It was the 2nd quarter and he launched his clipboard into the ground, breaking it into pieces.
“#&*$^%^…get over here. What the #$%^$?” (we love it)
That, my friends, is Shane Battier, my coach for the next 3 days. For those of you who do not know who Shane Battier is, you should Google him. He was probably one of the best NBA players nobody ever knows.
Hoop Scoop Magazine named Shane Battier the fourth-best seventh grader in the United States. When he graduated from Detroit Country Day School in 1997, he received the Naismith Award as the best high school basketball player in the nation. When he graduated from Duke in 2001, where he won a record-tying 131 college basketball games, including that year’s N.C.A.A. Championship, he received another Naismith Award as the best college basketball player in the nation.
On day two of our tournament, Shane and I were talking basketball and warming up for the game. I tossed him the ball and watched him rim check 5 shots in a row. He told me he hadn’t shot a ball in a while, but still, I expected him to hit a couple shots at least.
My thought… “How does this guy have an NBA championship ring?”
It was at that time Shane Battier changed the way I looked at basketball forever. I will never play the game the same again. He ended up leading us to the championship where we lost to a much better team. (Just picture a bunch of old guys trying to relive their glory days. It’s a blast.)
In the 90s a virus of statistical probabilities infected professional sports.
Math geniuses began to take all the data that sports lovers keep and put it to work. Think Money Ball.
He asked me what I thought the worst shot in basketball was. I wasn’t sure, so I guessed a side shot. I was wrong. It’s a jump shot off the dribble.
Kobe Bryant, one of the best players of all time would become pretty inefficient when Shane guarded him. If Kobe dribbled left and pulled up for an 18 foot jump shot: his numbers tanked. Shane knew this.
Shane’s success did not come from his raw talent. It came because he understood the numbers. He would cause his opponents to always take the lowest probability shot.
On offense, Shane would always get the ball to the right teammate where he could take the highest probability shot. It’s all about the numbers.
Shane’s game is a weird combination of obvious weaknesses and nearly invisible strengths. When he is on the court, his teammates get better, often a lot better, and his opponents get worse.
When I step onto a court, I see a court, a basketball hoop, and my opponent. When Shane steps onto a court he sees probabilities, a grid, and numbers.
It’s genius.
Knowing the odds, Shane can pursue an inherently uncertain strategy with total certainty. He can devote himself to a process and disregard the outcome of any given encounter.
To the point…
Do you know and understand your numbers?
When Ydraw creates a video, we like to take into account the numbers.
We know, statistically speaking, a well-written script with a story is going to have a higher success rate.
We know that a testimonial is going to increase your conversions.
We know that if you start your video off from a high level of intensity, your click through rate goes up.
We know that by adding humor and some special effects you’re going to enhance the viewer’s experience in a positive way and your success rate goes up.
Lastly, we know that boring videos, have zero chance.
These types of numbers come from years of experience. We also apply this to our video marketing division. We can’t tell you all the little things we do to shift the probabilities in our favor. We just do them because we have been in the game long enough.
I watch so many video marketing campaigns fail because they are playing a game they do not understand.
Our job is to do what works statistically speaking and yet 35% of the videos that leave our office end up being sabotaged by the client.
It hurts and I am begging you to not do it.
We want to create an amazing video for your company.
Call or shoot us an email to get started.
PS. It’s that time of year. Some of you have year-end budgets left over. If you are looking for a way to spend your budget, we would like to chat. We want to show you what we have been working on. It’s amazing.
I am all for creative videos. We want to thank the Piano Guys for letting Ydraw be apart of this video. It stretched us a bit., but the end result was so worth it. It was an experience for everyone involved. Each person doing something a little bit new, and a little bit outside of their comfort zones. That’s how we learn and grow though isn’t it? Our experience with them was great and we hope that you all enjoy their new video as much as we do. Read below to hear how The Piano Guys came up with their idea below.
So how did The Piano Guys come up with this concept? This is what they had to say about it on their website:
As we began our arrangement of One Direction’s “Story of My Life” we wanted it to feel like each note of the music was a word in a vivid story being told. When writing a song sometimes you just need a little spark. That catalyst came from a piece of classical music – one that had such a “storybook feel” to it that we gleaned inspiration from it: Saint-Saëns’ “Aquarium” from his Suite “Carnival of the Animals.” It’s an incredibly beautiful and transportive piece.
So who are The Piano Guys? Well if you haven’t heard about them yet, I’m glad we were the reason you stumbled upon them, because they are fantastic. The Piano Guys are a group of musicians based out of St. George, Utah. A piano shop owner was looking for a new marketing idea for his product and was also interested in viral videos. A few musicians later, and they were creating their own amazing music and videos, and they’ve been an internet phenomenon since and with tour dates all over the country, even some international. Go ahead and read more about them.
Ydraw creates some of the best animation videos out there including whiteboard animation, blackboard animation, 2D, and 3D animation videos. Let us know if you have any questions or comments.
See more great stuff
Please include attribution to yincmarketing.com with this graphic.
Videos are everywhere and YouTube is launching stars like Justin Bieber and songs like What the Fox Says almost every day, or so it seems, … but they’re probably not for you. Sorry.
Ok, ok, before you begin a rant of why you, your business, or your product deserves a video… let me explain.
