I’ve been
working the web long enough to remember a time when video wasn’t part of the
Internet scene. The problem back in the
90’s was that the bandwidth could barely support graphics, much less stream
video. Dialup connections were simply
too slow to make video part of the online equation in the early days of the WWW. That all changed in the new millennium as
dialup gave way to DSL connections. Even
that took a few years to become affordable to the masses. But once most everyone had access to high
speed connections, video became a major game changer. Or, did it?
Do You YouTube?
The problem
with video is that it takes up a lot of space.
Even once it became possible to
stream video, it's more or less
languished until the birth of free video portals like YouTube entered the
picture. Since hosting plans charge for
bandwidth, any video that was used for marketing purposes became as much a
liability as an asset. If your video
became popular, your ISP hit you with a big bill at the end of the month. This meant that most businesses that used
video to promote themselves online, did it with an eyedropper. All that changed once portals such as YouTube,
Vimeo and Daily Motion entered the game.
Not only did these portals make it easy to store, stream and host video,
but they also give video producers the opportunity to monetize their channels.
What’s not to like?
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| Courtesy of |
Free Warts
Of course, the
free part didn’t come without a few warts.
For starters, while you can store your videos on these portals, make no
bones about it, you don’t necessarily own them.
Just like social networks and free blogs, if you read the fine print in
the contract, you will find out that anything stored on a video portal can be
used or deleted by the portal. If
YouTube doesn’t like the way you are promoting your video, it can be summarily
deleted without warning. (Trust me, I
have seen this happen to several of my own YouTube videos.)
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| Courtesy of |
Everybodys Getting into the Act
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| Courtesy of |
YouTube
YouTube
is the granddaddy of video marketing that Google purchased it in 2006. Today,
more videos are uploaded and watched on
YouTube than any other video platform. YouTube is the second most searched platform
on the web, (second only to Google Search). Today, YouTube accounts
for a large portion of Google’s revenue for a
good reason. YouTube has always been an innovator,
and today they are providing new ways for any business to produce and provide
video marketing in a wide variety of ways. You can create your own WebTV channel, stream live video to the
masses, engage in pair to pair video
calls, engage in video webinars and much more. YouTube now also provides basic
video editing software on your YouTube channel at no charge as well.
Animated Videos
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| Courtesy of Working the Web to Win |
Social Video
For
many years YouTube and to some extent, Vimeo, were the only real choices for
entry level video marketing. That has now changed since Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat
and other social networks have jumped onto the video bandwagon.
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| Courtesy of https://twitter.com/NFLGamePass |
Twitter has also made some
interesting additions. Short videos have been used on Twitter for some time
now. Today, however, Twitter is enlisting the help of some big players. They
signed a recent deal to Stream live NFL games free to the public. They have
also been providing monetized videos for some time now. Their first live NFL stream reached 2.1
million viewers. This was a
great success, and Twitter is looking to
do more of these live TV events.
Snapchat has also been busy
upgrading its platform to enhance what its user can do. They
have added a save function which allows the user
to save photos and videos, something that goes against the aura of immediacy, spontaneity, and simplicity that Snapchat is known
for. They have also launched
their first hardware product called Spectacles that start with a pair of video-enabled
glasses that can upload video to Snapchat. The new glasses cost $130
and are aimed at their young audience who
care more about fun than looking cool.
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Are we seeing the future of WebTV on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and
Snapchat? I think so, but online video
doesn’t end there. Big changes have taken hold as the general public embrace peer
to peer video calls (made possible by 4g networks and better smartphones), live
and recorded video webinars and video emails. Let’s look at these three areas to see how they are being used as a marketing platform.
Peer to Peer Video Chat
Peer
to Peer video chat is not new, but the ability to use it easily as a widespread communications medium
is. Recent upgrades in smartphone apps like Hangouts, Facetime,
Viber, Skype and others have made video
chat easy, affordable and more accessible to anyone with a smartphone. Plus,
the newest generation of smartphones with their bigger high resolution screens,
more memory, and much faster processors
make video chat something that does not stress the capabilities of the phone or
cellular network. Video chat will soon replace cell calls without video in the near future.
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Video Webinars
Online
Webinars have been around for about a decade, but new technology, better software, and better pricing are making this
marketing platform grow in usage. There are many free and freemium platforms out there, along
with the tried and true pay to play packages with low entry pricing.
Programs like GoToMeeting and WebEx have been around for years.
Some free programs worth looking at are Google Hangouts, Skype, and AnyMeeting.
