The Rule of Three
This one goes out to all the content creators out there...
You are short-changing your hard work if you don't leverage THE RULE OF THREE.
Let me explain with a couple of examples:
Video Guys/Gals:
You spend weeks and sometimes month planning, coordinating, shooting, and editing the video. In the end, it is a masterwork! Of course, a couple of seagulls* give some input, but no big deal; you have dealt with their kind before. No big deal because even with the changes, Spielberg would be very impressed.
You post that bad boy on Youtube, and your job is done, right? Not so fast, Dr. MoveToTheNextProject!
Use THE RULE OF THREE to extend our work and your brand. Make sure you make a plan to use on at least three channels. You already have it on Youtube; here are some other suggestions:
Write an article that highlights the key parts of the video and post as a blog
Cut cool elements of the video into smaller chunks to leverage on social media
Get some behind the scenes assets from the shoot to promote before launch to create some anticipation about the video.
Designers:
When designing something new or cool like a logo or a new piece of collateral, why not explore developing those elements for other channels. You have worked too hard to create it; why not leverage it in different ways.
Examples:
Some of the elements can be used to update graphic templates for social media
Leverage the new artwork for t-shirts or other promotional applications
Use some of the new designs for internal posters or intranet graphics
The critical point is to always think about extending and leveraging your hard work to create consistency of brand and visual messaging across all channels.
The worst thing you can do is limit yourself to one channel. Limiting use is not a good use of resources or the assets you spent time creating, so use The Rule Of Three to get the most out of the effort.
*Seagull: Someone that flies over, takes a poop on your work, and then flies off. Typically someone that knows nothing about marketing or the creative process but wants something changed because they feel like they aren't doing their jobs if they don't say something. More often than not, it's a really dumb request, but you do it anyway.