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How to Avoid Getting Stuck
June 26th, 2011
It’s good to succeed and become efficient, but only it it really matters to your customers.
An MBA student in one of my international advertising classes at the University of Dallas Graduate School of Management said she was great at his daytime job, but she wasn’t promoted as she hoped. She was in her 30s, had international marketing experience, but was going nowhere.We discussed what her company saw as most valuable, but her traditional advertising contributions weren’t as important as leveraging the power of social media — especially video.
In short, rather than going right for the cheese, she got caught in a maze, doing today what she did yesterday.
Are you stuck in the maze? If you’re lucky enough to see a clear goal, what training do you need to get there?
Remember that what go you here, won’t get you there.
In working with students and executives, we help them clarify their goals based on the dynamics of the marketplace, then guide them to develop a social media marketing strategy playing to the power of video. It doesn’t come across as advertising to consumers. They see it as engaging storytelling. For example, this short story promoting The Four Seasons Resort during a major golf event which my colleague Emmy award winning Regent Ducas and I produced and shot.
Posted in broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, TV news training, Web Video | No Comments »
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Planning Your Personal Brand
June 26th, 2011
With sweeping changes affecting virtually every business, what’s your lifeboat to the future?
Yes, that’s a huge topic, so you need a tool to get started. In our strategic planning with corporations and individuals, we recommend you include this simple tool called SWOT.
It stands for your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Since most of us our familiar with Nike, you can see how it frames their brand.Regarding your situation, fill in the sections. For Threats, consider the fact if in you’re in broadcasting, the job you were hired to do may be eliminated in its original form. That’s true for many reporter and photographer positions.
If you’re in business, sweeping changes mean you need to get a grasp of social media and how companies are leveraging web video to dominate their category through search engines. We’re working with several companies and individuals, so we like to begin our strategic walks with the SWOT analysis.
One of their biggest mistake is to look at their direct competitors as threats. It’s the same mistake a TV station can make thinking their competition is the other stations as opposed to something called digital media.
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Investigate Where Your Tax Money Goes
June 15th, 2011
Viewers go out of their way to watch stories revealing where their tax money goes. This is especially the case when the people in charge want to keep information secret. This story represents a good example of revealing where the money goes while showing the news gathering process.
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About Bob Kaplitz: He knows something about investigative reporting. Back when he was a reporter, Bob was honored as Best TV Investigative Reporter in the U.S. and Canada by the Radio-TV News Directors Association. Many of his stories appeared on the CBS Evening News.Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists | 1 Comment »
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Investigative Reporting is Alive and Well
June 12th, 2011
Here’s a strong example. The reporter focused on a hot topic, wisely taking credit for the original story she broke. While many stations have cut back on their investigative reporting, WSMV in Nashville continues to deliver with its I-Team.
Even if you can’t deliver on this high level of reporting immediately, take the first steps. Ask questions when it comes to taxpayer money and salaries for public officials. The more questions you ask, the more you can discover.
And WSMV News Director Matthew Hilk emails us: “Our Channel 4 I Team was just at IRE in Orlando accepting the national IRE award for “breaking news investigations” for our work uncovering government agency missteps during the great flood of 2010 here…that stuff is all on the site as well.” Congratulations to Matthew and his team!
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Great Example of Show and Tell
June 8th, 2011
You don’t need to be a football fan to appreciate this example.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, Social Media, TV news training, Twitter | No Comments »
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Asking Questions Will Set You Apart
June 8th, 2011
Here’s yet another example how good questions will distinguish your reporting. And from, of all places, The Today Show. Here’s an excerpt from NBC’s tribute to Meredith Vieira on her last day.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, Social Media, TV news training | No Comments »
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Power of Social Media Video
June 5th, 2011
Using video in Facebook and other social media channels can set you apart. My colleague Regent Ducas shared insights about this in a presentation to women in business, which was sponsored by the Lewisville, TX Chamber of Commerce.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, Social Media, TV news training, Twitter | No Comments »
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Close-Up Power
June 4th, 2011
Keep your eyes open for tight shots.
They need to advance your storytelling — and can provide variety. Multimedia journalist Scott Broom, whom I interviewed for one of our live webinars, points out how these tight shots helped capture the essence of subjects of his videos. He looks for these opportunities all the time.
Be careful, though, to avoid shots that distract from the point of your story. They need to advance your storytelling, not get in the way of it.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, Social Media, TV news training, Twitter | No Comments »
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A Fresh Approach to Shooting Presentations
June 3rd, 2011
If you’re getting tired of the traditional head on shot for soundbites, explore fresh approaches. For example, when my colleague Regent Ducas spoke to an audience of women in business about creating videos for the web, we wanted to capture the scene and audience. So I took the camera off the tripod.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, Social Media, TV news training | No Comments »
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What Would a Promo about You Look Like?
May 28th, 2011
“What if you could have the original reporting of 60 Minutes every weeknight? Now you can…” is how a promo about new CBS anchor Scott Pelley begins.
The promo runs only ten seconds but includes a montage of defining moments including this shot. When you think of hard-hitting network news programs, you don’t think of this type of shot. Yet it shows the news person is multi-dimentional. Specifically, that he’s a real person with a heart.
So what does this have to do with you? You might ask a few questions.
QUESTIONS
If your station created a promo for you, what memorable moments would they show?
What portrait would the various shots paint?
What’s missing that you need to achieve next?
Okay, even if you don’t expect a promo, the point is the promo captures the best of who you are. So you need to be sure you’re carving out a uniquely valuable identity.
Posted in Bob Kaplitz video, broadcast journalism, Multimedia Journalism, Power Tools for TV Journalists, TV news training | No Comments »