The Point Across Media Blog

2015 MarCom Award Winner

2015-11-18T09:06:00.001-08:00

For the fourth consecutive year, Point Across Media has been recognized for outstanding healthcare video in the MarCom Awards competition. The MarCom Awards are one of the most prestigious honors for marketing and communication professionals. We're proud to have the work we do be so well received by a panel of our peers.

This year's winning entry was a video we produced for the Puget Sound Institute of Pathology. Pathologists are often the unseen members of the team in the fight against cancer. But their work comes at the very beginning. They are tasked with analyzing tissue samples to determine if a patient has cancer. Here is their story.

Marketing and the Reluctant Physician

2015-09-30T18:37:00.000-07:00

“You know, I’m really nervous. I don’t think I’m going to be very good.”

“I don’t understand why the marketing department is asking me to do this.”

These are the kinds of objections we sometimes hear from physicians at video shoots. They are natural responses, especially when you are asking someone to do something that is outside of their comfort zone.

The nervous physician usually warms up when we start having a conversation. A good producer makes it easy for them to lose sight of the camera and lights. The physician discovers they don’t have to carry the show. We find most physicians actually enjoy talking about what they do and why they do it.

Explaining the purpose of the video to the physician is an important part of creating a successful interview. Once a physician understands where they fit in the overall hospital marketing strategy, they are more likely to buy in to the project.

Video profiles of individual physicians are an effective way to feature the wide range of medical services available to patients.

Video and the Content Conversation in Healthcare Marketing

2015-09-24T12:34:00.001-07:00

When I talk with hospital marketing directors and managers, a lot of conversation steers around the word “content.” How can we create content, how do we place our content, etc. Since we specialize in producing visual content for healthcare companies, the “content conversation” is right up our alley.

Content marketing is all about providing the consumer with something they want or need. Stephen Moegling of Franklin Street wrote a detailed summary on the role of content marketing in healthcare. Read it here.

Video is the perfect solution for a hospital or physician group looking for content. It is unique. It belongs to you. It is engaging. It is memorable. But it has to be done right to be effective.

Here is a typical scenario. A consumer is trying to find a new primary care physician. After checking what is covered by their insurance plan, they end up on the “Find A Doctor” page of a local hospital or clinic website. There they see a list of potential physicians. Click on one and up comes the physician’s photo, resume and contact. Now the consumer is expected to use that limited information to select the medical professional who will treat them.

There are some hospitals that have realized adding video to a physician’s website profile can help prospective patients make a choice. Instead of the still photo, the consumer can hear from the physician and see the physician interact with other patients in a video. Video allows the consumer to make a more informed choice.

Understanding Vascular Surgery

2015-09-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

Recently we started a series of videos on vascular care. Vascular surgeons treat diseases of the arteries and veins. It’s a rapidly advancing medical field where many of the procedures used to improve blood flow these days are minimally invasive.

Instead of open surgery, vascular surgeons can run catheters though small incisions to get balloons or stents into the arteries. Patients are often able to go home a few hours after their surgery.

It is fascinating and potentially life-saving medical work, but it can be complicated to explain. The vascular surgeon we interviewed was talking us through a unique procedure to treat abdominal aortic aneurysm. It’s called an endovascular stent graft.

In this procedure, the surgeon uses live x-ray pictures viewed on a video screen to guide a fabric and metal tube to the site of the aneurysm in the aorta. The tube takes the place of the weakened section of the aorta and allows blood to pass easily through it.

With the help of our surgeon and a little research, I was able to boil down an endovascular stent graft into a couple of sentences. But imagine how much easier it would be to understand if you could see it as opposed to only reading about it. And wait until you hear a passionate surgeon explain why he loves doing them.

Point Across Media Wins 2013 MarCom Awards

2013-11-07T17:38:00.000-08:00

MILL CREEK, WA - November 7, 2013 - Point Across Media received two honors for outstanding healthcare video in the 2013 MarCom Awards competition. The MarCom Awards recognize creative achievement by marketing and communication professionals from all over the world.

Point Across Media won MarCom Gold Awards for the following videos in the Medical/Web Video category:

Franciscan Health System: Joint Replacement

South Sound Gamma Knife: Overview

This year's MarCom Award winners were selected from over 6,500 entries. The MarCom Awards are administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals.

