You’ll be surprised to learn how much these experts don’t know.  This is due to the evolving dynamic nature of  an online video industry that is still struggling for standards and sufficient tracking technologies to demonstrate value to brands.

If you consider yourself an online video industry guru, you’ll want to watch this!

Panelists:

• Andy Plesser – Executive Producer, Beet.TV, Moderator
• Ed Haslam – Senior Vice President, Marketing, YuMe
• Michael Dresner – COO, CineSport
• Mark Marvel – Senior Director, Emerging Media Monetization, MSNBC.com
• Bill Lederer – CEO, Kantar Video, WPP Group PLC
• Dermot McCormack – Executive Vice President, Digital, MTV
• Ran Harnevo – Senior Vice President, AOL Video

Hosted by Epic Fu’s Steve Woolf and Zadi Diaz (Streamy Award Winner), and Chris McCaleb (Emmy-nominated Executive Producer) of Big Fantastic, New Mediacracy offers frank talk (generously sprinkled with colorful R-Rated adjectives)  about the latest Internet video and Web series happenings in a casual, witty and buzzed way – accompanied by their infamous bottle of wine being passed around for refills throughout the show. (Yes, those are glasses you hear clinking in the background.) Mind you, not all imbibe. Some opt for the popular gummy bears instead. And sometimes hosts and guests go WILD and have BOTH wine and gummy bears.

The latest episode rocks, with guests Felicia Day (The Guild, Dragon Age: Redemption) and Ryan Copple, (Riese the Series). The  1.5 hours flew by quickly. Listen to it while driving, when you’re supposed to be working, when running on the treadmill at the gym (or while thinking about runing on the treadmill at the gym). Give your eyes a rest and let your ears enjoy!

Listen to this episode or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.

Marketing is Fan Advocacy
Entertainment marketers think entirely about the show’s audience. We represent the fan (and future fans) by putting ourselves in their heads. Content creators don’t…or at least not as much as we do. They focus on the story telling. That’s their job. It’s the marketer’s responsibility to supplement and grow fan interest in the show’s story before the premiere, as well as week-to-week until the end of the season. So whether it’s a TV show or Web series, the common digital marketing goals are to connect fans deeply with the show’s story and characters when they’re not watching it, and also bring them together as a community to spark discussions and share opinions. Hopefully they will also share content  with their friends on Twitter and Facebook, etc. to generate wider interest.

Prepping To Go On Set
It’s important for marketers to feel connected to what they’re promoting, or efforts  are likely to fall flat for the show. In entertainment marketing, feeling as excited as the content creator about a show is invaluable for generating creative marketing ideas. For me, the best place to capture this energy is on set. But before you step on set, you should do a few things to prepare to maximize everyone’s time:

• Read the Script: Before anyone can market a show, they need to read all the available scripts in order to “get” it. I read the scripts for Season three of Anyone But Me many times. Why? Because I needed to immerse myself into the characters and imagine what the show was going to look like to the audience. What are the compelling moments where fans would most likely have a significant reaction, character motivations, if there were any new characters introduced that could cause a stir, resolution to any cliffhangers from last season, etc. These tend to be universal questions for any show.

• Read Fan Comments: Next, if your show has already released a few episodes, read all audience comments you can find across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and any other distribution networks you use,  to get a feel for which characters are clicking with the audience in a positive or controversial way. It’s helpful to know which characters are generating buzz.

• Review Viewer Numbers & Distributor Promotions: Which distribution channels are attracting higher traffic? Are your distribution partners running ads against your content and if so, how much are you making and which brands are they? Do you have a promotional partnership with any of your distributors to help improve show discovery? If it’s a TV show, research which episodes from last season drew the most broadcast and online viewers to understand where in the storyline interest was greatest and which characters were most involved.

