THE BRIEF
In B2B communications, customer testimonials are the most powerful way of explaining how a brand’s product, service and support offerings impact a real business.
Video testimonials are particularly effective, because the audience can see the customer and know that the words came directly from them. But, unlike written case studies (where interviews can happen over email or phone calls), video testimonials can be hard to obtain due to the location of the customer and the need to get a film crew onsite.
With a global customer base, this is a common challenge for Miraclon when it comes to capturing valuable voice of customer content. But, we have solved it with remote video capture.
Our experience of using remote capture to gather video content was honed during the COVID-19 pandemic, when travel and social distancing restrictions made conventional shoots impossible.
We challenged the misconception that impactful video content can only be achieved with a live shoot, and the quality of the resulting videos is such that we continue to offer this solution in situations where geography, time or availability of interviewees is a challenge.
So, when Miraclon highlighted a strong need to capture a series of new case studies, including a customer in Sydney, Australia, remote capture was clearly the way to go.
THE STRATEGY
The customer, Kirk Group, had a strong story to tell, so it was vital to capture the full narrative effectively in the video case study. Kirk Group is leading the charge in its market and getting ahead of the competition with technical know-how and investments in technology that are driving their innovation strategy forward at pace.
But that was just part of the story. In an initial briefing call, the customer explained in their own terms the role that Miraclon had played in their innovation strategy. Not only was Miraclon’s FLEXCEL NX Technology supporting Kirk Group to become a premium supplier of high-end technology in the print plate space, but it was also enabling their customers to reap benefits such as ink savings and reduction in plate cleaning throughout a run.
With years of experience telling customer success stories and with solid knowledge of Miraclon’s products and key messages, we could ask insightful questions to elicit responses that accurately reflect Miraclon’s contribution to the customer’s business.
THE TACTICS
With the case study subject in Sydney, the Miraclon marketing contact in Texas, and the videography team and creative director in London, we set out to create a strong video case study with remote video capture.
Taking footage from a video conference call was not going to deliver the required visual impact or showcase the customer’s production environment with Miraclon technology in action. Instead, we ordered equipment, including a microphone and tripod, to ship directly to the customer. They simply connected to a smartphone and we joined a Zoom call to direct the interview remotely, coaching the customer on how to set up the best angles for the video capture.
Once we were confident that the customer felt comfortable in front of the camera, we then asked a series of pre-agreed questions that guided them to tell their story in an authentic and natural way.
Following the call, the customer shared the interview footage together with some b-roll from around their production site and of the FLEXCEL NX Technology in action. We reviewed all the elements and edited the footage together to create a four-minute video. The finished video asset was hosted on Miraclon’s YouTube channel, and we created a supporting 30-second social edit for the company LinkedIn page.
The results were as close as we could possibly get to being on site with Kirk Group.
THE OUTCOMES
- A powerful customer video case study which captures Kirk Group’s innovation story and the role Miraclon has played in it.
- More than 800 views of the full video hosted on Miraclon’s YouTube channel.
- 70 reactions and nine reposts on the social media edit posted on Miraclon’s LinkedIn channel.
The videos AD produced were so well received by our internal teams, customers and even prospects, that we now work with them to create all our video testimonials from customers around the world.
Elni Van Rensburg
Global PR & Communications Manager
Miraclon