Health Care One Story at a Time

2013-09-26T16:39:00.001-07:00

Walk inside a hospital and there are a million stories waiting to be told. We get the privilege of turning many of them into videos, from stories on extraordinary surgeons to the latest uses of technology that can improve the lives of patients.

There is one theme we try keep in mind when producing our stories: health care is about people. The team at the Cleveland Clinic provided a great example with a video called “Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care.” It’s been viewed more than a million times on YouTube.

While it was made specifically for the employees of Cleveland Clinic, this video is about more than health care. There’s a powerful story here about how we see other people.

3 Things We Can Learn from Little League

2013-04-26T11:38:00.000-07:00

My 10 year old son is playing Pony League baseball right now. It’s the fifth season in a row that I have coached his team. Having watched a ton of games, I’ve picked up on three lessons that translate from the field to our places of work.

1) Have fun.
The last thing I tell the kids before every game is to ‘have fun.’ Baseball is supposed to be fun, especially at this age. The kids that are having fun usually perform the best on the field. I don’t mean everyday at the office should be a party, but an atmosphere that encourages smiling and laughter often generates good results.

2) Use two hands.
We teach the kids that two hands are better than one when it comes to catching a fly ball or pop up. At work, we are prone to taking the easy way out sometimes. But to get the best results, you should use all of the resources at your disposal.

3) Don’t be afraid to sacrifice for the good of the team.
Kids have a hard time with this one. We tell them making an out that brings home a run or moves up a baserunner is a good thing. In the real world, we may have to do something we don’t like to create a better result for whole organization.

I’ll bet you can think of a few more. It’s a long season, so keep the conversation going by adding what you’ve picked up on that can benefit all of us.

Point Across Media Wins 2 Videographer Awards

2012-10-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

There’s nothing like a little praise for your work, regardless of what you do. And when you receive recognition from an independent group in your field, it’s even better.

Two of our healthcare-related projects have been honored with 2012 Videographer Awards of Distinction. Physician profile videos we created for Franciscan Health System won awards in the Medical: Product/Service and Marketing categories.

Check out one of the award winning videos, a profile of a pediatrician from University Place. So far we’ve produced more than 100 similar short videos for the find-a-doctor portal on Franciscan’s website.

The Videographer Awards identify and recognize the best work in the video industry. This year’s winners were selected from among 1,600 international entries. The Videographer Awards competition is administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals.

The One Word I Hope Disappears in 2012

2012-01-01T23:32:00.000-08:00

As a new year begins, many people think about all of the things they will do differently now that the calendar has changed. Most of us are hopeful that some things will be different. Our bad habits will go away. Bad news around the world will be replaced by good news.

I have a simple wish for 2012. That one four-letter word disappears from our vocabulary. It’s a word I heard all too often in the last year: FAIL.

Why should we quit using “fail?” Because the word fail has turned into adjective to describe bad ideas. Even worse, many people use the term “epic fail” when they don’t like something a company does. Facebook and Twitter are popular outlets for “epic fail.”

Problem is in order to fail, you have to try. So one way to avoid failure is never try. Which means sticking with the status quo..the safe route.

The best ideas come from thinking big and trying something different. Will every new idea be a home run? Of course not. While it is important to acknowledge when things don’t work, it would be nice to see the word “fail” disappear in 2012.

Don’t Be Afraid to Dumb it Down

2011-06-30T23:35:00.000-07:00

“Dumb it down.” It’s one of my favorite storytelling phrases, especially when I’m talking with people who are smarter than me. Big words and technical jargon can be hard to understand. When you really want someone to understand what you are saying, sometimes you have to dumb it down and speak in words that are easier to grasp.

Here’s an example: Right now we are working on a video project for a hospital featuring some state-of-the-art surgical procedures. The idea is to show the high level of care available at the hospital. But the procedures are complicated. It would be very easy to get bogged down in medical details and lose sight of the real purpose of the videos.

So we’ve decided to tell these stories from the patient perspective. The idea is to have real patients share their own experiences. The surgeons explain how the technology combined with their skill benefits the patient.

