5. Many organizations see and hear the potential benefits of incorporating an internal social media framework into their communication strategies but are hesitant to make the leap. What would you say to these folks?
Grow a spine. You’ve already lost control! You might as well have some fun. And by the way, this is the golden era of the communications professional. In addition to expressing your brand values externally, they should be tapped to be the keepers of the communication flame internally as well. Let them, not your lawyers, lead the way.
I would then ask: What are the pressing needs of your organization? It might make sense to create a targeted social media effort directly toward a current problem.
6. What role do employees have in launching a successful internal social media platform? They are the secret to your success – just like in other aspects of the business. Your employees are now your best marketers, customer service reps, troubleshooters and sources of innovation. Give them a way to weigh in – blogs, video posts, twitter, flickr, whatever – and acknowledge their efforts. The third most popular blogger at Cisco (internally) is a guy that’s four levels away from their CEO. He blogs about technical matters specifically related to a single product area. It’s information people need to do their jobs better! The fact that he has a platform that he controls (no one vets the copy) and a way to interact with his colleagues means that he has become an indispensible resource to others. And he got a mention in Fast Company Magazine as a result. Not the goal, but I bet his mom is happy.
7. What goals or strategies do organizations need to think about before diving into the creation of an internal social community platform? Brand comes first. The least cynical definition of a brand is that of an expression of deeply held values.
Social media turns that brand into a platform for others to express themselves. So, if you’re willing to open up your brand, then everyone needs to know what those values are. Everyone. This should not become a forum for one to develop their own personal brand – it’s about a shared common goal. Initiatives should be developed through the framework of those values – with an eye to maximizing the safety and success of the participants. (Privacy, rules of engagement, equal access etc.)
And the objectives should be clear and measurable. Are you using social media to innovate new ideas? To manage projects? To develop the potential of your staffers? To acknowledge achievement? To play a game or conduct a contest? Build rapport?
Be prepared to get staff input every step of the way (bottom up, not top down), accept that there will be many versions and understand that failure is always an option. It’s baked in to the iteration process.
8. What is the next evolution in the “30 Second MBA” format? Glad you asked. Future iterations include a thumbs-up button, so viewers can vote up popular videos, and easier ways for people to share the videos with others.
Now that we have a nice library, I’m hoping to cross pollinate them into new and fun lesson plans – “Swimming with Sharks Week” – the best advice on how to deal with difficult people. Etc.
Ultimately, my plan (always subject to the input of others) is to create a credit system – the more people watch, comment or post a video response – or even do things in the world, like mentor others - the more credits they get. You can spend those credits for things that you want, like sponsored gifts, or actual feedback from real faculty members. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could connect you with the hottest CEO in the Valley for a fifteen minute business plan assessment? Would you give 20 hours of mentoring for that? Fun to think about.
Ellen McGirt’s Bio: When she's not chasing former Vice Presidents or leaping social networks in a single bound, Ellen McGirt occasionally shows up at her job as Senior Writer at Fast Company magazine. She covers a range of business topics, but never stops looking for the writer’s holy grail: The business ideas - and people - who are changing the world.
McGirt joined Fast Company in February 2007 from Fortune, where she was a senior writer. She was also a columnist and editor-at-large for Money, where she covered a wide variety of health care, consumer, personal finance and investing topics. McGirt has served as a guest correspondent for CNN's American Morning, and has appeared frequently on Good Morning America, CBS Early Today, NBC Nightly News, CNBC, CNN, and American Public Media.
Tom's bio: Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford helps Fortune 100's to non-profits breathe life into their brand story. He believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films.
I’m a big fan of Fast Company’s “30 Second MBA” site. The minute it launched, I felt it offered a simple yet highly effective way for organizations to integrate social media concepts into their internal communication strategies.
I wanted to know more. So I asked Ellen McGirt, the Senior Writer and Dean of “30 Second MBA,” a few questions about her experiences in launching the site. I was particularly interested in seeing how the “30 Second MBA” framework could be adapted for internal communication purposes. Here’s part one of the interview. And many thanks, Ellen, for sharing your ideas!
1. How did the Fast Company “30 Second MBA” idea come into being?
I pitched the concept about two years ago. I was looking for an unusual way to tell stories using video on the web. The verdict: Cute idea, we’re not ready.
