I don’t mean to rain on your parade, but you’re probably not the first to think of that. Your idea is nothing special. But do not let that get you down. You still have a chance to set yourself apart from others through the execution of your idea. You still have a chance to approach the same problems and same needs in different ways. You still have a chance to communicate your idea better than the next guy and share it well with others. In an age “without original ideas,” you must move forward regardless. Do not preoccupy yourself with the dream. Execution is key. Get busy.
Monthly Archives: September 2011
Regular Programming [Film Friday]
I’ve learned from blogging and observed the same results from others: releasing content daily dramatically increases your chances of attracting new and returning audience members. How do you think television and radio built so much traction in the first place? When audiences can expect to find you at a certain time or place, it lubricates the exhibition of your content and dramatically reduces marketing costs. You build a relationship with your audience over time, and keep them coming back for more.
By committing to releasing content regularly, you also dramatically increase your chances of producing a hit. 5 Second Films have produced so many short films and told so many jokes that the handful of hits they’ve had propelled the group into web virility.
If you cannot produce enough content to release daily, then commit to releasing content “regularly” – and publicly define the recurring time frame through which they should expect new content (weekly, monthly, every third Tuesday, etc.). At least some level of audience expectation makes a huge difference for audience retention.
Random splashes are risky and expensive to promote. Arbitrary releases rarely build traction. Do not bet on it. Consider curating an audience and regular programming instead.
Sergeant Major Eats Sugar Cookies
A handful of military leaders, notably in the United States Army, embrace a fairly standard five-paragraph memo to outline, strategize, and communicate unique action plans. I feel the following memo structure, identified by the acronym SMESC (or “Sergeant Major Eats Sugar Cookies”), will serve most civilian leaders well. I have every intention of practicing it into my business in the future:
- Situation: What is the problem?
- Mission: What is the principle task at hand and purpose behind it?
- Execution: What strategy are we going to use to accomplish the task?
- Support: What are the logistics? How many troops and resources will we need?
- Command: What other groups should be involved and how will they communicate?
Maximize Controversy
Want to be heard? Then consider stirring things up. Michael Moore makes his living on political controversy. Facebook experiences counter-intuitive user growth during periods of privacy backlash. The mainstream media makes a living blowing events out of proportion. As a business, brand, or individual, you could, too. Like a fist fight in the street, controversy makes a scene. People usually turn their head toward the loud. And controversy stirs easily. Understand, however, that if you lose the fight, you lose the favor of your audience. Make a splash if you choose, but understand the risks.
Advertise What You’re Advertising
I appreciate the need to launch marketing spots or materials to build brand awareness. But when you want to drive attention to a product, then make sure you . . . drive attention to your product. I am astounded by the number of designs, commercials, prints, and public gimmicks I see on a daily basis that fail to clearly communicate the product they mean to sell. Every good marketing campaign should tell a story, make the product clear to the customer, and clearly articulate where the customer can find the product.
For the last several weeks, my company has been running a spot for our latest web series on national television. Perhaps you’ve seen it? The spot is failing to communicate that it’s a web series that you should watch online. Am I crazy?
Passive Aggressive
Confront the issue directly. Blow steam to someone else first if you need to, but don’t wait to deal with the tension at hand. It will only blow up in your face later. Like water boiling on a stove, you may get burned if you wait too long. Definitely do not ignore the situation and let the water to boil out entirely because you will be left with a charred and unusable pan.
Feed Your Team
An army marches on its stomach. Food boosts morale, energizes the mind, and rewards your team. Food is more magical than money. I am convinced through my experience that feeding your team is one of the keys to success. I calculate catering and craft service into my film budgets before any other line item. Not only is your team happier on a full stomach, they tend to stick around the office and get more work done. The traditional hour lunch break sends everyone off into the world and away from each other, making it difficult to get back into the gear of tasks at hand.
Afraid that feeding your team may be too expensive? Think instead about the productivity costs associated with sending your team outside for an hour lunch break. It will take an individual between 10 and 20 minutes to reach a destination for lunch, between 20 and 35 to eat, 10 to 20 to return, and as much as 30 minutes to get motivated again. On average, the hour lunch break could cost you as much as one and a half man-hours per employee per day. For a ten-person team with $60,000 salaries each, that’s $430 a day – over $2,000 per week! You could more than cover the costs of a caterer for the same price.
Find a way to pay for it. Feeding your team may be an added expense unaccounted for in your overhead and payroll costs, but the work output benefits are tenfold. Yum.
Proof Your Graphics
Like proofreading published text, it is important to run your graphic work by others before release. If you can, run it by a few members of your audience. Make sure the people you run it by are honest people.
Take, for example, the Winnie the Pooh Blu-ray cover. Can someone please tell me what Eeyore is doing with both of his hands?
The Economy of Favors [Film Friday]
Especially in low-budget filmmaking, favors can be essential to bringing a vision to life. Favors can help you fill missing pieces, augment talent, cover logistical needs, give you a foothold for success, and so much more. Most of all, favors can inspire long-lasting collaborations. BUT (and it’s a big BUT) – favors must be reciprocated. Promises must be returned. Or you may eventually find yourself without help. You can only last so long on false promises. Your project or company cannot sustain itself on favor poaching.As with all mutual relationships, there must be a give and take. A paycheck isn’t enough. Offer favors, accept favors, and follow through with your promises. Exchange a little, then exchange some more. Favors can make friends.
But make sure you follow through.
Sweat the Big Stuff
Grade school taught us through graded assignments to sweat the little stuff. As we get older, the sweat never seems to dry away: monthly bills, quarterly reviews, weekly status meetings, to-do lists, deadlines, and more. A constant influx of “urgent tasks” and minutiae attack with little patience. It never ends. Stressed or overwhelmed? Ask yourself: “Will it matter in five years?” Odds are, probably not. Day to day, we preoccupy ourselves with problems that cease to be relevant long-term. Invariably, we solve the issues, or they go away. No big deal. So why hurt ourselves?We need to put daily burdens at bay. We need to raise our children and teach our students to see the big picture. We need to learn to invest in the long-term. We need to learn to live in the higher context of our own lives and appreciate how every beautiful moment adds to the greater whole.
Don’t sweat the little stuff. There are bigger and more important things going on.
Craig Ormiston 