# Attempting to get more work



## oakdust (Dec 15, 2007)

Hi everyone
Like everyone else trying to make a couple of bucks from woodworking the economy has screwed that up too.
So I was playing on the computer and came up with a video ad I would like you all to look at and give me your opinions. So be honest, anything that you feel needs added or changed let me know
Thanks in advance.
just click on the link below


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## nuttree (Apr 19, 2009)

Pretty cool video. If I were to alter anything, I would change the background of the second surface. It seems to be a red and black carpet and may look a little better with a more professional background. Nice job otherwise, though.


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## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

You might add that you do new work on commission too?


> If you do


?

50 miles pickup and delivery at no charge, that's 100 miles. An awful lot of milage for a special trip, not bad if in combination with a route.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

hey Bob 
This is really cool the only thing I feel could be better is some of the photos could be a little clearer.
But I think the whole presentation and concept is great.


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## Richforever (Mar 19, 2008)

My impression is that it demonstrates that you can do the work and do it well. However, that is all about features and not about benefits. Benefits are the feelings associated with the service for which people will throw money at you.

In my experience, there are usually three feelings per market segment. 80% of the folks buy one feeling. 20% of the folks in that market will buy one of the other two feelings. Market research tells you what the three feelings are. Often companies group together too many markets, and nobody buys anything from them because the prospect feels that the company is not focused upon their needs.

Examples of feelings that might be associated with your furniture repair are: family tradition; guilt avoidance; frugal spending; environmental conservation; need for change; etc.. Each feeling would have a different price associated with it, and possibly a whole different market segment.

Usually the fewer market segments that a company serves, and the better the company understands the three feelings that the customers in that market want, then the more profits the company makes. Also, customers love to buy from a company that understands their needs. They refer friends. They continue buying in the future.

Hope this helps.


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

I agree with Jim. The photos should be redone, especially the "after" shots.


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## RjGall (Jun 16, 2008)

I also agree with Jim ! I think you need clearer photographs (before and after ) to really show the quality work you do .


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## Durnik150 (Apr 22, 2009)

I chime in with the others, the photos should be of higher quality and you should definitely use a backdrop to eliminate the clutter from the picture. I was looking at one of the pictures and trying to figure out if that was a lawn mower or a snow thrower in the back ground. You don't want your paying customers looking at anything but your work.

Good luck!


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## oakdust (Dec 15, 2007)

Thanks everyone, I didn't think about the clutter in the back ground. "It's a snow thrower" I mess with photo shop and see what I can do.


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## Geologist (Apr 7, 2009)

Whats in the background isnt necessarily the problem of the photos. I think many of the photos need to be reshot, in a more appropriate environment, with better lighting, that way you don't have to use the flash on your camera. The flash just seems to hide the beauty of the wood and makes it appear marred. Good video, just need to redo the aftershot photos.


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## kiwi1969 (Dec 22, 2008)

the music sucked, but other than that it,s a great idea, kinda like a free tv comercial. really hope it goes well.


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## spaids (Apr 15, 2008)

I don't want to come off like a jerk here because I really am trying to help.

The music is very bad. I immediately thought it was amateur as soon as the music started.

It is way to long to be effective at all. You can maybe hold someones attention for 30 seconds max. We are woodworkers here so we will all watch the whole video just to check out your work. BUT we are woodworkers… we aren't going to be your customers. Your customers aren't woodworkers and they are bored with this video after 30 seconds.

You need to say what you have to say more efficiently. I would start with the scene transitions. They are taking time that you don't have. Don't use anything fancy. Only home videos of little billy's birthday party use fancy scene changes. Just use quick fades. The goal isn't to impress the viewer with fancy scene changes but for the viewer to not notice the scene changes at all. The current transitions seem slow and awkward.

Don't let the text stay on the screen too long. If the txt is still on the screen when your viewer has finished reading then your viewer is bored. The font and the white on blue isn't working for you either.