Fast forward about a year and a half, and we had a new web direction, some development momentum and a new editor. I re-pitched the idea and it got some traction. We went ahead and started planning the interface, etc – and we got the news from our publisher that she’d been able to find a sponsor. Score! Suddenly we had some additional cash to build out the first version. Although we were prepared to go rogue and do it with existing resources, the new budget was a welcome addition.
2. Take us behind the scenes a bit. How are the videos created? How do you find your video guests? How many members are on your team? How are your themes for each week discovered? Any other things readers would find interesting?
The beauty of the idea is that it’s a real DIY project. And, although it’s labor intensive, it’s not expensive. I have a ready list of candidates – people who have appeared in the magazine or who are associated with industries or companies we’ve studied. The questions come from interviews I’ve conducted with both business leaders and readers, and range from the deeply philosophical – is technology changing the nature of leadership? – to the mundane – how do you run a meeting? (Contrary to popular opinion, actual interviews are a better way to get information from people, not web polls.)
I extend an invitation to potential participants via e-mail, and then offer an array of questions to choose from, with a deadline and upload instructions. I emphasize that rough is great – Flip cam, hand helds, Skype are all terrific. Tell us stories! These answers should be the type of personal advice you’d give a friend in need. And it’s very very cool to see people in their natural habitats, so I encourage people to shoot from their offices.
I’ve also reached out to many extraordinary people I don’t know, like Alan Mulally of Ford. He loved the concept and signed on before the site was even built! We want the project to be a reflection of the sensibilities of our magazine – about innovation, inspiration and possibility – and inclusive of all perspectives. So the mix of voices is profound -from the C-suites of Ford, Intel, Schwab, Facebook and USAA, to soldiers in Afghanistan/Iraq, artists, educators and social entrepreneurs in a variety of fields. There are some very cool surprises coming up.
This is a team effort of technologists and editors on both the digital side and magazine side – not to mention our magnificent publisher and marketing team. Now more than 20 people think about and work on Thirty Second MBA from a Fast Company perspective. That is absolutely my favorite part of this. It went from a crazy pitch to a full on team effort. Thanks especially to Bob Safian, our editor in chief; Noah Robischon, our web editor; and Christine Osekoski our publisher - for their guts, hard work and spirit.
3. If an organization wanted to adopt the “30 Second MBA” idea internally, what steps or ideas would you suggest to them?
It’s a lot of work but really worth it. Keep the project and the subsequent requests for participation clear and focused – people want to contribute, but they also don’t want to be embarrassed. Be prepared to answer a lot of questions about what you want and how the project will be used. What can they expect? What kind of help or support? What do you want me to say again?
Be sure to frame the project as having a bigger objective. Our stated goal is to grow the leadership capability of our readers by giving them a nugget of wisdom from executives we admire that they can access when they need it. And, I make sure people know that I consider their participation a generous act.
Also, get buy-in from the top of your organization. I mean, I never do, but why make things harder than they need to be?
4. A 2008 survey conducted by the Corporate Leadership Council indicates:
“By improving employees’ level of engagement, organizations can see significant improvement in employees’ performance rating and decrease the probability of employee departure by 87%.”
With the phenomenal rise in social media, what ways can an organization use the MBA framework internally to increase employee and customer engagement and retention?
I am so lucky. As part of my job I get to have exceptional conversations with people who are making business happen – the Mark Zuckerbergs, the Paul Otellinis, etc. They invariably say something incredibly interesting about how they do what they do, how they’ve solved a leadership problem, or how their thoughts about work have evolved.
Almost never is that the subject of the interview or relevant to my piece. But MAN, I wish I had web cam in my brain to capture that moment. The 30 Second MBA was born from that wish, and a desire to share my world with my readers. (Without me in it, by the way. I don’t want to watch any more fake talk shows on the web!)
So what would that mean for your organization? What wisdom or inspiration is going unrecorded? When you hit your head and say – man, I wish my colleagues/customers/friends could hear this – you’re on your way to an idea.
I would also tap the routinely overlooked HR department for insight. They tend to know more than you think. It’s also helpful to think in modules. The 30 Second MBA works because it is both structured and diverse. We get five very different people to answer the same question, so the contrast is automatically interesting. Would it matter to you that the guy in the mailroom is also a hospice volunteer? That the VP of finance produces community theater? The very notion of introducing a company to itself is a valuable one. But to use it to teach what they know is really cool. And makes an excellent recruiting tool.
