時尚視頻掘金術(shù)
????StyleHaul的下一步計劃是幫助合作參與者獲得成功。就拿EleventhGorgeous頻道來說:雖然目前它的(月度)視頻瀏覽量已接近200萬,但它并非一開始就順風(fēng)順?biāo)?。來自塔斯卡盧薩的特蕾西和斯蒂芬妮姐妹一道創(chuàng)建了EleventhGorgeous。初創(chuàng)伊始,該頻道的月度訪問量就達(dá)到70萬,可謂成績斐然。特蕾西和斯蒂芬妮希望能全職投入,但數(shù)千美元的經(jīng)濟負(fù)擔(dān)迫使她們無法放棄工作。她們于是制訂了一份三個月的發(fā)展規(guī)劃,并向StyleHaul的社區(qū)負(fù)責(zé)人提出申請。StyleHaul接下來向她們發(fā)放貸款,并約定,如果特蕾西和斯蒂芬妮能達(dá)成目標(biāo),那么StyleHaul將把貸款一筆勾銷,并將其作為EleventhGorgeous的種子投資。 ????霍巴克祖斯基稱:“四個月過去了,她們不但達(dá)成目標(biāo),而且讓所有人大吃一驚?!蓖ㄟ^圖片分享網(wǎng)站Instagram和Pinterest等社交平臺的推廣,EleventhGorgeous的瀏覽量在上月已接近200萬?!叭绻胱屛覀兺顿Y,你必須拿出做生意的樣子。她們制定了一份周密詳實的計劃,而且一一落實?!盨tyleHaul的投資并不總是資金方面的。有時一些制作人只需要營銷建議;另一些人則需要產(chǎn)品和搜索引擎優(yōu)化方面的培訓(xùn)。StyleHaul還向制作人提供視頻的財務(wù)分析報告,并列出詳細(xì)的用戶數(shù)據(jù)。 ????雅芳(Avon)致力于幫助銷售人員成長為企業(yè)家,StyleHaul也在做類似的事。YouTube按照每千人點擊成本(CPM)等指標(biāo)向特定制作人支付稿酬,StyleHaul的支付方式同樣如此,不過數(shù)量要稍稍多些?;舭涂俗嫠够Q:“我們認(rèn)為這是一項投資。視頻的好壞決定你的收入。這種感覺很棒。能驅(qū)動人們不斷努力,我相信這種激勵很管用?!?/p> ????廣告業(yè)務(wù)能有效推動公司發(fā)展,于是霍巴克祖斯基打算發(fā)掘一條創(chuàng)新的廣告之路。誠然,像YouTube這樣的傳統(tǒng)廣告模式肯定可行。但StyleHaul的策略是和制作人合作,發(fā)布和廣告品牌相關(guān)的視頻。Gap旗下的老海軍服飾(Old Navy)就和StyleHaul布魯克?彼得森合作,發(fā)起了名為“Rock What You Got”的推廣活動。視頻中出現(xiàn)了很多老海軍服裝,彼得森則在一旁提出搭配建議。StyleHaul在廣告主和制作人之間牽線搭橋,獲得經(jīng)濟效益,隨后其銷售團隊管理所有的產(chǎn)品、人員和營銷成本。 ????霍巴克祖斯基解釋說:“我們正試圖在諸多方面(與Machinima)區(qū)別開來,因為14-34歲的男性顯然與14-34歲的女性截然不同?!盨tyleHaul目前正在與一家沒有透露名稱的公司合作,開發(fā)一種技術(shù),能使觀眾“無縫”購買StyleHaul視頻中展示的產(chǎn)品,而且不影響觀看體驗。這種體驗將不會基于YouTube平臺,而會放在定于2013年推出的擴充版StyleHaul網(wǎng)站上。 ????眼看明年一月就是StyleHaul兩周歲的生日,它需要做出一些重大的決定:是發(fā)起第二輪融資?還是干脆賣了算了?該網(wǎng)絡(luò)([視頻)觀看數(shù)環(huán)比增長15%,而傳統(tǒng)紙媒出版商、媒體大亨以及風(fēng)險投資家都渴望在躋身在線視頻領(lǐng)域。不過目前,StyleHaul首席執(zhí)行官稱,這家公司將繼續(xù)保持獨立。 ????譯者:項航 |
????StyleHaul then tries to amplify the success of its contributors. Take one of the network's channels, EleventhGorgeous, for instance. It has almost 20 million video views in total. But it wasn't always so viral. Hailing from Tuscaloosa, sisters Tracy and Stefanie had a significant following, getting about 700,000 views per month. They wanted to work on their channel fulltime, but needed a few thousand dollars to quit their day jobs. They submitted a proposal to StyleHaul's head of community that outlined a three-month plan. StyleHaul loaned them the money with the promise that, should Tracy and Stefanie reach their goals, StyleHaul would wipe the debt clean and cite it as a seed investment in EleventhGorgeous. ????"In four months, not only did they get there, they completely blew all expectations out of the water," Horbaczewski claims. Last month, EleventhGorgeous' views hit almost two million, using social platforms like Instagram (FB) and Pinterest to market the channel. "If we're going to invest in you, treat it like a business. And they brought me a terrific plan, and they executed on everything." StyleHaul's investments aren't always financial. There are some users who simply want marketing advice; others need production or search engine optimization training. They also provide the channels with monthly reports on each of the monetization of their videos, providing influencers with helpful viewer data. ????Much like Avon (AVP) helps salespeople become entrepreneurs, StyleHaul pays its influencers based on their success. YouTube pays certain users a CPM per thousand views and StyleHaul takes that model but pays a slightly higher CPM. "We consider that an investment. What you're viewed determines how you get paid. It makes perfect sense, it causes you to drive your business and we believe in that method," says Horbaczewski. ????Ad sales are fueling the company's growth and Horbaczewski is determined to think creatively when working with advertisers. Interested parties can, of course, by traditional ad units served by YouTube. Another approach is partnering with StyleHaul influencers to create content based on the brand. Gap's (GPS) Old Navy division worked with StyleHaul's Brooke Peterson on a "Rock What You Got" campaign, which features various Old Navy products. Peterson advises how to style them. StyleHaul brokers the relationship between the advertiser and influencer, reaping the financial benefits and the sales team then manages all of the production, talent, and marketing costs. ????"We're trying to differentiate ourselves [from Machinima] in a lot of ways, because obviously the 14-34 year old male demo is very different than the 14-34 year old female demo," explains Horbaczewski. StyleHaul is currently working with an unnamed company to create technology that enables viewers to seamlessly purchase products featured in StyleHaul videos without ruining the viewing experience. This experience would not be based on the YouTube platform, but on an expanded StyleHaul website slated to launch in 2013. ????As StyleHaul heads toward its second birthday in January, the company has some big decisions to make: Does it raise a Series B or look to sell? The network is growing 15% in month over month views, and traditional print publications to media moguls to venture capitalists are dying to get a bite of online video. For now, the CEO says StyleHaul will stay independent. |