Death to the Corporate Video
80 episodes - English - Latest episode: 18 days ago - ★★★★★ - 9 ratingsTools and advice to make B2B videos people actually want to watch. Hosted by Guy Bauer of Umault, a boutique video ad agency that helps B2B businesses create captivating content, engage the right people, and drive sales. Learn more about us at umault.com.
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Episodes
The fake podcast interview tactic has to stop
April 11, 2024 05:00 - 9 minutes - 8.85 MBIn this episode, we expose a deceptive B2B marketing tactic that's on the rise - the "fake podcast interview." Discover why we believe this practice is damaging to brands and explore a better, more genuine approach to connecting with prospects. Join us as we take a stand against this marketing ruse. Learn more about Guy and Umault at Umault.com
Your project will fail without this person
March 14, 2024 05:00 - 11 minutes - 10.2 MBWe unveil the cornerstone of any successful project: the unsung hero who battles internal pressures to safeguard creativity. Discover why without this champion, your endeavors may falter, and learn how to identify and empower this key figure within your team. Learn more about Guy at umault.com
Effective marketing is a lot simpler than you think
February 28, 2024 06:00 - 14 minutes - 13.3 MBDiscover how embracing fundamentals over trends, and choosing intuition over complexity, can transform your marketing strategies. We share our adventures, misadventures, and the profound realization that sometimes, the best ideas come from just feeling it. Learn more about Umault at umault.com
Three ways to get stakeholders to approve creative
January 18, 2024 06:00 - 10 minutes - 9.47 MBWe don't believe in stifling creativity; instead, we understand that stakeholders often lack frequent creative experience. Like nurturing houseplants, it's a skill developed over time. This episode is not just about getting approval but strategically guiding choices, redefining risks, and smartly navigating the approval process. Our approach at Umault isn't about dazzling with wild ideas, but setting up success with strategic thinking. Tune in as we reveal how to limit creative option...
How creativity is driving our growth
December 19, 2023 06:00 - 9 minutes - 8.78 MBJoin Guy Bauer in 'Death to the Corporate Video' as he explores how creativity fuels growth at Umault. Dive into a candid discussion on breaking traditional marketing mathematics, leveraging creativity for brand recognition, and the power of storytelling. Discover how unconventional ideas can transform your business strategy and elevate your brand beyond the norm. This insightful episode offers a unique peek into Umault's year-end reflections and forward-thinking marketing tactics. Tune ...
How to get leads…now
December 07, 2023 06:00 - 16 minutes - 15.2 MBGuy Bauer unveils an innovative approach to getting more leads: mind-reading your clients. Learn how to delve deep into your clients' thoughts and pinpoint their exact needs and frustrations. Guy guides you through the process of crafting marketing messages that resonate so profoundly, they feel personalized. If you're seeking a groundbreaking strategy to transform prospects into leads, this episode is a game-changer for marketers and business owners alike! Links we mentioned: Kids in Spac...
The secret of Umault’s marketing
November 21, 2023 06:00 - 13 minutes - 12.2 MBGuy Bauer unveils the unconventional approach that powers Umault's marketing success. It's a tale of bold trials, numerous failures, and unexpected triumphs. Discover why an 85% failure rate isn't just acceptable, it's the secret ingredient. Hear about their hit-and-miss adventures, from the unexpected viral success of a parody trailer to the deafening silence of well-crafted campaigns. Guy demystifies the art of marketing with real-world examples, proving that sometimes, the most profou...
Your audience is not boring
November 09, 2023 06:00 - 9 minutes - 8.32 MBGuy Bauer uses personal stories to illustrate the complexity of clients, showing they're more than their professional façade. From his love for news shows to viral TikTok trends, he reveals the diverse interests people hold beyond the boardroom. This episode is a must-listen for content creators, offering a fresh, humorous perspective on engaging with multifaceted audiences. Tune in for an entertaining and eye-opening discussion that will transform how you view and interact with your clients...