So maybe ya’ll are on a budget or not so good with a web cam. Even a simple Facebook network with a complete list of employees and their talents, skills, strengths and interests can help people in big organizations connect with others who can help them when they need them. It’s also a cultural thing – it must be unacceptable NOT to share your expertise with your colleagues whether you know them or not. That part comes from the top.
Stay tuned for part two.
Ellen McGirt's bio: When she's not chasing former Vice Presidents or leaping social networks in a single bound, Ellen McGirt occasionally shows up at her job as Senior Writer at Fast Company magazine. She covers a range of business topics, but never stops looking for the writer’s holy grail: The business ideas - and people - who are changing the world.
McGirt joined Fast Company in February 2007 from Fortune, where she was a senior writer. She was also a columnist and editor-at-large for Money, where she covered a wide variety of health care, consumer, personal finance and investing topics. McGirt has served as a guest correspondent for CNN's American Morning, and has appeared frequently on Good Morning America, CBS Early Today, NBC Nightly News, CNBC, CNN, and American Public Media.
Tom's bio: Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford helps Fortune 100's to non-profits breathe life into their brand story. He believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films.
Have you checked out Honda’s “Dream the Impossible” mini-documentary series? The video series features several big ideas in a series of mini-documentaries. And yes, they’re beautifully produced.
But here’s the thing. If you deconstruct Honda’s new documentary, “Racing Against Time,” you’ll find five big ideas you can use to make your own videos just as engaging and compelling as Honda’s. And the best part? You can integrate them into your own videos for next to nothing.
So what exactly are these five big ideas? 5 Big Ideas: What Honda’s Mini-Documentaries Can Teach Non-Filmmakers
1. Capture passionate storytellers It pretty much goes without saying: you need people on-camera who can share their passion, drive and determination for your product or service. Video is unforgiving in what it captures. Feature people who love what they do and can express their emotional passion without hesitation.
2. Music matters Try this experiment. Play the Honda video. Turn your monitor away so you can’t see it. Now just listen to the soundtrack. You’ll notice a few things about the soundtrack. The music: • Changes several times throughout the video • Varies when ideas vary • Stops abruptly to enunciate a point • Creates suspense and drama • Connects with the ticking of the stopwatch
Avoid the temptation to just pick a single piece of music and use it throughout your video. If having a video custom scored isn’t possible, consider changing the stock music frequently to reflect the ideas in the video. 3. Use testimonials for extra credibility and believability Honda tapped into skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, "Star Trek" and "Transformers" screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman and IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan for added dimension. Adding comments from outside a company gives a video depth, breadth and insight not typically found in business videos. They can help a video feel less provincial while giving it a “universal” feel and element to your story– letting more people to relate to your message.
4. Put a “dragon” in your story Adding an obstacle or problem to your video not only makes it more believable but creates tension. Even a small amount of tension makes it hard for viewers to leave your story.
What is the “dragon” in Honda’s “Racing Against Time”? Deadlines. Losing time. Working under pressure. Racing against time. All variations of the same theme. Imagine how less effective Honda’s video would be without the dragon of deadlines and competition. What dragon is in your video? What obstacle are you battling?
5. Eye contact matters In my “3 Stage Evolution of Video Conversations” post, I shared how direct eye contact is becoming critically important in social videos.
Social media is driving conversations one-to-one. Social video will follow the same format. But how? Through direct eye contact. Conversations on-camera are shifting from people talking off-camera with an interviewer to talking directly into the camera. One-to-one. Me-to-you. Eye-to-eye. You can achieve this effect simply by attaching an affordable mirror device to the front of the camera.
Incorporating a few of these ideas into your future projects can easily turn a talking head into a captivating and believable story. Want to see more examples from Honda? You can catch more mini-documentaries from Honda on their YouTube channel or their “Dream the Impossible” website.
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford helps Fortune 100's to non-profits breathe life into their brand story. He believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films.
It’s the small things that can make a big difference.
Anyone can implement these ideas. And the cool part? They’re free or next to free. See if you can sneak a few of these tricks into your next project. It will help your video story feel more believable and interesting.