If you want to get your point across, think about the way you tell your story. Do you speak in words that make sense to most people? If not, don’t be afraid to dumb it down.

Coca-Cola Goes Big to Celebrate 125 Years

2011-05-17T21:45:00.000-07:00

Imagine you are put in charge of the 125th anniversary celebration of the world’s largest soft drink maker. You have the resources to do just about anything. You could come with new packaging, new merchandise or sponsor a special anniversary concert featuring some of the biggest names in music.

The people running the show at Coca-Cola have done all of those things and more. They decided to light up all 26 stories of the company headquarters building in Atlanta. It doesn’t sound like much until you see the show that is part of the largest building illumination in the world.

(Click here if you can’t see the video.)

The Coke building will be lit up 3 nights a week throughout the month of May. And the show changes every time to include photos sent in by fans of Coca-Cola on Facebook and Twitter.

You don’t have to be as large as Coke to think big like them. Maybe it’s as simple as figuring out how to use your own customer’s experiences in your marketing. Or casting aside the standard ways of reaching your audience and trying something new. The best way to grow your business is to think big.

Want Your Best Work? Get Inspired

2011-05-10T21:43:00.001-07:00

The other day I was thumbing through a copy of Sports Illustrated when I came across an article on Dick and Rick Hoyt. The Hoyts are hardly well known sports figures, despite their athletic accomplishments. Rick Hoyt has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. One day in 1977 he asked his dad to push him in a 5 mile fun run.

Who knew what started with that race would lead them to running the Boston Marathon and eventually competing in the Ironman triathlon. Dick and Rick have participated in hundreds of distance races all over the world for more than 30 years.

I can only imagine how many people have been touched by the Hoyts’ story. It is hard to watch it and not feel something deep inside. It’s the kind of feeling that makes you want to do something special. That feeling is inspiration.

We often get inspiration confused with motivation. Motivation is what makes you get out of bed and go to work every day. We are motivated by many different things: money, power, security, fame. Business leaders spend hours of time and huge amounts of money trying to figure out the best ways to motivate their employees. “If only I can find a way to get them to do more…”

Companies would be better off if the focus were on inspiring their people instead of motivating them. It’s when we are truly inspired that we come up with innovative ideas and do our best work.

So where does inspiration come from? The answer is very simple. We get inspiration from other people. The stories of others are what inspire us the most. Seeing how someone overcomes their own struggles can spark us to reach new heights. Maybe you’ve never ran a marathon. But thinking about Dick Hoyt pushing his son in a wheelchair for 26.2 miles just might inspire you to give it a try.

5 Deadly Sins of Business Video Storytelling

2011-02-21T21:13:00.000-08:00

I stumbled across an interesting article on the American Express Open Forum this week. “7 Deadly Sins of Business Storytelling” was written by authors Jennifer Aaker and Andy Smith. The article got me to thinking about the biggest mistakes companies make when presenting their company story on video. To borrow a page from Aaker and Smith, let’s call this list “5 Deadly Sins of Business Video Storytelling.”

1) Too long: Just because your annual report takes up 50 pages of paper does not mean the video that introduces your company to the world should be 10 minutes long. Feel free to leave out some facts and figures. If you make your story compelling and tell it concisely, you will leave your viewers wanting to know more.

2) Boring: Video is an engaging medium. Too often companies create videos that feature the CEO looking directly into the camera painfully reciting some kind of corporate mission statement. Think visually.

3) Missing people: The best stories involve real people. So do the best videos. Seek out interesting employees or customers who have benefitted from your product or service. Satisfied customers are a great resource. Make them part of your story.

4) No clear goal: Before creating a company video, you need to determine what you want it to accomplish. You can’t wait until the day the camera shows up at your office to decide who you are trying to reach. Knowing the end goal will help you develop the right kind of story.

5) Poor quality: How many videos have you seen where the production values don’t match the image of the company? There’s nothing wrong with shooting your family vacation on a home video camera. But it makes little sense to try to save money by doing the same thing with the video that you put on your company’s website. There’s a formula we live by in the video business:

Bad Lighting + Bad Sound + No Tripod = Unwatchable Video

To put your best foot forward and avoid these deadly sins, you need to invest in a professional production team like ours at Point Across Media.

