The 6 Keys to Creating Great Online Videos

Online video has been popular as a marketing tool for some time now and for good reason. No other form of communication is better at capturing attention. Video also can have strong impact on people's purchasing behavior. The good news is you don't have to be a major brand with a huge ad budget to take advantage of the power of video marketing. All you need is a little creativity and the following tips to help you get started. 1. Don't make a TV ad. Online videos aren't TV commercials trying to get across a single proposition in 30 seconds. People opt in to watching online videos. They have to click the play button and often seek them out. So they give videos more time, about 90 seconds. This means you can tell bigger stories, but you need to be informative, useful, and even entertaining. 2. Use the equipment you already have. All you need to produce a great online video is your smartphone. You're not shooting a commercial that will run on HD TV. Videos shot on smartphones and tablets look surprisingly good on the low-resolution Internet. Plus, these days over half of all Web browsing is done on mobile devices and those smaller screens don't require Hollywood productions. 3. Don't let the medium get in the way of the message. No matter what technology you're using to communicate, it's the message that matters most. Spend time coming up with compelling, relevant topics to share with your viewers. But make sure what you're saying reflects the image you're trying to convey about your company and the way you do business. 4. Make use of low-cost and free video tools. There are many tools and apps available to help you produce videos with all kinds of cool features. Check out VideoScribe for sketch-style videos and PowToon, which is free, for impressive animated videos and presentations. YouTube offers a free built-in editor, but there are third-party tools available for that as well. Two popular examples are Loopster and WeVideo, which is free to start. 5. Customers can create great content. Some of the most engaging online videos you see come from customers. Instead of figuring out how to promote your products or services, let your customers do it for you. Invite them to send in videos about the benefits they get working with you. User generated content feels more natural and honest. To encourage participation, stage a contest or offer a small incentive. If customers aren't into making videos, ask if you could shoot a brief interview where they answer a few simple questions about their experiences with you. You'll be surprised at how many customers are eager to be part of your marketing campaign. 6. Try to go viral. This is the ultimate goal. The more views your video gets, the more awareness, the more leads, and the more revenue for your business. But creating a video that goes viral isn't easy. Viral videos fall into three categories: funny, heart-warming, or shocking. They revolve around situations featuring kids, animals, or mishaps. Find out what videos are going viral, and study them to find out why. Create a response piece if you can make it relevant to your business. Response videos often go viral too. Focus on coming up with something unique and, above all, entertaining. But don't let your wild viral idea undercut the business image you're striving to create. Video marketing is a powerful strategy that any business can afford. Just take advantage of the low-cost tools available, and think of things your target audience would like to see or find out about. Here's to your continued success creating videos that sell, and maybe even go viral, as you keep putting together your best year ever... Enjoy a great month!

7 home upgrades with the best financial return – PLUS 8 home health hazards to guard against

