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Summer 2009 |
Greetings Greg, |
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Cramer News
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Cramer Partners With Unisfair To Provide Unrivaled Content To Industry Leading Virtual Event PlatformCramer, a digital marketing and event solutions agency, recently announced a partnership with Unisfair, the leader in virtual events and virtual environments for business, to better serve clients who demand a custom, easy-to-navigate virtual event experience. Online virtual events utilize rich media, including video, audio and animation all within an immersive 3D graphic environment as a way to replicate the experiential qualities of live, face-to-face events. “At a time when the value of traditional marketing campaigns is diminishing, our collaboration with Cramer is increasingly relevant,” said Stu Schmidt, Global VP of Sales, Unisfair. “Our proven technology combined with Cramer’s ability to develop creative content will deliver more engaging online experiences for businesses that will translate into real results.” As a strategic partner of Unisfair, Cramer delivers an end-to-end digital marketing and creative content solution for virtual events. From audience acquisition and messaging strategies to creative development and execution of media production and content, Cramer provides comprehensive solutions for the creation of an engaging virtual event. “We have built our business and reputation by delivering creative and effective event content,” said Phil Collyer, Senior Vice President, Creative Services, Cramer. “Utilizing the rich tools and flexible platform that Unisfair provides, Cramer adds the energy and passion of a live event to the virtual platform in extraordinary ways. Virtual meetings and events demand a unique approach to content creation in order to be entertaining and effective, and we are taking Cramer’s 25 years of experience in event and digital solutions and applying it to this challenge.”
About Unisfair Unisfair has powered over 500 virtual events for enterprise clients including Cisco Systems, IBM, SAP and KPMG; and for media clients including Forbes, Economist, CMP, Rogers Publishing and Penton Media. Unisfair is privately held with headquarters in Menlo Park, California and offices in New York and Israel. Cramer Kicks Off Virtual Event Offering With A Highly Successful 2-day Program With AribaCramer is pleased to announce the overwhelming success of its first large-scale virtual event. This program officially marks the first joint effort between Cramer and their virtual event partner Unisfair. The two industry leaders recently completed a strategic partnership agreement that will deliver the highest quality, easy-to-navigate virtual event experiences. As a result, they combined to craft a custom program, “Ariba Virtual Live 2009,” that featured keynote presentations, opening videos, custom animated speaker introductions, real-time question and answer sessions, breakout sessions and educational forums, complete archiving of all content, and real-time and online networking opportunities. Ariba, Inc., an industry leader in spend management solutions based in Pittsburgh, PA, entrusted Cramer to help create"Ariba Virtual Live 2009"to augment and maximize their Ariba Live World Tour 2009. The initial program goal was to replicate their annual customer conference, “Ariba Live,” which had been planned originally as an in-person event in Nashville for late April. The “Ariba Live World Tour” along with the virtual live event is proving to be an ideal combined strategy to give their customers the most complete hybrid experience. “We are thrilled with the entire program from top to bottom. Cramer did an amazing job and delivered on every key value proposition,” said Traci Oziemblowsky, Ariba’s Senior Manager of Corporate Events. “This was our first comprehensive virtual event program, and the synergy between Cramer and Unisfair was obvious. They took our virtual environments, videos and the whole program to a level we did not know was possible. We are extremely pleased with the results.” The program was open to the public and featured an easy (but highly secure) registration process. Advance notice to the event held on April 28th & 29th was kick-started with a video invitation from Ariba’s Chief Marketing Officer, Tim Minahan, encouraging all to attend. Ariba Virtual Live registered more than 2,600 attendees prior to the April 28th launch, and more than 1,600 people attended on both days with an average viewing time of three hours and 45 minutes per guest. Because of the detailed analytics associated with the execution of the program, Ariba reached thousands of key customers and received tremendous lead generation results—exceeding even their most optimistic projections. The archived content is easily accessed via this link: http://www.ariba.com/aribalive/2009/why_virtual_ve.cfm Cramer, long-known as an industry leader in live-streaming webcasts, has clearly taken the content creation aspect of a virtual event to the next level. “It is great to have a client like Ariba who was new to the virtual event space and see a result that superseded their highest expectations,” said Peter Gentile, Cramer Account Director. “This program featured almost every component of an in-person event, keynote speakers, guest speakers, breakouts, videos, networking, questions and answer sessions—you name it and it was on display. To see it work so well is very rewarding for us as a service provider, but it’s even better to see a completely satisfied client get such a great return on their investment.” Best Practices In VideoDespite the many recent technological innovations and cutting-edge advancements in how businesses and people communicate, there is one medium that continues to be the most effective, versatile and economical—video. Granted, there are more networking tools and electronic communications channels available now than at any other time in history. Whether it is social media forums like Facebook, Twitter or specified blog sites, a multichannel marketing/communications campaign or high-end digital marketing program—people and corporations are exploring the best ways to get their messages across faster, clearer and with more compelling sophistication than