Simply Zesty » Latest News in Video Marketing and Video Advertising

Youtube stars find formula for viral success

Lauren Fisher — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 11:19:11 +0000

Where once viral video success may have seemed to just spring up from nowhere, spread like wildfire as emails circulated around the office and quickly racked up views in the millions. As online viewing has grown, we’re now witnessing a new phase in the viral video phenomenon, where viral video success is becoming far less sporadic. Genuine ‘overnight successes’ stand less of a chance, as they are having to compete with a veritable army of Youtube veterans who are hard at work to prove their success was anything but a one hit wonder.

Maker Studios

Wired Magazine recently reported on the strange phenomenon going on at Maker Studios - which is an independent media company where some of the most popular Youtubers are collaborating to ensure continued success. This is viral video on steroids. The studios host professional equipment and spaces, post-production facilities and importantly, opportunities for collaboration.

Viral videos have now become a melting pot of talent, as many of the viral video stars at Maker Studios frequently appear in other videos, as well as the seasoned Youtubers bringing in new players into their videos, to hopefully launch their careers.

To get an idea of the talent at Maker Studios, they are lucky enough to count Tay Zonday as one of their members, who brought us the delights of Chocolate Rain, currently at 83 million views.

A formula for success?

In interviews with the Youtubers, it’s evident that they have gotten smart, quickly, to the patterns behind social media success. Their rules to follow include producing a lot of content and focusing on a niche in order to get spotted. Of course, being bolstered by their early success certainly helps, but the task they are undertaking to launch an actual career out of Youtube is certainly not a small one. And no-one has really proven it yet.

While in reality there will never be a magic formula for success, because it hinges on creativity, Maker Studios are certainly working hard at it, combining their knowledge and experience, finding patterns for success in new viral videos and replicating these.

And what of Youtube’s role in all of this? When we say viral video success, what we really mean is Youtube success. While video uploads on Facebook are certainly growing, Youtube is still undoubtedly the home of online video. They have a monopoly in the video industry that is skewing the way online video is progressing.

Everything is tailored for Youtube’s site and way of doing things. And while it may seem like Youtube just happens to be the platform for distribution, having little effect on the content itself, consider that everything is done Youtube’s way. The way content is optimized for search, functions of channels, subscribers etc. (none of which feature in Facebook video language for example). In this way, you can start to see how viral success can become formulaic, and it’s something that Youtube/Google themselves are fostering, nurturing new talent and training them in the Youtube way.

And while there may indeed be a team of Youtube superstars ready to set the way the game is played, you will always, thankfully, have gems like the below, which has even been featured in a Brazilian TV ad

The Zesty Show Episode 6 – Sean Parker, Diggnation And Death Of Steve Jobs

Niall & Lauren — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:07:03 +0000

It’s been a pretty bad week for tech with the tragic death of Steve Jobs overshadowing most of the other news. We look backwards and forwards on the life of the tech legend and what it could mean for Apple. More sad news albeit on a more trivial level with the end of popular web series Diggnation at the end of the year and we take a look at Sean Parker’s latest start up and wonder what he is up to.

Inspirational Tech Entrepreneurs – Dylan Collins

Niall Harbison — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 18:28:50 +0000

I’m lucky enough to meet some pretty cool people as part of my day job and I wanted to share some of the great conversations I get to have here through video. Today is the first of a series of videos with people who have achieved remarkable things in the tech space and with people who are an inspiration to others. We start with Dylan Collins who has founded and sold 3 major companies in the last 10 years and who remains at the forefront of social gaming. We cover everything from entrepreneurship and starting your own company right through to looking at how the likes of Zynga, Groupon and Facebook are doing today. If any of us could achieve a tenth of what Dylan has in his short lifetime we would be doing well so when he sits down and offers advice it is well worth listening to.

The Zesty Show Episode 5 – Facebook iPad App, Uncrunched And Instagram Flies

Niall & Lauren — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 13:30:13 +0000

Our job on the Simply Zesty show is being made easy the last couple of week by the sheer volume of large tech stories that have been coming out. This week we discuss another crazy week of releases from Facebook, talk about their stormy relationship with Apple and what they could be about to announce together at the iPhone launch on Tuesday. We also have a look at the new blog started by Michael Arrington and ask what the future holds for Techcrunch. Last up on the show is the user numbers released by Instagram and the rise and rise of that service.

The Zesty Show Episode 4 – Facebook F8, Twitter Search And Google +

Niall & Lauren — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 12:30:57 +0000

The Zesty show is back for another episode and we have plenty to talk about today in the lead up to Facebook’s F8 developer conference and the launch of their new music service. Not only are Facebook launching new products but we also discuss the complete overhaul of their news feed that has happened over the last week and how the social network is basically changing in front of our eyes. It’s not all Facebook though as we also have a look at the start up that Twitter acquired this week and wonder just how long it will be before they get around to fixing their search on the site. The last story is a quick overview of Google + with a look at some of the stats that have been compiled around their launch.

