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DRTV Zombie Dance 2016 produced by Concepts TV

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The Electronic Retailing Association’s 2016 D2C Convention featured The Moxie Awards Gala, akin to Oscar Night for the Direct Response/Infomercial world. Luminaries from Direct Response Marketing attended and received awards for the most successful DR campaigns of 2015/2016. Interspersed throughout the Gala dinner were various videos, some highlighting the industry’s philanthropic work, while others touched on creative trends. One standout video at the Gala was ‚“DRTV Zombie Dance 2016,” a dystopian thriller where DR influencers transfigured into Zombies.

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Concepts TV Productions, who produced the video, along with Marketing Maven, ERA, Swipe Payment Solutions, Marc Gill, Ideal Living, Guthy-Renker, Bluewater Media, and THOR Associates, tapped into THE UNDEAD with Zombie-centric submissions. Check out the video:

These DR Marketing companies dolled themselves up as Zombies and Zombified their DR products. The result was flesh-eatingly perfect!

 

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Concepts TV Productions Promotes Sky Hanstein to Director of Production

FAIRFIELD, NJ (August 2nd, 2016) Concepts TV Productions, the NJ based Direct Response commercial Production Company has announced Sky Hanstein’s promotion to Director of Production. Hanstein will be responsible for spearheading the team’s production processes from inception to completion, in addition to introducing Satellite Media Tours to Concepts TV and its new medical division Concepts TV Productions.

Prior to joining Concepts, Hanstein had over 10+ years of experience in Broadcast PR and production management. Hanstein worked at Sony Pictures Television, served as Media Director at Synaptic Digital, and as VP at Vidicom in New York City.

‚“Sky’s new position brings excitement to the team and our clients as he introduces Satellite Media Tours to both Concepts TV and Concepts TV,” said Collette Liantonio, President and Creative Director of Concepts TV Productions. ‚“We are expanding to service the pharmaceutical sector. His knowledge of the production realm and media tours will strengthen the team's capabilities in both DRTV and the medical field.”

‚“As Director of Production, I am eager to oversee and deliver impactful messages to consumers and healthcare professionals through a variety of multi-media channels including broadcast via Satellite Media Tours,” said Hanstein. ‚“With cutting edge technology and Concepts’ new state of the art facility opening in winter of 2016, Concepts TV will deliver video content to medical industries in a more efficient and cost-effective manner.”

Concepts TV Productions, currently based in Fairfield, N.J., is one of the world’s most experienced producers of DRTV commercials and infomercials. Concepts TV Productions has worked with Novartis, Whitehall Labs, Bard Parker, Prestige Brands and medical agencies such as Harrison and Star.

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Long Form Infomercial vs. Short Form Commercial

 

By: Dana Conklin

Which is right for your product? Here’s 2 questions to ask yourself before starting production:

Does your product need an explanation or does the demo speak for itself?

Shooting and airing a 2 minute commercial may be more affordable than a half hour infomercial, but will it be effective? Is that enough time to get your message across? If the demo demonstration or a candid testimonial can instantly explain what the product does a short form may be right for you.

Tip: Animation is a very effective tool to quickly demonstrate the inner’ workings of a product. Here are some examples of some winning short form commercials:

If the product needs more explanation, scientific research or a clinical test group, a long form infomercial allows you the necessary time to grab and hook the consumer. Here are some examples of some winning long form commercials:

What is your price point?

If you can part with your product for $19.99 short form is right for you! If your product is a high ticket item, you might need the extra selling time to convince the consumer. For example: If you are selling workout equipment, fill the screen with heartfelt testimonials and before & after photos so they can visualize themselves losing the weight. Compare your machine to others and why yours will make them lose more weight in less time. With a high ticket item, the more reinforcement the easier the sell.

 

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Balancing Work and Travel Life

By Jon Calderaro

In the business of production we are constantly multi tasking and juggling many projects at one time. Sometimes these projects bring us to different parts of the globe and force us to leave our home base in order to make the projects all they can be.

Working in New Jersey is great as we have access to amazing crews and talent. What we don’t always have access to is great weather, for example. Therefore we are sometimes forced to think outside the box on what location can help us achieve our visual goal. Traveling for work can be great but it is also time consuming and sometimes affects our personal lives. Its important to have a good balance and look ahead at projects to make sure we can keep up with regular work and life and still complete our projects with flying colors and with as little stress as possible.

