Daily Archives: August 11, 2013

How the Top 100 Global Brands use YouTube for Marketing | Bedford Corners Realtor

Pixability just released a study called, “The Top 100 Global Brands: Key Lessons for Success on YouTube,” which showed how these companies (based on Interbrands’ top 100) have been using the platform.  From these findings, Pixability was able to derive some lessons that all marketers can use.  And they studied everything: what are brands doing with multiple channels, how they used social media, were they properly targeting the ads, did they post consistently, do some brands have channels that are basically dormant, and so on.  What are the best brands doing on YouTube?  Read on.

Top 100 Brands & YouTube: Key Takeaways

Here’s something that has probably been said on this site more than any other thing:

1. Post content consistently.

The most successful brands publish 50 percent more videos per channel than the least successful ones.  They do it on a regular schedule.

2. Take YouTube SEO seriously.

Citing its place as the 2nd-largest search engine in the world, behind only its parent company Google, Pixability says discoverability is key.  YouTube SEO is very different from traditional SEO, and Google favors web pages with YouTube embeds.  The best 25 percent of brands optimize their videos properly, utilizing more playlists and tags than the bottom 25 percent.

3. No need for overproduction.

The best brands produce a variety of content.  This goes back to what Baljeet Singh said when referring to one of the biggest myths on YouTube.

4. Always On

The top brands integrate their video strategy with their offline strategy.  17 of the top 100 brands use less than 50 percent of their channels.  Brands should not be afraid to create web series for limited, but highly engaged audiences.

5. Put your brand on everything where it makes sense.

The top brands put the logo in the video and in the metadata.  Why is putting it in the video important?  Because people aren’t always watching your content on your channel.  The regular watch page on YouTube and any embed isn’t likely to have your branding anywhere, so use it where you can.  But don’t go overboard and start sticking it in so many places that you create brand fatigue.



Source: How the Best – Top 100 Global Brands use YouTube for Marketing http://www.reelseo.com/top-100-brands-youtube/#ixzz2bi8l6xqm 

 

 

How the Best – Top 100 Global Brands use YouTube for Marketing.

Mortgage applications edge up slightly | Chappaqua Homes

Mortgage applications barely edged up for the week ending August 2, with applications increasing only 0.2% from a week earlier, the Mortgage Bankers Associationreported.

Similarly, the refinance index remained unchanged, while the purchase index rose 1% from the prior week.

As a whole, the refinance share of mortgage activity once again stayed frozen at 63% of total applications.

The average contract interest rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage with a conforming loan balance inched up to 4.61% from 4.58%.

Additionally, the 30-year, FRM jumbo remained unchanged at 4.64%.

The average 30-year, FRM backed by the FHA escalated to 4.33% from 4.30%.

Meanwhile, the 15-year, FRM fell to 3.66% from 3.67%, and the 5/1 ARM went unchanged at 3.39%.

 

Mortgage applications edge up slightly | 2013-08-07 | HousingWire.

Fannie Mae to pay Treasury $10.2B as housing prices rise | Armonk Homes

 

Fannie Mae, the mortgage financier seized by U.S. regulators in 2008, will pay the Treasury Department $10.2 billion after reporting its sixth consecutive quarterly profit on continued recovery in the housing market.

The government-sponsored enterprise, which is operating under federal conservatorship, had net income of $10.1 billion for the three-month period that ended June 30, according to a statement released Thursday.

“Fannie Mae reported a strong second quarter in 2013 driven primarily by continued stable revenues and boosted by a significant increase in home prices in the quarter, which resulted in a reduction in the company’s loss reserves,” the company said in the statement.

After its latest payment, Washington-based Fannie Mae will have sent the Treasury a total of $105 billion, compared with the $117.1 billion of aid the company has received. Freddie Mac, which Wednesday reported a $5 billion quarterly profit, will have paid about $41 billion after drawing $72 billion.

Don Layton, Freddie Mac’s chief executive officer, said his McLean, Va.-based company may send Treasury as much as $28.6 billion within the next two quarters if tax credits it holds have value based on expectation of continued profitability.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have returned to profitability as the housing market recovered and they raised fees for loan guarantees. Fannie Mae’s net income last year exceeded that of companies such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., General Electric Co. and Berkshire Hathaway Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The two companies were seized in September 2008, shortly before the failure of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and the rescue of American International Group Inc., amid losses that pushed them toward collapse. They ceased this year paying 10 percent dividends that returned $65 billion to Treasury and now turn over any profits above a permitted capital reserve.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which were created by the federal government before becoming publicly traded companies, buy mortgages from lenders and package them into securities on which they guarantee payments of principal and interest.

President Barack Obama on Aug. 6 called for the two companies to be replaced with a government mortgage reinsurer that would sustain losses only in catastrophic circumstances.