Don’t forget that we are always open to any suggested topics on the show and we’d love to hear any feedback that you might have or feel free to add to the discussions below.

Social App of the Week – Episode 5

Quinton O'Reilly — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:45:33 +0000

This week we’ve decided to unwind a bit and review a game for a change. Breaking onto the scene is the arcade game Mr Bounce, available for iPhone, iPad and Chrome.

This Week’s Best Marketing Videos – The Friday 5

Niall Harbison — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 19:53:22 +0000

This week on the Friday five we bring you the best marketing videos of the week including a look at a new Google Chrome advert that features mom and pop restaurants, a look a cringe worthy advert for pistachio nuts from the Winklevoss twins and a video that shows exactly what girls are looking for in a guy. If you liked these videos you can click on the links below for the full version of each video…

Nike Back to the future shoes
Google Chrome mom and pop ad
The Winklevoss Twins advertise pistachios
What girls really look at when they see a hot guy
Eminem Detroit award winning advert

Social App of the Week – Episode 4

Quinton O'Reilly — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:06:37 +0000

This week, we’ve looked at the social computing and cloud app, Jolicloud, designed to place your apps and files all in the one place. The app is available to download for iPhone and Android as well as for Chrome.

The Friday 5 – The best marketing videos of the week

Niall Harbison — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 14:32:03 +0000

The Friday 5 is back and it’s bigger than ever with some brilliant marketing videos including one of the craziest water slides that you will ever see and a mad man on a Harley Davidson releasing a load of dogs back in to freedom from a dog pound. Check the links down below for the full version of each video and feel free to send in any videos that you think we should feature.

The human slingshot
Cats at work
FIFA 2012
New Old Spice ad
Harley Davidson Ad

The Zesty Show 3 – A Weekly Social Media Round Up

Niall & Lauren — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 14:12:13 +0000

This week on the Zesty show there is plenty to talk about with Yahoo firing their CEO we ask will this change the perception and fortunes of the company as well as discussing what the future of Facebook will look like now that they are set to unveil their own music platform. We also discuss the Twitter ad platform which is due to roll out next month in the UK to brands and businesses. Make sure to send in any questions that you might have or topics that you want to see discussed in future episodes and get involved in the debate through the comments.

Social App of the Week – Episode 3

Quinton O'Reilly — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 14:04:05 +0000

This week, we look at stylish RSS reader, Feedly which takes your RSS subscriptions and displays them in a magazine format. The app is available for Chrome, Firefox, iPhone, iPad and Android.

NOTE: It’s said in the video that you can find the ‘explore’ function at the top right hand corner. This is the case when the browser is not in full screen mode. When the browser is in full screen, the toolbar is displayed on the left.

The Friday 5 – The best marketing videos of the week

Niall Harbison — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 11:05:01 +0000

Another week and some more of the best marketing videos that we have spotted in the last 7 days for you to enjoy and gain some inspiration from. You’ll enjoy the dancing hamsters, another look at what the iPhone 5 could look like and a rather weird video featuring Willy Nelson covering a Coldplay classic. Don’t forget to watch the full videos down below if you want them or to send in any videos that you think should feature next week.

The dancing Squirrels from Kia
What the iPhone 5 could look like
Back to the start Coldplay cover
Red Bull Flare surfing video
Amazing look at 100 years of London style

Social App of the Week – Episode 2

Quinton O'Reilly — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 14:00:18 +0000

This week, we look at flight search app, Hipmunk, which is available for iPhone, iPad and Google Chrome browser.The app finds and compares all flights to and from your destination of choice and shows you the best and cheapest flights to choose from.

The Friday 5 – The best marketing videos of the week

Niall Harbison — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 13:00:14 +0000

Another week has passed which means it’s time to roll out the Friday 5. We’ve compiled another collection of marketing videos over the past week for your viewing pleasure. This week’s Friday 5 features batting practise, a unique telling of the life and career of Steve Jobs and the oddest milk advert you’ll ever see.

If you see a video that you like to see in full, the links can be found underneath the video. If you have any comments, feedback or would just like to suggest a video you think should be included in the Friday 5, just email us at hello@simplyzesty.com

This week’s videos are:

Ultimate batting practise

Google Chrome and SB TV

Samsung Galaxy S II

Japanese Milk Advert

The Life and career of Steve Jobs

The Zesty Show 2 – A Weekly Social Media Round Up

Niall & Lauren — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 10:42:04 +0000

Week2 of the Zesty show and this time we are covering all the latest changes at Facebook and what it means for them in general. We also have a look at the iPad after Delta announced they would be giving pilots 11,000 of them. Lastly we look at the the location based check in and wonder if it still has a future. We also take a couple of questions from Twitter and make sure to leave a comment and tell us what you think of the new format.

This week in the show we talk about…

Recent changes to Facebook Privacy settings

11,000 iPads being used by pilots

Is the Checkin dead?