9 Super Simple Ways to Rock Your Company Video
1. Listen first. Your best storytellers are hiding right under your nose– your employees. Figure our what your video is about. Pull up a chair and get talking. Ask lots of different questions. Employees rarely get this kind of chance to be heard and recognized. You’ll be amazed at what you hear.
2. Script second. Now that you’ve talked to your storytellers, you can put a script together. The secret behind to pulling this off successfully is simple– get your interviews transcribed to paper. Cut and paste your favorite quotes into a compelling story.
3. Put a dragon in your video. Add some conflict. It doesn’t have to include cars tumbling and light sabers clashing. If you solve problems for your clients, there must be a problem somewhere, right? Some challenge that needs to be overcome? Slip in a little drama. You’ll come across being more believable.
4. Capture more than you think you need. Instead of just asking a few questions during your on-camera interviews, ask several more. Go off track. Listen carefully. You’ll capture ideas for short videos or audio podcasts to be posted at a later time.
5. Keep it simple. Use stock photos from your company’s archives. If you don’t have time or resources to film additional footage outside of the interviews, compliment your interviews with still photography. You can create some interesting attention-getting results by incorporating stills into your video.
6. Keep it short. In general, 2-3 minutes seems to be the ideal time for online videos. Some studies indicate viewers drop off significantly after a minute. Of course, every project is different. If you think you need more time for your video, consider breaking up the one video into several shorter videos.
7. Show your passion. Video is the perfect medium to transmit emotions. We can see it. We can hear it. We can share it. We can even feel it. If you’re not passionate about your story, your viewers will know it in seconds.
8. Talk to the audience. Remember– your video is not about you: it’s about your audience. Every question and answer should be framed with your particular viewer in mind.
9. Add simple graphics. White text on black. Or black text on a white screen. Use title cards to break up the pace of your story. These title graphics can help create rhythm. Use title cards to ask questions, create themes, and reinforce ideas.
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films. He helps Fortune 100's and non-profits breathe life into their messages and stories. Follow Tom on Twitter.
Keeping in the spirit of Twitter, the following “tweets” are 140 characters or less.
7 Fascinating Filmmakers to Follow on Twitter
1. Errol Morris @errolmorris The Oscar-winning director of ‘Fog of War” often tweets zen-like koans. Witty and always thought-provoking.
2. Michael Moore @MMFlint Yes- the Academy-Award winning filmmaker is on Twitter. Currently promoting his new documentary, “Capitalism: A Love Story.”
3. David Lynch @David_Lynch Mixes “transcendental” tweets with updates about his new storytelling project, @InterviewProj. Pioneering personal stories for the web.
4. Bluedot Productions @bluedot_ Game changers. Really. These “quantum activist” filmmakers are creating “quantum leaps” in documentary films.
5. PBS Point of View @povdocs Beyond promoting POV documentaries, watch for tweets on interviews and educational resources. 6. Frank Kelly @frankwkelly The filmmaker behind the “140 Project.” 140 filmmakers from 140 countries captured 140 seconds of unedited footage. Truly fascinating.
7. Peter Marshall @bcfilmmaker Veteran filmmaker/workshop teacher/social media proponent. Tweets often & covers the intersection of traditional filmmaking with new media.
BONUS #1: The Documentary Blog @DocumentaryBlog A great place to keep up with the latest documentary news. Thoughtful, in-depth reviews.
BONUS #2: National Film Board of Canada @thenfb Awesome resource for all things documentary. Tweets a wide variety of topics. Highly interactive and engaging.
Want to discover more filmmakers and conversations? Follow the #documentary trend on Twitter.
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films. He helps Fortune 100's and non-profits breathe life into their messages and stories. Tom's Blog Tom on Twitter
“Most of your team members want to make a valued contribution– to find purpose in their work.” Stephen R. Covey
I’m in the middle of reading Stephen Covey’s new book, “Predictable Results in Unpredictable Times.” Being a Covey fan for nearly 20 years, I can tell you this book is another winner. While it’s only 94 pages, this book is jam-packed with simple yet powerful ideas. It’s co-written by Bob Whitman, FranklinCovey’s CEO.
“How can I get more people to do the things we already know how to do?” Great question, isn’t it? Covey’s question grabbed me because this is where business videos excel. Let me explain it through the eyes of Covey.
