David Edmundson-Bird is a well-known figure in the NW digital world, and probably far, far beyond.
David is the programme director for Manchester Metropolitan University’s Msc in Digital Marketing Communications.
I caught up with David at SAScon to lean more – click here to hear the interview.
Quite recently I interviewed Lewis Webster of Little Orchard about video online.
I was in no doubt after talking to Lewis about what video can deliver and what its potential is – the SEO power & potential of video is something in itself, let alone just the content.
So the first SAScon speaker, Bruce Daisley from YouTube should have pulled few surprises. But he still impressed….
Video is one third of all web traffic – Cisco
Bruce again quoting Cisco, saying it would be 90% by 2013
Every minute 24 hours worth of video is uploaded onto YouTube
And a few more points of interest….
More people are referred to YouTube than come straight to it
Twitter & 3G is pushing video
YouTube is concentrating on delivering live content such as recent U2 & Alicia Keys gigs, and is aiming to facilitate ordinary users doing the same, albeit perhaps on a smaller scale.
Bruce ended by a little name checking of great viral video: Ok Go’s fantastic video – parodied by The Simpsons, so it must be good and the Evian baby commercial.
The viral potential of both far outstripped expectations: it made Ok Go, leading to sponsorship and big increases in record sales when I believe they were pretty insignificant at their record label; the Evian brass only expected 2 million views, they got 58 million. Wow quite a return on both.
This brings me neatly on to my selling opportunity: if you are a digital agency that is looking at video, then continue reading….
Vision + Media is heavily sponsoring experienced TV professionals to undertake placements in digital agencies.
The cost is a paltry £30 a day to the agency, everything else sponsored by Vision + Media.
So you can learn about video – could be editing and production techniques as much as camera elements – and use highly skilled professionals to work on live projects from the word go.
Wednesday was the inaugural get together of SAScon – a social media and SEO conference.
I should say the online search conference for highlighting the strength and ability and energy of the northern digital scene.
When conceived there must have been a few worries – even if not admitted now – about how much support it would receive. The organisers needn’t have worried.
As you can see from the above image it was a packed house: some 160 attendees with speakers from across the UK and Europe came to the Bridgewater Hall in the centre of Manchester.
There were essentially two streams of seminars / panel talks: the more technical SEO and social media. I stuck with my prime interest in social media.
I will discuss in future posts the points of some of the talks I attended. But for now I want to make a couple of points about why I attended:
First, besides continuing my social media education, there was ample opportunity to network.
However, more impotantly in many respects – and I suspect for many attendees – it was a chance to make a statement about the strength and potential of the online community in the North West to deliver: you don’t have to go to London to have access to top digital suppliers.
By attending, digital and non-digital, be it PR or marketing, those that lent their support by simply taking out a day from busy schedules to come along made that exact statement.
Simon Wharton of search marketing agency PushON talks about search and SEO – click here to listen.
The image: Richard Gregory commented in previous post where Simon’s swearing came in on the last post, well, I hope you are satisfied.
SAScon is about to have its inaugural conference launch on 28th April at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.
The aim is to bring talented and knowledgeable SEO and search marketing experts, from Europe and the US, in one place to deliver informative and practical advice to marketing, PR and fellow digital professionals.
It is an exciting opportunity, especially as it is in Manchester and will promote the city as a centre of digital talent.
I spoke to Simon Wharton of search marketing agency PushON, and a driving force in organising the event, on why this is a must attend and what attendees will get out of the day.
Simon Wharton explains more, click here to hear the interview. (Is that alliteration?)
I managed to blag myself for my blog into a Manchester Digital Development Association / Pro-Manchester meet at Halliwells this week.
The title was earning a buck in the digital age and the subject was the misunderstanding / better ways to co-operate between the professional services and digital sectors.
The panel included:
Coral Grainger – Manchester Knowledge Capital
SimonWharton – PushON
Phillip Hemsted – Psycuity
Shaun Fensom – Manchester Digital
Steve Kuncewicz – Halliwells
Nick Rhind – CTI
And was hosted by Nick Jaspan of How-Do
I want to concentrate on how professionals services view digital suppliers.
However, the opening of the debate was about digital agencies using professional services firms.
Nick Rhind of CTI I think summed up by saying that there is a lot of good information freely available online, however if you take shortcuts and rely on it you can get burnt – sometimes it really pays to have professional services advice in more ways than one.
Fees can be exorbitant and Steve Kuncewicz of Halliwells did point out that to work with digital agencies that law practices would have to “cut their cloth accordingly.”
Paul Jefferson also of Halliwells also made it clear that it is common for lawyers to offer fixed fees, so the perception that fees are an unknown quantity is essentially untrue in many cases.
Onto professional services firms hiring digital agencies:
Simon Wharton made a strong point that there is a “huge disjoint” between PS and digital. Simon continued that many lawyers and finance professionals see digital as a “passing fad” and do not see the “threat from others that understand digital.”
Nick Rhind and Simon Wharton both said it was important to talk to people, off and online, before engaging them to build trust – digital being a way of starting this key part of the buying process.
I have to say I echoed Simon’s points in a question I made, which brought the attentive eyes of the gathered legal fraternity fixed upon me. However on reflection I now know both sides have their cultures and issues and there is misunderstanding of each other’s standpoints – I have changed my views accordingly.
