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Corporate video is a collective term that comprises all the differing video productions utilized in most medium-size to large-size organizations and corporations. Video productions should share common goals: to effectively deliver information, influence decisions by individuals or groups, meet the production schedule and stay within the budget. Speaking of decisions, this process is decision intensive.

Before the secrets of success are revealed, a few basic premises. Identify and plan for multiple target audiences. When program elements are utilized in additional programs or applications, the production effort is far more valuable to the company. Even before the scripting process begins, you should consider how to generate the material to be used by others in the company for other purposes. For example, programs developed by the sales and training departments could very well work for human resources as well.

A video production can only communicate a few messages. It should not be intended to present a multitude of ideas and concepts. Focus on three key points. Develop a clear set of objectives and how the program will address and achieve those objectives. You may find that the program can only effectively deliver a single primary message. Keep the program succinct and only long enough to deliver the message. A shorter program will be more widely accepted and will surely cost less. There is an old adage that applies here which is to tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them and then tell them what you told them. The ability to measure the results of your efforts against the objectives is vital. Objectives should be realistic and achievable. An objective should not be stated as: to improve overall morale of hourly workers. But rather: increase attendance and voting in employee meetings by 10 per cent. Use benchmark surveys, evaluation forms, small group discussions, web site or email polling questions of usefulness, a game or quiz with reward on employee intranet, even a cell phone text message. In your survey ask about program length, relevance and worth.

One of the best decisions you should make is to carefully choose a turnkey video production company early in the process. A full service firm should be able to prove they can deliver top performance in all of the three phases of the production process: pre-production (scripting), production (shooting) and post-production (editing). Ask three firms for proposals and provide the same information to all three. Visit them. Watch their demos and listen to their explanations of how the productions were created. Good creative people are crucial. They should be happy and enthusiastic. Ask for case studies of successes, awards, and references. Make sure you understand the production process of each company, the approval points offered along with way and how their process will mesh with your requirements. Also ask where you can save money. Make your decision on all of these factors but not solely on price. Employing separate firms for the production phases requires a knowledgeable, experienced producer to maintain control and continuity.

Here are the six secrets:

1. Capture and maintain the attention of the audience. Audiences readily compare corporate video productions to network television. Grab their interest quickly and hold it in order to deliver your message. This is achieved through creative and entertaining scripting, high quality production techniques that compare to the professional look of broadcast television and the best voice or on-camera talent you can afford.
2. Use real people to tell the story. This is important because people like to see and hear real people, not actors.
3. Get an approved script before you shoot anything. You will save yourself time, money and hair.
4. Do the paper edit (offline edit) yourself. Ask for a time code window dub of the raw footage so you can pick the shots and the sound bites. A window dub provides a small window on the screen that displays a time code of each frame imbedded while recording. This provides precise edit points.
5. Plan for future revisions. Do not paint yourself in a corner. Plan so any element can be revised without having to recreate animations and re-edit difficult segments. Avoid information that may change after a year.
6. In order to get through the initial approval stage; edit only the first minute with all on-camera segments, special effects, music and voice tracks. Keep the approval team small and on schedule.
Bonus secret: negotiate up front for a digital copy of the raw footage for your own library. If the raw footage is high definition, ask for a standard definition copy as well.

Ask your production company for an explanation of the various distribution channels available. Currently everything is headed for the web. Most offices and boardrooms have DVD players and certainly VHS players. Most computers are shipped with DVD players and CD-ROM. The company intranet can be your primary delivery system. Corporate television channels can be established and combined with digital signage in primary and remote locations. Mobile video, social networking platforms both internal and external, viral media, podcasts, the exploding blogosphere are all worth learning about and exploring.

Seemingly, video is everywhere: in stores, on gas pumps, on grocery carts, the backs of airplane seats, in the mini-van and even mounted on the fronts of Segways. Remember video never has a bad day. It is the same consistent message every time.

Hal McArthur, ABC is President of McArthur Communications, Inc. (http://www.mcarthur.com) – an award-winning, full-service video production company in Richmond, Virginia.
Contact Hal McArthur at halmcarthur@hotmail.com.

One of the biggest challenges most businesses face is communicating effectively with employees, clients, vendors, and others.

This is because those communicating information often have one meaning while those receiving the communication interpret it in a different way. The best way to communicate effectively is by taking your time to create an effective message whether by phone, email, or face-to-face and deliver it in a confident manner that invokes trust.

How to Build Trust in Business Relationships

The only way to earn respect from those you work with is by building trust. This is done by meeting deadlines, following through with promises, and communicating effectively so everyone understands what you mean. Unfortunately, in the workplace, you have more control over meeting deadlines and following through than you have over people interpreting a memo or a conversation the way you want them to.

