Video and YouTube

I remember two years ago listening to a web expert predict that eventually websites would be allvideo instead of print. While it hasn’t quite reached that extreme, it’s hard to ignore the impact videos and YouTube are having as a marketing tool. As a small business owner, you may want to take a close look at this amazing tool.

Thanks to companies like Bizbox TV and Pixability, creating videos is not necessarily cost prohibitive.

If you are more of a do-it-yourselfer, you can even arm yourself these days with your phone or flip video, along with some editing software and be on your merry way.

So how can you use video?

• 2 minute commercial of what you or your company do
• Testimonials (much more impactful than just words)
• Blog posts (sometimes referred to as Vlog can be great to mix things up or if you don’t like to write)
• Promotion (demo a product or your speaking style for example)
• Credibility builder (“how to”, webinars or statistical videos)
• Lead Generator (think “sales letter or sales presentation” but in video)
• Ad or info on other websites (think – advertising or strategic alliances)

Where can you use the video?

The two big ones of course are on your website (or blog) and You Tube. You Tube right now is the 2nd largest search engine after Google. What does that mean? That means millions of people are searching for specific information on You Tube. You should also know that people pay more attention to a You Tube video than they do their TV set. Finally, you should know that it can do amazing things to your Search Engine Optimization (being found on the internet).

But definitely look for other options. Incorporate a video into presentations, as an introduction to your company at a live event or as an “ad” on your website or others.

A few key tips:

• Keep it real – the more authentic the video, the more believable.
• Keep it short – unless you providing how to info or product demonstrations, try to keep to 2 minutes or less.
• Make it entertaining – seems obvious, but boring videos will lose your audience.

While video may seem daunting, it doesn’t have to be. Look for great resources and for a start why don’t you try today to “point and shoot”. You never know what the result might be!

Source: Hubspot 2