Promotional video for Orchard Press (Cheltenham) Ltd

Orchard Press, based in Ashchurch near Tewkesbury approached me because they knew they should be using video to promote their business, but needed guidance on how to go about it.

They wanted to be able to use a promotional video to demonstrate the breadth of services they offer using their state of the art equipment, including the only Heidelberg B1 press within 50 miles.

After several discussions I was able to devise a storyboard and write a voiceover script. Filming took place during two sessions. The resulting film is below. With thanks to the hugely talented Guy Harris voiceoverguy.co.uk for the ultra fast turnround and high quality delivery.

Rather than just rocking up with a camera and hoping for the best, with my commercial and business background I am able to guide clients on the best approach for their video.

Many SMEs tend to commission videos because they’ve read that they “must have a video on their website”, but without knowing how a video might work best for them.

My starting point is to always open any discussion with “why do you want a video?” which then enables me to guide them on the most effective approach. These vital preliminary discussions help to speed up the process, and more importantly help to avoid surprises later on in the process, because both parties are aligned from the outset.

On location at Edgbaston cricket

I’m delighted to have completed another video for long-standing client Gala Events.

This one was filmed at Edgbaston “the home of cricket”. It features former England captain Nasser Hussain and former Australian international player Glenn McGrath.

Video provider to Cheltenham Chamber of Commerce

I’m delighted to be producing member profile videos for Cheltenham Chamber of Commerce.

Here’s the latest in the series featuring Richard Cole and his visiting tailoring service.

Helping tennis player Tom Mellor appear at The Albert Hall

From time to time I am pleased to undertake pro bono work to support local organisations and individuals.

Therefore I was delighted to respond to a request from Cheltenham tennis player Tom Mellor and his father Philip.

Tom, who was born with Velo-Cardio-Facial-Syndrome, won gold and silver medals at the 2014 this year’s INAS World Tennis Championships.  INAS is the organisation for para-athletes with an intellectual disability.

Tom had a chance of playing an exhibition game on behalf of Special Olympics GB immediately before the first match at the ATP Champions Tour at the Albert Hall in December 2014.  However Special Olympics GB needed to provide proof of just how talented a player Tom is. Tom’s Dad Philip asked if I could shoot some footage of Tom playing, to use for this purpose.

You can see the promotional footage below. I’m pleased to report that the video has helped Tom secure a 15 minute exhibition match with his partner Fabrice Higgins at the opening of the ATP Champions Tour on 3rd December.

Lording it up at Lord’s with Michael Vaughan

I’ve been working with West Midlands based Gala Events for five years and recently I produced my eighth film for them.

This latest event was a Lord’s Long Room Lunch and it featured cricketers Michael Vaughan, Tim Bresnan and Steve Harmison. After a tour of the grounds, guests were entertained with a Q&A with the cricketers hosted by former cricketer and England selecter Geoff Miller.

Alan George of Gala Events says “We’ve used several videographers before and they haven’t come near to Expertise on Tap’s quality. Their attention to detail and their eye to get a variety of different aspects of our events, really show the atmosphere and help to sell next year’s event.”

If you’d like me to film your event do get in touch for a chat.

On location with the pop pirates: Radio Caroline at 50

Easter Sunday 1964 saw the launch of legendary radio station Radio Caroline. Moored off the Essex coast it brought pop radio to the UK in a way that had never been done before. The station and others like it, revolutionised music radio in the UK.

As a lifelong fan of offshore radio I was determined not to miss out on the 50th anniversary celebrations. I made the long trip from Cheltenham to Walton-on-the-Naze to capture the 50th anniversary celebrations, organised by former Ross Revenge captain Tony “Captain Campbell” Haggis.

On location with football pundits Matt Le Tissier and Steve Claridge

I’ve been working with West Midlands based Gala Events for five years and recently I produced my seventh film for them.

This latest event was the annual Birmingham Gold Cup Lunch and it featured live Irish band Celtic Clan, Sky Sports tipster Kevan Minter along with football pundits Matt Le Tissier and Steve Claridge , both of whom gave anecdote rich after lunch speeches.  The event was ably compered by West Midlands radio legend Tom Ross.

Alan George of Gala Events says “We’ve used several videographers before and they haven’t come near to Expertise on Tap’s quality. Their attention to detail and their eye to get a variety of different aspects of our events, really show the atmosphere and help to sell next year’s event.”

If you’d like me to film your event do get in touch for a chat.

On location with the Football Characters

Last week I had a really interesting video assignment. I was asked to film an “Evening with the Football Characters” at Edgbaston Cricket Ground by West Midlands based Gala Events. This is the sixth film I have produced for Gala.

The “Football Characters” on this occasion were Hull City manager Steve Bruce, Sam Allardyce of West Ham United and Neil Warnock former Leeds United manager and currently appearing on TalkSport and BT Sport.

Alan George of Gala Events says “We’ve used several videographers before and they haven’t come near to Expertise on Tap’s quality. Their attention to detail and their eye to get a variety of different aspects of our events, really show the atmosphere and help to sell next year’s event.”

If you’d like me to film your event do get in touch for a chat!

How to massively increase clicks for videos in your email marketing

Here’s a really quick and simple tip.

If you’re including video in your email newsletters and e-shots, you’ll know that at the moment, most email clients don’t support embedded videos.

So you might be thinking your only option is some hyperlinked text saying “Watch the video…”.

Wrong!

The best way to massively increase clicks for your video is to embed it as a screen grab and overlay a play button onto it, so it looks like an embedded video.

Yes, you need to have a text link as well, for people whose email clients are blocking images, but the screen grab will get many more clicks.

Below are two examples from a client e-newsletter I produce, which prove this.  The percentage of clicks the image got is shown at the  bottom, and clicks for the the text link are at the top.  As you’ll see there’s a big difference.

How to take a screen grab of a video

In Windows you could use the built in snipping tool, or if you’ve edited the video yourself most editing programs will allow you to take a screen grab of a video frame.

To overlay the play button you can do this in most image editing software. You can find a good selection of play button images on iconfinder.com.

Do contact me if you get stuck!

How to massively increase clicks for video in email marketing

How to massively increase clicks for video in email marketing

On location with former Dr Who actors

The BBC show Celebrity Antiques Road Trip recently visited our client Bespoke Auctions in Winchcombe.

The celebrities for this edition were former Dr Who actor Colin Baker, and former Blue Peter presenter Peter Purves, who also acted in Dr Who in the 1960s.

Bespoke Auctions asked us to shoot some behind-the-scenes footage, which you can see in the video below.

Nick Granger from Bespoke Auctions comments:

Such a professional video, you delivered way more than I was expecting. Thank you.