hectoraliruiz – Page 15 – Hector A. Ruiz

Marketing a Viral Video

On March 25, 2012

Browsing YouTube these days is a fascinating experience. You can find anything you can imagine: funny, unfunny, terrible, excellent, helpful, bogus, cooking recipes, music lessons… its universe is so big, today I was wondering if there is a way to quantify all the total views of all videos in youtube. I am sure the number would be so huge I don’t think there are enough servers to compute it (well, maybe yes).

Having a bit of experience in Marketing, people always ask me about Viral Videos. Much has been said about the “key tips” or “how to” produce a good viral videos, with most available online articles pointing the obvious facts: “keep it simple”, “be natural”, “use SEM” and “play with fantasy and reality.” I believe there is more to this art.

The first thing that I believe a YouTuber has to ask himself is “Am I interested in having this video become viral?” If the answer is “Yes”, then person has to create a plan of action that will implement several steps to improve the probability of having the video reach tons of hits in a decent time frame. Let’s keep in mind that it’s very hard to see a video go viral in less than a year. Sure there are “accidental successes”, but generally speaking, it’s a hard milestone.

About five years ago I came across a video called “Castlevania II Angry Nintendo Nerd Review” (or something like that, the name has changed now ever since). The video was a satiric review of all the odd situations and challenges the game Castlevania II had compared to other videogames of the same genre. The YouTuber who produced it -known as the Angry Nintendo Nerd- has now become a famous name, posting more of these rants against both videogames and movies. His first videos had a decent to minimal production value. They were done in a way that the message intended to be transmitted was delivered efficiently. Questions like “Am I saying the right thing“, or “Am I showing the right angle“, didn’t seem to be part of the production equation. That is why his videos felt like a genuine natural expression of his feelings. I believe this is one key element that will allow you to win followers: be genuine.

Instructional videos are another way to generate a viral video, and it’s actually one of my favorites. It is tough though because of two factors: a) you have to be very good in the area you are providing instruction (and compete against existing ones), and b) you have to have decent production values. Depending on the instruction, higher production values may have an edge, though it’s not quite mandatory: there’s a user called patrickJMT who explains math in videos where all he does is film his hand writing on a piece of paper. His drawings aren’t exactly artful, but they aren’t sloppy either, they’re decent/good. His lighting is good and his voice’s tone is good too. More importantly, the examples he uses are perfect, which makes up for a wonderful product. One of his videos has 140,000 views: it is a simple math video of derivatives.

The other group of viral videos is the actual segment of people who upload their videos with the goal of becoming viral. These are the videos I believe follow to the tip each one of the basic recommendations everyone share: “Be yourself”, “Don’t try to force being funny”, “SEO, SEM.” These clips require a lot of effort and dedication, as well as practice and perseverance.

In all, the marketing of a viral video cannot be summarized into a list of tips where the YouTuber must be able to identify the core competencies of their product. Once this is done, then the path will be clear to let things flow naturally, and see the results happen as time goes by.

Seven key factors a great leader should have

By hectoraliruiz

On March 10, 2012

In General

Throughout contemporary history, there have been thousands of great articles discussing leadership and organizational behavior. In today’s entry, I will add from my experience what are some of the most important factors one must pay attention to when considering executives for leadership positions.

1. Intelligence: A smart person may likely make smart decisions and come up with smart ideas. They don’t have to be a genius. They have to be someone who reunites multiple abilities that allow them to understand situations and all their implications. Warren Buffett is a clear example of an intelligent man who clearly thinks of all possible scenarios and visualizes the future of his investments.

2. Communication: while not a great spokesperson, a good leader has to be able to effectively practice the process of sending and receiving messages between them and the group of people they is working with. The leader has to be an active listener; speak hard when needed and sincerely when required. The leader must manage the different communication levels that exist. Five time World Series Champion New York Yankee’s Joe Torre, and two time UEFA Champions League Champion FC Barcelona’s coach Josep Guardiola always say the right thing at the right time. They also encourage the team to give suggestions and to speak openly and freely at all times.

3. Authority: by this I do not mean either a loud voice or a commanding tone. It’s as simple as being able to make yourself clear to your group, and delivering punctual instructions that are well stated and impeccably transmitted. Bill Gates does not have either a loud or commanding voice, yet everytime I see him I am impressed, as each word that comes out from his mouth is the product of a rationality that commands authority by knowledge.