Storytelling During the Super Bowl

2011-02-08T00:42:00.000-08:00

For the millions of people watching Super Bowl XLV on television, the game provided all kinds of storylines. So did the commercials. As a visual storyteller, I watched the commercials looking for the best job of storytelling during the Super Bowl.

It is easy to find opinions about the commercials, from professionals in the world of advertising to viewers who rank them for USA Today. Many people admit they watch the Super Bowl more for the commercials than the game itself.

You can divide this year’s ads into two categories: humorous and dramatic. The one I've chosen for best in storytelling falls into both categories.

The Budweiser “Wild West” commercial is one minute long, but notice how there’s not a spoken word until almost 20 seconds into the spot. Sound plays an important role in this commercial. The jingle of spurs…the pounding of the Clydesdales’ hooves… the powerful music…all set the tone for an Old West saloon fight.

Then comes the element of surprise. Did you really expect the cowboy to start singing? The predictable outcome would’ve had the cowboy shooting his gun, not turning the saloon into a giant karaoke bar.

All good stories have an identifiable beginning, middle and end. Most commercials aren’t really stories. They just try to capture your attention and promote a product. There’s nothing wrong with that. But telling a story is a great way to make a product memorable. In my opinion, Budweiser won out for best storytelling during the Super Bowl.

Do you think any stories stood out among this year’s Super Bowl commercials?

Stories About Local People Sell

2011-01-26T22:41:00.000-08:00

When a big story happens anywhere in the world, television newsrooms search for ways to make the story local. “Find someone here who is affected” is the mantra from news directors. Why? Because stories about local people sell.

Recently I was reviewing the marketing efforts of a prospective client in the health care industry. This particular group of doctors specializes in a complicated medical procedure. On its website, there is a link to videos that show how the procedure works. While they feature well-produced animation, the videos are very generic in nature. For some potential patients, the videos may be helpful. Will they bring new customers in the door? Not likely.

What is missing from the procedure videos are the local doctors, the very people who would perform the procedure on you. Video provides a golden opportunity for the doctors to make a powerful first impression on patients. Video lets us experience a doctor’s passion for medicine. Video provides a way to reassure prospective patients and make them more comfortable with their treatment. Video also gives us a chance to hear testimonials from satisfied customers.

The key is to avoid getting overwhelmed by the technology, the procedure or the product. Health care is just one example of an industry where video can help drive more business. Stories about real people make great video, especially real local people.

Video Became The Building Block for LEGO

2011-01-12T23:15:00.000-08:00

Last year, LEGO started an innovative campaign to boost sales of its famous children’s toys. The idea behind the CL!CK campaign is to celebrate the moment a great idea comes together..or clicks.

The San Francisco ad agency Pereira & O’Dell developed the campaign. It created an online CL!CK Factory to share ideas, built a LEGO photo iPhone app and even started the LEGO Click Awards for kids. CL!CK started with a three minute video. Video became the building block for LEGO.

The first CL!CK video told the story of an inventor searching for a big idea. It was a YouTube sensation with more than a million views in 2010. Now LEGO has a new video where the inventor takes his creations to another level.

(If you can't see the video, click here.)

CL!CK is a great example of what can happen when you tell a great story. And there’s no better medium than video to inspire, entertain and inform. Video can make your ideas click with your customers.

The Video Pitch for In-Car Technology

2011-01-06T11:23:00.000-08:00

First, it was Ford with its MyFord Touch and Sync technology. Now comes Toyota and its Entune multimedia system. For the past 2 years, the battle for new vehicle entertainment experience supremacy has taken center stage at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The automakers are using the show to make the video pitch for in-car technology.

Set aside the differences and advances in the technology itself for a minute. It’s not about one system being better than the other. Both of them have a high “coolness factor.” Instead, let’s focus on the angle each company takes with its demonstration video.

Toyota from 2011 CES

Ford from 2010 CES

(If you can't see the videos, click here to watch the Toyota one and click here to watch the Ford one.)

There are some distinct differences in the approaches by Toyota and Ford. Toyota’s video is bright with a daytime setting. Ford’s video is dark and set at night. Toyota uses light and upbeat background music. The music in the Ford video is more powerful and dramatic. The Toyota voiceover is soft and pleasant, while Ford’s takes a deep, authoritative tone.