Creating Digital Marketing “Extras”
As a fan of Anyone But Me for the past two seasons, I’ve been getting to know the characters throughout its 20 episodes. It’s both rare and special to work with a “long-running” Web series that has a devoted fan base, but the goal remains to grow the audience, appeal to potential sponsors and underwriters, and deliver a quality entertainment experience to current fans. My goals on set were:

Take Photos: Full cast, mixed shots of characters, candid.  I’ve selected my new favorite behind-the-scenes still of Body of Proof’s Dana Delaney hopping onto the examining table with a “live” corpse. (Photo credit: ABC)

Film Video Clips: There are many exciting storytelling strategies that can be used for video clips. Most Web series and TV shows create these, but quality varies. I define quality as “would a fan enjoy this?” because it offers insight into the characters, the actors, the storyline, creators’ inspiration, it’s funny, and is  it in good taste for the show’s brand, among other reasons. (See examples below.)

Talk With Talent: Get insight from the actors about what they think about their character and how its interact with other key characters in their storyline, etc. Marketing ideas can be sparked by talent’s interpretation of a character for a storyline.

Have a Liaison on Set
The crew knows who is “one of them” and who isn’t. It’s important that you have a liaison on set who introduces you around and ensures that everyone understands why you are there and what you’ll be doing. You’ll also need this person to have authority to clear time for you with talent, the director and anyone else relevant to creating assets as part of the digital strategy. Remember, cast and crew are focused on making a great episode. Stay reasonably clear of the set when taking photos and have video clip interview topics/angles and still shots of certain scenes in mind to make the most of everyone’s time. Talent is used to behind-the-scenes photos and videos these days, but a few staged funny photos are great too. Remember, you’re there to create fun and engaging material for the fans and to build show loyalty. Just be polite and work the same 12 hour day as everyone else does to get the job done.

Mini Case Studies: Launching a New Series or a Season Premiere
Following are examples of digital marketing strategies by new and returning TV shows. I selected them because I like these shows, and more importantly, believe they do a good job of sharing content with fans.  All of the promo content is captured on set. If you’re a Web series creator, the needs are the same for your fans. Really. The only BIG differences are A-list talent and a marketing budget. Aside from that, you can create meaningful Extras for your show that can be less slick, but still valuable to your audience. And who doesn’t have a camera?

New Series Premiere
If  introducing a new series, what information is most important to share with potential viewers that can turn them into active viewers and members of an engaged online community?

ABC has been introducing audiences for the past few weeks to its new show,  Body of Proof. The show’s site is nicely prepped with episode one video clips, many on set photos and more. I found the episode one clip valuable to connect with the lead’s character (a bit arrogant) and the show’s vibe (some sarcastic humor). The character’s background is extremely important to the story, and hasn’t been shared in the broadcast commercials. The show’s Web site communicates it all more effectively than any commercial or billboard could. It premieres next week and already  has over 13k Facebook Likes. (I’m sure lead Dana Delaney’s Desperate Housewives fan base has contributed to this amount too.) I admit to being a bit confused about why there isn’t more promotion on the site of co-star Jeri Ryan of Star Trek:Voyager (Seven of Nine) fame, among other TV series. Her fan following, as for all actors, should be tapped to generate viewers for the show. (If you work with new undiscovered talent in a Web series, see my post about strategies for finding your audience.)

Fox is a few weeks into the premiere of its new crime drama The Chicago Code, starring  Jennifer Beals and HBO’s Brotherhood star Jason Clarke. It offers up a lot of fan extras, including stills and video interviews, but also works to introduce the show to the audience with a show description on the home page (placed a bit too far down in my opinion), a cast list with a character description and episode recaps that match stills to each episode. Unfortunately, thisshow  overview info is buried under the “About” tab on the site. I would promote this content more on the homepage.

The slideshow promos at the top of a show’s homepage are extremely important for visitors. They should highlight the most important show  information or call- to-action on the site. Fox offers three rotating ads at the moment: one that captures the character motivations of the show (nice), one that encourages visitors to watch the latest episode online (good), and one that encourages wallpaper downloads (huh?). I would swap the wallpaper promo with a more important call to action that is community-focused, such as “Join the Chicago Code Community” with a link to the community homepage. It’s important to prioritize your promos.

Something unique to Fox shows’ homepages is a News section (bottom right) that offers external links to media coverage about the show. The article quality in this section varies across the shows. If you decide to include third-party media links to your show’s homepage, make sure the content quality you send them to is GOOD. (I suggest not doing this because you want to keep visitors on your site and immersed in your content.)

