Storyfarm New Media, a Baltimore-based video production company, has launched a new all video professional services directory. A long-time dream for partners John Sherman, John Brosman and Beau Kershaw, the service is intended to provide people a way to find a real estate agent, doctor or lawyer that goes beyond just picking them from a static list.
"We started out looking at About Us pages and doctors and real estate agents listings -- just text and a picture -- and thought this isn't really doing anything all. You don't get to know anything about the people, and thought how great it would be if you had a really nice video that would be sort of a personal introduction that would give you all the intangibles you get when you're meeting somebody. If we make a really good video for a website, then why not make a second distribution point for it, collect all the videos together," says Sherman.
Storyfarm's first directory,
MeetLocalAgents.com, launched with about 30 local real estate agents. Two other directories,
MeetLocalDoctors.com and
MeetLocalLawyers.com, are also up but have limited listings. Users can search the directories by area or several other criteria.
"There's really no way to quantify the success of a doctor, lawyer or real estate agent. It's all about personality, especially for doctors. I think it's crazy how we pick our doctors. Are they close to me? Do they take my insurance? Okay, you're my doctor. What we're really doing is empowering consumers to make better choices," says Sherman.
Cheaper than a commercial, the service is available for a monthly subscription fee of $59, $99, $149, and $199 for 30, 60, 90 or 120 second video, respectively. There are no upfront video production costs and the service is available for an inital 30-day trial.
Source: John Sherman, Storyfarm New Media
Writer: Walaika Haskins