Bob's Blog

It's a Youtube world!

With all the twitter about Twitter and big social media channels like Facebook, it’s easy to overlook what is probably the greatest innovation in new media communications: online video.

According to media measurement companies Comscore and Nielson, YouTube currently streams 225 million videos per day – and is one of the hottest destinations on the net. The actual figures may be much higher. According to a source in Google, the total number of streams per day tops 1.2 billion.

Videos are  springing up on many websites as companies look for ways to draw in more visitors. In fact, every single website that Pier 8 Group has designed in the last year incorporates streaming video. 

Pier 8 Group uses video on this blog to showcase our discussions on branding and marketing. We also post videos on the facebook groups we’ve created. It’s so easy to do and it’s a favorite feature for people visiting our sites.

We’re seeing a lot more video these days on the web. I love how Canadian provinces are using it in their destination marketing. Newfoundland and Labrador, for example, have produced a series of slick commercials that showcase the incredible beauty of the land. Many people have viewed these on TV, but many more have enjoyed them on YouTube or the province’s tourism website.

I am even more impressed with the videos from B.C. Produced by the province’s tourism marketing agency, they feature the experiential side of west-coast life – everything from mountain biking to kayaking, visits to the local apple orchard or shopping at the farmers’ market. What is so compelling is the authentic character of the videos themselves. Shot with hand-held cameras and nicely edited, they are the epitome of peer-to-peer marketing. They work well because they are completely believable, unlike a lot of tourism marketing that seems so fake!

There’s something about video as a communications tool. Video connects you with real people, speaking in real voices, in a way that is much more engaging and compelling than the highly-polished prose of text-based marketing. With affordable production costs and a worldwide free video channel – the Internet – it is a wonder that every business isn’t already doing it.

 

Celebrity Chefs serve it up in social media

They can serve it up with flair in the kitchen, but do they have any sizzle when it comes to social media? A survey by Pier 8 Group of ten celebrity chefs provides some interesting insight into the way in which social media is now being used to promote  television¹s culinary stars.

Topping the list is Jamie Oliver, star of The Naked Chef, Jamie's Kitchen, and Oliver's Twist. Jamie not only maintains a website, he also has a blog, Facebook page, YouTube channel and Twitter account. His home page offers links to Digg, Delicious and Stumble Upon, indicating that Jamie really knows how to promote himself in the social media world.

Close on Jamie's heels is Emeril Legasse, the star of Emeril Live, Essence of Emeril and Emeril Green. With a website, blog, Facebook page and Twitter account, Emeril is  a busy social bee. Although he doesn't have a YouTube channel, he does have a slew of videos to promote his famous name.

Rachel Ray and Paula Deen tie for third place. Rachel has a website, blog and Facebook group, while Paula prefers twittering to a blog. There seem to be quite a few fake Rachel Ray twitter accounts, a good sign that her fan base reaches far into the ranks of the twitterati.

Gordon Ramsay, the star of Hell's Kitchen, The F Word, and Kitchen Nightmare, has a great website and a Twitter account. His website is contemporary and regularly updated, but Gordon doesn't seem to twitter much. His colleagues in the four spot, Sanjeev Kapoor, Mario Batali and Canadian Robert Rainford, each have a website and a blog, although Rainford¹s website is pathetically simple.

Bringing up the rear are Wolgang Puck and Canadian Christine Cushing, both of whom have websites only. Wolfgang's site is quite nice, while Christine's looks like it could use a little updating.

Food Network, Fine Living and W take note: the ranks of the world's celebrity chefs are getting pretty crowded. Time to pump up your stars in the media that's cool if you don¹t want to hear that your brand is old school.

(story compiled with notes from Medina Abdelkader)