Stop being so dang strategic
October 26, 2023 05:00 - 16 minutes - 15.3 MBThis week on "Death to the Corporate Video," host Guy Bauer throws the rule book out the window! Tired of tick-box creativity? So are we. Dive into an episode that challenges everything you thought you knew about being "strategic" in the B2B video world. Guy dissects the unexpected viral success of their Halloween parody, "Possessed," and exposes the truth behind creativity: there's no secret formula, no checklist, and certainly no predicting what will hit the jackpot in the B2B marketing s...
No one wants to watch ads
October 12, 2023 05:00 - 20 minutes - 18.6 MBIf you've ever found yourself impatiently tapping the "Skip Ad" button on YouTube or zoning out during a commercial break, you're embodying the title of this article. No matter how many millions are poured into producing that Acura ad, we are inclined to skip it if it interrupts our favorite YouTuber. Even if a commercial is of GEICO quality – a brand known for its entertaining commercials – it doesn't change the underlying reality: most of the time, we'd rather not watch it. However, doe...
The most important rule to know before making a B2B video ad
April 13, 2023 05:00 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBWhat’s the big idea? It can seem there are endless decisions to make when starting a B2B video marketing project. In this episode, Guy and Hope discuss what the single most important thing you need to invest in to get the most effective video ad possible. Additional discussions include what to look for when choosing a video ad agency. (We know a good one, but they’re not right for everyone.) And listen to the end of the episode for a special announcement. For more, listen to the episode o...
6 B2B video ad problems you aren’t worrying about — but should
March 30, 2023 21:48 - 33 minutes - 30.5 MBA lot of B2B marketers worry about the wrong things when making a B2B video ad. They focus on the little things but ignore some of the major issues that will make a video ad successful. 6 things that B2B marketers should start worrying about How much money you have budgeted for paid media. The video ad length. It’s probably too long! What your customers think of your ads, not what your coworkers or friends think of your ad. Millennials are becoming (or already are) your B2B buyer, a...
6 tips to make your B2B video cool
March 17, 2023 05:00 - 35 minutes - 32.3 MBWe’re going to come out and say it: All B2B videos have the potential to be cool. Yes, every one. All testimonials, all explainers, all B2B ads — they can all be cool if you put in a little extra effort. In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope share six tips for how to make your B2B videos cool. How to make a B2B video cool Get rid of details. Make it shorter. Production design. Make it look cool. Embrace weirdness. Be aware of your creative immune system. ...
Project breakdown: It’s time for Slingshot
March 02, 2023 06:00 - 42 minutes - 38.5 MBToday we are taking an idea from a listener and breaking down a recent project. We’ll get into the good, the bad, and the lunch recommendation. Before listening, please watch our spot “It’s time for Slingshot.” In this episode, we’ll unpack: Who the client is and what they came to us for What our strategy was How we came up with the project creative Wins and challenges across pre-production, production, and post Like this episode? Hated it? It’s your last chance to complete our podcas...
Super Bowl commercial roundup 2023
February 14, 2023 06:00 - 31 minutes - 29.2 MBThe Super Bowl commercials for 2023 had a lot of themes seen in previous years: nostalgic callbacks, fun dance moves, and celebrity faces (literally, in one spot this year). In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss the B2B entries in the 2023 Super Bowl: Squarespace, Workday, and Crowdstrike. We also break down the favorite ads across these categories: Most beautiful Funniest Made us cry Best use of a celebrity Most cringe Most meh Worst Favorite Mi...
5 B2B marketing myths to bust in 2023
February 01, 2023 06:00 - 34 minutes - 32 MBThere are certain marketing myths that we hear over and over that make our blood boil. Believing in these myths holds back your company and your marketing efforts. As we enter 2023, we want to leave these myths in the past. 5 B2B marketing myths (that need to die) In order to be relevant, you have to be trendy. Marketing is a faucet for leads you can just turn on and off. If you make a good ad, people will share it. My business or industry needs to be professional and boring. The per...
6 tips to get the most out of your B2B video marketing budget in 2023
January 19, 2023 06:00 - 34 minutes - 31.8 MBAs you are planning how to use your video marketing budget for 2023, you likely want to get as much value out of your dollars as possible. In this episode, Guy and Hope share six tips for getting the most out of your B2B video marketing budget How to get the most out of your B2B video marketing budget Keep in mind the 60/40 split. Spend 60% of your budget on branding activities, 40% of your budget on activation. Find budget efficiencies by batching your video production projects. If you ...