The overall themes are similar: introducing revolutionary technology to create a rich in-car experience. Keep in mind when these videos were released, MyFord Touch and Entune were available only in limited release.

Which video do you think is most effective?

Marketing Colleges with Video

2011-01-03T21:57:00.000-08:00

One of the perks for colleges and universities who play in bowl games during the holidays is the opportunity for some free marketing “facetime.” Playing football on national television brings major exposure for schools to recruit students.

The television networks also traditionally give each school 30 seconds of airtime as part of the game broadcast. This coveted 30 second promotional message is a way for marketing colleges with video.

The biggest challenge for colleges is where to focus the video message. Keep in mind the audience of sports fans filled with potential students and their parents. Where does a school like the University of Michigan start, with its 41,000 students and more than 200 different undergraduate majors? This video uses powerful images, few words and a unique version of the world famous Michigan fight song.

(If you can't see the video, click here.)

Companies in many different industries use video as a recruiting tool. Colleges who are fortunate enough to play games on television get the advantage of reaching a large audience in one shot. Just like in the business world, putting their best foot forward is important to attract the best and brightest students.

The 2010 Google Zeitgeist Video

2010-12-31T15:42:00.000-08:00

Zeitgeist [tsahyt-gahyst] – noun German.

the spirit of the time; general trend of thought or feeling characteristic of a particular period of time.

As we ring in a new year, it’s a good time to look back on the past year. Video is a particularly effective medium to relive the events that shaped the year. Television newscasts are filled with “year ender” video montages.

To capture the spirit of 2010, the creative team at Google broke down on the billions of search queries people typed into Google this year. The result is this “visual Zeitgeist” that also showcases Google’s products.

(Can't see the video? Click here.)

Here’s to a great 2011!

A Storm Story Without Words

2010-12-30T15:56:00.000-08:00

Filmmaker Jamie Stuart is receiving national attention for a short film he made about the recent East Coast blizzard. Stuart shot “Idiot with a Tripod” on December 26th in New York. In a three minute film, Stuart is able to beautifully capture the post-Christmas snowstorm.

By December 27th, links to the film were being passed around on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Film critic Roger Ebert was one of the first to see “Idiot with a Tripod.” Ebert thinks the film should win an Academy Award for best live-action short subject.

(Can't see the video? Click here.)

To me the most impressive thing about this film is the way Stuart is able to tell a story without any words. No spoken words, no graphics, not even any natural sound. Yet the viewer sees a story through the images on the screen. We are able to follow the progression as the storm impacts life in New York.

I don’t know if “Idiot with a Tripod” will be nominated for Oscar, but it is a nice piece of visual storytelling.

Ford Goes All In On Video

2010-12-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

Two months ago, Ford started its Ford Focus Global Test Drive contest. Winners receive a trip to Madrid, Spain where they will drive the new Ford Focus on a high-speed test track. They also get $10,000 to give to charity.

Video Play #1: To enter the contest, you must make a video telling Ford why you should be included in the test drive. The videos are submitted through the Focus Facebook page where fans can vote on their favorites.

Video Play #2: To build buzz around the contest, Ford invited some targeted bloggers with large reader bases to participate in the test drive. How were the bloggers invited? With a personalized video appeal directly from Ford employees, of course.

(Can't see the video? Click here.)

Scott Monty, Ford’s global director of social media, told blogger Becky Johns why the company relied on video so heavily.

“We decided to use personalized video invitations for the Focus Global Test Drive because we wanted to be sure we had the attention of the high-level influencers we wanted to reach. Moreover, we wanted to be sure that it would be in a format that they could easily share with their readers. We believe that video is one of the most personal and intimate ways to communicate online, and it’s also a medium that allows us to showcase our products at the same time. A video invitation, shared with the world, is basically one-on-one communication in the public square.”

Ford has advantages that make video a powerful marketing tool. Ford’s products are very visual and play well on video. It is a huge company that can afford to spend money to tell its story through high quality video.

But the key here is that Ford gets it. “We believe that video is one of the most personal and intimate ways to communicate online.” You don’t have to be a world class automaker to take advantage of video. You just have to believe in it.

