post by Stephanie Nelson
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the biggest fan of videos shared online. To me, they seem to take time that I don’t have.
But when I take my personal feelings out of it, the fact of the matter is that the key to getting found online is content, and there’s a glut of text. Video marketing still stands out, is the most shared, and shows up regularly in search results.
So why video marketing?
- Video is auditory and visual. There’s no reading required.
- People are used to watching tv, so it’s a natural progression to watching video on the computer.
- Video adds personality to your brand.
- It’s easier to establish trust and build relationships with video.
- Video is shareable, searchable and findable (if you use the proper tags and descriptions).
When small business owners hear that they should be doing video marketing, it can be a bit overwhelming and sound amazingly expensive. But that’s not necessarily the case. So how should a company on a budget go about producing a video?
- Record webinars. You can use software such as Camtasia or Screenflow.
- Use software like Animoto, iMovie or Slideshare to build video slideshows.
- Record daily goings-on using your webcam, the webcam function within YouTube or even your smartphone.
- Answer commonly asked questions about your company or product in a 1-2 minute video.
When you have your video, YouTube is the natural choice for where to put it online. It gets 4 billion views per day. It’s the #2 search engine, behind only Google. It’s a social network within itself. Its results show within Google’s search results. And people can watch it on gaming systems, phones, Netflix and more! While YouTube is the standout, Vimeo is also a popular video-sharing website.
What’s more, Facebook’s algorithm prioritizes video, short-form video has its own devoted outlets like Vine, and even Instagram has opened up to allowing short videos.
Even the most anti-video person can’t dispel video as a powerful marketing tool. So you tell us…Are you a marketing devotee? How do you use video for marketing? What’s been the best use of video marketing you’ve seen?
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net