Returning Series – Season Premiere
If a show is getting ready to premiere a new season, what can be done to pump up current fans to reconnect them to the characters and get them back in the groove to watch? Let’s take a look at what Showtime is doing to prep for the season premieres of their hits United States of Tara and Nurse Jackie.

Showtime’s United States of Tara started a journal for the many personalities of Tara, the lead character, a month out from its season three premiere date. (Very creative.) The journal’s homepage lives on Showtime’s site, but each “alter’s'” page was customized on Tumblr with a unique domain name that matches the character’s personality, with fun graphic design and journal entries written in their voice. They also notify fans know about new journal posts via the show’s Facebook fan page.

The show’s homepage and creative design also set up the season three storyline, letting the audience know that Tara is going back to school. That thought alone, knowing the character, lends itself to hilarious situations. Point being, it’s okay to reveal new season storylines to aggressively entice a new (or returning) audience to watch.

There’s also a promo ad encouraging fans to buy season two of the show on iTunes. One of the best times to drive purchases of a past season is just before the next season’s premiere and throughout the new season, when fans are most excited and engaged. So don’t forget to do it if this applies to your show!

Nurse Jackie’s season three premiere is also coming up. In addition to Edie Falco’s revealing interview about the new season, including new cast members and challenges for her character, there’s also a fun cast video where the actors talk about their favorite scenes.

The show is uniquely offering a special promotion for Bliss Spas to practicing nurses to celebrate the new season. This is the only corporate tie-in I’ve see with a season premiere among the show sites I’ve reviewed.

Marketing Budgets: TV Show vs. Web Series
Broadcast networks understand the importance of marketing their shows to rise above the noise of competing shows, and together with the show’s production company, provide resources to grab viewer mindshare. For Web series creators, budgets tend to be entirely focused on production, with nothing left over to promote the series. That’s fine if you just want your family and friends to watch it after you contact them via email or Facebook. But it will be difficult to develop a series brand, and attract potential sponsors or investors for your next season, if these are your goals. You can’t expect your series to go viral like a single YouTube video. Episodic serials require marketing – and note that I haven’t discussed media relations yet! If you’re serious about building a loyal and engaged audience, digital marketing assets, at minimum, need to be rolled out with the pilot (or first episode) and continue from there to leverage character development and plot line changes throughout the season. As I’ve said to clients over the years, you get only one chance to premiere or launch a show or product. That moment sets the tone for a very long time.

Show Quality: Marketing Can’t Perform Miracles
Most importantly, entertainment marketers are dependent on the writers and directors to produce a quality show. A mediocre show will not attract a large and loyal fan base, regardless of great marketing and a billboard on Sunset Strip. At the end of the day, marketing builds value for shows that are strong, but need help being discovered. As soon as discovery begins, fan engagement and hopefully growth begin. This is a process that takes time and trying out new creative strategies on a regular basis is important. In the end, the audience always decides which shows last!

Related Post: Tips For Marketing A Web Series

TV Check-Ins
Checking-in is no longer limited to a physical location, which Foursquare has made popular, but is now extended to “experiences,” such as watching a TV Show or movie, or even reading a book.  A group of entertainment “check-in” startups have latched on to this idea and are gaining traction with networks and studios. Time Warner-backed GetGlue is one of the first to validate this concept and has grown its user base to over 700,000 so far. GetGlue TV fan stickers (aka badges) range from Boardwalk Empire and Burn Notice, to Sons of Anarchy and Revision 3′s The Totally Rad Show. Competitors include Google-backed Miso (which Oprah Winfrey’s new OWN channel has partnered with), CBS-owned TV.com Relay, Comcast-owned Tunerfish and Philo, where you score points instead of earn show badges.