The Wrong Place for Funny

2010-12-01T00:05:00.000-08:00

Let’s face it. Everyone is not funny. For every person you know who tells good jokes or makes people laugh, you could probably name 10 people who do not have much of a sense of humor. They are not bad people, just not very funny.

I often tell my wife that I’m the funniest person I know. Judging by her reaction, I’m the only one who feels that way.

Eye of the Beholder

When it comes to humor, we all have different tastes. That’s one reason why I try to steer our clients away from trying to be funny in their marketing videos. Humor can work in a 30 or 60 second TV commercial. For a company trying to engage potential customers, your attempt at comedy can easily leave the wrong impression.

Take this holiday commercial for the Minnesota Lottery. Do you find it funny?

A Short Shelf-Life

You might laugh the first time you watch the Minnesota Lottery commercial. You might even laugh the next time you see it. Odds are you won’t be laughing at it two or three months from now, which is why the one-armed snowman will have melted away after Christmas (told you I could be funny.)

In fact, humor can have the opposite effect you desire. What is funny at first quickly becomes annoying. And instead of making people want to do business with you, the “not so funny” profile video on your website will simply turn customers away.

Stick with your personal story on video. If it’s produced effectively, it doesn’t need to be funny to help grow your business.

Online Video Brightens the Philips Arctic Experiment

2010-11-29T00:01:00.000-08:00

For 4 months every year, the town of Longyearbyen, Norway is covered in darkness. No sunshine from October to February. So when Philips wanted to test the effects of its Wake-up Light, the people of Longyearbyen seemed like a natural choice. Philips says the light is designed to simulate sunrise and prepare the body for a gentle wake up.

Philips gave the town’s residents Wake-up Lights as part of a campaign called “Wake up the Town.” The people of Longyearbyen are trying out the lights for 40 days and sharing their experiences online and on a Facebook fan page.

The residents’ comments on Facebook are interesting, even though some of them are in Norwegian. What takes this campaign to a different level is video. Philips is doing a series of videos about the Wake-up Lights experiment in Longyearbyen. The first one recently went up on YouTube.

Philips teamed with documentary producer Doug Pray to make the videos. Pray’s videos allow us to get inside the lives of the people who live in this unique place that is only 600 miles away from the North Pole. We get to see if the Wake-up Light makes a difference through the eyes of people who are used to living in the dark. Without video, that’s all left to the imagination.

The General Motors Thanksgiving Gamble

2010-11-26T23:45:00.000-08:00

Once the turkey went in the oven on Thanksgiving morning, it was time to gather around the TV to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. Sandwiched between the giant balloons and marching bands was a special commercial message from General Motors.

In case you didn’t see the one minute Thanksgiving ad from GM, here it is.

The images are powerful. The music is emotional. The spot grabs your attention. The choices to illustrate failure run from serious with NASA and Evel Knievel to humorous with Popeye and Animal House. GM says on its website the commercial is the company’s way of “saying thanks to the American people” after the government provided financial assistance to keep GM afloat.

If only saying thank you were simple. Not for GM. The company took a significant risk by bringing up a delicate political subject.

Response from viewers on two websites dedicated to GM (gminsidenews.com and gmauthority.com) is divided into two camps. One side suggested it was a good idea for GM to thank American taxpayers and that the ad struck the appropriate tone. Others were angered by the ad and thought it would backfire by reminding people of the government bailout of GM.

What do you think?
Should GM have produced a commercial like this?

Business Video of the Week: Making Information Visually Interesting

2010-11-24T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here is the mission statement of the company that gets the nod for creating our Business Video of the Week.

“Our mission is to provide our clients with actionable information, insights and advice which help them reach and attract new customers, build stronger and more profitable relationships with existing customers, and make better and more informed decisions.”

Sounds like the makings for a really interesting company story, right? You have to give the people at Infogroup a lot of credit. The Omaha, Nebraska based company found a very creative way to explain what it does.

The Infogroup production proves that video can help any business tell its story. The key is having a strong message and working with professionals who can turn it into a visually interesting story. Congratulations to Infogroup, winner of our Business Video of the Week Award for this week.