Fig Tree Creative Services

So I'm finally getting around to writing about my new job. I'm really excited about it but as of right now I haven't done more than just a bit of strategy and planning. Let's see, the videographer is named Adam Figueira (pronounced fih-GEER-uh, it rhymes with Bagheera, from The Jungle Book) and his company is called Fig Tree Creative Services (Figueira is Portugese for Fig Tree). I'm not sure what my "title" is, but I basically book jobs, keep the schedule organized, and maintain accurate records of clients. Let me tell you about ther services we offer, because some are really cool:

1. Traditional Wedding Videography: This is kind of the backbone right now of the company because, well, let's face it--we're in Utah, weddings are plentiful. The goal is to become established enough that we still do wedding videography but it's not, by any means, all that we do. We offer three different packages as well as a la carte pricing on different segments.

2. Spark Wedding Videography: This is Adam's new thing, and I think it's really awesome. It is basically a step up from Traditional. In Traditional you can order as many segments as you want but they'll all be separate entities. With Spark, it's all integrated into a documentary of your whole relationship to that point, just about. It all flows together and tells the story of your lives and how they came together instead of just "Here's our wedding day." Right now there are lots of extra featurettes you can choose and they're available with both Traditional and Spark, but we're going to (hopefully) change that so that some of the really neat ones are only available through Spark (like the dating feature, re-enactments of first date, proposal, etc).

3. Video Greeting Cards: This is another one of the things that makes Fig Tree unique. Basically we use mini DVDs to create videos of 30 seconds to 30 minutes (or longer if you really want) and then the more you buy the cheaper they are (because the real cost is in production, not duplication) and then we can even mail them for you. They play in regular DVD players and I think they're way cooler than plain cards. Because of the way the cost works, it's better for cards that are going to be mass-produced. Wedding invites are the most popular kind, and they are an option in our wedding packages. What's cool is that you can record yourselves inviting people to your wedding but then we can add DVD-ROM info to the disc so they can see directions, maps, hotel info, registries, etc when they pop it into their computer. Way to save paper if you ask me. Fig Tree goes green! Haha. Anyway, there are lots of other ideas for the greeting cards, also. Here are some we've come up with: Christmas card, baby announcment, mission announcement/farewell, "We've Moved!" announcement, family reunion invites, party invites (if it's a big party!), etc.

4. Anniversary Videos: This idea is still in the works. We're thinking it can be marketed in different ways. We can offer it along with the wedding videography as a future thing to get return business but we can also offer to older couples who probably don't have much of a wedding video if they have one at all. Kind of like the videos my dad did for his parents and grandparents anniversaries, but more than just a photo collage. Other items we could include would be family member interviews, re-enactments, etc. The kind of thing that kids would get together and buy for Mom and Dad.

5. Baby videos: This kind of is an extension of the baby announcement video. Basically it's like maternity photography but one step up. We would shoot the parents before baby was born, show the nursury, show/talk about current events, interview aunts, uncles, cousins, older siblings, and then shoot the baby after he/she was born. The kind of video that the baby would treasure even as an adult. My only concern is that parents might be excited to do this for a first born but by child 3, 4, 5, etc, it would just seem like a waste of time and money, which would be really sad because even people with older siblings want to feel like their birth was just as special. (Can you tell I'm a fourth born??)

We also do any other kinds of videos. Corporate functions, publicity videos, you name it. Adam did a series of French Language videos for the high school when they French program was being discontinued so future students could still have something to learn with. He also did a video about a student's study abroad program and has shot lots of family and friend things like school plays and temple sealings. He also did a video for the young women in his parents' stake.

Anyway, I think we have so much to offer, I just keep hitting this brick wall in my head of how to best bring that across to others. I've started with Facebook, hoping my friends would at least look into it and think of ways to improve or people who might be interested...but alas, my friends have let me down. Well, Kell read it and asked about transferring videos to DVD (which we do!) so that was nice (Thanks, Kell!). I need help! I keep thinking flyers at wedding shows (again, this is UTAH!) and my dad mentioned putting papers about the baby videos in doctors' offices...but aside from travelling all around the valley, what else can I do? We DO have a website, but it is just a filler website for now. Adam is working on the official one. How do I get people to look at that website? How can I get the word out to all the millions of engaged couples in Utah? Please PLEASE leave comments with suggestions, I will take all the help I can get. I think this is a company with great potential and I am THRILLED to be a part of it. I put the company website on the right hand side of this blog. Check it out!