6 B2B video ad trends for 2023
December 09, 2022 06:00 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBTop B2B video marketing trends for 2023 Corporate video will continue to die. B2B companies will launch their own streaming networks for video content distribution. B2B marketers will embrace more humor in their video ads. B2B companies will explore new channels for distributing video ads, including TV and OTT. Disruptors are coming, and they're using B2C marketing tactics, not classic B2B tactics. B2B video is getting shorter. It's time to start making more video ads. For more on ea...
5 things to know before starting a B2B video ad project
November 17, 2022 06:00 - 25 minutes - 23.8 MBWhen starting a new project of any kind, unrealistic expectations are the quickest way to guarantee failure. Since many B2B companies are new to creating video ads, this episode will provide the realistic expectations that you should have going into a new video ad project. Top 5 realistic expectations to have of your B2B video ad project It can take a while to start working. It’s expensive. Producing the ads takes time. Attribution is difficult. You need a distribution plan and budget ...
How to make a game-changing B2B video ad
November 03, 2022 05:00 - 33 minutes - 31 MBIn this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” we’re spilling our biggest secret: how to make a game-changing video ad for your B2B brand. The process doesn’t start with a video shoot, and it doesn’t even start with coming up with an idea. The way to make a video ad that will be most effective for your brand is to start with a detailed strategy. Once you have that, you can move into concepting. Throughout the episode, Guy and Hope give advice for marketers on everything from: How to ...
5 realistic expectations you need for your B2B audience
October 21, 2022 18:32 - 33 minutes - 31.1 MBWhen releasing marketing videos, especially in B2B, we all need to have realistic expectations of our audience. They are generally not approaching your video with the same mindset that you are. Keeping these realistic expectations in the back of your mind as you create content will help you make videos that are more likely to be watched and thus more effective. The 5 realistic expectations to have of your B2B audience They don’t care about you or your competition as much as you do. They d...
How to overcome fear of failure in marketing
October 06, 2022 05:00 - 24 minutes - 22.4 MBThe website needs to be updated. The product isn’t ready. Leadership wants to wait until Q2. What excuses have you heard or made for why a video or marketing campaign wasn’t launched? In this episode we discuss the root of why many marketers hold on to completed projects (hint: it’s fear of failure), how to identify the problem, and what you can do to overcome it. Correction: In this episode we talk about a controversial Pepsi ad and say it starred Kylie Jenner. It was actually Kendall Je...
The biggest mistake marketers make when starting a creative project
September 22, 2022 05:00 - 13 minutes - 12 MBWhen starting a new creative project, marketers may worry about making a mistake by overpaying or choosing the wrong agency. However, the biggest mistake that we see clients making has nothing to do with the RFP. The biggest mistake is when clients start a new creative project with the final idea and creative solve already baked in their minds. What are some issues that arise when you’ve already settled on your creative idea before the project even starts? If you already have the idea fin...
How to explain your B2B product using video
September 09, 2022 05:00 - 30 minutes - 28 MBOne of the most common requests we get as a B2B video agency is: We need a video that explains what we do. Great! But then too many of these videos become two and a half minutes of software screens with droning voiceover. And at the end of it, viewers still don’t know exactly what it is you do. On this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss the problems with the way most B2B companies explain what they do in video, and provide two alternate frameworks for creating s...
Should B2B companies advertise on TV?
August 25, 2022 05:00 - 32 minutes - 29.7 MBNew platforms like MNTN are making it easier than ever to advertise on streaming TV networks like Hulu. With competitive pricing and supposed precise targeting, is now the time for B2B companies to join in? Advertising on streaming platforms, known as OTT advertising, could be the perfect way for B2B companies to increase brand awareness. Or it could result in a lot of wasted views on the wrong audience. On this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss what B2B comp...
