You may not know the name Michael Greene, but if you're a Forrester client or you read this blog regularly then you've certainly seen his work. As a researcher on our team, Michael produces some great research — most notably on the topics of sponsorships and video advertising. Below, Michael shares his thoughts on one of our latest research topics, sourcing video creative:

[Posted by Michael Greene.]

Earlier this week, AdAge reported
that PepsiCo is running a public contest (in conjunction with video sharing site 12seconds.tv) to source video ads for its Mountain
Dew product line. Pepsi invited fans to direct, shoot, and edit 12-second videos that
show off their skills and promote Mountain Dew. Mountain Dew fans will get the
opportunity to vote on 6 finalists, from which Pepsi will select 3 winners who will
receive funding to produce 15 second video ads.

Pepsi does a lot of smart things
here, including cross-promoting the contest through Facebook and Twitter and
providing a clear, concise creative brief that outlines Pepsi’s goals, video
formatting specifications, and project timelines.

Pepsi intends to put the winning ads from their contest on national TV. But
looking beyond traditional sources for video creative isn't just an option for TV advertisers — in fact, it can be even more applicable
for online video marketing efforts. Interactive marketers now have
more options than ever for sourcing online video creative, including video
contests, creative crowdsourcing, digital studios, and – of course – traditional
production methods.

Each of these sources has distinct advantages and
disadvantages which Nate Elliott and I detail in our recent report, Online Video
Ad Creative:Digital Studios, Crowdsourcing Vendors, And Video Contests Offer Marketers New Sources Of Creative Content.
But the main point is this: Rather than rely on only one source for ad creative, interactive marketers need
to take a portfolio approach with creative partners — aligning each source of creative with its respective strengths. For instance, contests are a great source of viral video because they naturally create deep
engagement with fans and generate viral buzz; while creative crowdsourcing vendors can offer a low-price alternative to traditional agencies when you need a TV ad or a product demo video. And marketers should consider more than just price when choosing creative sources: they also need to think about what rights they'll have to the videos that are created, and
which vendors can best integrate their videos with a marketers' other online marketing efforts.

So what do you think? Is your organization looking to new
sources for online video ad creative? How do you determine which source to
access?