Hedge funds including Paulson & Co. Inc. have been pushing Congress to abandon plans to liquidate the companies as they buy up preferred stock that has been soaring after being considered worthless, according to people with knowledge of the discussions. Some owners of preferred shares have sued the U.S. government, charging that some of the companies’ profits should eventually go to stockholders.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130808/BIZ/308080078#ixzz2bi7uV22s

 

Fannie Mae to pay Treasury $10.2B as housing prices rise | The Detroit News.

Home Prices Climb in 87% of U.S. Cities as Recovery Builds | Pound Ridge Real Estate

Prices for single-family homes climbed in 87 percent of U.S. cities in the second quarter as the national housing recovery accelerated amid competition for a limited number of properties on the market.

The median transaction price rose from a year earlier in 142 of 163 metropolitan areas measured, the National Association of Realtors said in a report today. A year earlier, 75 percent of regions had gains.

Values are increasing as homebuyers, encouraged by improving employment, compete for a tight supply of listed properties. At the end of the second quarter, 2.19 million previously owned homes were available for sale, 7.6 percent fewer than a year earlier, according to the Realtors group.

“There continue to be more buyers than sellers, and that is placing pressure on home prices, with multiple bids common in some areas of the country,” Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, said in the report.

The median price for an existing single-family home was $203,500 nationally in the second quarter, up 12 percent from a year earlier. That was the biggest gain since the fourth quarter of 2005, according to the Realtors group.

Cities with tight supplies of homes for sale had the strongest price growth, the Realtors said. Eight markets were added to the report in the quarter.

Biggest Gains

The best-performing areas were Sacramento, California, and Atlanta, where prices jumped 39 percent from a year earlier. Prices rose 36 percent in Fort Myers, Florida; 33 percent in Reno, Nevada; and 31 percent in Las Vegas.

 

 

Home Prices Climb in 87% of U.S. Cities as Recovery Builds (2) – Businessweek.

Vine & Instagram Have A New Short Video Competitor | Bedford Realtor

Two days ago Brianna Wills wrote a great post talking about how Vine videos are a great way to market your eCommerce business. Today, I’d like to add an additional tool to your tool belt. Once Vine was released, Instagram saw the opportunity and released their version. It was different in that the video can be 15 seconds, instead of the 6.5 seconds that Vine offers.

YouTube has now entered the short video scene and released their own version. It’s called MixBit and it’s available on iOS devices.

When you make a video, it can be up to 16 seconds. Is it possible that the market wants longer video time? For Vine and Instagram users, this app is quite different in some regards. Here are some of those differences:

  1. Everything is anonymous – there are no usernames and no commenting available. (Will most likely come down the road.)
  2. You can edit the videos from within the app.
  3. You can share your videos on social networks.
  4. You can string together up to 256 clips into an hour long video. (videos of others and ones you own).

I’m excited to begin using MixBit on my iPhone. At the end of the summer, I’ll put together a bunch of the clips that my wife and I made during the summer. It will be like a wrap up of summer 2013. I think there are many applications for this. What do you think of MixBit? Will you use it for your business?

 

 

Vine & Instagram Have A New Short Video Competitor | Search Engine Journal.

Housing supply catches up with demand | Cross River Homes

Those fearing the housing bubble apocalypse can finally breathe — it looks like home prices may begin to move laterally on a month-over-month basis moving forward.

While the median cost per square foot rose 14.9% year-over-year in July, inventory fell by almost 16% in the same period. Meanwhile, on a monthly basis, the median list price per square foot held steady from June to July, while the number of homes listed for sale increased.

The stagnant list price month-over-month is an indicator that the inventory supply is beginning to catch up with demand, according to the latest report from Movoto Real Estate.

Higher mortgage rates coupled with increased inventory will stunt price appreciation, slowing the quickly rising pace of home prices.

This goes hand-in-hand with the latest CoreLogic (CLGX)Case-Shiller report which states that slowly, as more and more homeowners consider selling their homes to lock in capital gains, the pressure that has been driving prices upward will subside. The report predicted that price appreciation will start to decelerate in 2014.

Currently, the real estate market is mixed, the report suggests. While sellers would be smart to list their homes in order to take advantage of the increase price per square foot, homebuyers would be wise to keep an eye on the monthly change in list price per square foot. June to July marked the first time this year that the price did not increase, which could imply the market is loosening, putting more power back into the hands of buyers, Movoto noted.

In 36 of the 38 cities tracked by Movoto, the median list price per square foot increased, up 14.9% year-over-year. The July 2012 median list price per square foot sat at $157; at the end of July, the median price jumped to $181.

However, before July, the median list price per square foot rose for six consecutive months, a negative sign for potential buyers looking to strike a deal. Fortunately for buyers, July put a stop to the price increase. While this is a good sign for homebuyers, data from Movoto indicated that there has been little change in the price between June and July over the past two years.

 

 

Housing supply catches up with demand | 2013-08-05 | HousingWire.