Regardless of the objective of the business model, whether informative or monetization, the communication strategy must start from an analysis of the type of expected audience and the means to be used to publicize the platform.
By Juan Pablo Morales Sarmiento
In all the national and international forums and congresses of the entertainment industry in recent years, talking about the new television and the orientation of audiences towards new habits, media and consumer devices is a common denominator.
For those who followed us in the previous installment, it is clear that there is a whole ocean, as big as it is hectic and unknown, full of applications and opportunities in the television industry, as it is taking its current form.
The strengthening of the digital consumer window has given way to research into new technologies, new ways of compressing video and audio, the strengthening of bandwidths, but most importantly, a new culture and habits that has impacted from the entertainment sector, through health, education to training strategies within corporations. Let's see some of the challenges that all this entails from different axes of the industry.
From the perspective of communications technology, one of the biggest challenges is the strengthening of transmission channels and codecs and protocols, so as to guarantee the user experience with transfer rates capable of transporting a video in 4K, which in the medium term will begin to become a standard.
In this development, on the one hand there is a conglomerate of companies that work together and permanently in the development of increasingly efficient compressions, as well as in their codecs and players for different devices, and on the other hand there are the communications services companies who will have to face large investments and adaptations to provide better connectivity and greater bandwidths every day to a demand that grows exponentially and that permanently connects for longer and from anywhere 24/7, every day.
Although these Cisco statistics seem repetitive, it will always be worth taking into account the most recent data from its recurring studies. In February, the result of its global mobile traffic projection was announced, where it indicates that by 2019 there will be 5.2 billion mobile device users compared to 4.3 billion in 2014, while the traffic of these will grow from 30 exabytes to more than 290 exabytes per year in the same period of time.
For its part, the development of video management platforms brings us new surprises continuously and new players in the industry. In this field there is an offer for all tastes and pockets and a range of possibilities that allows you to face communication needs from the simplest, to complex distribution strategies, syndication, management of online communities and even monetization for adults and children.
Once you have clarity on the strategy and objectives of an online communication project, you will have all the necessary tools to select the most appropriate content management platform and consistent with what you are looking for. Keep in mind one main aspect: support.
Capacity, range, scalability and speed are important, however they tend to be a standard in the industry today. Ask and get advice before because it is a long-term decision and with sometimes complex exit barriers.
ROI should be the fundamental goal of any project, and this is no exception for digital video. Whether measured clearly with indicators related to the reach and permanence of the audience in the content, in a vision oriented to benefits in terms of impact on virtual communities and users or ROO -Return on Objectives-; or also with the difference between income and expenses or with indicators such as EBITDA, strategies to guarantee positive numbers must respond to approximations from these perspectives.
Regardless of the objective of the business model, whether it is only informative or monetization, the communication strategy is of paramount relevance. It must start from an analysis of the type of expected audience and the means that will be used to publicize the platform or activities.
Multi-device
Then take the audience to a multi-device digital medium, easy to understand and use and with the minimum number of steps to deliver to the content. The audience is surrounded by a lot of information through various media that act simultaneously, so the more efficient this communication is, the better results will be obtained. Measure continuously and be persistent.
As for the content, this is the most important central axis that must be addressed, obviously it depends on the essence of what it seeks to communicate. The most relevant challenge in this field is to capture the attention of our users with increasingly direct, multiplatform, transmedia content that truly engages a community and achieves loyalty.
In this sense it is important to technically guarantee exceptional audio and video. The technique or equipment you are going to use can take a back seat as long as they are in accordance with the type of production and post-production you are looking to do, without forgetting that the success of the final product does depend on the invoice you achieve in your process. The better technique, the better long-term results.
The trend has opened up important opportunities around content for brands or Branded Content. The migration of cord-cutter users and the appearance of cord-nevers, has made that, in the same way, advertisers move to digital video advertising platforms, with disruptive models of content that hook viewers with stories and values of brands in a different way and where creativity and coherence must be the common denominator.
The apparent gap between TV and the internet has begun to heal as some of the big studios have realized the importance of reacting to this trend and have begun to make large investments and bets on these channels.
To cite an example, Disney paid close to a trillion dollars for Maker Studios in 2014, a production company focused on digital media. Hence, this trend begins to permeate, in its proper measure, other players in the industry and regions is only a matter of time and cultural appropriation. Something that can take a few years in most Latin American countries. This, without a doubt, is a great opportunity for the cultural and content industry.
Regional experience
The eyes and resources of the international industry are beginning to reach Latin America due to the potential and benefits of the region for the production of local content with global attraction. Netflix, for example, has begun filming in Mexico and Colombia, Club de Cuervos and Narcos, respectively, betting on the production of drama series or thrillers, energizing the sector and giving pleasure to the audience that, with the trend of Binge Viewing, want to see their favorite series in continuous blocks of several episodes.
Complete Colombian series that are on air on free-to-air television, such as Metastasis, the breaking Bad adaptation of Unimás and Caracol TV, are already being seen, and which are also available on Netflix.
The digital world is nothing more than a wonderful complement to the television industry and opens up an immense ocean of opportunities, especially in countries with levels of a high concentration of the industry in a few players. Our challenge is to seize the moment.
*Juan Pablo Morales Sarmiento is the Commercial VP of Provideo. You can contact him through @JuanPMoralesS
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