Since rejoining the Concepts team in January I have already racked up a ton of airline miles traveling to shoots and networking events from California all the way to our latest project in India! It’s just business as usual here at Concepts. Being a seasoned traveler myself I am at ease on the road and embrace each new experience in its own way. It’s always nice though to return home and put things in perspective until the next trip. These days there hasn’t been a whole lot of time at home to reflect but Im trying although finding that balance has been a challenge.

Here are 5 things that can help achieve that balance:

1. Healthy diet An important key to maintaining balance is maintaining a healthy diet on the road. The road sometimes can be a place where anything goes diet wise but it is important to try to stick with good foods rich in nutrition and drink lots of water.

2. Exercise Before going anywhere seek out if your hotel has a gym or a jogging route that can be followed. Then allow yourself time to get there before meetings or in the evening before client dinners.

3. Calendars Keeping a calendar can help you remember important things such as birthdays and events of family and friends. Its easy to overlook these things when you are in a different city or country each week.

4. Vitamins Remembering to take vitamins daily is another good routine that will not only help you maintain your health on the road but it can also remind you how many days you have left at your current location. I like to bring just the right amount of vitamins with me where ever I go. As the vitamins dwindle down I know my trip will soon be coming to an end.

5. Sleep Getting at least 7-8 hours a sleep a night is one of the most important things you can do for your body to achieve balance. Our bodies and minds need rest and when we are traveling we need to still allow ourselves time for proper rest even if it some of the sleep happens to be on airplanes! Bring your favorite travel pillow and a sleep mask along with headphones and some music or podcasts. I find I can block out the elements on an airplane with these items.

These are just a few things that can help achieve balance for the traveling employee we must constantly remind ourselves of them!

REMINDER: Flight 1765 now ready for boarding ..Uh oh that’s my cue gotta go!

Roamaroo travel and photography blog

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Animals, animals and more animals!

By Rachel Leskanic

I will say that in my short time here at Concepts TV, if you consider 8 months being a short time, I have witnessed my fair share of animal productions. I used to watch these commercials and think, how the heck do they get these cats and dogs to do exactly what they need them to do? Now I know the secret the secret is patience, diligence, and LOTS of treats.

Every shoot is different but adding animals to the mix makes it a whole new ball game. It is no longer about getting the actor to smile or cry and telling them what to press and when. Now, it’s all about being completely silent so that we don’t scare the animals and stocking up on spray catnip. Does this make our jobs harder? Absolutely. Does this make our jobs more fun? Without a doubt! There’s nothing like hours of work spent cuddling with cats and playing with dogs (I promise we do work in between the cuddles!).

For cat shoots, we have our very own in house cat whisperer (VP of Sales Kristy Pinand) who always comes prepared, and by that I mean she has lasers in her back pocket and a cat toy in her hand at all times. One of the biggest differences between regular shoots and cat shoots is that we bring a select few people to our cat shoots. We could never keep the cats calm and collected with three crewmen, four actors, and five Concepts TV members stomping around! Another perk of cat shoots is we get to travel from location to location, which can even include a cat shelter or two. Shelters are the best, because we can get the most cats in the quickest way possible. Plus, we get to donate to the shelter and help a great cause!

For dog shoots, it’s all me, the self-proclaimed dog whisperer, organizing the massive amount of dog treats and squeaky toys. These shoots can be both easier and more challenging. Most dogs we use are pretty well trained, they know their commands and listen to their owners. However, these dogs are also bigger and generally much more energetic! Give a cat some catnip and they’ll roll around playfully. Give a dog some treats, and they’ll run around like a maniac.

No matter how tough they may be, you will never hear me turn down a chance to be at a cat and/or dog shoot. With lasers, dog treats and cat nips in our pockets, it’s time for another animal shoot!

me and puppy

 

 

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Creature Comfort Blog

By: Rachel Leskanic

Nothing fills me with more hope and happiness than sipping champagne and petting therapy dogs, and that’s just what I got to do at Creature Comfort’s 4th Annual Champagne Brunch. Accompanied by my father, we walked forward through the front door to greet Molly and Gracie, pet therapy dogs who were hired’ to lick the faces of every guest. Our next stop was to purchase raffle tickets from the volunteers at the table. Up for grabs were tickets to a few purses, Giants game, a bicycle, and various spa gift cards. After getting rid of every little green Admit One ticket, we proceeded to our seats.

