one that we’re best at is making videos that tell compelling stories. Why is this important? I’ll get to the statistics later, but let’s start out with some anecdotal evidence that I’ve seen over the past ten years in this business.

For one thing, people do not like to read long blocks of text. We all know that attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, but what many people don’t realize is that the preferred way to receive information is through the multi-sensory experience of a video.

Also, videos are one of the best ways to showcase your passion and personality. Even with our increasing interest in working in the digital space (often remotely) we still crave personal attention and want to do business with people we like and trust. In many service businesses there is simply no substitute for that human element in the form of excellent customer service and partnership. How better to show your clients who you are than through video?

Strategy matters: Even though it’s easy to create and put up videos on your sites, you must remain aware of your overall goals, strategy and tactics, and make sure the video content is working for you. There is nothing wrong with using videos that are more “raw” and authentic, to give your viewers a glimpse into your company in a unique way (such as a behind-the-scenes view of your space). However, it is imperative that all of your videos reflect your overall brand and messaging, and present a professional view of your organization.

Have you heard about Video Crisps yet? If not, then check out this video for a brief overview. Then keep reading for some awesome statistics.

 

 

Here are some statistics that you might find interesting, especially if you’re thinking about making video a more central piece of your marketing content.

  1. Marketers who use video grow revenue 49% faster than non-video users (VidYard)
  2.  People spend on average 2.6x more time on pages with video than without (Wistia)
  3. 52% of marketing professionals worldwide name video as the type of content with the best ROI (Syndacast)
  4. Snapchatters watch 10 billion videos a day (AdWeek)
  5.  500 million people are watching videos on Facebook every day (TubularInsights)
  6. 4x as many customer would rather watch a video about a product than read about it (Animoto)
  7.  Almost 50% of internet users look for videos related to a product or service before visiting a store (ThinkWithGoogle)
  8.  52% of marketers believe that video is effective for brand awareness (WowMakers)
  9.  59% of executives agree that if both text and video are available on the same topic, they are more likely to choose video (MWP)
  10. 65% of video viewers watch more than ¾ of a video (Syndacast)

If all of this has convinced you that you could be doing more with video to help drive your business forward, email us to set up a time to chat about how we can help you. Or check out our website for more information about how you can get started today.

 

 

Stronger Together

~ whiteknighthub ~ Leave a comment

Indisputable Truth: The solution to a problem is often right in front of you but cannot be teased out without some creativity and thought.

I recently participated in a workshop where we were presented with a problem involving rare pheasant eggs. This supplier has a certain price that he needs to get for his eggs, as there is a limited supply and his boss is pressuring him to come back with at least a certain dollar amount. Three buyers come forward with offers on the eggs but none are offering enough to satisfy the boss’ requirements.

One buyer wants only some of the eggs because a limited amount of the shells for a pharmaceutical product his company produces. Another buyer wants to sell the eggs in very high end restaurants where they are made into a special meringue-like delicacy and the other buyer wants to buy all the eggs for a nutritional supplement that his company makes, but he is not authorized to spend as much as the seller needs to receive.

Negotiations ensue but are guaranteed lukewarm success unless one thing happens. Have you guessed it yet? It’s a creative solution and requires a level of cooperation, but because all the buyers actually need a different part of the eggs, it is feasible that everyone could work together to get what they want and the seller can over-deliver to his boss on the money front, thereby guaranteeing himself a nice fat bonus.

Now, before some smarty pants comments on this blog about any technical reason that the above scenario couldn’t work, I ask you to please not bother. That really isn’t the point. I’m not an expert on eggs, nor do I wish to be, but what I do know about is strategic partnerships and cooperation. And after I started to change my business strategy to that of a lone wolf to an expert collaborator and partner, everything really start to shift for me in a very positive direction.

Any small to medium sized business person will tell you: life can be very lonely when you’re trying to run your business. You most likely have limited resources and are wearing a few too many hats. And trying to carve out your slice of the pie in a crowded marketplace can prove to be very challenging, to say the least.

This is where strategic partners can come in and become an important part of your high-level plan for sales and growth. If you can identify other businesses with complimentary products or services to your own, and come up with a plan that both sides benefit by, it becomes an attractive prospect to consider. Sure, it may take come creativity as in the egg example, and you may even find yourself working together with one-time rivals, but if you’re open to experiencing the magic of partnerships and collaboration you may quickly see how your influence can quickly extend to a whole new sphere of people that you may not have had access to before.

Now, of course I probably don’t need to explain to you what the word “strategic” means. Partnerships of any kind are never something that I would enter into lightly. There are a million reasons why they may not work, and whenever you do anything like this, I would strongly suggest a lawyer looks over any agreements that you decide to abide by.

But for all of the potential headache or risk, I would still contend that strategic partnerships are well worth exploring. If you can find other companies whose services dovetail or compliment your own, and either become an affiliate seller of those services, or if the two of you agree to team up and work together you will most likely find that your company is quickly getting in front of customers that you would not have been able to serve on your own. And in that exposure lies enormous potential and opportunity for growth – for both you and your partners. And that, my friends, is a beautiful thing.