Today’s not any ordinary day. Our first ever marketing conference, The Yearly Carnage, is finally here!

If you’re attending our day-long marketing party, download the schedule here, and follow along with the chatter on social using the hashtag, #Carnage2018.

If you’re not attending, there’s always next year!

Not even sure what else we can say about video content at this point. We’re gonna make this very clear: if you’re not creating video content for your marketing efforts…you’re f*cking up.

If you are already creating video content, it’s time to level up and create content that actually drives website traffic. Andy Crestodina has some killer advice for you today.

Quick word of advice: ditch the cell phone. A shaky cell phone video isn’t going to get you great results. Here’s what you’ll need:

1. A tripod and a decent camera
2. A microphone and a quiet room
3. A light or a window
4. Basic editing software (like Camtasia)
5. An active following on social media

Once you’ve got that part on lockdown, what’s next? Actually doing it. Andy recommends recording videos that promote your latest blog posts. Here’s how:

1. Set up once. Record many. Pro-tip: Shoot a bunch of videos at once. Then, publish them whenever you’re ready. It’ll make the whole process so much quicker.
2. The shoot. What are you going to say? Follow this script:
   1. Smile 0:00
   2. Introduce yourself 0:02
   3. Tell the viewer what you’re doing here 0:05
   4. Summarize the article 0:45
   5. Your CTA: Suggest that they click! 0:55
   6. Thank them for watching 1:00
3. Import, size and sync. Pretty straightforward.
4. Edit and add captions. This part is complex so we can’t really sum it up here. Watch this video to see exactly how Andy does his editing and captioning.
5. Export the file.
6. Make the social media post! Import your video into LinkedIn, Facebook, or whatever platform. Then, write your description, AND include a link to the blog post you’re promoting in the video. Be sure to tag/mention anyone who helped create the post or added content to it. That’ll help amplify the video.
7. Promote the social media video/post. Now you gotta promote the video that’s promoting your blog post. (Gettin’ real meta up in here. Here’s a short history of marketing that explains why you gotta do this part.) Copy the link to the post and share it elsewhere…email it, share it in relevant groups, other social platforms, etc.

This post goes super Deep (yah, with a capital D), but we couldn’t fit everything in. Gotta read it yourself…

Sprout Social is asking the important questions today.

“How can I make sure my posts aren’t getting buried?”
“Should we totally give up on organic reach and go all-in on ads?”
“Which sorts of ads are going to give us the most bang for our buck, anyway?

Think it’s safe to say that most marketers have been asking these questions quite a lot lately. But instead of talking about what’s not working, let’s evaluate what is working for brands today. 

Sprout Social has outlined some recent success stories, from amazing ads to organic posts that received a ton of engagement. Gotta love a good success story. Especially when you get all the deets on why they worked, too. 

1) Halo Top

This cool-and-creamy brand really knows how to drive discussion on their posts. They frequently implement tag-a-friend and giveaway posts but do so in a tasteful (and tasty) manner.

This is done in part by having a diverse content strategy that mixes things up with their audience and gives their followers something to look forward to.

2) Denny’s

We straight up looooooove Denny’s social. They take posts to zany new levels. Proof that sometimes the road-not-taken helps get more eyes on your brand. 

Recently, Denny’s maintains their humorous tone while finding success moving away from solely posting memes or off-the-wall images. Facebook actually notes Denny’s success using short-form video ads. A recent Facebook campaign saw the brand using bite-sized videos to reinforce their TV campaigns with wild success.

3) GameStop

GameStop managed to build a huge Facebook audience without hitting their followers over the head with deals. Their nerdy, niche content is lapped up, often by viewers watching short videos. In fact. this list is full of success stories in the form of, you guessed, 

short videos. Not only does Facebook insist that brands post video content to encourage discussion, but doing so is arguably easier than ever.

Keep cruising more a few more cool campaigns, insights, and some killer visual examples. Get inspired →

Okay, crew. We’ve got a challenge for you. Watch today’s ad by Monoprix in its entirety. Can you make it ‘til the end?

Titled “The Worst Song in the World,” you’ll soon understand why this two-minute ad might be difficult to get through. 

But the surprise ending is more than enough to make up for it. It’s brilliant. 

Oh, and let us know if you made it to the end without skipping ahead.