- I believe the experience for really small business owners and non profit directors to get going online is and has been broken.
- I believe there is a lack of personal and ongoing attention available to really small business owners that need it most.
- I believe the current DIY website options are built by developers and designers for other web-savvy designers and developers to do websites themselves. Leaving really small business owners required to do it themselves for whom the web is perplexing, offline.
- I believe marketing today boils down to cogent campaigns getting attention. And an ever-improving system in place and keeping attention. Through an education two-way conversation between your brand and your audience.
- And attention requires content. Ads are part of a smart strategy but they should point to the content, not the checkout form.
- I believe there’s a huge opportunity helping Rainmakers leverage attention of their desired audience.
- I believe the term turn-key has been used in so many empty marketing promises over the years that it’s lost meaning to the consumers who need it most.
Hobbs' Notes
Chris Marr Talking Successful Content Marketing And The Content You Should Create
Chris Marr understands successful content marketing. You can look him up and prove it to yourself or you can trust me when I tell you, Chris knows.
This video is a profoundly perfect starting point for content marketing for your business or brand.
Start with business goals. Comment with any questions either for Chris on FB or for me over here.
My Randomly Scribbled Notes
- Versus/comparisons/reviews. looking for their best solution
- -BLANK- V -BLANK- Which is best? What’s the difference?
- StudioPress Sites or Rainmaker Platform
- Helping people make educated buying decisions
- Should I -BLANK- or -BLANK-?
- Understand and speak soothingly to your customer’s Worries, Anxieties, Frustrations
- What are the top options for help with the Rainmaker Platform? Which is best for me?
- Common problems with -BLANK-, and how we solve them.
- The best -BLANK- on the market?
- How much does -BLANK- cost?
- Why is -BLANK- so expensive?
- How much does -BLANK- cost? Break down the expenses
A Quick Primer On Branding In 2017
Is the DRock Model Possible For The Rest Of Us?
How Do I Define The DRock Model?
For DailyVee episodes, DRock or another member of the team:
- Shoots GaryVee’s day
- Then produces the story
- Finds the music for the episode’s mood
- Edits the DailyVee Episode
- Win’s GaryVee’s sign off
- The video is published and promoted
- Repeat all the steps the next day
DRock is a self-described Predator, meaning he embodies the Producer, Editor, and Cameraman in one person.
There are now multiple Predators in GaryVee’s employ. Tyler along with others DRock is in the process of hiring.
I believe Gary’s team is offering this DRock model to celebrities at a starting rate of $30K a month.*
Ok, $30K a month is a pipe dream for me
Me and you both.
But I didn’t let this deter me.
I needed to know, is it possible to employ the DRock model while doing it ourselves and using what we already have?
So no expensive cameras required to begin.
I set about with the tools I already own.
- My iPhone 6 Plus
- I already have a subscription to Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects ($40/mo total for the two)
- I already own eCamm Call Recorder for Skype Calls ($29.95 one time)
- I already own a lavalier microphone ($49.99 retail or $15.99 with Amazon Prime)
- I stole a camera tripod from my Mom
- I bought a Blue Yeti Microphone with Pop Filter and Headphones back in 2014 (now $160 w/ Amazon Prime)
- I still have most parts of my attempt at recreating Wistia’s $100ish lighting setup
Best Place To Start Learning?
I began teaching myself video by watching a crap ton of video.
My breakthroughs followed my buying then learning the lessons in Amy Schmittauer’s $30 guide to better vlogging. It’s an email course delivering daily lessons over 30 days straight.
My confidence caught my talent once I coupled Amy’s course of foundational lessons with my actively creating and publishing videos.
The more times you practice your craft, the more repetitions you put in, the better you will be at your craft.
There are no shortcuts to building an audience you can build your business on.
What tools are absolutely required to begin?
- Gotta have a smartphone, to be able to shoot video and record audio
- Gotta have a way to produce the story you want using editing software of your choosing (Examples being ScreenFlow, Camtasia, Adobe Premiere Pro, among other options)
Ok, say I’m willing. Where should I start?
I see the key to be strategy.
Know your strengths and resources, specifically your available weekly time and budget.
Use your known constraints to define your deliverable.
Then reverse engineer from your deliverable all the way back to right now.
For Example
As I begin, I know I have access to far more time and talent than cash to spend.
My business runs on educated leads to pay for my service.
So I setup my funnel using Rainmaker Platform and then publish as often as I have a video story I’m proud to share.
I will publish my videos to my YouTube Channel, to my Facebook Brand Page, as well as to iTunes as a free Video Podcast.
But make no mistake, my audience as I define it, is my email list/members of my Rainmaker Platform site.
So I’ll invest a dollar a minute to have Rev.com handle subtitles for all my videos, because sound is off by default while the video plays in the Facebook feed.
You’re An Amateur Starting Out, So Keep Perspective
So DailyVee is published most days.
And they are gloriously produced and edited by talented people who do this for a living.
Never forget that fact and so never compare your work with DailyVEE.
That’s comparing apples and oranges.
That said, you can absolutely do the DRock Model
And it can help you grow your business audience.
And help your audience begin to know you and decide if they like and trust you.
It’ll likewise help your friends and family realize how much of a BAD HOMBRE you are.
Say you have time but no money
Utter DIY (Do-it-Yourself) situation. Start with Amy’s course. Figure out how you want to structure each episode.
Don’t try to be anyone else, just focus on telling your story.
Focus on documenting your answers to the questions your customers care about from most to least. You are going to want to invest in a place to keep your content your create.
If video, I’d use Wistia (here’s a free 45 day trial) or you may find Vimeo or Vimeo Pro is more your budget if funds are really tight.
Say you have money but no time
Complete outsourcing.
-
- You could find and hire your own videographer to do it all for you. Making your sole responsibility final sign off to publish. (2017 Average wage for Videographers is $60K/year)
- You could shoot with your iPhone but use Candidio to get Candidio’s help with your overarching video strategy plus their help planning each video. And Candidio’s editing team handles all the sound mixing and video editing! (Approximately $300/video when you pre-pay for a block of videos, think a 13 episode season for between $3K and $4K up front)
Short answer? Yes.
With the caveat that it’ll take some evolving combination of your time and money to deliver the model consistently and retain your sanity.
To begin, you may need to do it all yourself and pull together a single episode a week.
Or perhaps an episode a month to get going.
The thing to understand is exactly what the DRock Model delivers.
It produces video episodes DRock the videographer is proud of.
With consistent delivery and quality.
Footnotes
* – $30K a month figure was from a DailyVEE episode, the number of which I can’t recall. If I get a better number, I’ll let you know.
Tools for building an online presence for your business
What tools do I use?
These days, well, for the past 20ish months, I only work with people whose website is on Rainmaker Platform.
Anytime video is part of your plan, we host with Wistia and then embed the video on your website wherever you want.
My website is focused on starting a conversation between me and you. I use Drift to allow direct communication through my website. No need to fill out a form and wait for a reply.
Affiliate Disclaimer
* Denotes affiliate links. Which means if you buy something, I get paid by the seller for introducing you to their solution. I put my name on my company and site, so I only recommend solutions I have experience using for myself and clients.
What tools did I use before?
I cobbled together my solution using those tools I trusted based on my personal experience.
Those tools are listed on the right for your convenience.