The three videos every B2B company needs
August 11, 2022 05:00 - 32 minutes - 29.8 MBWe recently declared the end of the one-size-fits-all video in B2B marketing. What should B2B companies do instead? In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” we break down the three videos every B2B company needs to create a full video marketing funnel. These three videos are perfect for brands just starting out with video marketing, or those looking to refresh that brand film from 2014. The three videos every B2B company needs An awareness ad for social and paid media that in...
5 B2B ad trends for 2022
July 28, 2022 05:00 - 23 minutes - 21.4 MBWe’re just over halfway through the year, and we’ve been noticing some common trends in B2B ads in 2022. Guy and Hope sat down to discuss four trends that you can jump on for 2022, and one that’s played out. Top 5 B2B ad trends for 2022 “Not boring” B2B advertising is the new normal. B2B brands are starting to use more celebrities in their ads. The word of the year for B2B ads in 2022 is “brand.” The one-size-fits-all B2B video is dead. RIP. Using history to explain web3 and Industry 4...
6 tips for making funny B2B ads
July 14, 2022 05:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBIn a recent LinkedIn poll, 64% of respondents said their favorite commercials were funny. So why are so few B2B video ads funny? Some people are scared. Others don’t want to take the risk. But lots of marketers likely don’t know where to start. On this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope share six tips for using humor in B2B advertising. Read the tips below and listen to the episode to hear more. How to use humor in B2B advertising Understand that humor is fugu — poi...
The best B2B content is pizza
June 24, 2022 17:00 - 17 minutes - 16.3 MBWhen the Umault team is preparing to pitch creative to a client, one of the questions we have to answer is “What’s pizza about this?” Answering this question will help you create better and more effective B2B content. The pizza question was inspired by a revelation years ago about what content most resonated with readers of a company intranet. The answer, unsurprisingly, was pizza. Turns out everyone loves pizza. In this episode, Guy and Hope break down why your B2B content needs to be m...
The State of B2B Marketing 2022: Lessons from B2B Marketing Ignite USA
June 09, 2022 05:00 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBLast week Guy and Hope attended the B2B Marketing Ignite USA conference in Chicago. The sessions followed several common themes, which illuminate the state of B2B marketing in 2022: You need to build a brand. Now. Building a brand is about more than revenue. It’s essential to attract the best talent. Brand building is your moat to protect yourself from competitors copying your features and benefits. B2B buying decisions are emotional, and brands that deliver can generate more loyalty tha...
Your B2B brand needs a voice (and you probably don’t have one)
June 02, 2022 16:00 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBAs B2B brands focus more and more on brand awareness activities, we’ve noticed that many of them do not have an established or consistent brand voice. They want to make more content, but lack the framework needed to ensure all the content has the same voice. In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss: What a brand voice is Why it’s essential for building B2B brand awareness How to create one (or check if you have one) Before you think, “But wait, we have a ...
What B2B marketers can learn from Disney World
May 13, 2022 20:08 - 26 minutes - 24.2 MBYou know you’re an agency founder when you go to Disney World for spring break with your family and return with a deeper understanding of effective B2B marketing. In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss what B2B marketers can learn from Disney World, including: Get people in the right mindset to buy your product. There’s nothing wrong with giving people what they want. Prospects should leave every interaction with your brand in a better mood than they ent...
The worst way to start a video ad project
April 28, 2022 19:00 - 18 minutes - 16.8 MBOne of the most common requests we get from prospects seems harmless. “Here’s a video ad my competitor has,” they say. “We want to make one of these for our brand.” This simple request has the potential to start the whole video engagement off on the wrong track. The most effective video ads do not have a lot of comps out there. It’s scary to make something new or to put your own spin on an ad format, but game-changing campaigns only come from original creative. In this episode of “Death to...
The 7 immutable laws of successful video ads
April 14, 2022 05:00 - 26 minutes - 24.5 MBMuch like the laws of physics, video ads are all subject to a handful of immutable laws. In our experience, all successful video ads have followed these laws. Break any one of them, and you set yourself up for failure. The 7 immutable laws of video ads You can't edit a bad idea to be good. And you can't edit a good idea to be bad. All videos need to have a distribution strategy and a release plan. Subtlety is for amateurs. Video is just a medium for a message. No one will notice the...
