Online video marketing uci individual case study HBS

1. Online Video Marketing: Individual Case Study.
Background and preparations material for reference & use.
1) How to Complete a SWOT Analysis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0D2fT6obqdg
2) How to Set SMART Goals
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uThBb3kGf4k
3) How to Develop Competitive Advantage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9O2oPbT3fs
4) SWOT Analysis: How to perform one for your organization
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNXYI10Po6A
5) The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYF2_FBCvXw
6) Disruptive Innovation Explained
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDrMAzCHFUU
7) Disruptive Innovation - Clayton Christensen (Part 1)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJ7EG58J5eo
8) Disruptive Innovation - Clayton Christensen (Part 2)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5FxFfymI4g
9) Disruptive Innovation - Clayton Christensen (Part 3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N-1NzS4OJk
10)Disruptive Innovation - Clayton Christensen (Part 4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdUDWFlUjOs
11)Dr. Clayton Christensen discusses disruption in higher education
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUGn5ZdrDoU
12)How Will You Measure Your Life? Clay Christensen at TEDxBoston
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvos4nORf_Y
13)Business Model Innovation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4ZSGQW0UMI
14)Alexander Osterwalder: The Business Model Canvas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FumwkBMhLo

2. Background of Previous 3 Classes.
Learning Objectives for Week One
By the end of this week, you should be able to:
 List the foundational elements of online video marketing
 Describe the overall market dynamics of video marketing and it’s impact on traditional marketing practices
 Learn basic video production techniques and how to budget a video project
Learning Objectives for Week Two
By the end of this week, you should be able to:
 Identify how opinion leaders impact online video performance
 Learn key practices in optimizing video for sharing sites (i.e. YouTube)
 Cite several successful online video marketing campaigns and the attributes that contributed to their success
Learning Objectives for Week Three
By the end of this week, you should be able to:
 Optimize a video for YouTube
 Employ best practices for titling and SEO
 Plan for a video’s online lifespan
Chapter 1 to 5 of the Text Book: YouTube and Video Marketing: An Hour a Day

3. Assignment: INDIVIDUAL CASE STUDY
This individual case study is an opportunity for you to apply the learning objectives from Lessons 1 through 3
to either (1) a specific YouTube channel where the videos are the products or (2) a product or brand that has a
YouTube channel and produces videos to promote its online or in-store products.
Analyze how the YouTube partner or brand you chose actively uses online video marketing successfully and to
identify how they could do it better. Pick any company or channel you want.
Use video and screen frame grabs, apply best practices from our text, lessons and discussion forums, and
support your critique with our textbook, discussions, industry articles from class or your own independent
research.
Please evaluate at least 1 competitor (threat) and provide at least 1 recommendation. And please turn in your
case study as a PowerPoint presentation. See my example below on Jack in the Box -- this is what I'm looking
for from the assignment.
Any questions, please address them to the general Q&A Forum or email me directly at cwong@ocregister.com.
Q & A from the course: An important one.
Q. I don't understand the difference between Video sharing and Video Content Providers.
And the question I have about the assignment is to pick one Video and share how this video has utilized the 5 key
elements of online Video Marketing such as who, what shared, what channel, with whom and with what effect.
I am a little confused. An example will help.
Answer from the Instructor.
In Lesson 1-1, I listed several video sharing sites (loosely, you can define sharing sites as those online destinations
that host, aggregate and display video content). YouTube, Hulu and Yahoo! Screen are three examples. For the most
part, sharing sites don’t make the videos, they host the videos of others’ (like YouTube hosting GoPro’s channel).
Lesson 1-1 also listed video creators. These are the video content providers including Disney, Nike, GoPro and TED.
Of course there are countless creators, but these are some big ones. The way to think about content providers is
they create the videos (like GoPro) that are then hosted on the sharing sites (like YouTube).
When I worked in cable TV at FOX Sports Net, we were a video content provider, producing Lakers games or USC
football specials. Time Warner cable was one of our distributors. That was television, but if it was online, Time
Warner would have been the sharing site.
I’d like you to pick 3 sharing sites and 3 content creators (i.e. check out the GoPro channel on YouTube or see how
MTV’s video content is hosted on Hulu – that’s 2 content providers and 2 sharing sites right there). Then pick 1
sharing site OR 1 content creator that you looked at and post your thoughts on how you feel that sharing site or
content provider successfully employs at least one of the five key elements from the textbook (look for the five key
elements right after Figure 2-21) for creating compelling, sharable video marketing messages.
Here’s an example of the type of response I’m looking for:
I’m impressed with Michelle Phan as a video content provider. If you check out her channel on YouTube, you’ll see
that she creates engaging, original videos that her audience of 6.3 million find worth watching and sharing. Her
latest video featured makeup tips for graduation, which is very timely and I bet increases her share factor – she