As we sat down, our Table 5 partner introduced herself as Jean Baile and all three of us immediately broke into conversation. She shared miraculous stories about her tiny Jack Russel Terrier who had been a therapy dog for a few years now. She traveled with him to schools, hospitals and even nursing homes. The best part of her stories was hearing not only the joy from the clients, but the joy brought to her and her puppy.

Our next conversation was with the lady on the opposite side of us. Her miniature Dachshund, Lilly, had been in one of our commercials and the story she told us was truly a miracle. Jan Kulick had heard of a young girl who was suffering from a constant seizure lasting 36 hours. When Jan and Lilly arrived at the hospital, the young girl’s mother thought to bring Lilly to meet her daughter. In an instant, the seizures subsided; just by a simple pet of Lilly’s head. She then explained to us that miracles like these are only possibly with the help of Creature Comfort who provide the therapy dogs and their owners with so many choices on where to visit and how to get involved.

After the side conversations faded, the owners, Annie Murphy and Joan Beth Baer, began talking about how they got started with the company. They began working for St Hubert’s Hospital with therapy animals. After witnessing just how many people were impacted in a single hospital, they got together with the idea of beginning their own business where they could provide pet therapy for people at many different places ranging from children’s hospitals to elder care facilities. In November 2011, that idea became reality and the non-profit organization spent the next few years providing people who were in need of comfort or therapy with a dependable, expansive network of caring volunteers devoted to sharing their pet’s love. Today, they have a total of more than 160 pet therapy teams which even include several unusual animals. So if you don’t want a dog, see if their certified cat, rabbit, potbelly pig, or even miniature horse is available!

After hearing the history of the company and how it came to be, they invited a hospital worker and another therapy dog owner on to the stage. Both of their stories were what anyone would consider, absolute miracles. A completely unresponsive woman in hospice care, woken up by the simple pet of a dog’s head. A young cancer patient whose day was made by a kiss from a puppy. By the end, everyone in the crowd had watery eyes and tears streaked faces that could only be the product of the inspiring tales told. After a fifteen minute applause, they began calling out the raffle ticket winners. And guess who won the green Vera Bradley purse? Me!

 

If you are interested in the organization or want to see more, please visit their website http://www.ccpettherapy.org/.

P.S. I’ve already signed my puppy up to be a therapy dog, and you should too!

\dog therapy

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The Legends of Direct Response

Collette Liantonio, President of Concepts TV Productions, Jack Kirby, President of DRTV Agency Services at Havas Edge, Richard Stacey, President, CEO & Founder of Northern Response (International), Ltd., Katie Williams, President of Ideal Living, and AJ Khubani, Founder, CEO & President of TELEBrands, gathered for ERA D2C’s ‚“Keynote Lunch: The Legends of Direct Response.” Read more

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Vegas, Baby!

The summer is winding down and while most people are sad to see their weekends at the beach come to an end, everyone in the Direct Response industry is gearing up for the biggest trade show of the year ERA D2C Las Vegas! Read more

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Hola, Barcelona!

This year’s ERA European Conference was held in Barcelona on June 21st - 23rd. With nearly 400 DRTV representatives on site hailing from close to 50 different countries, many executives from the world’s leading companies in the business were in attendance. Enter Collette Liantonio. Read more

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Divide and Conquer

The jet setters at Concepts were busy, busy, busy last week. With one team traveling to San Diego for the Response Expo and another team in Hong Kong for the Housewares Fair, they flew the friendly skies in pursuit of bigger and better direct response products. But did they find them?

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Concepts Attends 2015 International Home + Housewares Show

Put on your walking shoes and try to keep up if you can! This week, Concepts TV was in attendance at the 2015 International Home + Housewares Show to explore new business opportunities and strengthen existing relationships. Wow, what a time they had...

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Concepts TV Plays at Toy Fair

If you’re looking to make your toy a household name, hopefully you ran into Concepts TV at the 2015 Toy Fair earlier this week...

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Concepts Attends The Great Ideas Summit 2015

Concepts TV attended The Great Ideas Summit 2015 this week in Miami Beach, FL from Monday, January 26th through Wednesday, January 28th. This annual trade show brings together the most influential leaders in the Direct Response industry for the purpose of holding high-powered meetings, closing global deals and developing new digital marketing strategies...

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