These are the home improvements experts say will return more of their cost when you sell: 1. New exterior siding. Upscale fiber cement siding pays back an average 78% of its cost. Foam-backed insulated vinyl siding and standard vinyl siding pay back almost 70% of their cost. 2. New entry door. A midrange 20-gauge steel door pays back 73% of its cost and boosts curb appeal. 3. Attic bedroom. Pop out a dormer, add a 5' X 7' bathroom with shower, insulate and finish walls and ceiling, and bring in heat, a/c, and wiring. You'll get almost 73% back on your money and an attic remodel is the least expensive way to add living space and a bathroom. 4. A simple kitchen remodel. Keep this under $20,000 and you'll get back an average 72% of your investment. Include upgrades like new sinks, faucets, appliances, and laminate countertops. Keep the floor but reface the cabinets with new hardware. 5. New garage door(s). Believe it or not, garage door replacements pay back over 71% of their cost if you install a midrange or high-end product. They also instantly up your curb appeal. 6. New wood deck. This earns back over 70% of its cost at resale. 7. Upscale vinyl replacement windows. Change out your old windows with ones with low-emissivity glass and insulation and you'll enjoy a payback of over 69% of the cost. 8 HEALTH HAZARDS TO AVOID IN YOUR HOME 1. Bed linens. These can hold germs, grime, and allergens. Wash at least once a week using the hottest washer and dryer settings. It takes extreme heat to kill most bacteria. 2. Pet toys. These can be a source of staph, as well as coliforms, yeast, and mold. Hard toys should be cleaned once a month with hot soapy water, rinsed, disinfected with a mild bleach solution, then rinsed again. Sanitize soft toys with laundry on the hot water cycle. 3. Refrigerator ice and water dispensers. A recent study found these can be loaded with yeast and mold. Clean the ice dispenser monthly. Turn off and wash the bin with dish detergent and warm water, then dry with a clean towel. Every six months, pour 3-4 cups of distilled white vinegar into the water supply tube and let it run through to sanitize. Wipe water spout once a week with cotton swab and a dry cloth. 4. HVAC ducts. In a year, a 1500 square foot home's ducktwork can collect 40 pounds of dust containing allergens, bacteria, dirt, fungi, mold, and about 40,000 dust mites per ounce. When you turn on the system, all this circulates, causing fatigue, sinus problems, and asthma. Have a NADCA-certified company clean ducts every 2 years. 5. Sponges. Unless disinfected, a sponge is a prime place for germs to grow, and then spread around the kitchen. Clean a nonmetallic sponge by completely wetting it and placing it in the microwave on high for 2 minutes. Throw out sponges after two weeks. Better options are towels, dishcloths, and rags you can sanitize with bleach in your washing machine's hot water cycle. 6. Ceiling fan blades. These are home to dust mites which the fan then circulates. Put a pillowcase on each blade and pull it off while wiping the dust into it. Empty it outside, and then launder the case inside out on your hottest washer and dryer settings. 7. The dishwasher. Mold can form here when moisture lingers after the heat cycle ends. Run your dishwasher only when you can empty it soon after it stops. 8. The washing machine. Mold and staph can grow here. Once a month, use the self-clean cycle or put a cup of bleach in an empty machine and run on the hottest setting. Leave the door or lid open when not in use. When you're ready to upgrade, downsize, or buy your first home, we can help you with the financing. We're happy to answer any questions, as soon as you're ready to take advantage of the opportunities in today's housing market. We can also help with refinancing your current home or funding home improvements. Please call or email us any time. We're always here for you... Have a great day! P.S. Mortgage rates are still at historically attractive levels. When buying or refinancing, it's smart to start the process early. Please call or email us to explore the appealing options available now.

10 Secrets to Crafting Perfect Email Subject Lines

Despite all the hype about social media, a recent report revealed email is nearly 40 times more effective at getting business than Facebook and Twitter combined! The problem is, another study found the average person gets more than 70 emails a day. So even though email can be highly effective, you have to make sure your subject line stands out from the pack. Here's how to create the kind of perfect email subject lines that will boost your open rate. 1. Shorter is sweeter. Studies show shorter subject lines get higher open rates. Lines with less than 10 characters have the highest open rate, but that's pretty short. Go for a 40 character maximum. Short lines also appear as one line on smaller devices. 2. Cut to the chase. Use the subject line to tell readers the benefit they'll get by reading your message. Tell them how their lives will improve by opening your email. 3.Put in a call to action (CTA). CTAs such as; "call" you, "click to visit" a site, or just "read" the email, tell the reader what to do to get the benefit you're talking about. 4. Get the reader to act now. Add a deadline if you can: "Get 50% off until June 15." The longer an email sits unopened, the more likely the recipient will trash it. So adding a time limit helps to increase your open rate. 5. Check each word. Make sure every word in the subject line is providing information or motivating readers to open the email. Look on the Internet for sites that list spam trigger words. Cut them out where you can to avoid being caught in a spam filter. Click here for a list of trigger words. 6. Be clear. Quick and direct beat cute or witty every time. Tell readers exactly what your message is about: "Cut your time for that XYZ task in half." 7. Play the numbers game. "5 Ways to Save on Car Insurance" is a lot more enticing a subject line than "How to Save on Car Insurance." Readers want to learn the five ways. Just be sure to use numerals to cut down your character count. 8. Tailor your messages. If you can, segment your email list and tailor your emails to highlight specific needs or interests. This will help you create subject lines that are more interesting for each segment of your audience. For example: "3 ways to simplify your record keeping," or "Taking care of the yard just got easier." 9. Put in your name or company name. Readers tend to open an email when they know who it's from. If you have a good relationship with them, they already see value in you and your organization. 10. Use your own experience. You get emails every day too. Use this experience to your advantage. Which subject lines did you notice? How did you choose which emails to trash and which to open? Another research study says knowledge workers spend around 28% of the day managing emails. The challenge is to make sure your email is one of the ones they pick to read. Here's to your continued success crafting emails that get opened, as you keep putting together your best year ever.... Enjoy a great month!