ever before. The fact remains that people “know” and “learn” best from what they see. Video remains the single most dependable audio/visual medium for messaging. It is at the core of every major visual communications platform, and now more than ever, it can be produced in flexible applications to support any technological advances in, by far, the most economical fashion. Video is a solution that is being utilized in a wide variety of ways in conjunction with numerous ground breaking technologies, yet despite these innovations the cost of deploying video to achieve corporate marketing goals and initiatives is actually going down. This is especially true in the case of businesses looking for the best ways to archive content in “On Demand” capabilities and in building out virtual environments and solutions. The challenging economy is forcing most companies to investigate ways of increasing overall marketing performance, or at a minimum, maintaining what they have already established, despite decreasing budgets and cancelled face-to-face marketing and meeting programs. The ideal scenario is for companies to maximize exposure to clients and customers who can’t attend these programs in person, or come up with an alternative method of getting information disseminated when a face-to-face program has been cancelled entirely. There are four main solutions to help achieve the essence of a live event program, when the event itself has been eliminated due to budget and other factors. The common thread for all of these methods involves video being captured, edited and then archived for use long after the information has been produced. These four solutions are Video On Demand programs (VOD), webcasting, virtual events and hybrid events. In addition, there are other strategic uses of video in areas such as intranet sites, external websites, lobby monitors, tradeshow attract loops, and sales training and industry specific videos and animations. Video On DemandThe scalability of video as a cost-effective communications tool is easily demonstrated through any of the above applications. In aVOD program, content is produced to help businesses pump out quality messaging by using a templated and branded video production model. These can be messages from the CEO or key internal stakeholders, new product demonstrations or any other important topic that needs to be shared with a targeted audience. The video is shot in a studio setting and then made available via a website application such as Flash video. Access to the content can be made public to all or securely registered via a password and access code. This application can be updated frequently and tailored to several different audiences at the same time. WebcastingAnother great way for a company to deliver a visual message is through the use of webcasting. There are several ways to approach this solution and most webcasts are either produced “live” in real-time or pre-recorded, edited and then delivered in an on demand format. More and more large companies are employing this solution to deliver quarterly earnings calls, share internal communications initiatives and strategies and to reach out to customers, potential clients and investors. Webcasting offers a great combination of showcasing executive-level speakers, embedded support video and PowerPoint visual aids, product demonstrations, live Q & A, real time polling, demographic tracking of attendees and broadcast quality production value. Once the webcast is completed, it is archived on a website and made ready for on demand viewing for people who were unable to see the live broadcast or re-viewed by attendees who would like to revisit important information. Virtual EventsOnce webcasting capabilities are better understood by a company, it opens up a terrific opportunity to evolve the process into a full-scale virtual meeting/event. This is a very economical option for any company looking to share their information and corporate direction without the costs and planning hassles of airfare, hotels, venue fees and other logistical expenses. A virtual event is a terrific way to bring audiences together through each individual’s computer screen. The same executives and keynote speakers deliver their content through streaming video or archived content; and the audience can participate in the same general sessions, breakout rooms and networking lounges—without stepping away from their office or laptop computer screen. The visual and technical quality of these offerings is growing at an exciting pace, and more companies are seeing the advantage of this as a more cost-effective alternative.
Hybrid EventsThe final mainstream solution has been termed a “hybrid event,” and this is a creative combination of a virtual event and an in-person meeting. This offering features portions of a webcast along with some components of a face-to-face gathering. It could be satellite groups of clients watching together in different designated areas, all being connected via computer to a general session. Or people can meet with sales reps in groups of 10 – 50 people and then watch a product demonstration simultaneously with other groups around the country with live Q & A to follow. To ConsiderThere are so many different ways to approach an individual marketing challenge, and video is certain to be at the core of any solution. There is always going to a place for the in-person meeting, and nothing will ever take the place of a firm handshake ora smile. But the current economic conditions are dictating that there will be fewer of these types of events in the short term. Therefore, companies are looking for the best ways to simulate the meeting and stimulate discussions. Video is still the key tool to help showcase, explain and bring a virtual program to life. Statistics & TrendsHere are some statistics and trends that help explain what a difference maker video can be and how versatile and effective of a medium it is. With the explosion of the “YouTube” generation of social media and networking, a visual image is clearly one of the most important differentiators in any type of corporate messaging. In terms of reaching customers and prospects, a well-produced video relays an ideal corporate image. Video also makes for a more compelling corporate presentation and helps connect people on an emotional level.