4. knows what her audience is thinking about in May. It’s a good reminder for me to think about how I can hook the
copy I write at work to advertise the Orange County Register to the news of the day. Phan’s video headlines are clear
and explain exactly what the video will teach. At the end of her Graduation Beauty Tips video, she showed some
touching, personal photos of her own 2014 graduation keynote speech. Then, as a call to action, she simply listed a
hashtag (#DreamChaser) as a way to engage with her further off of YouTube. I feel an invitation to engage was the
right call to action rather than a heavy-handed “buy my products” sales message. After watching a 20 minute video
capped off by family photos, a sales pitch would have rang false and increased the “dislikes” on her video.
The goal of Lesson 1's discussion forum is to get everyone familiar with major sharing sites and to start a discussion
where, as a group, we can begin looking critically at videos in terms of what defines a successful piece of content.
Hope this helps clarify; please do not hesitate to reach out and thanks again!
SWOT as a planning, review and feedforward tool.
S.W.O.T. is an acronym that stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. A SWOT analysis is an
organized list of your business’s greatest strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Strengths and weaknesses are internal to the company (think: reputation, patents, location). You can change them
over time but not without some work. Opportunities and threats are external (think: suppliers, competitors,
prices)—they are out there in the market, happening whether you like it or not. You can’t change them.
Questions to Ask During a SWOT Analysis
I’ve compiled some questions below to help you develop each section of your SWOT analysis. There are
certainly other questions you could ask; these are just meant to get you started.
Strengths (internal, positive factors)
Strengths describe the positive attributes, tangible and intangible, internal to your organization. They are
within your control.
 What do you do well?
 What internal resources do you have? Think about the following:
o Positive attributes of people, such as knowledge, background, education, credentials,
network, reputation, or skills.
o Tangible assets of the company, such as capital, credit, existing customers or distribution
channels, patents, or technology.
 What advantages do you have over your competition?
 Do you have strong research and development capabilities? Manufacturing facilities?
 What other positive aspects, internal to your business, add value or offer you a competitive
advantage?
Weaknesses (internal, negative factors)
Weaknesses are aspects of your business that detract from the value you offer or place you at a competitive
disadvantage. You need to enhance these areas in order to compete with your best competitor.
 What factors that are within your control detract from your ability to obtain or maintain a
competitive edge?
 What areas need improvement to accomplish your objectives or compete with your strongest
competitor?
 What does your business lack (for example, expertise or access to skills or technology)?

5.  Does your business have limited resources?
 Is your business in a poor location?
Opportunities (external, positive factors)
Opportunities are external attractive factors that represent reasons your business is likely to prosper.
 What opportunities exist in your market or the environment that you can benefit from?
 Is the perception of your business positive?
 Has there been recent market growth or have there been other changes in the market that create an
opportunity?
 Is the opportunity ongoing, or is there just a window for it? In other words, how critical is your
timing?
Threats (external, negative factors)
Threats include external factors beyond your control that could place your strategy, or the business itself, at
risk. You have no control over these, but you may benefit by having contingency plans to address them if they
should occur.
 Who are your existing or potential competitors?
 What factors beyond your control could place your business at risk?
 Are there challenges created by an unfavorable trend or development that may lead to deteriorating
revenues or profits?
 What situations might threaten your marketing efforts?
 Has there been a significant change in supplier prices or the availability of raw materials?
 What about shifts in consumer behavior, the economy, or government regulations that could reduce
your sales?
 Has a new product or technology been introduced that makes your products, equipment, or services
obsolete?
Developing Strategies from Your SWOT
Once you have identified and prioritized your SWOT results, you can use them to develop short-term and long-
term strategies for your business. After all, the true value of this exercise is in using the results to maximize the
positive influences on your business and minimize the negative ones. But how do you turn your SWOT results
into strategies? One way to do this is to consider how your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities,
and threats overlap with each other. This is sometimes called a TOWS analysis.
For example, look at the strengths you identified, and then come up with ways to use those strengths to
maximize the opportunities (these are strength-opportunity strategies). Then, look at how those same
strengths can be used to minimize the threats you identified (these are strength-threats strategies).
Continuing this process, use the opportunities you identified to develop strategies that will minimize the
weaknesses (weakness-opportunity strategies) or avoid the threats (weakness-threats strategies).
The following table will help to organize the strategies in each area:

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7. MGMT 461.48: Online Video Marketing
Lesson 3 Assignment: Individual Case Study
Case: HBS
From: Rajendra Singh
To: Caroline Wong (The Instructor & Course Facilitator)
1. Company Background of HBS
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard
University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The school offers a large full-time MBA program, doctoral
programs, and many executive education programs. It owns Harvard Business School Publishing, which
publishes business books, leadership articles, online management tools for corporate learning, case studies
and the monthly Harvard Business Review. The school started in 1908 under the humanities faculty, received
independent status in 1910, and became a separate administrative unit in 1913. The school's faculty are
divided into ten academic units: Accounting and Management; Business, Government and the International
Economy; Entrepreneurial Management; Finance; General Management; Marketing; Negotiation,
Organizations & Markets; Organizational Behavior; Strategy; and Technology and Operations Management.
From the start the school enjoyed a close relationship with the corporate world. Within a few years of its
founding many business leaders were its alumni and were hiring other alumni for starting positions in their
firms. Financial Times, CNN Expansion, Business Insider, Bloomberg etc rank HBS as number 1.
In recent times, with the onslaught of Digital Media, Social Media and Internet, the education or business
model of education, learning, business, writing and consultancy started undergoing major change which
cannot be termed anything less than transformational or disruptive to the traditional methods. Video-
recording and dissemination is now possible on the go thanks to wireless technologies like 4G and modern
methods of mobile as well as storage in cloud and miniaturized cells. The value chain per se, cost structure and
engagement are now far more mutual and collaborative. The days of exclusive, on campus, expensive and elite
methods have been challenged.
Other institutions like MIT, Stanford, Wharton are undergoing similar problems and instead of keen
competition they are getting together to fight the onslaught of digital wave. New schools like many in
California including UCI have come up in the last 60 years and they are trying to create new alternatives.
New institution like Coursera has come up which is totally Digital, uses Video in a big way, the business model
is largely Freemium and has started gaining formal acceptance. The quality is work is excellent, price very

8. competitive, uses modern technology and has collaboration at the centre of its strategy. They are highly
convenient and can be scaled enormously. Coursera has the power to disrupt existing education / consultation
methods of big players like HBS, MIT, Stanford, Wharton etc. Soon the traditional kings have become pawns
and are now either working like equals or are followers hitherto unheard positioning. There are additional new
players like Khan Academy again based on the power of Video vehicle.
2. Channel Background of HBS
Harvard has two main You Tube channels: HBS and HBR having 44912 and 87496 subscribers. Their content is
created by various thought leaders and business leaders. They are real and connect with the audience like
students, business leaders, practitioners, consultants, entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, business executives,
academicians etc. As on date Harvard holds tremendous influence and authority and is vehemently challenged
by new players. If Harvard fights the new players full blown it may disrupt its profitable business and
engagement.
Harvard is in traditional arena like their own premises, print etc. The new medium is video: content, sharing
and hosting. Video is fastest growing, most impactful and has tremendous power to improve over traditional
methods, cost, creation, sharing and flexibility in adoption to various situations, needs, contexts, convenience
and ease.

9. 3.1 Background of Competition
Coursera Education for Everyone YouTube has 32093 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/coursera
Khan Acedemy YouTube has 1796911 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy
Harvard Business Review has 87496 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/HarvardBusiness
Harvard Business School YouTube has 44912 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/HarvardBSchool
MIT OpenCourseWare has 535562 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/MIT
Stanford Graduate School of Business has 86200 subscribers.
https://www.youtube.com/user/stanfordbusiness
Clearly in the new era of digital competition big players are now fighting the battle with new players and are so
far not doing badly but their dominance is over. Players like Google has emerged as the first level of reference
followed by Wiki etc and then come the books written by various thought leaders associated with HBS, MIT
etc. They still hold exceptional value and are adopting the digital wave but their dominance is no more
exclusive.

10. 3.2 Background of Competition.
4Ps are out and 4Es are in
Let’s use 4P versus 4E to evaluate how the competition is. Bit about 4P vs 4E is given
hereunder:
EXPERIENCE Discover and map out the full Customer Journey on your own brand – in your own country.
EVERYPLACE Develop your knowledge of new media and channels the way a chef masters new ingredients. Try new things – do something
that doesn’t start with TV or print.
EXCHANGE Appreciate the value of things, not just the cost. Start by calculating the value of your customers – and what their attention,
engagement and permission are worth to you.
EVANGELISM Find the passion and emotion in your brand. Inspire your customers and employees with your passion.
Clearly the new players like Coursera, Khan Academy are more on the side of 4Es than the Harvard, Stanford,
MIT, Wharton etc which are more on the side of 4Ps.