Market Update

QUOTE OF THE WEEK... "We are happy when we are growing." --William Butler Yeats, Irish poet INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE... We were all very happy to see that Pending Home Sales grew for the second month in a row, up 0.4% in April. This National Association of Realtors (NAR) measure of contracts signed on existing homes indicates continued growth for these sales when contracts go to closing a couple of months out. The NAR's chief economist sees a gradual gain in sales: "Higher inventory levels are giving buyers more choices, and a slight decline in mortgage interest rates this spring is raising prospective home buyers' confidence. An uptrend in closed sales is expected." The NAR further projected that annual existing home sales should come in slightly below the almost 5.1 million closings we had in 2013, but then should hit nearly 5.3 million next year. The national median price for existing homes is expected to increase 5% to 6% this year and 4% to 5% in 2015. The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index continued rising in March, but at a slower 0.9% pace. However, the index is up 12.6% versus a year ago, and 19 of the 20 cities reported monthly gains. Most observers feel a moderation in price gains is healthy for the housing market. BUSINESS TIP OF THE WEEK... Document your wins to help you duplicate your efforts and cut your prospecting time. Likewise, analyze your losses to fine tune your message and presentation. >> Review of Last Week THE MERRY MERRY MONTH OF MAY... For those who make their living on Wall Street, May certainly was as merry a month as the Stephen Foster song purports. All three major stock indexes ended ahead for the month, with the Dow and the S&P 500 setting new records, while the Nasdaq posted its first monthly gain in three months. Bonds also did well for the week, which had stock traders a bit bemused, since bonds are the safety play when things seem uncertain. The economic reports for the week were mixed as usual, so it is hard for folks to be certain the economy will continue to recover without any hiccups. Last week's hiccup came when the GDP–2nd Estimate for Q1 showed the economy contracted –1.0%, the first negative reading since Q1 2011. Many economists put this poor showing to the severe winter weather in much of the country and most investors bought that. Positive feelings were supported when Initial Unemployment Claims fell to 300,000 for the week and Continuing Claims to 2.631 million. The Chicago PMI showed Midwest manufacturing stronger than expected, while Consumer Confidence and Michigan Consumer Sentiment also beat estimates. But consumer Personal Spending was down for April. The week ended with the Dow up 0.7%, to 16717; the S&P 500 up 1.2%, to 1924; and the Nasdaq up 1.4%, to 4243. The short trading week saw bonds dip at the start, but buying picked up at the end, pushing prices up and yields down. The 30YR FNMA 4.0% bond we watch finished the week up .10, at $105.29. After 5 straight weeks of declines, average fixed mortgage rates hit a nine-month low in Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending May 29. That's good news for a housing market bounding back from a slow winter. Remember, mortgage rates can be extremely volatile, so check with your mortgage professional for up to the minute information. DID YOU KNOW?... Over the past three months, private sector wages and salaries have gone up at an accelerated 5.5% annual rate. Some economists expect incomes to keep growing at a healthy clip. >> This Week’s Forecast FACTORY AND SERVICE SECTORS GROW, JOBS HANG IN... Stocks did well in May, but the economic picture won't be quite as good. The ISM Index of manufacturing activity and the ISM Services index are expected to show growth, though not at any faster rate. Friday's May Employment Report should have fewer new Nonfarm Payrolls than April, but still above 200,000 jobs. This is predicted to nudge the Unemployment Rate back up a tick. It will also be worth looking at the Fed's Beige Book, which comments on the economic conditions in the twelve Federal Reserve Districts around the country.