There are ways to improve your communication skills in order to reduce confusion and build trust:

- When composing an email or a memo use short sentences and only write about the topic at hand
- Send email and memos to everyone involved in a project
- Before speaking to those in your group, create a list of points you want to get across. Consider ways of approaching these topics and create a short document highlighting your main points
- Always ask if anyone has questions
- Be prepared to answer a variety of questions
- Check in with group members from time to time to see how they’re progressing
- Avoid gossip whenever possible
- If you see a work conflict, try to diffuse it as quickly as possible

Learning what to say and how to say it are also important skills when you want to communicate information effectively.

How to Gain Respect from Co-workers and Clients

Most people want to build trust and earn the respect of their peer, clients, and superiors in the workplace. This is done by being consistent. When you learn how to communicate effectively with co-workers, clients, and others more people will want to work with you. They will encourage you to give your opinion or advice, they may ask that you give presentations more often, or they will want to include you in their projects, even if it’s just in a supportive role.

When you have the respect of others, it’s important to give it back. Mentoring new employees, avoiding office gossip, and being pleasant to work with are all ways that you can give others your respect.

Find a Communication Mentor

If you’re having difficulty mastering effective communication skills, find someone in your office who is effective. Study how they talk to other people, ask them how they learned this skill, and try to adopt some of their work habits. After a while, you will begin to use the skills you’ve learned without having to think about it.

Additional ways to improve your communication skills include:
- Writing practice memos or email
- Practicing a speech or presentation before giving one
- Taping yourself reading a magazine article or monologue in order to learn how to pace your speech

Once you’ve learn how to communicate with others, their respect for you will grow.

Sharon Alexander – Claim That Job.com
For more career management information and to get a free job hunting report, visit Claim That Job at http://www.claimthatjob.com

Presentation skills can be applied in so many areas of everyday life: the way we look, the way we conduct ourselves, the way we present our ideas to others. In business these skills are particularly important. Creating the right impression, getting your message across clearly and with conviction and making an impact can all mean the difference between winning and losing business, or progressing your career and getting stuck where you are.

So, strong presentation skills are vital to success, but can everybody pull off a great presentation? Of course some people appear more naturally skilled than others at public speaking – perhaps due to greater confidence and lots of practice in communicating – but even the most shy and unconfident people can learn to present well. Equally, those who already present effectively can always improve with further training and coaching, perhaps to hone specific areas.

So what is involved in becoming an effective presenter? Standing in front of people, managing to string together the basics of a pitch or presentation is one thing but will staff, colleagues or clients remember what you were saying at the end of your presentation? Have you left your audience full of enthusiasm for your idea or needing a strong coffee to wake up? Do they have confidence in you?

A successful, impactful presentation is built on a whole suite of factors. Opening with a bang, using the right body language, maintaining eye contact, varying your tone, signposting and using relevant and engaging language, anecdotes and examples all make a difference. And of course there are plenty of things you can do to control those pesky nerves.

Presenting, however confident a person you are, can be a very daunting task. A well rehearsed presentation can be put in jeopardy due to the onset of nerves. Whether public speaking or presenting in front of friends, colleagues or complete strangers, an element of nerves is natural. The fear of embarrassment, making yourself look stupid or not making sense are all normal human emotions which, with the correct training can actually be harnessed in order to improve your presentation.

Modelling can be a great way to improve presentation skills. Carefully observing and analysing what good presenters do and then emulating those techniques can be a powerful way to improve your own skills.
In conclusion, yes some people do have a stronger natural talent for presenting and engaging an audience. But the good news is that everyone can improve and give a great presentation if they know what it is that makes a difference and how to apply the techniques. And if they’re given opportunities to practise and receive helpful and personalised feedback. The potential for progress is enormous and the rewards to be reaped both for your business and personal life are worth the effort.

Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the communication skills sector.
Find out more about presentation skills at http://www.speakfirst.co.uk

When giving a speech or presentation, making the audience feel appreciated, comfortable and worthy is important to the success of your speech.

You can accomplish this is in a few ways depending on your public speaking style and the topic you’re speaking about. Learning as much as you can about the audience gives you a better idea of how to approach the topic and how to begin and end your speech.

Show Your Appreciation for the Audience

Thanking your audience for attending is a great way to charm them from the beginning. Regardless of whether audience members were invited or they paid to hear your speech, thanking them for spending their time with you is a way to pay respect to the audience.
At the end of your speech, you should thank the audience again. Showing respect for the audience can help you make an instant connection that will last throughout the entire speech or presentation.

Treat the Audience as an Equal

When you talk to the audience using a conversational tone, you’re inviting them to take part in the learning process. Even if your goal of the speech is to teach the audience more about a topic they may know little about, maintaining a conversational tone throughout is a way to build trust and respect with the audience.