Why your B2B videos are potatoes (and how to fix them)
March 31, 2022 16:20 - 25 minutes - 23.8 MBAh, a plain potato. Full of nutrients and yet so boring. In his book Alchemy, Rory Sutherland uses the potato as an analogy for hiring practices: It’s better to hire several people with complementary skills instead of one jack of all trades. While reading the book, Guy was struck by how the same analogy applied to B2B marketing videos. Too many B2B brands are still making one video and hoping it will do everything. And they’re about as satisfying as a plain baked potato. In this episode o...
Why branded video content is the next frontier in B2B video marketing
March 17, 2022 05:00 - 29 minutes - 26.8 MBIn Wistia’s State of Video 2022 report, survey respondents were asked what new types of video content they planned to create this year. The number one answer was Original Branded Series. Interestingly, only 7% of respondents had made an original branded series in the past. That made us start thinking: Why are B2B marketers suddenly interested in original branded content? And how does someone even get started with it? In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope dive int...
22 wishes for B2B marketing in 2022
March 04, 2022 17:00 - 26 minutes - 24.3 MBYes, we know we’re already two months into 2022, but we have high hopes for this year. In this episode, we discuss our 22 wishes for B2B marketing in 2022. Read the quick list below, and listen to the episode for more details. Interested in our wishes for 2021? Revisit last year’s episode. Umault’s 22 wishes for B2B marketing in 2022 Stop thinking of making a video as a goal in and of itself. Everyone should read B2B Institute's 2030 B2B Trends: Contrarian Ideas For The Next Decade repo...
What B2B marketers can learn from Super Bowl ads [2022]
February 15, 2022 20:15 - 40 minutes - 36.7 MBSuper Bowl LVI was about the Rams, the Bengals… and the commercials. In this episode of “Death to the Corporate Video,” Guy and Hope discuss the best and worst Super Bowl ads in 2022, and what B2B marketers should learn from them. A few key takeaways: Keep it simple, stupid. You only have 30 or 60 seconds. Make sure you aren’t trying to cram too much in there. Say your brand name. Integrate your product into your spot. Make sure your product couldn’t easily be swapped out for another. If ...
What we learned from a year of monthly video ads
December 16, 2021 18:00 - 16 minutes - 14.8 MBOur plan for 2021 was to release a new video ad for Umault every month. We met the goal, but how did our campaign do? In short, spectacularly. In this episode of the podcast, Hope and Guy discuss our 5 key takeaways from a year of monthly video ads. Don’t make ads focusing on your competitors. Focus on your client’s competitors. Plan for the year of video ads upfront, but leave room to improvise. We saw no correlation between production cost and effectiveness. Distribution plans are ev...
How to come up with an idea for a video ad
November 18, 2021 17:10 - 28 minutes - 26.5 MBIdeas are elusive. Where do great ideas come from? A bolt of lightning? A passing thought in the shower? Years of being immersed in advertising? When you work in marketing, you don’t have time to wait for inspiration to strike for every campaign. You need great ideas now. In this episode of Death to the Corporate Video, Guy and Hope walk through the Idea Generator 1.0, a distillation of our actual process for coming up with killer ideas for B2B video ads. The purpose of the Idea Generator i...
Why copying a competitor will always fail
October 28, 2021 19:00 - 18 minutes - 16.5 MBWe talk a lot on Death to the Corporate Video about the importance of starting any video advertising project with a strategy. That strategy step works out your key messaging, target audience, video uses, and more. Unfortunately, we’ve seen a disappointing trend in B2B video marketing emerging. Brands are skipping doing their own strategy in favor of copying a competitor. To be clear, we encourage B2B brands to do a competitive analysis as part of a wider strategy project. However, the purpo...
One key way to keep people watching your videos
October 01, 2021 16:15 - 23 minutes - 21.7 MBIt’s a running joke in the production world that if something goes wrong on set, we’ll fix it in post. In other words, we can use editing or VFX magic to get rid of that plastic bag that blew behind a person’s head, or cut that take when your talent flubbed. But there’s one thing we can never fix in post, and that’s authenticity. If it wasn’t captured on the day, it won’t be in the final video. When creating a video featuring real people, authenticity comes from letting them be themselves. ...
