EVC Tips 006: Business online is business as usual
I've noticed over the last year or so how much of business (including EVC) has moved virtual. Today, I think it's safe to say that more businesses are being born in the clouds of the internet than on the streets of our cities, and I think web 2.0 software has a lot to do with it. So I thought I would take a few minutes to talk about what is working for us, because it might work for you too.
Best Productivity
Google apps wins, hands down. We've been using gmail (and now google apps enterprise version) for years as a way to access files and messages from anywhere in the country that events bring us. Google chat allows for real-time collaboration between our employees, calendar gives us an easy way to schedule meetings across timezones, and docs lets us create work-in-progress forms, spreadsheets, and soon-to-be manifestos or manuals. We also use the presentations for training and communicating. Overall, I can't imagine working without Google.
Best Finance
This one is two-fold. For personal/business snapshot vitals (i.e. how much money is in the bank and on credit cards), I love Mint. Mint makes it easy to track expenses, view spending trends, budget, and ensure we stay out of the red. For invoicing and expense reports, we choose Harvest. Harvest makes it easy to send customized estimates & invoices, track employee time/expenses, and monitor accounts receivable. They also have an iPhone app and Mac widget, which actually makes time tracking fun. That says a lot.
Best File Sharing
If you haven't heard of Dropbox, I suggest you check it out. We have employees in 4 states, and dropbox turns the internet into our own server closet. Company files are shared as necessary, and the most up to date files are instantly available on any authorized PC/Mac, iPad, iPhone, or the dropbox website. Past versions are even saved in case someone makes a mistake.
Best Project Management
37Signals, a Chicago-based godsend, brought us Basecamp a while back. Basecamp is the headquarters of all our project-based communication. Each event gets a project, and anyone involved gets access to the appropriate files, messages, tasks, milestones, and comments. Works like a charm.
Best Note-Taking
Ok, so it's not groundbreaking, but it's pretty awesome. Evernote is a note-taking program that resides on your computer, your phone, your iPad, and of course the evernote website, so that wherever you are, you can take notes, make to-do lists, or even attach a photo from your phone. I use this for everything from meeting agendas to home-improvement plans, and yes, as the program suggests, I've even taken photos of my favorite bottles of wine and let the text-conversion feature do the rest. Best of all, everything is tag-able, search-able, and category-laden to your heart's content.
Best Calling
While Skype has long dominated (and rightfully so), Google Voice and the gchat integration will give it a run for its money. Either way, computer-to-computer and computer-to-cell phone calling is an important tool for cross timezone collaboration, so jump aboard!
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The tools mentioned above are tried and tested EVC productivity-makers, and though I don't represent or profit from any of these companies, I suggest you check them out! Remember that all of these programs are considered "Software as a Service" (SaS), meaning that you can expect to pay a monthly fee for their use, or at least for the use of their premium features. If you're used to paying for software once, and using it for years, those days might be over. So consider these programs part of your monthly utilities, just like your internet access and cell phone.
Good luck!
EVC Announced as Official Videographer of US Figure Skating
(Colorado Springs, CO) - US Figure Skating announced today that they have selected EVC as their official video partner for the upcoming qualifying figure skating season. EVC has provided video production services for US Figure Skating events since 2007, and this season, will continue to do so in this exclusive relationship.
The supplier relationship encompasses 21 qualifying events around the country through April 2011. For more information, and the official announcement, visit here.
Thank you to everyone that has supported us over the last several years!
iPad for Event Video?
I definitely consider myself somewhat of a tech geek, and when the iPad was released, I couldn't have been more enthralled with listening to the hundreds of reviews and reports popping up on every device I own. Somehow I managed to wait a full 3 months before actually purchasing one (most likely because of all the friendly reminders my fiancé Lianne was dropping about our upcoming wedding).
Well, the day has finally come. I don't mean for this to be a review either - there are plenty out there. But I thought I would write about some of the ways that event video companies might be able to use this new toy for good.
The most obvious use of the iPad is to hold some sample videos of your work, or sample files that normally live on your desktop, and just don't display well on a smart phone or iPod. More than anything, I think the iPad is a great tool for passing content between prospective clients, employees or freelancers. Where else could you so easily show someone a sample contract, event map, site photos, website, or a quick slideshow of your company's offering?
