|
« November 2008 |
Main
| January 2009 »
Making a film is a big enough challenge in itself, but if you are like most low-budget independent filmmakers, you’ll quickly discover that finding an audience for your film can be even more challenging. Outside of widely known marketing methods like submitting to festivals, inviting people to special screenings, and attempting to make friends on social networks, most filmmakers fail in allowing their audience find them on their own. In most cases, your audience is already out there and are already looking for your film. Where are they? How are they looking? The same way everyone finds things these days: search engines.
The Search Audience is Huge
It’s no secret that search engine marketing is huge for most businesses. Search engine marketers get paid very handsomely and for good reason—there is a tremendous amount search activity on an unfathomable number of topics. Even the top 10,000 search terms only represent, at best, 18.5% of the all search traffic (see my long tail study) This is where your film comes in. You have an opportunity to tap into a very large audience across the globe that is much more interested in your film then the average film screener. People that are passionate about your film’s topic are out there and want to find you. And it is a level playing field—Hollywood studios have trouble ranking #1 for their own film titles! If you are working on a documentary, chances are people are already searching on your exact topic. They may not be looking specifically for a film, but if your film shows up on the first page of the search results for that topic, you are certainly going to draw an audience in. Even if your film is a fictional narrative, there’s still an audience looking for your film, you just need to figure out the angle. Maybe it is your filming location (“films shot in Memphis”), a specific type of character (“pregnant zombie”), a specific audience (“female skateboarders”), or a fear (“how to survive a kidnapping”). Even if you don’t use search engines for audience building, you still want a search presence because if your film does hit it big, people will search your film’s title, and you’ll want them to land on a website you have full control over. Search Marketing for Your Film
There are two types of search engine marketing. One is paid search (the ads you see typically in the right column) and the other is organic. Paid search is usually not an option for a low-budget filmmaker, but if used in the right way it can be effective. Here’s one example: You’re doing a documentary on the homeless and are looking for evangelists for your film. You buy Google ads for a variety of keywords, including: homeless documentary, homeless movie, homeless film, homeless stories, and even homeless charities. Your search ad has a call to action that your film is looking for volunteers to spread the word on the film. For $50, you get 500 people to visit your site and maybe 50 actually sign up to help you out. Those 50 people may have connections that expose your film to another 50 each, and so on.
Paid search is also great for filmmakers selling DVDs because you can easily set up a campaign and test to see how much revenue you can generate per dollar spent.
Natural Search
Organic, or natural search, is an even bigger opportunity than paid search for your film because 70% of people click on organic or non-paid results. For organic search success, having the right kind of site with the right kind of content is key. Here are some important tips:
- Get a custom domain name for your movie—it’s the best $9 you’ll spend.
- Blogs tend to do well as blogging platforms are easily recognized by search engines. Plus they're easy to use, meaning you are more likely to create lots of content.
- Flash-only sites don’t tend to do well because they are virtually unreadable and untrustable by search engines. If you must use flash, go the hybrid approach (both flash and html).
- Upload your trailer to YouTube and link to it from your main site. If things go well, your video could show up on the first page of Google’s search results for your target keyword (example for Juno)
- Spend some time learning the basics of SEO (search engine optimization). The two most important aspects to learn are choosing title tags and obtaining links.
Think Outside the Google Search Box
Google isn’t the only game in town. Yahoo, MSN, AOL and Ask and a number of video search engines may be small compared to Google, but still drive a lot of traffic. Also work on getting listings on internal search engines within sites like YouTube, Myspace, and FaceBook.
Search engines are generally underestimated by the film community. Don’t make the same mistake—use them to your advantage. Dustin Woodard is a veteran search marketer who recently completed his first film, a 30-minute short titled Unseen Abilities. You can follow him on his SEO blog, on Twitter (@webconnoisseur) or on IndieGoGo (Dustin).
We're not done bringing a few more promotional tools to you this Holiday season. We're excited to roll-out our new GMAIL / HOTMAIL / YAHOO! Invite Tool.
 
Now you can invite your friends to IndieGoGo and individual projects with just a check of a box. Specifically you can:
- Find and befriend your contacts who are already on IndieGoGo, and
- Invite your contacts who are not yet on IndieGoGo
To use this new tool:
- Go to the projects you're working on and/or love and look for the "Gmail" "Hotmail" or "Yahoo" invite icons in the SHARE section.
- Invite your contacts to follow these projects and include a personal message to encourage them to take action (whether it's to contribute, share on Facebook or MySpace, endorse, invite more friends to the project, etc.)
Like this new feature? Or don't? Let us know what you think by casting a "GoGo" or a "NoGo" vote here.
Happy Holidays!!
