Videos we like and dis-like and our thoughts about them...to get you thinking!

First, a beautiful little video done to perfection.  At under 2 minutes, the length is good - in fact it is always gripping.  The message is clear and is a call to action.  The filming is beautiful with vibrant colours matching each other.  It's hard not to watch is several times.

We think this Global Warming initiative missed the target.  The concept is creative, we suppose, but is it really funny?  We suspect that those already convinced about cutting carbon emissions were OK with the video, but those who had doubts were just turned off.  We cannot believe that a bit of research before production or even before launch would not have raised some very large red flags.  With this budget and star involvement (5 Tottenham Hotspurs and David Ginola are involved) they should have been able to come up with a better concept.

Here is a great example of how the power of YouTube can be used against a company, in this case United Airlines.  There have been 9.5 million views to date, three songs have been released and a Harvard Business Case Study has been published. Make sure this never happens to you.  A great boost to David Carroll's career though.         

Next, a funny campaign by Tipex with very innovative use of YouTube.  Expect to see more and more examples of such cooperation by YouTube and Google with the corporate world.

Another funny and innovative campaign that is very watchable.  Comparethemarket.com has built a complete site within YouTube full of videos and funny material.  But is this what you want to do with your presence on YouTube?

http://www.youtube.com/user/comparethemeerkat?blend=2&ob=4

And now some corporate videos! 

We start with one of the best ones we have found.  It is from Mars...the company not the planet!  The clarity and quality of this video is wonderful.  So is the creativity that borders on surreal at times, while providing a tinge of humour (the cat meeting room).  Our only criticism is the length of the video.  We wonder how many people will watch this the whole way through.  In any case well done.  

http://www.mars.com/global/the-five-principles.aspx 

Here is a very good introduction video to corporate HP.  If nothing else this is what we suggest companies do on the web.  The video is informative, complete and very watchable. 

Here is another corporate video, from Goldman Sachs.   We consider this a very good use of video to sculpt corporate identity via the web. 

http://www2.goldmansachs.com/careers/our-firm/divisions/operations/what-we-do/video.html

Goldman Sachs has several other similar videos, of employees or of divisions, on their web site.  The others can be easily found with several clicks.  Goldman Sach's purpose here is sculpting a corporate identity in a not too friendly post-financial crisis world.  The videos bring a humaness to the company that serve it well for clients, shareholders, employees and prospective employees.  Well done!  

Walmart is the largest company on earth.  And yet all of their videos show a company that is a committed part of the local community.  The videos make frequent use of clients and employees.  They are not highbrow, but rather they fit in with the simple and wholesome spirit of the community.  Here is an example of how they use their employees:

http://walmartstores.com/Careers/7751.aspx

...and here is Walmart being sustainable and reycling their boxes.

http://walmartstores.com/Video/?id=1447

While some of these videos and others found on Walmart's site can appear to be simple, we believe that Walmart has thought this through quite well.  They are completely playing to their audience and that is a big reason for their continued success.

Here is an interesting piece by the BBC on the Fashion Industry and the Internet.  Apparently fashion houses mostly avoided the Internet until now.  For quality and exclusivity reasons.  However this is changing, and to no one's surprise they are discovering that their industry is full of great material for video.  Fascinating how an industry as visual as this has avoided video for so long.  What other industries are out there that haven't yet understood this potential?

Ford sponsored a 92 episode series called "Where are the Joneses?"  They were quite a ways ahead of their time.  We think this is a great little series with a wonderful product placement of a Purple Ford that travels around Europe with the main characters.  Here is the first episode...and, if you have the time, the next 91 as well. Enjoy!  

Here is a video full of Internet and social media stats to really blow your mind.  The stats are from 2009 - another era in terms of the Internet.

Socialnomics: Social Media Revolution from Erik Qualman on Vimeo.

Steria,  French software developer and a very innovative and aggressive company, has a full company channel on YouTube.  Here is a video for prospective employees to get an idea of what the interview at Steria will be like.  The music tells me they are really trying to attract Gen Y.