Why Rich Media Proofing is the Key to Marketing Efficiency

Experience

Why Rich Media Proofing is the Key to Marketing Efficiency

By Erik Linask, Group Editorial Director  |  June 17, 2016

Video is the next big thing – and the next big thing is here.  Whether on PCs, laptops, tablets, or smartphones, more video is being consumed than ever before, nearing a 300 percent increase from just 2011, according to a report from ProofHQ. This tremendous growth represents a shift in consumption culture and creates a scenario where video is hitting more viewers more frequently – including on their mobile devices, where the majority of the growth is taking place.

Understanding that video is the new dominant medium – especially when considering the number of millennials who use strictly OTT services for their video needs and the proliferation of embedded video in social media – it stands to reason that video should be moving up the list of priorities as business leaders develop their marketing strategies.

The challenge, though, according to Kelsey Uebelhor, solutions marketing manager, and Etienne Bosch, product manager, at ProofHQ, is that the majority of marketers (59 percent) say video is difficult to create, which results in less and lower quality marketing via video than we might expect.  So, given that terms like video in subject lines tend to have a positive impact on viewing rates, these same marketers need to explore opportunities for making video easier.

Uebelhor and Bosch led a session at Workfront’s LEAP user conference, helping marketers understand how to overcome many of the obstacles in video production, especially in distributed organizations, where resources that are involved in planning, production, and approval are spread across different geographies. That holds true regardless of the type of video project, the most popular of which include:

  • motion graphics – which is done by combining multiple stock images and is a less expensive alternative;
  • animation – which is multi-purpose video;
  • whiteboard animation – which is typically used for solving problems through animation (business process, software development, etc.);
  • video blogs – which is more prevalent on the social media side, and leverages personalities, and is easily customized and targeted;
  • interviews and customer testimonials – which are great marketing assets but require more planning and prep, approvals, and collaboration; and
  • explainer videos and tutorials – which can use any of the strategies noted above.

The challenges, though, apply to any type of video, starting with initial collaboration around brand and messaging all the way through the review and approvals process. To complicate matters, often this collaboration has to happen both internally and with outside agencies. The bottom line is you need the right tools to not only facilitate production, but also to create a seamless process.

Possibly the greatest speed bump in the way of efficiency is found during the review stages, with typical feedback and comments taking the form of loosely time-coded comments delivered via email (or, believe it or not, even hard copy printout), which then have to be collated and tracked.  All in all, it’s not a very efficient process.

The concept of Rich Media Proofing, on the other hand, changes the paradigm and puts control and efficiency in the spotlight. Simply, Rich Media Proofing combines the features of cloud-based sharing and collaboration services, allowing permissioned users to annotate and comment in real time, and even upload new assets to keep projects both moving and centralized. Not only does it create an efficient process by enabling the posting of precise, actionable feedback, it reduces errors and duplication that come from shuffling multiple copies of the same documents between team members. In fact, project routing can be automated to keep projects moving and avoid stalling.

Joe Staples (News - Alert), Workfront’s CMO, believes Rich Media Proofing – which, while not yet officially launched, is part of the latest release of ProofHQ – will bring about a new era in project efficiency, one that truly embraces collaborative technology at its finest.

He may well be right. According to recent research pointed out during the session, online proofing delivers:

  • 56 percent faster project delivery;
  • a 29 percent reduction in revisions;
  • a 59 percent reduction in proof management efforts; and
  • a 43 percent reduction in budget.



Edited by Stefania Viscusi
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