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"Thomas Clifford has made something useful here. This report will give you some really catchy, useful ideas.

It made me reconsider how I do what I do, so you might give it a look-see, too!" 

Chris Brogan, President, Human Business Works 

"Tom Clifford is by trade a filmmaker. For most of his life, he rarely wrote anything longer than a brief comment in the margin of a script. 

Now, though, he's producing tens of thousands of words a year, first as a Fast Company "Expert Blogger," and then as a writer for the Content Marketing Institute. 

How did Tom go from a non-writer to a prolific and much-read one? His eBook, '5 (Ridiculously Simple) Ways . . . , ' holds some of his secrets."

Mark Levy, Author of "Accidental Genius: Using Writing to Generate your Best Ideas, Insight, and Content"

“Tom is one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet—if you have the privilege to meet him. And he does sterling work as well. But don’t just take my word for it.

Read this free report and you’ll not just love its tone and content, but learn a lot as well.”

Sean D’Souza, Psychotactics.com

“Anyone who wants to improve their writing needs this e-book. A lot of ebooks are short because they just don’t have much substance to offer. They’re not worth your time (and so are many of the long ones, too, for that matter). Tom’s is short because he’s so good at giving you only what you need to know. 

‘5 (Ridiculously Simple) Ways to Write Faster, Better, Easier’ lives up to its promise by example as well as in the words themselves. Tom used the very same techniques he teaches you to write this book. 

And what’s in here is not just a rehash of the same tired ideas you find coming from people who have suddenly fancied themselves as writing gurus. There are tricks in here I never heard of (like the Writing Funnel) and some I had forgotten about and was glad to be reminded of (like Sporadic Writing).” 

Michael Martine, Blog Alchemist, Remarkablogger.com 


Entries by Thomas Clifford (309)

Wednesday
Jan232008

Dragons. Does Your Corporate Video Story Have One?

DateWednesday, January 23, 2008 at 02:07PM

dragon.jpg

  • Mother nature.
  • Fears.
  • Doubts.
  • Competition.
  • Time.
  • Money.
  • Politics.
  • Distance.
  • Technical limitations.
  • Disease.
  • Myths.
  • Ignorance.

Problems. Challenges. Obstacles. All of them dragons.

Corporate Videos Need Dragons


Every compelling story needs a dragon and corporate videos are no exception.

Is there a dragon in your story? Stuck? Need a few ideas?

---Tom

AuthorThomas Clifford | CommentPost a Comment |
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Saturday
Jan192008

5 Temptations of Every Corporate Video Client

DateSaturday, January 19, 2008 at 10:41AM

Dessert.jpg

In an earlier post, I mentioned the five temptations of every corporate video filmmaker.

This post will take a brief look at the five temptations from the perspective of a potential corporate video client.

1. Commodity? Story? It's Your Choice


Temptation: To turn your story into stuff.

  • If you think about it, stories are living ideas. They can remain in consciousness for a very long time.

Your corporate story is no different.

Commit to capturing your corporate video story in a way that will survive the ups and downs of everyday business cycles. Imagine five years from now showing your story; will it will be as fresh and alive as the day you produced it? If not, it's time to re-think your message. (Making it last is what it's all about, right?)

2. Deadlines. You're Kidding, Right?


  • Temptation: Sooner is better than later.

Not always. Sure deadlines are a part of life. But rushing into a project with a false deadline without understanding the complete picture can potentially weaken the power of your story. Providing realistic deadlines will serve your story well in the long run. (And a powerful story is what it's all about, right?)

3. Guess How Much I Have?


  • Temptation: Let the producer guess what our budget is.

Thinking you'll save money by having a producer guess your budget is counter-productive to teamwork.

Entering a video project requires an incredibly high level of trust. Guessing games deteriorate that trust.

Engaging in open and honest conversations about budgeting will help a producer capture the best story for you, the best way. (Fiscal responsibility is what it's all about, right?)

4. Just the Facts, Please


  • Temptation: Hide emotions.

If most boring videos can be attributed to a lack of emotions then it seems obvious that capturing emotions will create a more memorable film. Obvious, but rarely done.

For example, emotions can show themselves through:

  • frustration
  • passion
  • overcoming obstacles
  • leadership
  • values

Capture your audience by capturing emotions. (Your audience is what it's all about, right?)

