Incorporating Video into Articles and Posts (and vice versa)

It’s no secret that we’re visual creatures. Most of us would rather watch TV than read when given the choice. So we’re not surprised that more and more of you have been asking about creating videos to supplement (or replace) your text-based articles, posts, tweet and emails.

Research shows that 90 percent of information transmitted to our brain is visual. Our client Naylor, LLC is pretty aggressive about experimenting with content and they’ve documented the value of adding videos and images to your tweets and newsletters.

But don’t chuck out your keyboard and scratchpad yet.

We first started discussing the merits of blending video and text about two years ago in this blog.

As was the case in 2014, adding video to your written content can substantially improve engagement and recall with the written content. On the flip side, a concise text-based summary that accompanies your video will greatly increase viewership. Our client, Coyle Financial Counsel found that viewership of its twice weekly video blogs increased substantially when it started offering a text-based summary right below its video player. The text summary always includes snappy “Key Takeaways” or as Naylor calls them, “Tweetables.” That’s right, each of the key takeaways in Naylor articles can be instantly tweeted by using a handy embedded widget (scroll down first page here).

While it’s easy in this era of disruption and killer apps, to replace old with the new, most things in life are not so binary. It’s not a matter of either/or, it’s a matter or either and or.

Even those in the media trade are questioning the ROI of video once you get past the cool factor. It’s certainly harder to produce and distribute well compared to good old fashioned text. Another drawback to video is that it’s harder to summarize and preview than written material is. Remember, most of your clients and prospects have become a gun shy about clicking on video players and having their browsers co-opted by intrusive video ads that can take 30 seconds or longer to play before you have the privilege of watching. Who has time for that in this day in age?

This Stanford University study is not a light read, but it does confirm the need for thumbnails and other forms of video summarization. Also, the penalty for a poorly produced video (bad lighting, bad sound, amateurish editing) is significantly worse than the penalty for sub-par written material.

Our blog and website have more about this and related topics.

Conclusion

Just as a well-diversified portfolio usually outperforms a concentration in a single stock, sector or country, a well-diversified thought leadership strategy should include a blend of text, video, infographics, PDFs and multimedia, that work together to keep your message relevant, clear and worthwhile sharing.

VCRGD6XDXT3T

TAGS: Naylor, LLC, Coyle Financial Counsel, video in text, video in emails, tweets, Stanford University study on video summaries, Folio magazine on video ROI

Saluting Great Work by HB Clients

This month marks the 6^th anniversary of the Association Adviser media channel that we created for Naylor, LLC in 2010. What began as a monthly eNewsletter for Naylor’s 11,000 trade association clients and prospects, has morphed into a robust website, blog, social media platform, web TV channel and annual industry benchmarking study with over 1,000 executive directors and CEOs taking part. During that time, Naylor has acquired an event management company, an online career center provider, an association management software company and an online learning solutions company. As Naylor has grown and evolved over the past half dozen years, we’ve been privileged to grow along with it.

But, Naylor isn’t the only HB client evolving and doing great work. In January, we helped Gary Klaben of Chicago-based Coyle Financial Counsel launch his third video blog, Grown Up Money, just for millennials and celebrated our third year helping Wayne, Pennsylvania-based Independence Advisors produce its Independent Thought blog. Meanwhile, Rochester-based Professional Financial Strategies recently launched a new website with a robust video and white paper library. Stephen Haidt, founder of Mobile, Alabama-based Retirement Advisors, Inc. has a new e-book, The Retirement Answer downloadable on his website. 

Paul Carroll, founder of Houston-based Efficient Wealth Management has a new financial planning eBook for United Airlines pilots. Christi Staib of Silver Sail Wealth Management, has a new e-book addressing the financial needs of widows and divorcees and Irvin Schorsch of Pennsylvania Capital Management has a forthcoming book, Reinventing Wealth: More Money, More Memories and More Meaning.

Conclusion

Keep up the great work. Don’t be shy about sharing your personal story, expertise and leadership philosophy with the rest of the world. You never know who might be reading or tuning in.

Our blog and website have more about this and related topics.

VCRGD6XDXT3T

TAGS: Coyle Financial Counsel, Professional Financial Strategies, Independence Advisors, Retirement Advisors Inc

Nice Gig if You Can Get It

NPR linguist Geoff Nunberg, recently anointed the noun “GIG” as the word of the year. Whether you’re a business owner, full-time “monogamous” employee or independent contractor, you’re affected by our increasingly on-demand economy aka, the “1099 economy”, “peer-to-peer economy”, or “freelance nation.” According to the Financial Times our work will be less secure, but a lot more exciting in the future since we have the freedom to make our own schedule and hours, pick the projects that interest us, work from anywhere and try our hands at different trades.