Paul Jefferson stated that the legal profession was very risk averse and that is how it needs to be: engaging in social media needs to be carefully considered.
After the debate I had a bit of tea in a nearby establishment and discussed the issues with Pauline Rawsterne of Turquoise PR. I was roundly but gently told that anyone seeking higher level legal services would seek out advice from trusted legal professionals that had been used for years or were given the highest recommendations – not through Twitter or a blog!!
She continued that lawyers – and this met Paul Jefferson’s point- are risk averse and social media does not tally in with that, how can you let someone tweet or blog in case they give away key information unintentionally. It has to be carefully controlled.
Pauline said that lawyers often wanted PR and marketing, they know their own minds, and they are acting with a thought out rationale in relation to marketing services.
So – deep breath – there is a chasm of understanding between both sides and one which I appreciate a bit more now.
I have worked with a tax accountancy on its PR and social media successfully, but perhaps this is a more unusual case in terms of what professional services practices are prepared to be engaged in.
I rounded off talking to Coral Grainger of Manchester Knowledge Capital and Richard Simpson of Tayburn, which in itself makes such events worthwhile.
Anyway, thank you to Halliwells for their hospitality, to MDDA and Pro-Manchester, and to the panel and all participants.
Little Orchard counts many PR and digital agencies amongst its clients as well as companies of the size of Linden Homes.
Lewis himself has worked for MEN Media, and Jack Morton Communications on the Nokia and Vodaphone accounts.
As you might have seen I have been talking at length below about the DMEX placements for digital professionals in the North West, so it might not be a shock that I would investigate the power of video as a PR and SEO tool with Lewis.
Audio Interview links
First we started on the characteristics of video and moved onto content – what makes it invaluable?
You might be surprised that video is a fantastic SEO tool, not only through meta data but also through the recognition of verbal content ( a very recent development for YouTube ): Listen here
Heavily sponsored by NW Vision and Media, the placement initiative gives host agencies the benefit of learning how to harness video, in live projects, for only £30 a day owing to the above subsidy.
So, if you think you could benefit from a 20-day placement please call Phil Birchenall on 0161 446 2991 / birchenall@thewhiteroomcec.com
If you want to know how it works in practice please read James Bristow’s account of how he helped PR agency MC2:
Tell us about your first project with MC2?
“MC2 was working on a big event called RAW 2010 at the Lowry Theatre. (A sample of the quality of video).
Business leaders from across the North West were coming to network. The agency wanted the whole event filming for its website to act as a record of the day.
The idea was for Raw 2010 to be set up around the country, based on the success of the North West experience.
So a little pressure you could say, but I am used to that situation.
MC2’s brief was for a montage piece of the day that showcased the energy of the event.
The White Room had made sure there was a good match in skills and outlook between the agency and me so I knew the demands of the job and it knew what I could deliver.
My role that day was all encompassing. I produced the project: sourcing equipment, directing the camera crew and looking after post-production.
Everyone, including the client, was really impressed with everything that happened on the day.”
Have you worked with MC2 since your placement?
“Yes indeed, there was another event in the evening for a company called Investors who are attached to MC2.
So I spent another week after that producing the video for Investors. I have a lot more work in conjunction with MC2 on this relationship during April and May.
In addition I have a shoot for Raw this April.
MC2 was also kind enough to introduce me to Pro Manchester and I have done a shoot for it as well.”
Had MC2 done anything like this project before?
“It had dipped their toe in but not taken it further. So it was up to me to jump into the deep end and swim, which I did.”
Would you say that MC2 has opened up another avenue of work as a result of your placement with them?
“Yes, now MC2 sees the value of online videos.
The platform is changing and it needs to exploit online to its full potential: MC2 realises that video is an excellent way of reaching an audience online.
I think my work has changed the way the agency views video as a great selling tool.”
Interview by Ezra Rushen of The White Room
The initiative has been successfully run for 18 months, but once the final places are taken the placements will come to an end.
The scheme called DMeX gives digital and marketing agencies the use of a seasoned TV professional for 20 days at a rate of only £30 a day for the host organisation (above stated link rate has changed).
The placements bring a range of skills from producers to camera specialists to scriptwriters that can add real value to the host organisation: from gaining a better understanding of video to working on live projects.
Many placements go on to collaborate with the agencies long after the placements have been completed.
Interview:
Call Phil Birchenall for more information on 0161 446 2991 or birchenall@thewhiteroomcec.com
Phil is the projects director at The White Room, a consultancy or I should say agency that is at the centre of running programs to support the creative media industry sector in Manchester and the North West.
I have known Phil since he was a stalwart at the Creative Industries Development Service, where he started work in 2003. His support and friendship was much valued by me and others, and many creative media professionals will no doubt know Phil through his work.
I asked (for my first Audio Boo interview – did I tell you I have an iPhone Rob?) about how the creative sector is faring in the region and what support is in place:
Interview:
Phil Birchenall interview on creative media in the North West.
(You might have to sign on to Audio Boo - takes a minute, but I don’t think you do (My voice doesn’t sound as recorded, but Phil’s is spot on) ).