It’s a simple fact of life Some people and teams within organizations work extremely well; say about 20% (to the right of the middle). Some under-perform; another 20% (those on the left side). The rest fall in the middle- roughly 60%. That 60% could easily move to the right, towards excellence– if only they knew how.
Covey suggests that one of the most effective ways a leader can improve the performance of people and teams is to “move the middle” “righter and tighter,” towards higher performance. Can you imagine the outcomes if just 5% or 10% of your teams started moving to the right towards higher performance?
But how do you move “the middle” to the right? Covey suggests two steps : 1. Identify islands of excellence 2. Ask the team how to improve performance
1. Identify islands of excellence Every organization has top performers and top teams. Identify them. Visit and talk to them. Find out what they are doing that sets them apart. Ask these top performers to share their success stories. Finally, invite these people to mentor “the middle.”
2. Ask the team how to improve performance Start generating success stories from “the middle” instead of focusing on their failures. Get input from the team members on ways they can improve key performance areas. Involving the team on a consistent basis by setting new goals can go a long way to moving them to the right.
What’s all this have to do with video? Using these two steps, you now have a template to create a series of video success stories to drive “the middle” “righter and tighter.”
Video template: Produce two short videos 1. Video #1 Identify islands of excellence Let’s say you’ve identified a team that really shines. Spend a few hours capturing on-camera interviews with the team members. Capture their success stories. Capture their emotions. Video reigns supreme when showing emotions so capture the team’s passion and let’s see what makes them so successful.
2. Video #2 Ask the team how to improve performance Spend another few hours capturing the high performance team mentoring a team in “the middle.” Interview team members from “the middle” so the audience can see and hear how they’re stuck and how intend to move forward. Let’s see how mentoring in action can tap into the greatness of a team and propel them forward.
Now you have a glimpse into answering Covey’s question: “How can I get more people to do the things we already know how to do?”
Let’s say you’re about to bake a cake. You have a dozen eggs, 1 lb of flour, a carton of milk, etc. The recipe only calls for 2 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 2 cups of flour. What do you do with the remaining ingredients? Throw them away? Um– I hope not!
But that’s exactly what happens when most people finish their video projects. They use what they need from the interview and throw out the rest of the conversation. What a waste! Let’s see if we can turn this situation around into something profitable.
When you finish a video interview, two things pop into your head: 1. You cross your fingers and hope you got what you needed. 2. You know all those great quotes from your guest will wind up on the cutting room floor.
Leave all those great quotes on the cutting room floor? That’s the last thing to do. Remember those left-over cake ingredients? You didn’t throw those away, did you? Well, in the land of video, this happens a lot. Why?
Everyone is focused on the “one big project.” The “one big project” blinds us from seeing other ways of extending the conversation. It’s tempting to just ask enough questions to get answers for your one project. But there’s another way to approach your project.
Turn your “one big project” into “several mini-projects.” Before you begin any video interview, determine ahead of time what other areas your interviewee could talk about. It may only take an extra 15 or 20 minutes to record the answers, so you might as well go for it.
If you do go for the extra recording, chances are great you will capture enough information to create 11 media products in three formats: 1. 1 e-Book 2. 5 Video podcasts 3. 5 Audio podcasts
Will creating all this extra material break your budget? You would think so but that’s not the case. Since you’re already recording the interview, you just need to budget a little extra for the transcript (which you should be doing for all your interviews) and a few hours of audio and video editing.
Let’s take a look at an example. You just finished interviewing your guest. The first thing to do is get the interview transcribed onto paper. You’re now on your way to creating several media programs.
1. e-Books Once you have your video transcribed, your e-Book is 90% finished. Go through the transcript, edit what you don’t need, get rid of the “um’s” and “ah’s,” apply your branding guidelines. Voila! An instant e-Book. Now available to distribute to employees, customers, vendors, etc.
2. Five 60-Second Video Podcasts Take the transcript and highlight five answers you can use in other areas of your company. Create simple title graphics to begin each video. You can use graphics whenever you get stuck making transitions in-between thoughts.
3. Five 60-Second Audio Podcasts Highlight five answers you want to use for the other projects. Find the answers in the video interview using the transcripts. Edit the five answers. Add some music. Create your MP3’s. Distribute as needed.