If you’ve ever heard a speech given by someone who appeared overly confident or a speech given by someone who spoke using only academic or industry terms, then you understand the importance of maintaining a friendly tone. Speaking to an audience should be viewed as talking with a friend. Speeches people remember are those that are clear, easy to follow, and have a powerful meaning underneath.

Even when speaking to those in a particular industry, don’t assume that everyone understands the terms you’re using. While you don’t want to insult the audience by explaining terms they already understand, take the time to add a few examples of what you’re saying to better illustrate your points.

Tell a Joke or a Story

One of the best ways to charm an audience is by opening your speech or presentation with a joke or a story. This is a great way to make the audience comfortable. Make sure the story relates to the overall theme or the audience will not fully understand what you’re trying to say.

If you don’t have a clever joke or story, find a quote that’s relevant. Use a similar quote at the end to tie the speech together.

When deciding which jokes or stories to tell, make sure they will not offend anyone in the audience. If you aren’t sure about a joke or a story, err on the side of caution and avoid using it in your speech or presentation as the last thing you want is to make the audience uncomfortable before going any further with your speech.

Charming the audience isn’t as difficult as you think. Be creative and try out different ideas until you find the one that sets the tone for your entire speech.

Sharon Alexander – Claim That Job.com
For more career management information and to get a free job hunting report, visit Claim That Job at http://www.claimthatjob.com

Great public speakers are those who not only convey information, they are also those who can convey the information in an entertaining way.

Telling stories, jokes and interacting with the audience are all ways that experienced public speakers get their points across. Even if you don’t have to give too many speeches or presentations in your job, learning how to speak in public is a skill worth practicing.

The following are tips that great public speakers use when preparing to give a speech. Use them to improve your own public speaking abilities.

Preparing for a Speech

When preparing for a speech, those who give great speeches spend hours crafting exactly what they want to say. They will include stories and humor where appropriate and make sure all the points they want to cover are included. When crafting a great speech, you should focus on the details of the speech as much as the overall theme.

Don’t use bullet points when writing the first draft. Take the time to write the speech sentence by sentence. This will help you remember to include all the important points. And while you can make notes later, memorizing the speech is also not recommended.

If you’ve reviewed and rehearsed your speech thoroughly, you will be able to talk about all the important topics and leave room for the unexpected such as a witty comment or observation you make while giving the speech. This will also prevent you from sounding monotonous.

After drafting the speech, you should time the speech to see how long it is. Then you should start practicing the speech and marking the places where you should pause. This will make transitioning from one topic to the next much easier. By rehearsing the speech over and over, you will sub-consciously pause in the right spots and take a breath in places that are natural.

Make Room for the Audience

Those who know how to give a great speech understand that the audience will become bored if they’re sitting for too long. Interacting with the audience by asking questions, making eye contact and adding humor are all ways to keep the audience interested in what you’re talking about. If the idea of telling a joke or recalling a personal story makes you nervous, consider the alternative. An audience that’s disengaged with the speaker is a much more embarrassing situation than telling a bad joke or story.

When you tell a personal story, the audience will have a better chance of connecting with you. Your story does not have to be a long one; it should just be pertinent to the overall theme of the speech. It doesn’t have to be funny either. Depending on the topic, it can be a sad story or a happy story that illustrates a greater point.

Control Your Stress

Most people become nervous before giving a speech. But how they overcome it is what separates good public speakers from great public speakers. If you’re under a lot of stress right before you give your speech, you won’t be able to connect with the audience. Take a few deep breathes, find a few people in the audience you know so you can look at them for support and imagine yourself giving a great speech.

Sharon Alexander – Claim That Job.com
For more career management information and to get a free job hunting report, visit Claim That Job at http://www.claimthatjob.com

Have you ever wondered why presentations given by yourco-workers were better than yours? Did they use more sophisticated visual aids? Have more interesting topics? Or was it the way they presented the information?

The secrets to giving a persuasive presentation aren’t known only to a select group of people. You can easily improve your presentation style by making a few minor changes.

Choose Your Topic Carefully

If you’re able to choose the topic of your next presentation, consider a topic that’s important not only to you, but also to those who will be in attendance. Understanding who your audience is and choosing a subject they care about is the first step to creating a memorable and persuasive presentation.
When presenting to a group of co-workers or a client, find out if other people will be giving presentations and what their topics will be. This can help you avoid creating a presentation that is closely related to topics already being discussed. Give your presentation a catchy title to entice your audience in advance.

Create a Solid Message

Once you’ve chosen a topic, research it to find out everything you need to know for the presentation. Determine your overall message and make sure that each subtopic, slide, and bullet point supports this message. A persuasive presentation usually focuses on one topic so the audience is able to fully understand and grasp its meaning.