The next potential use for the iPad in event video production is payment processing. Taking a mobile sale from a customer after selling a DVD or delivering your final edit for a big project is not only convenient, it's dead sexy. And let's face it, with so many competing video companies out there, it's important to a remind customers that you are technologically awesome. Most of the work that goes into making great videos happens behind the scenes, but it's the face to face interaction and demos that get you work and build your reputation. Making great videos is not a differentiator, it's an expectation.
You may have heard of apps like Square Mobile, and there are bound to be more ways to "iPay" soon. Traditional wireless credit card processing devices can cost double what an iPad or netbook might, so I think its about time we start looking at alternatives.
Next, it seems that the iPad makes a great input device for data entry. At EVC, we go through thousands of paper orders each year, and we're excited about the iPad's potential to eliminate some of this waste, and keep data organized electronically. I'm looking forward to this convergence of our on-site and online ordering processes, which we hope to share with videographers around the country (stay tuned!).
Last, this thing is just plain fun to use. After all, it is a toy. But it's catching our attention at EVC, and it might just fit into your business too!
Free Video?
I've been reading Free, a book by Chris Anderson (@chr1sa), Editor In Chief of Wired Magazine, for what seems like 6 months now. And on my 2 hour and 50 minute flight from Phoenix to Indianapolis, I finally finished it. Not that the book was boring. It was actually very thought provoking, so much so that it caused my mind to wander every time I picked it up, thinking of new ideas and determining how Chris' research applies to EVC and to the Event Video industry.
In many ways, Free reaffirmed some of the things we've started to implement over the last couple of years, and I think everyone could benefit from skimming over the book, or at least reading the first and last two chapters. Main idea: In this book, free refers mostly to online businesses or electronic media, and the dozens of very unique & creative ways in which entrepreneurs are inventing business models around it. Online, free is inevitable. Every year technology gets faster and cheaper, so Anderson recommends rounding down - stop charging for services that you make less and less from each year, and start figuring out other ways to make money.
With EVC, we're using free to give away live streaming coverage of some of our productions (more each year), in order to increase awareness of the video, and hopefully drive sales. Over the next few years, we intend to offer more and more ways for our customers to purchase productions at varying price and quality levels (download, DVD, blu-ray), while keeping the most basic version (low-quality streaming) free. For many of our customers, the free product will satisfy their needs. But for some, the portability of a DVD, quality of a Blu-ray, or flexibility of a downloaded file are reason enough to spend the extra money - and those are the purchases that subsidize the entire operation.
Another way to implement Free is to make the product cost nothing to the end-user (the customer), but make a profit elsewhere. Some examples of this would be to bundle a DVD in the cost of registration for an event, place advertisements within the video to subsidize the cost of the production, or allow a company to sponsor the entire production, even going as far as to put their branding on the DVD packaging.
Today's Free isn't about tricking the customer. But it is a business model that you can't ignore. Assuming technology continues at its current pace, and video distribution continues to get cheaper, you might as well stay ahead of the curve.
Read: Fittingly, you can download Free, by Chris Anderson, for no charge here: link. Or you can buy it the old fashioned way.
New Year, New Website
Back in February we officially changed the company name to Event Video Company, and launched our new website, www.eventvideocompany.com. In the next month or two, we'll be announcing some more exciting developments!
Give the new website a look, and let us know what you think.
Event Video for Everyone
As we reach the end of 2009, we find ourselves in a new economic climate - the Google age of fast, fresh, and free. As a company in the event video space, Firewire Films has always sought to stay ahead of the curve, providing innovative services and challenging ourselves to deliver them faster and cheaper than ever.
For us, 2010 will be a launching pad for subscribing even more deeply to this commitment. Our goal is to give our customers precisely what they need - accessible, reliable, and affordable video. In the spirit of this goal, look out for more free live webcasts, new ways to watch video, and several HD options in the next few months.
To our partner organizations - Thank you for your continued support! In 2010, we will expand into even more US markets in order to provide the consistent, simultaneous, nation-wide video network that you've been looking for. We will continue to provide you with reliable event data and an open line of communication before, during, and after your event.
We're looking forward to 2010. With your help, we will reach new markets, decrease the marginal cost of our videos, and share our productions with a wider audience. Event video is a memory. It's a training tool. It's a long-distance front row seat for relatives. And in 2010, event video is for everyone!
Happy Holidays,
Chris Ronzio
President & Founder, Firewire Films