IFP Independent Film Week 2009

Independent film is one of the passions that unite Gerard and I.

Social media has now for the first time made it possible for filmmakers to connect directly to their audience. This was not possible before. Our clients, Buzz and Kris McLaughlin and Aaron Wiederspahn of Either/Or Films made us aware of changes in film distribution in the spring of 2009. We had invested in The Sensation of Sight, starring David Straithairn, Ian Somerhalder and Jane Adams in 2006 for several reasons. We were aligned with the vision and mission of the Either/Or Films, it was being filmed in our town, and finally I felt this was my opportunity to reconnect with film in a new way.

Over the last few months we’ve focused on growing our existing web development business and expanding our connection with the independent film market. Having completed The Sensation of Sight website and blog this past summer, we were aware of the challenges facing independent filmmakers. The change from traditional film distribution deals happening at the independent film festivals to “Do it Yourself” (DIY) or “Do it with others” (DIWO) has happened largely as a result of the rise of social media and the change in audience movie viewing practices. Audiences are going to the movies less, buying DVDs less, and using services like Netflix, iTunes and Amazon for Video on Demand VOD viewing by streaming of download to own.

As a result of these changes distributors are paying less for films and the independent filmmaker goes starving, if they can get a distribution deal at all. We joined the Independent Film Project (IFP) and attended Independent Film Week in New York this past September, spending several days going to sessions about this topic. Jon Reiss wrote a book that can be purchased online called “Think Outside The Box (Office): The Ultimate Guide to Film Distribution and Marketing in the Digital Era” instructing filmmakers to be prepared from the beginning to distribute their own film and to include that cost in their budget. This was based on Jon’s own experience after he produced the compelling documentary “Bomb It” about the graffiti movement around the world. He was dropped right in the middle of this situation and had to work day and night to get his film distributed.

In October we attended the New Hampshire Film Festival, met and talked with more filmmakers, attended sessions and reinforced the information we had learned at Independent Film Week.

We would like to work with more independent filmmakers who realize they need a website, a blog, search engine optimization and social media, and also know they don’t have time to master those skills and run their film company. Being film geeks ourselves (we watch movies from our large DVD collection every chance we get), we would like to work with you. As your technology partner we can provide strategic planning, design, development and implementation of film projects on the web. Learn more about our Consensus team.

One of the many data security seminars I attended this year to stay current as a computer security specialist  (I can’t remember which or I’d give credit) included a good story as illustration…

Imagine this is 1989 and you’re a foreign intelligence agent tasked with identifying potential “assets” in a US aerospace defense contractor. You target female senior engineers, divorced, in their 40s. It might take months of research to identify individuals, and months more to find their interests and daily habits. All of this would be quite costly. Fast forward to 2009: you could find all this data and much more in minutes through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and similar sites. People tend to trust contacts they make through social networking sites so after a few dozen interactions, and almost no expense, they trust you. You know what their hobbies are, their likes and dislikes, and are well placed to recruit them. This is one of the many nightmares facing big business and government, and it’s one of the reasons the Department of Defense policy has been an absolute ban on all use of social networks.

Contrast this with a company like online shoe retailer Zappos.com which actively encourages employees to engage online, with 489 employees on Twitter. Or Starbucks, with over 360,000 followers on Twitter and over 4.5 million fans on Facebook.

Which policy is right? They both are. Weigh the risks and the benefits of computer information security versus social media marketing influence and choose what’s appropriate for you.

Simple Security and Privacy Steps

If you decide that a Social Media presence makes sense for you then take some basic precautions:

1. Be aware of the threats. These include cyberstalking, phishing, scams, and identity theft.

2. Choose a complex/unique password for your social media accounts. Using the same password on multiple services can leave all your accounts vulnerable if one site is compromised. Longer passwords are usually better. Use a combination of  letters (upper and lower case), numbers and special characters (such as +, *, $, @, !). Do not use your address, phone number, birthday, license plate, or social security number. Do not use any word that could be found in a dictionary. Do not give your password to anyone else.

3. Set privacy levels for each of your social media accounts. Each service has different defaults but generally your information will be public and easy to find. You can choose to restrict who can (easily) see certain information.