After putting your presentation together, allow others to review it. Make sure they understand the message you’re trying to send. Ask for helpful feedback so you can make the appropriate changes before the day of the presentation.

You may need to review the presentation several times until it’s persuasive and coherent enough to be appreciated by those attending the meeting.

Create Simple Visuals

A persuasive presentation does not rely on fancy visual aids. If you want to be persuasive, keep your slides as simple as possible in order to keep the audience’s attention on you. Only you can create a sense of urgency about the topic you’re speaking about through your body language, how you present the information and the answers you give to questions the audience may have. While colorful charts and graphs may be fun to design, they can be very distracting to those who should be listening to what you have to say instead of admiring your power point skills.

Involve Your Audience

Involve your audience by asking questions, telling a few jokes and being relaxed while you speak.By involving the audience, you’re subconsciously inviting them to embrace what you have to say. Even though your presentation needs to have a clear message, you want to deliver this message in a non-threatening way by telling a story or relating it to an issue your co-workers or your clients are currently facing.

Keep the audience interested in your topic by making sure they are as involved as possible in the presentation. Make sure you leave enough time to answer a few questions as this will encourage dialogue between you and the audience as well as between audience members.

Giving a persuasive presentation will take practice. Over time, your skills will improve. Watching co-workers give presentations is a good way to learn more about what to do and what not to do. If possible, record your presentation so you can watch it and critique your performance.

Sharon Alexander – Claim That Job.com
For more career management information and to get a free job hunting report, visit Claim That Job at http://www.claimthatjob.com

If you sometimes find it difficult to interpret those confusing explanations of benefits received from dental insurance carriers, you are not alone! Do not beat yourself up over it! Just know that it will get easier, as you become more familiar with insurance carrier terminology. After all these years in the business, I still find it challenging, and even more importantly, fun!

Yes, you heard me correctly! I did say fun! I enjoy the game of it all. And it really is a game, no matter what anyone says. The rules of the game are established by the carriers, and they are ever changing! The object is to keep those dollars in the carrier bank accounts! They realize that often time’s providers and patients will accept the original benefit determination as final, and that means they will not have to pay the claim. Take this scenario, and multiply it by thousands, and you begin to get the picture.

So, what we have to do as dental business professionals is stay on top of our game! And this process begins long before we have an insurance explanation of benefits in our possession. Bottom line: if we choose to accept assignment of benefits on dental insurance as a form of payment for services rendered, we have a responsibility to do certain things:

*From the initial phone call, cultivate the proper patient attitude towards their dental insurance. Let the patient know your practice accepts assignment of benefits from their insurance as a courtesy to them, but they are responsible for payment for services provided, not their insurance company.

*Gather the information necessary to accurately estimate benefits. That is, confirm every patient’s benefits, and learn the key questions to ask to enable you to become familiar with their policy; what it covers, and more importantly, what it does not.

*Submit complete and accurate documentation with every claim, so there is no question about liability having been incurred. This will help minimize delays in payment of the claim, and help insure healthy cash flow/accounts receivable.

*Have a follow up system to track unpaid claims. I recommend 30-45 days, depending on the type of claim. (If the claim requires consultant review, often following up in 30 days is too soon).

*Have a conversation with each patient before treatment has begun to acquaint them with estimated benefits from their insurance plan, as well as their estimated out of pocket expense. Use these words, “based on the information we have received from your insurance carrier, we estimate your out of pocket will be….”

*Close every conversation with these words “We can in no way guarantee your insurance will pay exactly as estimated, but we will let you know if there is any difference after your claim has been processed by your insurance carrier.”

*Then, print out the treatment plan, and include the message “Insurance is an estimate, not a guarantee of payment. Actual benefits will be determined by your insurance carrier at the time your claim is processed by them.”

*Ask the patient, “What questions can I answer for you?”

*If the patient says they have no questions, then have them sign the treatment plan, to indicate that you have reviewed the estimate with them. This may come in handy later, in the unfortunate event their insurance doesn’t pay as estimated.

Remember this: We hold the power to set ourselves up to succeed or fail, when it comes to dealing with dental insurance carriers and patients. Knowledge is powerful! And right up there with knowledge is communication. These two things determine the result. If we become more knowledgeable about dental insurance, and better at communicating with our patients, not only will our collections and case acceptance improve, but we will build long term relationships with quality patients, who will refer other patients. So, let us keep our perspective, and realize, we can and we will overcome this challenge!

(c) 2009 Cathy Warschaw
Warschaw Learning Institute.

Contact Details:
Warschaw Learning Institute
Online Dental Office Management Courses

http://www.WarschawLearningInstitute.com

(888) 822-0917