Speaking only for myself, I have never much like trade shows, conferences, seminars, etc. I realize they are important routines for conducting business - and that a lot of people appreciate the opportunity to socialize and recreate with colleagues they don't meet with regularly. I see a lot of waste in the cost structures, but that's generally someone else's problem, not mine. To me, the big objection involves my time: The routines of travel, meetings, and events are just too much extra crowding my schedule.
My objections don't matter much, except: A friend writes to tell me that AFS allowed Morgan Molten Metal Systems to record two presentations given last month at the Aluminum Conference & Workshop in Dayton, Ohio, by that company's regional account manager Ted Kostilnik. "To the best of my knowledge, these are the first complete videos of individual presentations shot at AFS conferences," he told me, and they are available now for viewing on YouTube. They are informative, not commercial in nature, and filled with practical advice for crucible operators.
Well done all around. This is the way to conduct a meeting. Give the audience what they need. Let them set the time. It may not be "marketing," but it is highly effective communication.
Video marketing has gone through waves of development and popularity in the past 10 years, and much of what has been offered has been ineffective, or worse. Generally, it's too static or it's too slick. In serious business like metalcasting, Morgan MMS has taken the only sensible approach: be informative. There's too little time for all the rest.
If you're interested in video marketing, you should check Creative Videographers' Eyes, a blog maintained by videographers and video producers who comment on best-practice commercial videos that they have found effective or "inspirational." Visitors are invited to submit their own videos for comment, evaluation, or advice. Amy Munice, creator of the Global B2B Communications web site that hosts “Creative Videographers’ Eyes,” said there were two reasons for launching the blog:
"One, we hope to create a shortcut to help global companies that go to some lengths to create quality videos gain a wider worldwide audience whose industry information might otherwise be too narrow in focus, or too technical, to easily become the type of global viral video that can be so important to driving traffic to web sites and assisting in search engine optimization," she said.
The second goal is to show the talent and ideas available for this type of communication among videographers, corporate video producers, and video production companies. If you have a message to deliver and you think video is the way to do it, you may find some insights among all that talent. Remember, there has to be more to the message than just the medium.