All except Relay currently have a Web-based community and mobile apps. (Relay’s Web site is expected in the Fall.) Mobile features, Web site features, badges, points (or both), and recommendation engines vary across each provider. Also, some are tied to live broadcast only schedules and sync with the viewer’s nearest cable provider (based on location and time zone), so review your selection carefully to assess which is best for your show(s). Given the time-shifting going on with audiences thanks to VOD, tying viewers to a live schedule may not suit your show’s viewer behaviors. Also review the analytics dashboard available to help define and gauge success. Check out this related article.

TV Tagging
Syfy just launched the premiere of its new series, Being Human, with an interactive TV tagging component. Partnering with Shazam Entertainment, viewers can “tag” any scene in the show by pointing their smartphone at it and clicking to immediately receive links to exclusive video, music playlists from the show, competition entry form, etc. An on-screen promotional campaign encourages viewers to download the required free Shazam application onto their mobile device and to watch Being Human every Monday night at 9PM ET/PT on Syfy. Digital markers are embedded into the show’s format so the Shazam app can detect them. This is being complimented with a mobile entry only sweepstakes that runs through the end of the season, with prizes for three winners that contain a Being Human: Season 1 DVD set and one Being Human t-shirt. Not quite an Oprah car, but  a competitive giveaway to stir up new fans for a tech savvy show demographic.

Gamification
Gamification? Is that even a word? Guess it is now that the industry is using it. Gamification extends a show’s experience with show-related trivia, polls, challenges, and uniquely branded games related to the characters’ interests. The goal is to offer engaging and competitive ways for fans to interact with the show. This strategy has proven successful for USA Network’s popular show, Psych. They have a members-only Club Psych area on their site dedicated to rewarding active fans with loyalty points, virtual goods, and merchandise for points. An NBC Universal representative reported that game-like reward programs generated a 130 percent increase in page views for the show and a 40 percent increase in return visits, with more games to come for other shows on the network. These are impressive stats.

Show-Branded Twitter Community Destinations
Bravo TV recently launched an ambitious social media destination called @BravoTV. Fans enter a comprehensive, curated and beautifully branded universe of all Bravo TV shows, which also serves as a convenient discovery tool. Features include Tweet Tracker, which serves as a gateway to real-time Twitter conversations by show, and Tweet Battle, where fans can challenge each other on a statement about a character or a related show topic, with the community voting to determine the winner. This is great news for fans who no longer need to feel lonely as they follow a show’s hashtag in a sterile TweetDeck column. Now they can go on over to The House Wives of Atlanta page (for example) and take part in the larger fan community. These destination communities also offer unlimited brand sponsorship opportunities, with metrics and viewer trends easily available to woo brands. Lisa Hsia, Senior Vice President of Bravo Digital Media, shared insight into @BravoTV’s creation in a recent Mashable article.

(Disclaimer: I didn’t realize until after writing this post that all of the cable networks mentioned are owned by NBC Universal/Comcast. Also, none of the above are clients.)

That’s what many consumers will be asking in a few months when UltraViolet, Hollywood’s answer to declining DVD and Blu-ray disc sales, hits online and retail stores. UltraViolet is a new format that lets you store and watch purchased TV shows and movies anytime, anywhere on almost any device from a free “digital entertainment locker” in the cloud. The format was developed by the Digital Entertainment Ecosystem Consortium (DECE), an industry group whose 70 members include the Who’s Who of studios, electronics manufacturers and tech companies. Its mid-2011 debut was announced at the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this month.

According to John Calkins, executive vice president of Global Digital and Commercial Innovation at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, “Ultraviolet will provide consumers an easy way to access their content without the limitations of a physical product, in the same way that the ATM network provides consumers access to their money – anytime, anywhere. It’s a tremendous leap forward in consumer control and flexibility.”
Why Does Hollywood Need UltraViolet?

Because they are losing A LOT of money. DVD and Blu-ray disc sales, often the deciding factor in a movie’s profitability or loss, are losing ground to typically less expensive video-on-demand (VOD) rentals and electronic sell-through (EST) (industry lingo for purchasing and downloading movies or TV content online). According to the Digital Entertainment Group, worldwide sales of DVDs and Blu-ray discs dropped by 8% to $10.9 billion in the first nine months of 2010. A few hundred million in losses? Ouch! The good news is that over the same period, the market for digital distribution (both EST and VOD) grew by 23% to $1.7 billion. UltraViolet is intended to be the industry’s solution to increase digital content purchases in order to offset falling disc purchases, while keeping its intellectual property safe from piracy in a digital locker. Plus, consumers get the added convenience of watching their content across devices regardless of location.

