Get Shorty and other industry killers..

As you will know, one of those feted ad creative people made a statement at the recent Ad Week that the 30 second commercial is dead. It's either long (3 min + ) or very short.. i.e. 5 or 6 seconds. 

When one of my after-first-glass-of-wine Twitter posts suggested that ad land had been seriously compromised by Twitter and YouTube, the response from one of my many followers was that this man was a genius of the branded communication, in touch with the nation's psyche and he is the Pied Piper to who's tune we all follow. 

Well fawning advertising dreamer, Twitter's new video service, called Vine, allows anyone to put a 6 second film on their feed to their users. Therefore, instead of ad-land's £100k+, it costs about 10p (that's time of the employee paid to film it).

YouTube and its 5 second "turn this ad off' badge is the other industry killer. Giving people the opportunity to switch off an ad after 5 seconds will hurt for a number of reasons; it shows the client the value users put to advertising; they can't set the scene any more; the process of making online ads is so much easier and therefore a margin killer; they might have to make 5 second films packed full of 'buy this' type messages and the creative process may well just shrivel up and die.

So, as a service to our friends in ad-land (not many admittedly), here's some help for your new 5 second films...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saqO_ZqX6uY

jon@thepeloton.tv

www.thepeloton.tv

The Only Way is Baghdad

Followers of ThePeloton.tv blog know that part of our operation is to train organisations to do broadcast. Adrian heads this up and very well he does it too. As well as working for press and PR organisations in the UK, his work has taken him to Saudi Arabia and most recently Northern Iraq. 

Working for a Kurdish news network called Rudaw, Adrian has been training and consulting with their management, journalists and presenters to get them ready for launch later this year.

It seems that Adrian is so popular and regarded there that he starred on a channel advertising billboard. Yes starred… flanked by the show presenters. Match that Beeb!

If you're planning a launch, get in touch, contact us via our website. Alternatively, we're selling signed photos of Adrian - £2.50, cheques payable to A Smith. 

jon@thepeloton.tv

www.thepeloton.tv

YouTube: the new TV Commissioners.

You heard it here first..honest, guv. At the beginning of the year we predicted that YouTube would start becoming a more powerful player in British media. That prediction is rapidly becoming a reality.

YT (as we know it) recently announced that it now gains a billion unique viewers every month. This phenomenal surge has been powered to new heights by multiscreen viewing habits. It’s also changing its business model and moving from being an aggregator to becoming a content commissioner.

In Europe, YT has already launched 46 new channels with comedy, food and sport central to its plans. And this change to the broadcast landscape is great news for independent online video producers (such as us lucky folk). 

ThePeloton is filming the YT star KSI touring around the grounds of English Premier League teams talking (rather loudly) to supporters, getting their opinions (winding them up) and finding the game’s biggest rivals (Norwich vs Ipswich anybody?). KSI has already got over a million subscribers to his own YT channel, so he must be doing something right!

http://www.youtube.com/user/KSIOlajidebt

ThePeloton’s films will be posted regularly on the YT channel, Slash Football. Take a look.

http://www.youtube.com/user/football

And here’s a taste of what to expect from ThePeloton, KSI and Slash Football over the coming year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaZbQ7G4hJo

Next stop on our road trip..Old Trafford.

It’s footy, it’s fun, it’s ThePeloton...what’s not to like?

adrian@thepeloton.tv

www.thepeloton.tv

Green shoots of Recovery for Publishers

There seems to be a lot of conferences about at the moment. I wonder how many people actually do any work. We are no different in not doing any work due to attending an astounding number of conferences. But at least we know a lot.

This week saw Briefing Media's Digital Strategies conference. It was for media companies looking to do things better digitally. Blog followers will know that we have been interested in this for some time. We believe that media companies offer a stamp of independence and just as importantly an audience that no-one else can match. And, when brands realise that, much fun can be had with branded content.

Usually, I come away from these a little depressed in that media companies don't know the opportunity in front of them. I am not saying that this was full of optimism and that delegates were their old, dare-I-say, arrogant selves. But, like an addict, they are coming back from rock bottom taking it a day at a time.

Publishers of old used to work on enormous margins. That these have gone down so dramatically is what has hurt the most. It seems that the organisations that have been the most willing to accept that and move on, rather than maintain their 'old World' products, are looking like the victors here.

So companies like Future, Immediate Media, the FT and The Economist have some really great ideas and people that they are willing to invest in. Guess what, it seems that investment works.

They are winning over their advertisers too. Large and niche publishers had great examples of creating strong content sponsored by clients and not lead by them. This wins them big fees, which in turn can get invested in products which in turn brings in more readers.

Undoubtedly things will continue to change and move quickly and who can guess what's going to happen in 5 years. Certainly not me and pretty sure none of the delegates.

jon@thepeloton.tv
www.thepeloton.tv


 

Shoppable Video: Where Commerce meets Content.

They beat us to it. By ‘they’ I mean the digital agency group Syzygy. By ‘it’ I mean defining 2013 as the year of the shoppable video. 