From a geographic and cost-savings perspective, a quality corporate video can immerse a far-away prospect in a facility tour or easily demonstrate an otherwise difficult-to-showcase product, such as the processes at a large physical plant, a complicated medical procedure or a safety demonstration for a highly-dangerous or risky environment. From a time-saving perspective, every company has a top sales person, but that individual can only be at one place at one time. Captured on video, however, that person can easily deliver the perfect message every time to hundreds of prospects and customers at the same time. Product demonstrations and corporate marketing pieces jump to life in a controlled setting with the optimum editing, music, graphics, lighting and perfectly scripted and delivered messages. Once these videos are completed, they can enjoy a longer shelf-life as a Flash enhancement to a website or animpressive product demonstration. ConclusionIt is important to remember that video still remains one of the most impressive, versatile and economically effective resources a company can empower to help promote their messages and achieve greater revenues. Once the full range of video usage has been fully recognized, marketing professionals can make themselves completely aware of the numerous internal and external applications of video, which will in turn lead to tremendous maximization of marketing budgets and increased market shares. Boost Email Response Rates With VideoCramer Partners With PTV & Constant ContactOn May 28th, Cramer partnered with Permission TV and Constant Contact for a collaborative and informational webcast: “Best Practices To Boost Email Response Rates With Video.” Expert panelists uncovered new tools, technologies and strategies that will help email marketing programs generate more attention and ultimately improve click-through rates. Learn about new technologies and hear experts speak on how to apply these new technologies, gather new ideas to integrate into 2009/2010 marketing plans and to generate buzz, build brands, generate leads and retain customers. The Panel
Matt Kaplan, VP Solutions, PermissionTV
Check out a preview of what you can expect from watching this educational event: Q: Why do you think that email calls-to-action receive so much greater reaction than text-based calls-to-action? Matt: When you look at this from the perspective of the recipient of the email, online video is still relatively new. It’s been around for quite some time. We’ve seen this from other video sites that are out there. And just the ability to have a thumbnail of an image with a play button is inviting. It gets people to want to click, to want to watch. Darren: You have different types of learners and different ways that people take that information in, and while you might have a call-to-action email where you just click through, that video is sitting typically on a page that’s got other content around it. So people, while they are viewing the video, are engaged in that way; I think there’s opportunity to drive other actions, have them sign up for something, follow it and share it. They get sort of the placement of that video, that context. That’s where I think we’ve seen real value of the results, then we start to look at the analytics and those pieces as well. Q: What are your thoughts on the authenticity of your message and something that’s finite? Matt: The ability to be genuine is really important these days in marketing and in general. It’s no longer about hiring an actor to be on camera to tell your pitch. It’s now more about getting the people who are in your organization to be comfortable in front of a camera out there talking about it, because they’re believable. People are going to believe them over any other person that you could hire. So the genuine aspect is really key. Zach: Something that Darren really touched on as well is really knowing the audience your reaching out to. You might have more than one video for different audiences, and it’s very important that when it comes to email, youare relevant in any form of marketing so you don’t fall into that realm of being spam or unwanted content. Q: Given that there are different methods to view email, it’s best to be safe with large attachments and even Java script player codes in your email—you run the risk of getting blocked. It sounds like thumbnails are the best way to go? Zach: I do think that thumbnails are still the best way to go. In the end, it’s all about getting your message heard. If you are using tactics that don’t allow that, then you’re shooting yourself in the foot a little bit. If people can’t read what your sending, you’re doing yourself a great disservice. Q: If you want your message to be heard, what is considered the ideal length of a video that would be viewed as part of a click-through of an email? Matt:I think it needs to be short to begin with, and it needs to grow as the user interest grows. So we think two minutes is probably all the time that people will give you, but if someone actually said “I’m interested in…” you have a short amount of time to engage them and to get them to take action. The shorter the better but also try to drive them toward either watching more or taking actions from that. Darren: I think you’ve got to couple that with the conversation of who’s your audience and when and where they’re viewing this. Are they viewing it at work or at home, or are they a teenager, business person, doctor, financial buyer—you start to look at and segment that. Deliver the right relevance to those people and then that starts to inform you on the type of tactic and the amount of time you have to tell that story. One of the key components here is what you’re asking out of that audience member. For More Great Insider Information, Watch This Archived Webcast: Click Here To Register. Keeping learning about: •Best Practices in strategy development that serves a business purpose and matches the brand and business. •Best Practices in creating video content that delivers value to your email recipients. •Best Practices in sending bulk email and ensuring email delivery. •Best Practices in increasing email opens and click-through rates using video. •Best Practices in managing video & displaying properly. •Best Practices in email marketing analytics and video engagement analytics. •Don’t miss this opportunity—register to watch the archived webinar now!
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