(Read the full article on Tubefilter News.)

You know that feeling when you forget which gadget you downloaded a certain photo, tune or video to? Did you save that special photo on your Android phone, camera, computer or maybe in an album on Facebook? No need to panic anymore. RealNetworks, the folks who brought us RealPlayer for video, has created Unifi, an exciting new way to save (and find) all of your photos, music, and video files across multiple gadgets – in one place. It’s an obvious solution to a growing challenge we mediaphiles have day-to-day. CNET editors were also fans and awarded Unifi a Best of CES show award, which is a big deal in the geek world.

What’s so cool about Unifi is that it doesn’t matter whether you purchased your digital entertainment on iTunes or Amazon, or whether the content you own is on a Mac, PC, Android, iPhone, Facebook or Flickr. Unifi knocks down the walls between your digital libraries and lets you enjoy them no matter where you legally acquired them. For example, you can stream the iTunes selections and playlists you own from Unifi to your Android phone. Awesomeness! It also has an attractive interface for browsing your library. Hopefully, videos stored on Unifi can eventually be streamed directly to an Internet-connected TV.

(Read my full article on Tubefilter News.)

Every year an uber gathering of global geeks and media cognescenti convene at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas to preview sexy new gadgets slated to roll out in the coming months. I couldn’t help but hum the famous FAO Schwartz song, Welcome To Our World of Toys as I walked into the expo halls to see these cool new gadgets, or toys as I call them. This year, over 140,000 industry insiders clogged Las Vegas and elbowed their way into the exhibit halls for exclusive sneak peeks (I still have bruises). And you know it’s a hip event when Lady Gaga shows up! With so much exciting news flying out of the show, I’ve pieced together some highlights for Web video fans.

Watch Your Favorite Shows Anytime, Anywhere on Any Device
That’s right! The BIG vision this year is for everyone to be able to watch their favorite web originals, cable and broadcast shows on smart phones, smart TVs (Internet-connected), tablets and on any other gizmos with screens with a shared content library. A “connected” entertainment ecosystem is the ultimate goal. For example, if you buy a TV show on your smartphone and begin watching it, when you get home you can turn on your TV or tablet and pick up exactly where you left off. Vizio, a TV manufacturer, announced its new connected Vizio VIA Plus slate of devices, adding their first tablet and smartphone to build their entertainment ecosystem.

Read my full article on Tubefilter News.

As a  cord cutter (no cable) and admitted periodic moocher of friends who have Showtime, HBO and Starz, my purchase of a Samsung LED TV Series 6400 in September has radically changed my viewing habits.  (Just to be clear, I’m a total TV addict.) Not only do I NOT care what time it is during prime time hours (because I’ll watch my shows on Hulu before the time off for Hulu Plus paying customers),  I’m spending more time watching shows and movies, and discovering new programs via my TV apps. Add to this set-up an appified Blu-ray player, AppleTV, GoogleTV, Roku and/or Boxee Box devices and welcome to TV nirvana!  And if you have a Wii, Xbox Live or PlayStation, look for new content programming to be available as well.

The more entertainment options, the better for consumers – though it will get confusing to track which apps are on which sets or devices. Eventually I’ll add a Web browsing ability to my TV, but I don’t feel an urgency to do this at the moment. Apparently, others don’t either. In fact, Sony Bravia sales with GoogleTV embedded are struggling. (There also serious user experience issues with a complex remote to overcome.)

Next year, I anticipate Internet-connected TV manufacturers with App stores, such as Vizio and Sony Bravia, to begin announcing their app store stats, a la iTunes, as well – though Samsung appears to have taken the lead in selection and downloads.  With industry analyst firm Forrester estimating that 43 million US households will have at least one Internet-enabled TV by 2015, growth is set to take off.