See how easy it is? You now have a simple process to take one video interview and turn it into 11 media programs in three formats. And this process is from just one interview. Can you imagine how much material you would be able to create if you interviewed five or six people?
Now about that cake. Save a piece for me, ok?
P.S. If you enjoyed this post be sure to hit the "Recommend This" button. Thank you!
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford helps Fortune 100's to non-profits who are stuck, frustrated, losing employees or market share because they can't breathe life into their brand story. He believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films. Follow Tom on Twitter.
You racked up meeting after meeting. The decision is in. Your team decides they need a video to help launch a new product. Now it’s movie time, right?
Wait a minute– have you thought about who is going to tell your story? Who is going to share your message with the same amount of passion, energy and emotion as you and your teammates? Here’s a hint: your best storytellers are right under your nose: your employees. Before you jump into your video, let’s take a moment and step back to look at the “big picture.”
Do you know the two main approaches to capture your company’s message? There are two main approaches to tell your company’s message with video. You can tell your story through:
1. Interviews, or; 2. Voice narration.
What is the main difference between these two approaches? In one word: trust. When we hear a narrator, at a very subtle level our brains start thinking: “I bet the marketing folks wrote that. And now someone is just reading a pre-written script. Of course they’re going to say this stuff to me.”
On the other hand, people love watching people in a video. If you feature employees who are passionate about their work, they will come across in a believable way. You start liking them which eventually leads to trusting them. Not only that, your organization will have a “personality.”
Now your brain is going: “Yeah– I like these people. They’re clearly passionate about this idea. I’m starting to feel connected to them. I like what they’re sharing.”
How do you know your employees will appear believable? You decided to feature several employees in your video. You even selected several people. How do you know they will share their passion in front of a camera and appear believable? It’s simple. Tell them they can speak their heart out because you will pick the best parts later. The more they share, the better they will look. And the better your video story will be!
Why would employees want to appear in their company video? The opportunity to appear on-camera is an exciting adventure most people look forward to. For most employees, this is a chance to share their point-of-view and passion in something that is a “once-in-a-lifetime” dream.
Are employees always a perfect fit for every company video? Employees are a great fit for almost any brand message. With the recent explosion of social media, audiences are expecting a personal experience with company videos. That means they want to see the people behind the company. Videos that are technical in nature may require a different approach such as an on-camera spokesperson or a voice narrator.
The Take-Away? If your employees are passionate, energetic, articulate and are willing to share their experiences to the world, then your message will not only come across as being highly believable but chances are it will beat the socks off a script written from the ivory tower.
Your next step– get talking. Your video story is nestled in the heart of every employee. It’s easy to over-think and over-plan what you want people to say on-camera. Be open and you will be amazed at what people will say.
Yup. It’s time to get talking.
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford helps Fortune 100's to non-profits who are stuck, frustrated, losing employees or market share because they can't breathe life into their brand story. He believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films.
Imagine you are about to interview someone for your company’s video. They enter the room. Your interview guest sits in their chair. You sit in yours. The camera rolls. You fire away at your first question.
Then you begin to notice something unusual.
About two minutes into your conversation, it’s clear the person you’re interviewing is visibly nervous– almost like they’re “frozen.”
Quickly– how do you melt the fear your guest is having? You would think saying, “Be yourself” and “Ignore the lights” would help, but it usually doesn’t. So what do you do? How do you warm up and prevent a “frozen” interview from ever happening in the first place? Try this “Defrosting Technique.”
What are the three steps in the “Defrosting Technique”? 1. Trade places 2. The more, the better 3. Be a “story steward”
It’s that simple.
1. Trade places After your initial greetings, have your guest sit in the “director’s chair.” You sit in the interviewee’s chair. Have your guest look at the video monitor so they understand how they will look on the screen.
Then, have your guest ask you a question, as if they are interviewing you. Answer your guest’s question in depth. While you are answering, your guest will begin to see how they will look, how easy it is to answer the questions, where their eyes should be looking and so forth.
2. The more, the better While you’re still sitting in your chairs, explain to your interviewee “the more, the better” concept. Tell them if they answer your question with only a few words, it makes it extremely difficult to edit their responses into something interesting.