At least one of the photos is out of focus. As a customer I assume that your attention to detail is inadequate for my money if your commercial appears that it didn't get the attention that it needed. This is your first and possibly ONLY introduction to a potential client. It MUST be PERFECT.

The video doesn't say who you are and how to contact you until 2 minutes in. This isn't an advertisement for something entertaining or something essential. Everyone is strapped for cash now and you are putting up an ad for what is essentially a luxury service. No one is watching after 30 seconds. Don't talk fast but do communicate with efficiency.

I'm being super critical here because I get the impression that you want this to generate revenue for yourself and I want you to be successful. Nothing personal.

Good luck


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

Keep in mind that only people with quality/valuable furniture is going to be interested in your service. That means that they will only consider vendors who exhibit quality in all facets of their business. Other than word of mouth (the best marketing you can get), their first exposure to you may be through your video. If it looks amaturish, it will be their last.

Spaids is right on target with his comments on the video - music, transistions, etc.

To improve your photos you will need at least a backdrop, better lighting (camera flash will not cut it), perfect focus (IMHO you should use the camera's manual focus), and a tripod. Sometimes taking the photo outside in the shade on the north side of a building on a sunny day can solve the lighting problems. Also, make sure the object being photographed is dust free, smudge free, etc.


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## oakdust (Dec 15, 2007)

You guys are really helping and don't worry I know it's not personal. I am trying to generate revenue with this and I knew fellow woodworkers are the best critics. Kepp the ideas comming guys, I think I am going to start from scratch and use a bunch of new ideas.


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## oakdust (Dec 15, 2007)

Hey guys, should I just scrap the music altogether? Should I use my voice, or a video of my ugly mug talking about the service and show pics, or voice over the pics?


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

I don't have an informed opinion on music, voice, or whatever. You might do some surfing on your own and see what other home maintenance companies do, and how you react to them.

When I search for a new product or service and a video comes up, 99% of the time I won't click on it. I would rather look at conventional web sites that have well thought menu selections and quality photos. I think the main reason I feel that way is that I want to be in control of the time I allocate to searches, and a video takes that control away in that I have to watch the whole thing in order to make sure I receive all of the info. A site that I can quickly click through the options allows me to quickly decide if I am still interested. A video might be one of the menu options so the prospect can see it if they like what they see in other parts of the site.

One other thing - Since there is so much garbage stuff on Youtube, I'm not sure that it is a good primary venue for a service you are proposing. Since it is free, it's worth a shot, but I wouldn't expect much.

If you haven't done so already, I'd also hit the moving companies, as they need this when they damage furniture.


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## SteveMI (May 19, 2009)

I think the format is going to be good for a lot of audiences if you do a more professional job on the background of the pictures. Experienced woodworkers would want detail, but the person looking for the service is more interested in the level of work you can do. Too bad the before pictures can't be taken again. Also, make the before and after from the same view and scale. It was confusing on one or two that they were the same item.

In the past I needed to show some examples of engraving. I went to a charity resale store and picked some items up. Then customized them and engraved them. After showing them off for a while it really helped in letting people see what could be done. Bonus in the end was that accountant said to donate them back to the Charity with the new value of my repairs. Helped on the following year taxes. Too bad that line of work didn't work out beyond that.

My other thought was that most of what you are advertising might even be more viable in the current economy. Repair of a table, chair or other furniture lets the person save considerably until the economy turns around. Of course, that is if they are starting with a quality price point on the item.

The music wasn't annoying to me, but if you want to add voice consider a text to voice program from the web. I use one called Speakonia that was *free*. It lets me add voice to home videos without worrying about messing up the third sentence of a paragraph. Each set of text is saved as a seperate wave file. You can also select different voices. I would use the voice to explain the detail of work that was done in each example.

As mentioned above, you could approach insurance compainies in the area that need to cover the types of damage that you can repair. They may require bonding and insurance.

Steve.


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