11. 3.3 Background of Competition
Contests in the market place.
With greater flexibility, nothing to lose the new players are giving run for money to the old champions like
Harvard. The new players start various contests in the market place more easily, are far more innovative, their
costs are lower, pricing very attractive, they engage the content creators/sharers/users/consumers in far more
innovative and personal ways than the traditional big ones. They do face IPR issues from time to time but
overall their ability to time and engage is far better.
The number of users who enrol is in millions compared to the traditional players like Harvard who get number
of enrolment in one tenth or lower. This trend has build over time and still moving up in favour of new players
like Coursera, Khan Academy and their like. Harvard, MIT, Stanford are trying to adopt but have problem of
their own existing business which is getting disrupted.

12. 3.4 Background of Competition
POST (People, Objectives, Strategy, Technology) - When we evaluate old and new players on the basis of POST.
The fight so far is equal but the new players have been able to create new audience, have far more focussed
strategy and they use far more relevant technology of VIDEO than the traditional players. The focus of new
players is also better. So they are able to enlarge the room (as we saw in the campaign of Obama) and are able
to place themselves at the front of audience /crowd.
4. HBS Case: Strengths.
The strengths are influence, authority, World class content, entrenched alumni, exceptional traditional
infrastructure, strong financials, cash flow from the traditional business, ability to get higher price/margin in
the market, strong credentials and brand.

13. 5. HBS Case: Weaknesses.
Weaknesses are their own existing models, infrastructure, internal competition, lack of innovativeness,
existing internal comparison, focus on traditional audience, lack of creativity, high cost structure, low
propensity to take risk or try out new things, the fear of failure, low penetration in digital/video space.

14. 6. HBS Case: Opportunities.
New and expanded audience - thanks to new players and new video technology to create content, share and
host.
Lower costs, mutual learning, many experiments happening in many areas (open innovation), the activities at
the bottom of the pyramid which will eventually move up the value chain.
Huge younger population available over the entire World, longevity of knowledge workers, rapid business
transformations caused by new technologies which compel quality learning/education, shortened experiment
time, higher competition which forces far more quality work/reduced margin of error.

16. 7. HBS Case: Threats.
Cost threats. The new cost parameters are transformational and disruptive.
Engagement threats. The consumer today wants to be far more involved in the whole value chain and isolating
the consumers will kill the engagement.
Technology threats. The new technologies, apps are genuinely disruptive. The legacy impact of old technology
in content creation, sharing and hosting will be crippling.
Brand threats. Now the brand is based on higher levels of engagement and older associations may not last too
long. The cycle of brand creation is based on 4Es rather than 4Ps. Old strengths may become the constraint in
the new World.
Collaboration threats. The new World is completely based on collaboration and open innovation. It is not
possible for any player to dominate the value chain like before. This also raises issues like IPR and sharing of
profits in far more democratic ways.

17. 8. HBS Case Recommendations:
a) Necessary to combine Harvard Business School and Harvard Business review channels to fight the new
players like Coursera, Khan Academy,
b) Focus far more on 4Es than 4Ps. Have integrated social media and audience/user participation.
c) Adopt POST method of business.
d) Adopt Freemium models of business aggressively instead of only paid methods.
e) Small and Medium business have emerged as the new order. Shift focus on them instead of catering to only
big businesses.
f) Understand POEM (PAID, OWNED, EARNED media of business) and focus on the earned part far more than
Paid and Owned media.
g) Involve the consumer effectively in the whole value chain of content creation, sharing and hosting.
The days of high pricing are over. It’s better to follow lower pricing, relevant content, fresh content and mass
adoption.
h) Concentrate on Blogs because Harvard still has the best thought leaders, they can create great blogs
which can be embedded with relevant YouTube and can be used in timely, calendarised creation in text
and YouTube- both rapidly.
i) Engage and interact with your subscribers far more emotionally and timely than done so far. The days
when the consumers and subscribers came to Harvard premises at high cost to listen (one way) to the
thought leaders are over. Get 4Es fast.
j) Get new thought leaders to support/lead the old horses. Get more relevant and authentic.
k) Focus on subscribers: activation, numbers, engagements, actions and support which must be watched in
relation to objectives, competition and KPIs (currently on these parameters Harvard is very low and is
beaten even in North America by Coursera, Khan Academy, etc). Having Geographical spread,
demographic spread and inroads into new influencers is a must.
l) Harvard is famous for its case studies which are written in text form and deliberated in text as well as in
person form. The time has come when the conversion of existing cases in to video form, creation of new

18. cases in primarily video form and interaction / engagement about the case studies should also be in video
form through e.g. YouTube or similar.
m) Last but not the least - be ready to fail often to succeed a few times.