Reassure them that if they go off-track that you are there to bring them back “home.” 3. Be a “story steward” What’s a steward? A steward is a “caretaker, overseer.” How do you go about becoming a “story steward”? Tell them you are the one responsible for their story. Most people who appear on-camera don’t have any idea who will see their footage or edit it. They naturally feel apprehensive in sharing their thoughts
Reassure your guest you are their “story steward.” It’s your job to capture and present their point of view as best as possible. Chances are, your guest will show signs of great relief when they hear these words!
Why does the “Defrosting Technique” work? The “Defrosting Technique” works well because it quickly defuses the anxiety a guest has about appearing on-camera. For most people, appearing on-camera is not part of their normal routine. These three easy steps help demystify their video experience. When is the best time to use the “Defrosting Technique?” • Several days before the interview occurs. • The day of the interview- right before the interview is about to begin.
There you go. Three simple things you can do to help your next interview go smoothly: 1. Trade places 2. The more, the better 3. Be a “story steward”
Just by using the three simple steps mentioned above, your interviewee will begin to relax and feel comfortable under the lights. By the end of the interview, they will not be nervous anymore and you'll also end up with some great footage to edit into an interview worth watching. P.S. Of course, there are more ways to help people feel comfortable on-camera. This post is just a beginning. Feel free to add your comments or questions to this list: • What methods have helped you capture a conversation organically and comfortably? • If you were appearing on-camera, what would you want to know to help you feel comfortable?
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films. He helps Fortune 100's and non-profits breathe life into their messages and stories. Follow Tom on Twitter
So I’m on the phone with a fellow producer the other day and out of the blue I say…
“Finally, after all these years, videos now have a home on the web…and they’re not homeless anymore.”
“What do you mean?” he says.
“Well, think about it. For so many years, videos- especially videos for most organizations- have never had a venue where the stories were integrated into the larger picture. Remember, videos went out on tapes and then discs. Those stories were islands unto themselves; they were rarely seen in a larger context. Oh, sure, sometimes they’d get seen at meetings, conferences, etc. But really, the majority of the stories weren’t seen in a larger context- they weren’t integrated into an organization’s larger brand or message.”
And so here we are.
Thanks to the web, videos are, indeed, finding a home.
If your organization wants to see how video stories can effectively be integrated into the larger story, take a look at these five examples- you’ll have a instant roadmap to discover how video stories can possibly be part of something larger than just a disc or file.
If you believe ideas are a form of energy, you’re going to love this site. (A big hat tip to creative genius Mark Levy for pointing this site out to me!)
From Sputnik’s “About Us” page: “Sputnik Observatory is a New York not-for-profit educational organization dedicated to the study of contemporary culture. We fulfill this mission by documenting, archiving, and disseminating ideas that are shaping modern thought by interviewing leading thinkers in the arts, sciences and technology from around the world. Our philosophy is that ideas are NOT selfish, ideas are NOT viruses. Ideas survive because they fit in with the rest of life. Our position is that ideas are energy, and should interconnect and re-connect continuously because by linking ideas together we learn, and new ideas emerge.”
2. Lance Armstrong’s “It’s About You” Campaign You’re in for a treat with this one. Nike and Lance Armstrong teamed up to raise cancer awareness by launching “It’s About You.” Launched July 4th, the campaign integrates mixed media with the ability to share and tell our own stories. While you’re there, be sure to check out Evan Handlers’s video, “It’s About Telling Your Story.”
3. “The Soul of Athens” The county of Athens in Southeast Ohio, is so steeped in Appalachian culture, a site was created to capture the rich heritage and stories of its people. From their “About” page: “Produced by students at Ohio University’s School of Visual Communication and E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, the award-winning Soul of Athens has been placed in the same competitive arena as National Geographic, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.”
4. “Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary” My favorite site video/website ever. “Capturing Reality” seamlessly integrates “snack-sized” videos from worldclass documentary filmmakers along with educational material to inspire and educate filmmakers-to-be and film enthusiats.
5. David Lynch’s “Interview Project” Think you need a big budget to produce corporate videos? Not so. David Lynch’s latest project proves simple video production values combined with interesting people and integrated seamlessly on a site can capture and holed the attention of viewers.
Veteran corporate filmmaker Thomas Clifford believes remarkable organizations deserve remarkable films. He helps Fortune 100's and non-profits breathe life into their messages and stories. Blog Follow Tom on Twitter
