Archive for October, 2009

Easy to Assemble

Tubefilter.tv offers a rare and eye opening look into the numbers behind the Ikea sponsored scripted web series “Easy to Assemble.” The total tally? 1.9 million views … “true” and intended views, not those “auto-play” fake views MySpace was trying to sneak into it’s stats.

How did “Easy to Assemble” rack up those impressive numbers? Their most lucrative partnerships were with MyDamnChannel.com (over 850k views) and an Ikea fan site (over 500k views). If you add up the views on their traditional distribution (where most web series try to place their shows), i.e. YouTube, Dailymotion, Blip, and their own site (easytoassembleseries.com) the total is less impressive (less than 40k).

The lesson? Seek out partnerships with popular online destinations that promise to feature your show prominently. Of course, it helps if you have a show with a strong cast of recognizable celebrities like “Easy to Assemble” … but clearly even celeb wattage doesn’t attract major views if you’re trying to build your own distribution channel from scratch.

See the full TubeFilter article and all the “Easy to Assemble” views data here: http://news.tubefilter.tv/2009/10/28/how-ikeas-easy-to-assemble-broke-1-9m-views-without-cheating/

It’s amazing to think how a simple but clever idea matched with an engaging delivery can compete with a million dollar ad campaign for online views.

Everyone’s talking about Hulu’s reported move from a free to premium service … now Discovery TV affirms the free model is not sustainable.

Discovery TV’s SVP of Digital Media Distribution, Rebecca Glashow told lightreading.com the free web TV model is “going to kill all our businesses, and certainly [could] kill our ability to create high-quality programming.”

But they have a completely different model than Hulu. Their online model is simply to promote their network. I have long maintained that the only online video business model that works in this cycle is for promotion of monetizeable services: promoting a network, bringing eyeballs to your products and services, creating awareness of a local business, etc.

But you say, “John, there are many web series that have sponsorships.” True, and if you can snare web video sponsorship BEFORE you produce your content, rely on it. If not, now’s not the time to count on ad supported web video. Perhaps in the future (perhaps not!) … but definitely not now. Hulu knows that. Discovery TV knows that. And now … so do you.

See the full lightreading.com article here

French prankster Rémi Gaillard goes all batty on unsuspecting passers-by

The Los Angeles Times has boiled down the secret to becoming an online video star to five tips:

1) Immediacy: Be funny but not long.

2) Eye-catching thumbnail

3) Versatility: Learn who to shoot, edit and score your own movies (or hire pros like andnow.com to help you!)

4) Original persona: Be unique

5) Likability: Be able to laugh at yourself.

What this list doesn’t take into account … your content. The most popular online videos shock or surprise, offer a completely original entertaining idea or image, or ride on the wave of popularity (allude to, parody, mashup or otherwise steal ideas from popular news stories, trends, celebrities or other online videos).

See the whole article here.

Rhett and Link are a talented traveling video duo who stopped in Alabama and convinced a Mobile Home dealer to shoot this attention getting ad. A great example of how to get attention for a local business:

Here’s a behind the scenes video:

When it’s all lumped together … with rhythmic music … the current stats regarding social media are mind numbing!