Check these packages out and take them for a spin. With the ability to record
your online presentations and the ability to leverage presentations to a larger
crowd than a peer to peer video chat, these programs have a lot to offer in
value and utility.
Video Embedded Email
Email has been
a mainstay in online marketing since the web began. Video embedded
email
marketing has been making inroads as of late for the same reason many of these
other video platforms have been growing. Greater bandwidth on all networks,
faster computers and smartphones, better resolution and the ability to play the
video in the email have all had an impact. There are free
platforms out there, but the pay to play platforms provide better
results and more options starting for as little as $35 a month. When you
realize that providing video inside your emails increase open and click-through rates by as much as 300 percent,
you will realize how cost-effective it is
to use video email marketing.
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How to Create Videos that Don’t Suck
Since there are
literally billions of viewers who watch online videos every day, generating an
audience shouldn’t be that difficult, right?
Then why aren’t your videos generating a crowd? The problem may lie more with your abilities
than with the medium. While there are entire libraries dedicated to showing you
how to create must-see online videos, the basic premise is that you need to
create videos that don’t suck. This is
easier said than done. If you have ever watched many promotional videos online,
you will find that many are either too long or just plain boring. Here are some hints if you want to avoid
throwing your audience under the video bus:
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| Courtesy of Working the Web to Win |
- Online videos are not TV commercials – Many businesses advertise on TV. So if it works on the boob tube, shouldn’t your commercials work on YouTube? Not necessarily. In the first place, people who watch YouTube don’t want to see blatant advertisements. That’s not the kind of videos they seek. They are looking for what I refer to as infotainment. That is a little bit of information wrapped around a punchline. If you can teach them something and make them smile at the same time, then you have accomplished your goal.
- Online videos are not major motion pictures – For the most part when it comes to online videos, less is more. Unless you are shooting a talk show or variety show, the best length for most online videos is 2-minutes or less.
- Nobody wants to watch a board meeting – As a rule, the last thing you want to do is stream the minutes of your next board meeting. That means that unless you can find a way to engage the audience, don’t bother recording. That being said, if you can find a way to inject a bit of levity into an otherwise boring situation, you will find a receptive audience. Check out the Board Meeting Gone Bad to see what I mean. https://youtu.be/eM3eXw8DjCY
- DIY done right – People are into do it yourself projects. That being said, the last thing they want to watch is shaky cam where they run the risk of getting sea sick while watching your video. Even the cheapest of production shot with a smartphone can be made watchable with the purchase of a tripod and cellphone mount for around $20 or so. Also consider adding titling and royalty-free music to give your video added production value. Far from giving away the store, DIY videos done right can put you and your business on the map. Check out this DIY video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52fFueue8BA
- Make them laugh till they buy – Never underestimate the power of humor to sway an audience. Heck, there have been several billion dollar businesses spawned by a humorous video, such as Dollar Shave Club and the Orabrush. While your efforts might not have what it takes to springboard your business to the billionaire level, adding levity to your efforts helps add two of three elements needed to get a prospect to take action. (They need to know you, like you and trust you.) As for the trust factor, a few short testimonial videos is all it takes to rectify that situation as well.
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| Courtesy of The Life In Balance Show |
Even though it
costs little to produce and nothing to host online videos, most business owners
and managers are still using video sparingly. What they don’t realize is the
fact that right now there is an opportunity to generate a buzz about your
business by doubling down on video. In
the past few years, we have turned plumbers into local stars by creating a
series of quirky videos that made customers smile while elevating the status of
the plumber to authority stature. We
have also created a YouTube series that we are using to promote several local
businesses. All it takes is a little
imagination to get started.
Online video
can be a powerful way to take your business to the masses. Unlike broadcast TV, the beauty of online
video is that they do not go dark the minute the show goes off the air. Properly produced and optimized videos can
take on a life all their own. They can
continue to produce viewers for years to come.
With a little creativity, you can create a cost-effective way to
broadcast what you and your business do best and in so doing show prospects and
clients alike that you are the star of your show.
That’s our
opinion; we look forward to reading viewing
yours.
In this article, we have provided a comprehensive
update on why video marketing has become a mainstay in the online marketing
arena. We show why video marketing is
important and included Tips and examples of 10 ways any business person can take
advantage of video marketing on the web today.
If you’d like to read more articles like this, check out: Lights! Webcam! YouTube
action!, Social Media Marketing via
Online Video and Is Humor a Weapon of Mass
Distraction or Attraction?. You can also type “video
marketing” in the search box at the top of this blog to find even more.
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