The three key ingredients for all effective advertising
September 17, 2021 19:40 - 35 minutes - 32.3 MBAfter many years working in video, we’ve found that almost all effective video ads fit into one of three basic categories. They are either funny, beautiful, or make you cry. It may sound simple, but take a moment to think about your favorite commercial of all time. I bet it was funny, beautiful, or made you cry (or it may have checked multiple boxes, like one of my favorite ads). The thing is, there are real psychological reasons why the most memorable and effective ads are funny, beautiful...
How to get the most out of your video production budget
August 20, 2021 20:15 - 19 minutes - 18.1 MBMost marketers, especially in B2B, want to get the most out of their video production budget. One of the most common questions we get when a client has a limited budget is, “Can we just write it?” In this episode of Death to the Corporate Video, Guy and Hope break down why that is the absolute wrong question, and what brands should do when they need to trim video production budgets. The answer is think like Danny Boyle when he made 28 Days Later. (Hire Cillian Murphy? Listen to find out.) ...
How to humanize B2B with Paul Cash of Rooster Punk
August 05, 2021 16:45 - 31 minutes - 28.9 MBPaul Cash, co-author of Humanizing B2B, believes that B2B marketing has lost its humanity. We can say “lost,” because, yes, it used to have humanity. In the early days, B2B marketing was done by knowledgeable, expert salespeople who made real connections with their customers. Then came the internet, minimizing the role of the salesperson, and over time the humanity leaked out of B2B. What we’re left with is the B2B marketing that many of us know today: product-centric, bland, corporate, and ...
How to use video throughout the B2B customer journey
July 08, 2021 18:05 - 25 minutes - 23.2 MBB2B marketers are often dealing with tight budgets. To stretch their marketing dollars, they decide to make one video that can be used across the sales cycle. One video for the home page. Use it again for social media. Use it again in sales presentations. The problem with this approach is that it completely ignores the fact that prospects at different stages of the customer journey need different things. Early stage buyers need to be inspired. Late stage buyers need to be reassured. You can...
Our silver bullet for getting executives on board with bold creative
June 25, 2021 18:15 - 8 minutes - 7.98 MBRecently, we posted a new video on our LinkedIn page called “We need to talk.” It tells B2B marketers to be bold with their creative advertising. A viewer left a comment: "The challenge is convincing your executive team." He’s right. Many marketers and agencies can come up with amazing ideas, but then can’t get the boss on board. We’ve found that one of the biggest challenges that B2B marketers face is push back or conservatism from executive teams. On this week’s episode of “Death to the c...
The secret ingredient for great creative work
June 11, 2021 20:04 - 21 minutes - 19.7 MBEveryone always wants to know the secret or the top 4 steps to getting the best work out of your agency. As we planned this podcast episode, we originally wanted to give tips or tricks to get great creative work. But as we sat down to talk about what we’ve learned from our best work and our best clients, there was only one common denominator: Trust. The only way to get the best work out of your agency is for you to trust them and for them to trust you back. Trust leads to more creative work...
What B2B marketers should learn from TV commercials
May 27, 2021 17:00 - 22 minutes - 21 MBMost B2B marketers love to draw a solid line between B2B and B2C marketing, and pretend that never the twain shall meet. Smart B2B marketers, on the other hand, peek over that wall to find practices that work and can be adapted for their marketing and advertising. TV commercials are considered firmly in the realm of B2C, but there’s a lot that B2B marketers can learn from the best practices honed by TV advertisers over the past decades. 4 things B2B marketers should learn from TV commercia...
8 tips for distributing your B2B video
May 13, 2021 15:43 - 22 minutes - 20.6 MBMost B2B videos start with a marketing team saying, “We need a video!” There’s very little discussion in the early project stages about where you’re actually going to put the thing beyond “our website” and “YouTube.” Making a video is only step one. Step two is distribution. You need to make sure that people see your beautiful new asset. These eight tips will help you develop a distribution plan for your B2B video. Learn more: https://umault.com/podcast/b2b-video-distribution-plan/