Archive for category: Articulon Announcements

Today, everyone has a high-powered video camera at their fingertips. And, video is a great way to share your message and story. But, is just grabbing your camera and hitting GoLive or record what you should do? 

For brands and businesses, the answer is generally NO. There is an important reputation to be considered – your brand’s. That means paying attention to the video quality: the quality of the content and the quality of the recording (format, focus, lighting and audio). So before you hit the red button on your screen, here are some questions to consider:

• Does this have to be a live video? Going “Live” is great. But, often you are better served by recording and doing some minor edits before posting. Moreover, if no one knows or is expecting you to go live, you may not have anyone watching your important moment.
• Where is the video getting posted? If you are shooting a video for “Stories” on Facebook or Instagram a vertical phone is perfect. However, holding the phone horizontal is the right way to go for a Facebook post, YouTube, advertising and websites. 
• Will background noise be an issue? Phones pick up everything including the breathing of the person holding them. Consider using a Bluetooth or wired microphone to capture the speaker and not everything else.
• How is the lighting? Take a moment and snap a photo or two. Is it too dark? Is there a glare that will distract your viewer?
• How short can you make it? The reality is you have less than 5 seconds to get the viewer engaged, and less than 1 minute to get to the point (:15 or :30 for an ad). Once you have grabbed the viewer they will watch longer if the content is exciting, informative or entertaining. 
• What is the visual action? Sitting at a table or desk talking to the cameras generally won’t cut it, especially if you want viewers to watch for more than 5,10 or 15 seconds. Use graphics or walk around, give something for the viewer to see.

Yes, if you want to effectively communicate your message, you need videos to tell your story. Make sure the story the viewer hears is your story. Not the story of bad videography.

For those born in the last millennium, directional billboards were a point of driving entertainment, as well as useful by local businesses to capture attention and acquire customers from drive-by traffic. The downside is billboards are expensive, have a very short visibility window and offer little in ROI trackability.

So, is there a better way to geo-target nearby customers? Absolutely! With the popularity of mapping software, how about ads right on the map?

Yeah, I have seen those but do they really work? And, I bet they are expensive, hard to set up, and like everything else nowadays, require a long-term contract.

Not true! Pins can be bought for single locations and for as short as 30-days at a time. This makes it perfect for small retailers, real estate sales and event marketing. The CPM (costs per 1,000 impressions) is comparable to other digital advertising. Moreover, you get actual view, click and drive to stats. 

Case in point: Articulon recently used pins on Waze as an add-on promotion for the Triangle Parade of Homes. Approximately 10% (30 homes across the Triangle) participated. Over the 30-day period the pins were active, the pins received more than 475,000 driving impressions, nearly 2,000 search impressions and a CTR (click rate) of .11%. In comparison, according to Smart Insights, in 2019 the average digital display ad CTR is just 0.05% across all ad formats and placements.

Pins are just the start. For an additional cost, there are options for pop-up ads and in-app coupons/deals. So if geo-targeting and traffic-driving are important to your business, it is worth your time to look at map pins as part of your ad mix.