tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-188803472009-05-11T11:59:13.980-04:00You've got a message, we'll help you share it. Thoughts on video, interactive <br> and the web for marketing, sales and training.Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-43677542099827926342009-01-16T13:58:00.002-05:002009-01-16T14:09:02.874-05:00

The ice storm that hit New Hampshire in December left 322,000 PSNH customers without power. While the line crews worked around the clock to restore power, the communications staff was working just as hard to keep the lines of communication open.Our goal was to have a new story about the restoration effort for the public each day. We visited with line crews, customer service people, supply crews

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-70616631420970881572008-10-10T14:03:00.006-04:002008-10-10T14:19:02.249-04:00

During a recent kick-off meeting for a project, I was talking with a client about setting up phone interviews with current customers. I wanted to talk directly with some customers to find out what they really think about the client's services.A product manager at the table played down the need to talk with the customer base. "After all," he said, "It's just B-to-B."We were working on a video to

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-4756825431782747072008-09-12T10:32:00.003-04:002008-09-15T11:06:53.982-04:00

You've sent out your latest press release and you're waiting for the queries to begin. And you're waiting... and waiting...It's becoming harder and harder to get attention. There's just so much information out there. And press releases can be pretty ho hum. One way to generate more interest in your message is to include a video with your PR.A short video can paint a much clearer and more detailed

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-40771141588661832142008-05-08T11:26:00.010-04:002008-05-29T16:32:20.902-04:00

Think quick - what companies advertised during this year's Super Bowl?Can't name many, can you?If I'd paid $2.7 million for a thirty second spot, I wouldn't be pleased.This year's game was a classic (unless you're a Patriot's fan) – and viewers stayed with the game until the very end. That's what advertisers hope for when they spend big bucks for their spots. And that $2.7 million just covers ad

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-19923672976087576682007-04-27T15:38:00.001-04:002007-04-27T16:17:15.511-04:00

I was talking to a designer recently about the creative process. Her favorite part of any project is brainstorming. I agree. It’s an opportunity to really think freely and play off each other’s ideas.We do this often when starting projects. We look at the available materials, the audience, the message and we let the ideas come. It’s incredibly exciting to be in that flow – you come up with an

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1161787738162183952006-10-25T10:30:00.000-04:002006-10-25T10:48:58.246-04:00

It's remarkable how often people misunderstand what we're trying to say. You'd think we're speaking entirely different languages, there's so much miscommunication.In our business, pictures really tell the story. And communicating your idea with a picture is the best way to go. From getting the client's buy in on a concept, to conveying your vision to the DP, pictures are something people can

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1145278734409134222006-04-17T08:52:00.000-04:002006-04-17T09:02:09.963-04:00

Chevy claims their recent Chevy Apprentice campaign is a huge success – 21,000 ads were created and the commercials were emailed over 40,000 times – not bad for a “viral marketing” campaign.Chevy asked people to create TV commercials for their new Tahoe SUV. Chevy provided video, music and places to add text. The results were interesting, to say the least. Spots blamed Chevy for global warming,

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1143479343004058932006-03-27T12:02:00.000-05:002006-03-27T14:38:57.786-05:00

A client’s style guide is our bible when we’re working on motion graphics for a video, a menu for a client’s DVD – just about anything to do with design.But what if they don’t have a style guide?There are plug-ins galore for Photoshop, Illustrator that help with creating a color palette. Two great online color tools make color choices easier.Color Scheme Tool is a great web-based tool that offers

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1142019731168624632006-03-10T14:42:00.000-05:002006-03-27T14:45:08.966-05:00

By now you've probably seen this clip from utube showing how the Apple's iPod packaging would look if designed by Microsoft.Obviously, the creators of this video had some fun at Microsoft's expense. Garr Reynolds uses this video as springboard to discuss design by committee on his Presentation Zen blog. He makes some great points, but the video had me thinking in a different direction – how do

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1140213746775919532006-02-17T16:59:00.000-05:002006-02-17T17:02:26.776-05:00

I was interviewed recently by a high school senior – she’s working on her senior project and hopes to make a video. She asked some very good questions, but when I started to describe how we prepare for a shoot, I could see her eyebrows go up.I believe that 80-90% of a good production happens before you roll tape. I started to reel off all of the items that are part of pre-production:• developing

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1138831717437276512006-02-01T17:08:00.000-05:002006-02-01T17:08:37.443-05:00

At a project meeting with a client, we discussed options for distributing a sales presentation video to their salespeople. DVD was an obvious choice, but most of the salespeople had older laptops without DVD drives. We could give them a Windows Media file on CD that they could play back. Or, we could give them all video iPods. It’s not as crazy as it sounds. There are some very good arguments

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1136999660085056182006-01-11T11:53:00.000-05:002006-01-11T12:46:40.890-05:00

Take a look at the two video clips below. The clip on top is a segment from a piece we produced for a local college. The clip on the bottom is the same piece, minus music and b-roll.After viewing the first clip, many people might assume that Cristina gave us a very good soundbite for the video. Cristina is exceptionally articulate, but we stitched together bits from over 1 hour of interview to

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1134416880186437912005-12-12T14:48:00.000-05:002005-12-12T14:48:00.193-05:00

Editing is easily my favorite part of creating video. Even the most carefully scripted, storyboarded and thought out production can change once an editor gets his hands on the footage. Good editing can turn a good story into a great story. For me, it’s really where all of the magic happens. Take a look at this trailer – it’s a fantastic example of how an editor can change the feel of a piece.