At this year’s NewTeeVee Live Conference by GigaOm, Samsung’s Director of Content, Olivier Manuel talked about their approach and vision for bringing TV apps to their TV’s and across all of the brand’s TV-connected devices.

My Favorite TV Apps
TV Apps I use most include Pandora, YouTube, Netflix ($9.99 monthly subscription), Rovi, Accuweather, TED TV and VUDU (which offers a credit for new users, without having to enter credit card info.) Finally, Hulu Plus now offers a free one week trial period, so I’ll be checking that out to see if a $7.99  monthly subscription is worth it for my particular viewing habits.

TV Apps & Web Series
TV Apps open up a promising new distribution platform for Web series. Let’s face it,  all entertainment looks better on a large HDTV. So when will this happpen? Right now, Internet TV networks Revision3, Blip.tv, and Dailymotion have free TV apps in a variety of TV app stores and devices. (Visit their Web sites for details.) It’s pay-for-play to have a presence in an app store. YouTube also has a strong presence across TV app stores, more so than the Internet TV networks previously listed, but they have deeper pockets than the upstart Internet TV networks thanks to parent company, Google. Give it time.

Get Your Web Series In A TV App
So how can you get your Web series included in one of the Internet TV networks’ TV Apps? Keep in mind that TV apps do not replicate a Web site by offering all of the same content. Just like mobile apps, all content is “curated” or selected because it meets certain quality standards and/or has a large follower base from past episodes or previous series. Since this is a new distribution platform, raise your interest with the networks you’re distributing your show with. If you have an exclusive distribution deal for a set period of time, ask for inclusion in their TV App for that period of time. This gets back to developing a distribution strategyfor your show that will leverage your current fan base, maximize ad views and build buzz to attract online sponsors and earn future series offers for your cast and crew.

Coming up! The 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
In January, the geeks convene at the annual CES where consumer electronics giants and content partners preview and announce their hot new consumer products scheduled to roll out in the coming year. I’ll be there again with Tubefilter News, as I was last year, to update you on interesting trends that will excite content creators and fans!

Wishing all of you a very Happy New Year!

Throughout the day leading up to the President’s address about the BP oil spill, the White House social media team prepped The White House YouTube channel and Web site by integrating Google’s Google Moderator product to create a forum for the public to ask questions about the disaster, which would be answered by Gibbs. Wow!

Though I only found out about this historic Q&A a few minutes before the President’s address via the White House web site, I quickly logged into Google Moderator below the live stream window to add my questions before the Q&A with Gibbs began.  Viewers who logged into Moderator were able to submit and vote for questions they liked the most (popular ranking), which helped determine which questions would be answered by Gibbs.

Results
The metrics were impressive! The number of votes, questions submitted and people logged on mostly doubled from the time the live Q&A started to when it was finished. Video-based questions were also shown and answered as well. Within 30 minutes the vote count went from 67k to 172k, the number of questions moved up from 3,350 to 6,342 and the number of people logged in jumped from 7,385 to over 13k. (These metrics were publicly visible.) And though these are low numbers considering that there are over 300 million Americans, it demonstrates the American people’s interest in feeling a more direct connection with what is going on in Washington in an unprecedented way – beyond voting. I suspect that better promotion about this opportunity would have attracted a larger audience.

Lessons For Business
Though press conferences continue to be an important way for businesses to communicate their messages to a wide audience, the value of communicating directly with your customers/community members through a live stream presentation and Q&A is important as well. Give your community members access directly to your spokespeople and some of your executives. You can still screen the messages you want to answer, but you win valuable face-time with interested community members, regardless of whether or not you answer each person’s specific questions.

Placing media in between you and your audience is the old way of thinking about media. Embrace your community directly! Give them the same access and attention you would give to media – but in a more conversational and informal tone. Leverage live streaming and community engagement tools, from moderated forums to twitter live streams visible during the public session with a single hashtag to use whenever you do one of these events.

Adding a live stream communications strategy to your tool set may feel revolutionary at first, but I suspect it will be commonplace very soon. If the President of the Unites State’s spokesperson can do it, surely you can too, with far less at risk. Be a first mover among your competitors!