With brands such as Gucci, ASOS and Juicy Couture dipping their toes into the click-to-buy market in 2012, Syzygy claims this is the year when shoppable video takes off and interactive technology goes mainstream, especially when the content is strong. A great example is ASOS’s Best Night Ever campaign which features stars such as Azealia Banks and Ellie Goulding. You can shop their ‘look’ whilst watching their music videos.

http://www.asos.com/Best-Night-Ever/Azealia/Cat/pgehtml.aspx?cid=16480&WT.ac=BNE|taaz|PNv|azealia

Another successful example that showcases the ability to shop whilst you watch is The Guardian’s recent make-up video.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/interactive/2012/dec/07/sali-hughes-beauty-tips-party-nails?INTCMP=SRCH

Us wise and nattily attired folk over at ThePeloton have seen a few trends come and go and we’re not about to predict the demise of plain old vanilla video (as long as it’s got a flake in it). But we do think that interactive video offers up a tantalising glimpse of the future. And that it may just be the sweet spot where commerce meets and merges with content. That’s why we’ve spent time, effort and investment creating our own interactive solution that goes way beyond click-to-buy. 

If you’d like to see it in action, then you can pop over to our site...

http://www.thepeloton.tv/interactive.html

...or swing by and see us at this year’s TFM&A show over at Earls Court 2 on 26/27th February, stand H4. We’ll be showing off our clickable, swipeable, touchable, shareable..and, oh yes, shoppable video service. 

adrian@thepeloton.tv

www.thepeloton.tv

TP@PME or TFM&A? - IMHO LOL

As has become tradition at ThePeloton, we are partnering with the Publishing and Media Expo (hence PME) this year to gather all the greatest content and thoughts from media titans such as Adobe, Dennis, Haymarket and.. ThePeloton. Yes, that's right Jonathan Westbrook media thinker, strategist and loveable rogue will be discussing innovation in media.

Taking place at Earls Court on 26th and 27th February, PME is held jointly with Technology for Marketing and Advertising (hence TFM&A). This show brings unsuspecting marketing managers face to face with slanty-haired agency and technology reps with smart ideas that will solve all marketing ills. 

ThePeloton fans will be delighted to know that this year we are exhibiting at stand H4 within TFM&A. On display will be some pens, lots of men in lycra and the very best in interactive video. We'll be sashaying around iPad's in hand, jumping people as they walk past (we're next to the toilets so… great footfall).

We also hope to have a great unveiling at PME and TFM&A. More news as we approach.

www.thepeloton.tv

adrian@thepeloton.tv

5 Predictions for Video in 2013

Psst… just between you and ThePeloton, here is what will happen in video in 2013. We will look back in December and see what came true - all of it obviously!

1. YouTube

YouTube's owned channels will multiply in 2013. As advertisers continue to pour money into online video advertising, views must be created to supply their demand. YouTube the broadcaster will be there to satisfy that demand as they commission producers to make proper programmes that people will actually watch. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/oct/08/youtube-tv-60-new-channels

2. DSLR shoots 

So there we were all happily shooting away on solid broadcast kit and then along comes Canon with its pretty and natty 5D DSLRs and we have all had to train up and start shooting artfully. IT people speaking about the cloud is now an art form, with shallow depth of field, rich colour and filmic quality… yes really. It's all in the lenses and filters. We must say it does look very nice and so much more artful. http://mynikonlife.com.au/pro/pro-news/nikon-d4-first-dslr-camera-fit-for-broadcast

3. Click to Buy

Have we mentioned this before? The Guardian and Channel 5 are rolling this out in 2013. Peloton's film with Cissy Wears in February promises to be an award winner. It allows people to buy products from their video screen, or answer questions, or find out more info. Whats not to like? YouTube has its own plug-ins now so interactivity is available to all. http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/interactive/2012/dec/07/sali-hughes-beauty-tips-party-nails?INTCMP=SRCH

4. Interactive stories

Interactive video allows video story makers to produce jeopardy stories a bit like Dungeons and Dragons, just a bit less weird. So, creative storytellers can make lovely films and animations that make them relevant to you. You can use Facebook logins and have your friends as cast members. Simple technology but can be hours of fun for all the family… In 2013 Adrian is already refusing to play Operation (a series of losses) at Peloton Towers over Christmas, I think we'll have a ready replacement - hours of fun…. http://mndr.omusicawards.com/

5. Media Co's as broadcasters

This has been in our predictions list since 1976. However, as media companies see that last dribble of internet and print revenue dry up and all of that once densely populated office space becomes an archive of wasted data and last year's editorial columns, the last bright spark will pick up a camera and press play.  2012 has seen more video created by media companies than ever. in 2013 some of it will actually be quite good. They have the audiences and the writers and video is where the advertising £ hence this year is the year that media co's properly produce video…. And that could actually be quite exciting…. http://www.brandrepublic.com/news/1162255/

Good luck in 2013 one and all,

The Peloton

www.thepeloton.tv

jon@thepeloton.tv