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811485507187352005-12-05T14:37:00.000-05:002005-12-06T14:35:03.176-05:00

Q: Hi Chris, My video producer and I are at a creative crossroads and can't agree on how to move forward with our project. I want to add some additional background information about our company, and he says that will be distracting and dilute our message (it's primarily a product sales video). What do you think? Thanks for your help, RossA: Hi Ross,Different approaches are part of the creative

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811407887247722005-11-09T17:36:00.000-05:002005-12-05T14:47:29.746-05:00

Q: Hi Chris, My son wants me to get a High-Definition television. What does "High-Definition" mean? My son says it will look a lot better than our current TV. What do you think? Thanks, NaomieA: Hi Naomie,Your son is right. A High-Definition television (HDTV) has much better image quality than existing televisions. In fact, people have described the difference between HDTV and traditional TV as

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811335793958172005-10-01T13:34:00.000-04:002005-12-06T14:33:35.016-05:00

Q: Hi Chris, What is a best boy? I always see them on the credits of a movie but I haven't been able to figure out who they are. Thanks, ConnieA: Hi Connie, Welcome to the wonderful world of movie credits! Best boys are part of the crew responsible for helping the Cinematographer get the shots they need. Here's an outline of who's who:Gaffer: the chief electrician on the set, responsible for

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811217954336662005-09-01T16:33:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:40:58.203-05:00

Q: Dear Chris, I've got a question please. We just made a television commercial for our store, and we would like to put it on our website. We would like to have a link on the home page that people can click on and watch the video. Can you convert our commercial to web video, and how much does it cost to do that? Thanks in advance for your help. MarcA: Dear Marc, What you want to do should be no

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811260881453122005-08-01T13:33:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:42:03.346-05:00

Q: Hi Chris, I got your newsletter the other day and you say you offer "Flash".What the heck is "Flash"? Thanks, MichaelA: Hi Michael,Good question. Flash is...to put it simply... a great way to deliver interactive video or animation to almost anyone. Anytime you see an animation on a website it's probably Flash. Flash is also used to develop animation and video content for TV, videos, DVDs, and

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811175586113182005-07-22T21:32:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:42:51.933-05:00

Q: Dear Chris, I've gotten quotes from several production companies for a sales training video that we are doing, and they are all over the place in regards to pricing. What's going on? Thanks very much for your help. MarcieA: Hi Marcie, That's a very good question, it can be hard to decide between many different quotes. The first thing I would do is ask lots of questions to make sure you are

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811123138653172005-06-13T18:31:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:43:51.876-05:00

Q: Hi there Chris. My name is Justine. I have a question about a home video that I have on VHS format. My sister in-law has a birthday coming up and I thought I could try to do something for her. She took her video camera ( I am not sure what kind, but I can find out ) with her when she went to visit the set of her favorite T.V. show and got loads of behind the scenes stuff, but unfortunately she

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811072539614112005-05-25T15:30:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:44:28.226-05:00

Q: Now that we have the script finalized and a rough version of our video, we're going to be recording the voice-over narration. Does the narrator watch the rough version of the video and talk along as we record her?A: This is a common question. Actually the process is quite different. Here's how we do it:1. You, your Producer, and the narrator will go to a sound studio to record the voice-over.

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133811005815419392005-04-05T10:29:00.000-04:002005-12-05T14:45:02.253-05:00

Q: We're planning on having a DVD produced. We'll be using it at tradeshows and sales presentations. Which type of DVD player should we buy?A: If you're going to have over 1,000 copies made you should be able to play it on any DVD player available.If you're going to have fewer than 1,000 copies made, then ask the production company for a disc to test. Take that disc to any electronics store (or

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1133810935411518362005-03-29T14:27:00.000-05:002005-12-05T14:45:33.946-05:00

Q: My colleagues and I want to make a sales training video. I need to keep six people updated on how the project is progressing, and more importantly, they all need to approve the script, the graphics, and the final video. We're also facing tight deadlines, and to further complicate things two of the people are at company headquarters in Atlanta. Is there a way to keep everyone "in the loop"?A:

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1131744137793495292005-02-11T16:22:00.000-05:002005-12-05T14:46:18.406-05:00

Q: My company wants to distribute our new brochure interactively. What is the difference between a CD and DVD?A: Great question. An interactive brochure is a great way to go.Why DVD is better than VHS:it looks better it has random access it can run on a computer cheaper for volume copies and shipping almost indestructable High Resolution Digital Quality 8 languages/ 32 subtitles security/

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18880347.post-1131742480393441292005-01-23T15:53:00.000-05:002005-12-05T14:46:54.963-05:00

Q: We have a project coming up in 3 months. How much lead time do you need on a video project?A: You can never have too much time on a project. Most projects can be completed in a few weeks although there have been times we've completed them in days (even hours!). If you know the project is a go, talk to your producer now to find out what he needs.If you wait until the last minute, the energy you

Chris Conroyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02462442655060509254noreply@blogger.com0