4. Efficiency: resources won’t be handed easily all the time, nor there will be full availability of them. Some times leaders will have to deal with shortages and/or incomplete tangibles. Those are the occasions when he or she must step in and use the best of anything and everything that is around him or her to reach the desired objectives. Soft-spoken Darwin Smith was able to turn Kimberly Clark into the giant that we know today by using a completely new business model that required to use tools he didn’t have at the time it was developed. I recommend you to dig into his story, and marvel at how efficient the company became under Smith’s tenure.

5. Fairness: never overestimate the people you work with, nor you should ever underestimate them either. Call-out when needed and reward when deserved. Proper management of balance in a team is critical to accomplish goals. Jack Welch has been known to be a prime example of justice and proper leadership. Bottom line is: be fair.

6. Confidence: if there is one aspect that is a powerful force that can drive you to new levels, it’s the trust and belief that you have in yourself. It comes with a combination of skills that include knowledge, logic and rationale, with what perhaps is the most important ingredient, which is self-esteem. Watch Band of Brothers and see how Richard Winters carried himself and his men through the toughest of situations by simply having the confidence of applying what he knew.

7. Innovation: out of the box thinking and developing strategies to implement the dreams you pursue is essential to set a new standard for your group. Don’t be a conformist; instead settle for new challenges every day. That’s what Steve Jobs did.

Facebook’s IPO

By hectoraliruiz

On February 20, 2012

In General

Almost everyone in the business world should be aware of the upcoming IPO of the social network giant called Facebook, while also wondering what is at stake for the future of the social media giant.

There has been a lot of attention towards this event, similarly to how just about a year ago LinkedIn filled for their own IPO, with the stock price eventually performing exactly as it was expected. Tech leaders Google and Apple have been able to surpass their financial goals over time, allowing them to become part of the greatest public offerings of all time.

Financial goals and expectations put aside, the success of Facebook’s IPO depends more on what their next move will be. Back in 2004 when Google went public, they had already began expanding to other areas outside the core business of being a search engine. They figured Google Ads and began laying plans out for products that are have become part of our lives to most of us today, such as Chrome and Analytics. They also bought YouTube and acquired the license for Google Earth. Bottom line is that Google had many doors open and many opportunities, and they took them.

So what will Facebook do? They can’t buy youtube, they can’t create Google Ads or Analytics, or a new LinkedIn. For now they seem to be pretty much on their own. Since they are now going to be a public company, they have to live up to their investors’ expectations. This means that they will have to set goals and new objectives that keep the company growing. If company growth doesn’t happen, the value of the stock will not rise. So I guess this is where the core of the problem is. The solution may then be either buy other companies, or invest heavily in R&D and start developing new technology products.

It is good to become a public company and to raise money from investors. However this move brings responsibilities that are entitled of being a publicly traded company.

Who knows: in a few years, we may be seeing a Facebook browser, or a Facebook cell phone software. Those are the kind of goals they have to work on from now and on.

Copernicus: Poland’s gift to us

By hectoraliruiz

On February 19, 2012

In History

February 19 is the birth anniversary of one of the greatest minds that have lived in our planet: Nicolaus Copernicus, the man who began the scientific revolution in Europe and set the foundation for the birth of modern science as we know it today. Arguably, the greatest polish ever born.

In his last published book, “On the Revolution of the Celestial Spheres“, Copernicus detailed a new theory of planetary motion for our Solar System, which up until that point was thought of the Earth as center of the universe, with all the planets and starts moving around it. Copernicus new vision called “heliocentric model” proposed that the Earth was not the center of the universe, but instead just like the other planets known at the time, it revolved around the Sun. It also proposed that the reason for sunsets and sunrises was the Earth’s rotation around its own axis. Years later, Kepler, Galileo and Newton would confirm and cement Copernicus’ place in the history of science.

What is not well known about Copernicus and is part of the reason why I decided to blog about him, is that he also contributed to other fields, such as law, strategy, engineering and economy. Copernicus came up with an early theory of the effect of “quantity of money“, an early predecessor of the Quantitative Easing (or money supply) theory. He also wrote about the “value of money”, and about how bad coinage drives good coinage out of circulation. Additionally, he also spoke five languages: Latin, German, Polish, Greek and Italian.

An all around genius, Copernicus’ contribution to our society is priceless and his legacy will live among us forever. If you ever get the chance to travel to Poland, see if you can pay a visit to Copernicus’ tomb and spend a few minutes at the place where the man who defined our Solar System now rests.