5. I Get to See the Questions Ahead of Time, Right?


  • Temptation: Revealing questions to your heroes beforehand.

A good way for your hero or interviewee to freeze up on camera is to show them the questions ahead of time. Resist the temptation! Why?

By showing questions ahead of time, the brain immediately wants to memorize the answers. When it comes time to the actual filming, the hero can't get a sentence out. All the answers they memorized becomes a blur. Not good.

The secret to a perfect interview is to give your interviewee a few ideas about what you want them to share. From their heart. From their gut. (The heart is what it's all about, right?)

Remember...

A video story is exactly that.

A story. In video.

Which is what it's all about.......right? :-)

---Tom

AuthorThomas Clifford | Comment4 Comments |
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Saturday
Jan122008

5 Temptations of Every Corporate Video Filmmaker

DateSaturday, January 12, 2008 at 05:35PM

chocolate%20strawberries.jpg

I bet you didn't know that a filmmaker telling a corporate story has temptations, did you?

It's true.

Temptations are simply everywhere; in meetings, on phone calls and writing emails.

Temptations are constantly present and just simply impossible to avoid. So, how do you handle them? Easy. Acknowledge them.

Here are five temptations almost every corporate filmmaker will face at one time or another.

1. Faceless Scripts


Temptation: Write a script without a hero or "face."

  • Writing a "faceless" and unemotional script instead of capturing personal and interesting stories is easy. This single strategy has given corporate videos a bad rap for many years.

Instead, capture personal stories from heroes within the organization. Personal video stories are compelling, emotional, engaging and of course, memorable. (Making it memorable and remarkable is what it's all about, right?)

2. Fast Budgets


Temptation: Quick! Throw out a number!

  • Thinking you can provide incredible customer service by turning a budget around in an hour to a client from an email they sent you is a serious and rising temptation in the digital age.

A conversation is really what the client is trying to engage us in. It's just that email technology got the better part of them. What do you do? Simple. Pick up the phone and...D'oh!...have a conversation! (And having conversations is what it's all about, right?)

3. Forget About the Future


Temptation: This video story won't matter later on.

  • Thinking short-term, not long-term, is easy to give in to.

Remember, digital stories have a long shelf life. Critical thinking in long-term planning with clients is important to get the most bang for a client's buck. (Fiscal responsibility is what it's all about, right?)

4. Razzle! Dazzle!


Temptation: Think fancy.

  • Using tricks and effects to "wow" the viewer is especially tempting what with so many technological advances in the camera and editing room.

Tricks and effects do not tell stories. People tell stories. (The story is what it's all about, right?)

5. Being Selfish


Temptation: Thinking of yourself.

  • Thinking only about yourself, your demo reel and possible future awards while forgetting about your audience is a disservice to the power of storytelling.

Remember...a video story is the beginning of a conversation for a client and their audience. (Which is what it's all about, right? See #2 above.)

It's easy to give in and do the minimum. Fight these five temptations relentlessly and the video story you are about to tell for your client will capture the imagination of your audience.

Which is ................ Right? :-)

---Tom

AuthorThomas Clifford | Comment2 Comments |
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Saturday
Jan052008

It's About the Conversation!

DateSaturday, January 5, 2008 at 08:47AM

Blogger%20Social.png

Don't let the name fool you.

"Blogger Social" really isn't about blogging. It's about conversation. In case you forgot, we're anything BUT "bloggers."

Here's what a few folks are saying about this neat event...
Christina Kerley
Arun Rajagopal
Luc Debaisieux
Mark Goren
Valeria Maltoni

Hope to see you there! For conversation, of course :-)

---Tom


AuthorThomas Clifford | Comment2 Comments |
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Sunday
Dec302007

Why the Format Doesn't Matter

DateSunday, December 30, 2007 at 09:38PM

cave.jpg

Ever wonder what all these formats have in common?

35mm
16mm
2"
1"
3/4"
1/2"
Betamax
Laserdiscs
D2
Betacam
Betacam SP
D-beta
8mm
HI8
DV
DVCPRO
DVCAM
DVCPRO HD
HD-DVD
HDV
Blu-Ray

Story.

Seems like the more things change, the more some things stay the same.

Story. Beyond formats. Beyond time.

Is 2008 the year for you to "remarkabalize" your story?

---Tom

AuthorThomas Clifford | Comment4 Comments |
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