I’ve been involved in marketing in one way or another for most of my professional career, 17 years now (yikes), and this has all brought me to this conclusion…. video isn’t for you!
You see, video isn’t for you at all… it’s for your viewer, your customer, your lead, your contact, your fan, etc. It’s not meant for you, so stop being so selfish!!
I had a client the other day who said he wanted a video that would compel the viewer to contact him and buy. Sounds good. Then the client went on to say here’s the script I’ve written, here’s the visuals, here’s the music, and here are all the supporting documents. After I read what was provided I was confused. I didn’t know what the product truly was, what was being offered and more importantly, why I would care in the first place.
So… I asked the client, who’s your customer, your viewer? How familiar are they with you, your product, and what you do? His answer… “They aren’t. This is to attract new customers.” My response was, “I don’t know you, so could I be one of your customers?” His answer, “Yes, of course!”
I hated to shoot down his enthusiasm, because he was very passionate about his business, but I had no idea what he was trying to say in his script. None. There were so many details, so much business jargon, I was lost in a matter of moments… long before his conclusion and call to action. I never got that far. Why? Because the video was all about him, what he knew, what made sense to him, what he wanted, and really had nothing to do with me (the viewer). Which was why I didn’t “get it.”
Trust me. I understand your passion. I understand you have a lot riding on this video. I understand no one knows this stuff or can do it better than you… but that’s why it’s so important that the video isn’t about you. It has to provide value to the viewer, a laugh, something to remember, a reason to contact YOU.
And that’s why video isn’t for you, it HAS to be for them. So before you spend the time, money and resources to create your perfect video, make sure you are not building something that only you will find interesting to watch. Unless that’s what you had planned on all along. And if that’s the case… good luck.
How To Create An Amazing Video: A Perfect Video For Conversion, Attention, and Retention.
Are your viewers doing what you want them to? Are they watching your video, taking action and bringing you more business? When it comes to video marketing you have to be focused more on what is working now. Get ready to learn the science of creating an amazing video.
Have you ever seen advertisements that pop up before a YouTube video plays? Of course you have, but have you have you ever seen a good one? What about the videos that have 5 seconds of disclosures before they even start? Talk about throwing money down the toilet! The agency or company responsible for that ad should be fired … but come to think of it, that happens all the time.
You have 5 seconds to get our attention, if not we click skip as soon as possible and move on with our lives.
They would never admit it but most corporate videos fail to keep the attention of any audience for more then 5 seconds. Ydraw would like to change that so let’s jump into some stats.
Below is one of our highest converting videos created for Yinc (a sister company of Ydraw). The Yinc video is 1:15 seconds in length, it retains 98 percent of the audience for the first 30 seconds and then drops off to 75% by the end of the video. (Watch Here. Yinc Don’t Be That Guy Whiteboard Video)
You MUST get people interested in what you have to say within the first 5 seconds. The Yinc video starts off with some catchy music, a hand drawing and a headline. It’s different than your everyday video and the combination of these 3 things manages to grab the audience and hold them there for the first 30 seconds.
2. Unexpected and Random
Our Yinc sales video is actually a live video we created for our business managers Paige and Haley. This video holds 75% of the audience but we get an amazing spike between 1:00 and 1:15. Why’s that? It’s because we took a quick break to do something random and unexpected. Come on, who swings pink softball bats in their office? (apparently we do).
3. Strong Call to Action
I know we keep harping on the importance of a strong call to action, but it is a must. Applying a simple CTA acts like a remote control to get your readers to get up off the couch and actually do something. It breaks my heart (not really) when I see a million dollar commercial with no call to action. If you want your audience to act… you should ask them. This may not sound like rocket science but I figured it was time I shared all my magical secrets.
So there you have it. Now your job (the reader) is to take these 3 simple steps and apply them to your videos. They work and the proof is in the numbers.
At Ydraw we create unique videos that people will watch and take action. Thats our mission! The Greener Cleaner is a great video, its fun, engaging, unique and short. It will give you a couple of ideas for your next video. Here are some simple questions and answers to help you create a great video.
How Long Should Your Video Be?
90 Seconds (250 words, shorter than this blog) if you are just planning on capturing leads. If you are looking to educate your audience or make a direct sale, the length should be dictated by the message and material. But don’t add too much content or you might lose your viewers somewhere in the rambling. Short and sweet is always best, just make sure you keep your point in there.
Should Your Video Have Music?
Depends, we have found music helps keep everyone engaged. If you find the music distracting, then you should at the least add in some great sound effects. You can buy libraries of music or Foley sounds, or you can find a lot of them online for free, just double check they are public domain before using them. No one wants to have to take down their video because of one small sound effect.
Should I Write My Own Script?
No, unless you create scripts for a living. Great scripts make great videos so let our writers create your script. If it is not in the budget, then take the time to educate yourself about the techniques of writing scripts, or find a friend or relative that knows a thing or two about the written word.
Where Should I Post My Video?
Everywhere! Use YouTube, Vimeo, and every other video site. Also, post your video on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram just to name a few. If you have a video, use it and abuse it. Shoot us an email if you are having problems getting your video out there. So there you have it. Short and sweet! Have a great day and get a video. +Jace Vernon