But most of you reading this blog already know about what Nunberg calls "solopreneurs" and "free range humans" with "portfolio careers." You’re entrepreneurs or at least intra-preneurs for your organizations.  Many of you run your own financial advisory practices, media properties or professional associations. You have built your enterprises by hiring the past and brightest independent contractors you can find. In most cases you pay them well, treat them well and refer them well.

If you’re a wealth advisor, chances are your overhead is pretty low, but your earnings are quite high, since you bring in CPAs, estate planning attorneys, tax specialists, planned giving officers and more, depending on each client’s case. If you’re running a media property, you keep the full-time staff low and bring in designers, content shapers, web gurus, social media specialists, independent sales reps, videographers and production people as needed. If you’re running a trade association, you’re full-time staff is low, but you’re a master at wearing multiple hats and bringing in highly talented volunteers and centers of influence from your industry to help on any task imaginable.

See my latest Corner Office profile of Betsy Monseu of The American Coal Council for more on the joys of wearing multiple hats.

 As our client Gary Klaben, of Coyle Financial Counsel posted last week, “The idea is to team up with people who complement your skill set. Don’t try to do it all yourself. In today’s Internet age, it’s never been easier or less expensive to find highly qualified specialists for every task imaginable and to put together a great team.”

Conclusion

Figure out what you really do best (and like to do best) and leave the rest to the experts. You’ll get more done in less time and have more hours in the day for your friends, family and passions. Who knows, one of those passions may turn into your next Gig!

Our blog and website has more about this and related topics.

VCRGD6XDXT3T

TAGS: Gig Economy, solopreneur, Betsy Monseu, American Coal Council, Gary Klaben, Coyle Financial Counsel, portfolio careers, Geoff Nunberg, NPR

Manage the talent, not the job description

Many of you are lamenting that you can’t keep up with all the new business that’s come in recently. If you’re expecting us to say admiringly, “That’s a nice problem to have,” then think again. Chances are, you’re not keeping up with the client promises you’ve made; you’re team’s getting burned out; you’re not scaling up to take on bigger and higher profile clients; and you’re probably losing opportunities to firms with deeper bench strength. Still think that’s a nice problem to have? If you stopped hiring and interviewing prospects during the downturn and you weren’t developing your staff and knowledge base internally during those dark days of 2008-2010, then you may be playing a dangerous game of catch-up just when the demand cycle is on overdrive.

Zero turnover in six years
I recently interviewed Stephanie Drake, head of the American Hospital Association in Chicago. A human resource professional by training, Drake told me she manages talent, not job descriptions. “The person who manages our publications also handles all of our finances,” she said. “That person has a unique skill set that you can’t interview for. I want people to do their best work and utilize as many of their talents or interests as they can.”

Does this approach work? Drake’s had had no voluntary turnover in the six-plus years she’s been at the helm. That’s right, zero turnover. Drake shared another example: “Suppose you’re a marketing person and you’re interested in conference planning even though you’ve never done it before. We’ll encourage you to shadow someone in our conference planning group and try it out and see if it’s a good fit for you.”

Charles Boinske, founder of Independence Advisors  in Wayne, PA agreed. “Team development is critical. Educate them. Provide them with learning opportunities. Doing so will increase your firm’s knowledge base and lead to better results for your clients and more satisfied team members,” said Boinske, a new client of ours.

Now if you’re really committed to exponential growth, not just a few percentage points every year, then Gary Klaben, Family Manager of our client Coyle Financial Counsel in Chicago, said the kind of people you have on the team will be attracted by a “10x” growth philosophy as well. “They’re going to be more alert, responsive and curious. And they’re going to take ownership of the business. That’s very important in wealth advisory services because there are so many moving parts and things going on that we need folks to be looking out for the best interests of the business. It’s not just a job.”

Never stop innovating

AHA’s Drake said her organization is willing to try anything at least once to see what happens. “If it serves a member need and has the potential for positive ROI, then we’ll give it a try. Our new HR professional certification program is an example of that [philosophy]” she said.  Boinske agreed that you should never stop innovating.  “I tell my staff, ‘If we don’t fail periodically then, we aren't trying hard enough.’ Keep a logbook of your successes and failures and celebrate both.”

According to Klaben, if you really want to create exponential growth in your business, then you have to “pull the future toward you by embracing technology and change.”

Conclusion

Get your team invested in the business, not just in promotions, new job titles and bonuses. The more they feel like stakeholders in the business and less like employees, the more likely they’ll go the extra mile for you and help you bring in, develop and retain like-minded high achievers.

It’s Monday. Let’s get to work. Time to bring in all those great opportunities that you and your team deserve.

There's more on the FREE Resources page of our website.

VCRGD6XDXT3T

Tags: Manage the talent not the job description, Stephanie Drake, American Hospital Association, Gary Klaben, Coyle Financial Counsel, Charles Boinske, Independence Advisors