The IndieGoGo Team
In collaboration with DIYDAYS and StoryBids, we hosted and twittered live an Industry dinner discussing the future of independent filmmaking. Watch the entire dinner online and listen to what Faye Dunaway, Ted Hope, Lance Hammer, Lance Weiler, Steven Raphael, Paul Rachman, Arin Crumley, Susan Buice, Jennifer Kushell, Joseph Morin and Slava Rubin had to say about the importance of an audience, self-distribution and DIWO (Do-It-With-Others) Filmmaking.
Intros:
Part 1
Part 2
A creative and
entertaining pitch clip could be the key to building your audience and
getting your film funded. A popular pitch clip can increase viewership
and increase your fanbase. Here are a few steps to a powerful and
successful pitchclip on the Internet. A group of film students
from Vancouver Film School students recently put together a 2-minute
digital animation piece about the influence of the Internet and
blogging in Iran. The video, called Iran: A Nation of Bloggers,
went viral very quickly on the Internet, getting publicity from Boing
Boing and Digg. On YouTube, the clip got close to 30,000 views. The
filmmakers behind this short animation used a combination of
creativity, a powerful script, and the Internet to get their video out
to the public. It wasn't a pitch clip, but their success can be
replicated through your own pitch clip. Here are a few steps that you
can follow.
1. Be Creative The
filmmakers made this video with creative and engaging digital
animation. The look was unique and added to the effect of the clip as a
whole. While filmmakers don't need the same visual design skills, you
can still think of creative ways to present your clip. Think about what
you can do to make your video unique from all others, and why people
would be attracted to it. Iran: A Nation of Bloggers used this
imagery to engage their audience and attract more people to watch it.
This is a key component to getting a video to go viral.
2. Find a topic you are passionate about and mobilize your fans Iran: A Nation of Bloggers
explores how Iranians have used the Internet to generate their ideas
and opinions - something they wouldn't be able to do normally. The
creators of this clip found a controversial and provocative topic they
were passionate about and chose to create a short animation about it.
By doing this, they generated publicity and mobilized people who were
passionate about this topic. You can do the same thing by determining
what your project is about and targeting the appropriate fan base. You
can mobilize fans by partnering with organizations, sending out
call-to-action e-mails, and getting fans to contribute money to your
project to help it get made. These are all great ways to get passionate
fans involved in a topic that you are passionate about, too.
3. Use the Internet The
creators of this clip posted their video on YouTube and on the
Vancouver Film School blog. By doing this, they slowly began to gain
popularity. The blog post eventually got posted on Digg and then Boing
Boing. Links on the Internet get spread around very fast,
and you should take advantage of this. Post your video on YouTube-
anyone has access to this, and if your video is good, it will get
spread around. You can also post it in the Media Section of your
project profile. In addition, use the Announcements section on your
IndieGoGo Project Profile page to get some publicity. These
announcements act as a makeshift blog, and every post gets e-mailed to
your community. Finally, spread your widget to as many sites as you
can, and get people to your IndieGoGo page.
Use these three steps to your advantage to create an entertaining and popular pitch clip. Check out the video below.
Entertainment attorney George Rush and contributor to SF360 (San Francisco Film Society's online publication) put together a helpful piece on digital distribution. Below is a summary of the issues he recommends considering before entering into a digital distribution agreement.
Excerpt from "Notes on Digital Distribution" - by George Rush....
"...Any filmmaker thinking about entering into a distribution agreement that grants any digital rights must think about these issues:
Conflicts: There are a lot of overlapping and conflicting rights within digital distribution, which can include a digital element for VOD, a digital element for pure website distribution, or a digital element for distribution through iTunes or Netflix. All of these can be considered distinct forms of digital distribution. But if you grant away all digital rights, even if the purpose of the deal is simply to stream your film on a website, you will not be able to enter into other deals. Make sure that your deal is strictly limited to the intended type of distribution; otherwise you may lose important distribution rights.
Purchaser: Is the purchaser a content provider or a middleman? It is always best to sell your film to a content provider instead of a middleman. Middlemen just try to sell your film to content distributors, and you get an even smaller percentage of any eventual profits.
Money: If you’re going to give someone else the right to distribute your film, make sure that the payment or advance is fair. In the world of theatrical releases, it’s easy to follow the money; with digital distribution, it’s often impossible. A distributor may make money from charging for content, but most likely it will make money from ads. Determining your share of ad revenue is difficult, and it is in the distributor’s interest not to tell you how it’s done. If your deal gives you nothing but a cut of ad revenue, you’ll probably never see a dime. Get money up front, or be prepared to get nothing at all.
Exclusivity: Almost all distributors are going to ask that you give them the exclusive right to distribute your film. If you are giving a distributor exclusive rights, it is even more important to ensure that you are granting only the digital rights that are necessary to the deal. Also, remember that many of the prominent distributors that have a wide audience will only enter into an agreement with you if they get an exclusive deal. This means that those non-exclusive deals may interfere with a better, bigger deal. Don’t assume a deal is safe just because it’s non-exclusive. If you enter a non-exclusive deal in order to get some publicity, make sure your deal has a good termination clause, just in case that better deal comes along.