4. Be careful what you post online. Essentially everything you write and every image you upload should be considered public. Don’t assume that only your friends can read your messages and see your pictures, even if that’s how a service is supposed to work. Would you be comfortable seeing your comments and images on page one of the newspaper? If not then don’t post them anywhere online. Announcing that you are traveling can increase the risk of your home being burgled.

5. Be careful about accepting friend/follow requests. People may not be who they claim they are, and their intentions may not be good. Also, accounts can be compromised, messages may originate from someone other than the rightful owner of an account: be attentive for strange messages or behavior from friends, they may be trying to lure you into being compromised too.

6. Be careful installing third party applications. Facebook, MySpace and others make it easy to install third-party application in your profile. If these applications are maliciously coded, or just not programmed with attention to potential abuses, they can expose your private data to computer security issues. Of course you should also use anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date. Even more important, install all computer operating system and software updates. Most important of all, make sure the passwords you use to log into your computer, your email or any application or online service are secure.

You can read more on Staying Safe on Social Network Sites as well as general Cyber Scurity Tips at the US Computer Emergency Readiness Team website, US-CERT.gov.

The very nature of social media is that it is a social interaction and not an advertisement. So before jumping in to new media conversations on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, your own blog, or the multitude of other social media networks, take some time to know your self and know your audience.

Who are you as an individual, a business owner, or part of an overall company? Who are you to your friends and family? Writing answers in a journal and reviewing your vision and mission statement will give you clarity in your communications and purpose. To add some entertainment into the mix, watch the film Julie & Julia and have a laugh as Julie starts her journey into the blogosphere.

Why go through these steps? I believe the following quote was made by Werner Erhard, though I’ve also seen it attributed to NASCAR driver Darrell Waltrip. (If you know the answer to this or have relevant personal experiences relating to this truism, please comment below.) “Sometimes you have to slow down to speed up.” In this case, you are about to start talking to the world, one person at a time, and also all at once. It’s wise to take time to review these questions before jumping in the deep end.

When you are well grounded within yourself, then it’s easier to create your social media conversation. Before you start communicating, consider your audience.

Who is your social media audience?

Based on all you know about yourself, and what you want to accomplish in the world, ask yourself this question, “Who would be excited to learn about my projects, services, products?” Who would absolutely love to talk to you until two in the morning about your vision and even participate in helping you accomplish your mission? These people are the first and best examples of your perfect audience.

There are additional audiences to reach. One audience includes all the people with a hobbyist interest in what you have to offer. Others may include investors, potential partners, employees, employers and the media who may want to report on these offerings.

This may sound strange, yet another audience is your competitor. Be sure that your competitors will be following you as a friend, fan, follower or as an observer. Make a list of them. How do they compete with you? What are their strengths and weaknesses. Know them well. Actually, in the spirit of healthy competition, if you learn to appreciate them for who they are, you can free up more energy to focus on engaging the audience attracted to your unique offerings. We will speak more about reaching that audience in another blog post.

What do you want your social media audience to know about you?

When you know who your audience is, spend some time determining what you want to tell them.

Equally important, list things you don’t want your audience to know about you. I say this for two reasons. The first is that it’s easy to bare your soul in social media, to talk about your family and personal life. Later you might regret that, so set your boundaries now. You can always expand them if you feel it is prudent, but it’s impossible to move them back.

The second and more serious reason is for protection of your own personal identity and your security. We will say more about that in our next blog post.

Whether you are blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking, Blipping, YouTubing, LinkedIning or using any of the other social media applications, the first thing to consider is “What is my social media strategy, and how does it fit into my overall internet strategy, marketing strategy, business strategy?”

First, a definition of strategic planning is in order. Strategic planning, according to Wikipedia, “is an organization’s process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people.”

We feel the time has come for our clients to include social media marketing in their strategic planning at some level.  We have added social media consulting services to our internet consulting offerings. Our blog will incorporate guidelines for our clients and visitors, including practical ways to incorporate social media into a marketing plan. We’ll also look at how to allocate resources to achieve additional brand exposure and help accomplish your overall marketing goals.

Our blog will also include information on other aspects of our internet consulting business and other topics we find interesting and relevant.

Join us as we journey forward through various aspects of web design, database development, e-commerce, print, search engine and social network marketing, content management, blogs, web application software, hosting, technology and business.  We’ll explore challenges and opportunities in the film industry, business consulting, hospitality, retail, e-commerce, and non-profit organizations.