Time: Always try to limit the amount of time a distributor controls your film. If you enter into a theatrical and broadcast deal with, say, IFC, it certainly makes sense for the contract to last at least a few years. However, if you enter a non-exclusive digital distribution deal just for streaming over a website for the purpose of gaining some publicity, make sure the time period is extremely short—one or two years.
Bundling: Bundling has been around for a while with regard to home video, but it is becoming more prevalent with digital distribution. A distributor may buy 50 or 100 films, package them together, and sell them off to a broadcaster or Netflix. Unless you get a good advance, the only money you’ll see will come from your percentage of the bundle’s profits. This is another situation where you must know what’s happening with your film; otherwise the money generated by your film could get watered down with all the other films in the bundle."
Full Article Here
What do entrepreneurs and filmmakers
have in common? While it may seem like they have nothing in common, filmmakers
are actually entrepreneurs in their own right. The Internet and the right
entrepreneurial attitude can lead to plenty of opportunities for both
filmmakers and entrepreneurs.
Filmmakers can get valuable tips from entrepreneurs, who are 'indie' in their own kind of way. Brent Simmons outlines in his blog four tips for indie entrepreneurs - all four of which can also help filmmakers succeed.
1. Have Faith
This is a great tip for any person. Things just don't fall your way sometimes. There will be hardships along the way. The key is to continue believing in your ideas and abilities. Be creative- use the Internet in new ways. Besides fundraising online, how can you get some publicity? Find ways to market your film and go viral. A positive attitude and creativity will eventually lead to success.
2. Work Hard
Again, this is an important tip for anyone. Keep your end goal in mind and continue working towards it. Hard work will pay off in the end.
3. Have Plans B, C, and D
If a call-to-action e-mail isn't doing the trick, don't stop there. Spread your GoGoWidget around the Internet or try to partner up with an organization that has people who want to watch your film. Use social networks like MySpace, Facebook, or Twitter. There are plenty of resources on the Internet to get the word out. Use them.
4. Write a weblog
Audiences want to know who is behind a project. A blog is a great way to attract fans who want to be in the know. You can use the ANNOUNCEMENTS section on your IndieGoGo Project Profile page as a blog. How's production going? What can fans do to help? Each announcement is e-mailed to your community (friends, contributors, endorsers, promoters). Once you connect with your fans, you can drive them to contribute money to your project on IndieGoGo.
These entrepreneurial tips can lead to great opportunities for all artists- from indie filmmakers to indie developers and entrepreneurs.
How can stealing benefit a filmmaker? Jamie King has proven
that the Internet and free media can lead to all kinds of success. He
made a documentary in 2006, Steal this Film, about online
piracy and intellectual property. Instead of pursuing more traditional
forms of distribution, King elected to post his film online to the
public for free. At first though, we all think that there must be some
sort of catch. Maybe the entire movie wasn't available online, and they
were trying to drive DVD sales. There was no catch, though. King's
entire movie was available via bitTorrent on sites like The Pirate Bay
and MiniNova, with no charge. The two websites promoted his
documentary, and his movie ended up getting over 4 million views. King
and his friends made a website (www.stealthisfilm.com)
and asked for kind donations of $1 from their viewers. The response
was well received for their documentary, so well that they decided to
make a second part to the movie. Instead of asking for $1, they asked
for $15 from each viewer. The film so far has gotten over 2 million
views and made over $50,000.
King used piracy and free online content to get people to
watch his film. Online content is completely free and has no barriers
to entry. The motivation behind this kind of distribution was to get as
many people to watch the movie as possible, not to make money. This
type of viral distribution quickly gained traction on the Internet.
King still managed to make money from in-kind donations from passionate
fans. This is a new and innovative business model, and filmmakers on
IndieGoGo can emulate King's tactics to spread awareness for their
films. By using online content, more people have access to movies. The
costs of distribution are going down. Streaming sites like YouTube,
Hulu, or SnagFilms provide services to filmmakers to distribute their
films out on the web. King's method of using bitTorrent and advertising
it on The Pirate Bay, a bitTorrent site also has been effective.
King has shown that piracy can be valuable for going
viral. He did this with his passion project and made a substantial
amount of money. You, too, can use this case study to gain awareness
for your films and build your audiences. If you are a filmmaker who is
more concerned about building awareness of your work and a fanbase than
actually monetizing those films right away, piracy might be a great
tool to do that. It all depends on your goals as a filmmaker. By
embracing piracy for a current project, you might also gain credibility
and money for future projects.
Here are 3 actions you can take today:
- Share: Distribute your film on streaming sites like YouTube or Hulu
- Promote: Mobilize people by sending out e-mails and spreading your IndieGoGo Widget on blogs and websites
- Call-To-Action: Ask for in-kind donations at the end of your film
Check out Jamie King's presentation at Power to the Pixel here. You can also view his website and watch his movie at www.stealthisfilm.com.
|
|
