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Friday, November 30, 2012

Viral Video Marketing

Now that your video has been created, how is it going to draw 1000s of viewers? First, you need to know the best place to start viral marketing. YouTube is ideal as it generates great website traffic. Here's the hint: there are around 80 million videos that are watched everyday on YouTube, and a lot of those views are from people who click the "Videos" tab. Your goal should be getting your video on that Videos page which includes a list of the Daily Most Viewed videos.

If you succeed, your video won't merely be one of those 10,000 new videos each day. It will go viral and be part of the twenty videos listed on the Most Viewed page. The higher your rank is on the page, the more views your video will receive. Now the next question is: How are you going to get the first 50,000 views required to get your videos on the Most Viewed page?

1. Blogs. Try to contact individuals who manage relevant blogs and even pay them to post or embed your video. This is referred to as pay per post. It may sound like cheating but it's effective and there are no rules against it. It is simply marketing.

2. Forums. Start new threads then embed your video. At times, this may require you to initiate conversations by creating multiple accounts on each form and posting messages back and forth between a small number of different users. It sounds wearying and time-consuming, but if you can get enough people to work on it, it can be very helpful.

3. MySpace. You can embed YouTube videos in the comments area of the members' MySpace pages. Take advantage of all the exposure you can get through this viral marketing strategy.

4. Facebook. This social media site makes it so easy to share YouTube videos. By sharing your video to everyone in your friends list, you will discover great results. You can also create an event that publicizes the launching of your video. Invite friends, tag them, write notes, and post the video on Facebook Video and other video websites.

5. List of Emails. Create an email list and sent your video to everyone on the list. This can be a very effective strategy depending on the size of that list and number of people who are willing to opt in to accept links to your YouTube videos.

6. Friends. Convince everyone you know to watch your video and encourage them to share it with their friends, or at least on their social media website.

Every video has a shelf life of around 48 hours before it's repositioned from the list of Daily Most Viewed videos to the list of Weekly Most Viewed videos; therefore it is important that this happens fast. If you want real viral marketing, YouTube makes it possible. With these strategies, you are guaranteed no less.

Business Blogging and Lead Generation How To Do Videos - For Local Business Owners 8 Ways To Socialize Your Video Marketing Strategy What Is Video Marketing? A Valuable Strategy The Six Steps to Start Making Online Video

Video Marketing? Advanced Strategies To Get Your Videos Viewed

In this article I want to cover some advanced strategies for your video marketing to ensure all the hard work, blood, sweat and tears you've put into creating your videos results in worthwhile views and therefore the return on investment is high in both traffic and awareness terms.

Don't Expect Miracles

Video marketing isn't as easy as just putting a few videos on YouTube and waiting for the traffic to pour in. In this article, were going to look at some more advanced strategies for getting your videos seen and shared.

Be Social

Video sites are also social networking sites. They've got all kinds of tools for rating, sharing, liking and bookmarking videos. What you're going to do is get to know everybody in your niche. There's going to be some mutual back scratching.

Find videos in your niche and participate in all the social functions the site has to offer. Make friends; leave comments, like, share, etc. Spend a little bit of time each day getting to know people.

Don't self-promote or try to push your videos on others. Instead, just hang out and see what there is out there. If you're natural with it, people will appreciate that and be happy to link to you.

Get Those Backlinks

Another sure-fire traffic strategy is to point all of your other sites to your videos. If you're using Facebook, Twitter and any other Web 2.0 sites, tell everybody there whenever you post a new video. You can post your videos directly on some sites like Squidoo for example.

Go Viral

Now, the Holy Grail of video marketing is going viral. What this means is that a video is so cool, funny, weird, out-there, entertaining or mind-blowing that everybody who sees it tells all of their friends about it. These are the videos that climb into the millions of views. Every video marketer prays each night for a viral video!

What makes a viral video?

If you've spent any time on YouTube, you've probably seen a few: Weird-looking people singing or lip syncing badly; guys rolling over golf carts; babies or pets doing really bizarre things. These are all things that are unique in some way and we can't take our eyes off of them.

It takes some real creativity to make a viral video and probably some chance as well. The first rule of all viral videos is that it has to be real. It can't be something staged or performed with actors. Second, it has to be something that people find so amusing or interesting that they're going to email it to friends.

Completely stumped yet?

Most people are, but that doesn't stop them from trying. If you want to see what's viral to get ideas, get on YouTube or any other video site and see what the most watched videos are. I mean the ones with 5 million views. Get a pen and paper and start jotting down ideas!

Life Beyond YouTube

Finally, YouTube is the most popular video site, but your video marketing campaign has to go beyond it. Plaster those videos on every site you can. Here are some other high-ranking video sites you can check out, just find them with any search engine

Google Videos Daily Motion Blip TV Metacafe eHow Viddler Vimeo

OK guys that just about wraps up my short guide to video marketing. But please remember this, although video marketing for some of you just starting out might be very daunting as you progress and get stuck into your internet marketing and your online business generally you'll start to find those tasks that you never believe d you'd get the hang of, starting to be common everyday tasks that you complete without even batting an eye. So do persevere and it will come good.

Business Blogging and Lead Generation How To Do Videos - For Local Business Owners 8 Ways To Socialize Your Video Marketing Strategy What Is Video Marketing? A Valuable Strategy

Web Videos: Messages Through Entertainment

Web videos are powerful tools for promotion of a business. The content is being put out there for viewers to take in. Videos that have humor are able to keep the attention of the viewer creating a satisfaction and need for more. An entertaining video enables the brain to remember the content because it stimulated the mind. This is the kind of material that needs to be executed. Humor acts as an essential part of video production.

Humor does more than make our stomach hurt and bring tears to our eyes. It humanizes and personalizes the web video. Providing that personal connection to really draw in the audience is done so through humor. With a response rate increase from 4 to 7 (webvideo marketing.com), humor is a tactic that brings life and remembrance to the video. It hooks the audience into the company and keeps them connected to what the message is. Whether it is slapstick humor or comedic relief, it will get the job done. A 4 to 7 increase in response rate is what companies want and seek to gain.

People today want to view content rather than read it. Information is often skipped over or forgotten when reading text, but with a web video the information is given at hand and gets right to the point. The content/message is communicated better through sight, sound, and motion. Videos execute all of these characteristics with aesthetic appeal and with a little humor thrown into the mix. Humor adds authenticity to the video and the company as well. A brand or product is better remembered through light use of humor that enhances the content of the company and makes the message visible to the audience. That initial attention getter is what companies seek after in their online videos to keep the viewer coming back.

Web videos that provide insight into the company and give that immediate buy in hold the power of social sharing. When a video strikes a viewer and resonates with their thoughts, the social sharing factor will most likely be implemented. Producing a video that generates the power of social sharing will ultimately create a limitless audience. Implementing the links to other social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linkedin, and many others is crucial for the social sharing factor. Also, having a comment section attached to the video will create conversation between viewers allowing them to express their ideals and thoughts about the topic and/or company.The message of the web video will be shared with those who are looking for such a company and who are not looking for such a company. Either way the content will be out there.

This is what a company ultimately desires. Driving sales, taking action, and instilling a call to action is the goal and it is done through online videos. Web videos hit the highlights of the content and give what the consumer wants in a short time frame. Add a little humor to the web video along with the tips of the trade and you have yourself a successful, knee slapper.

Blogging Content: Multimedia, Visuals, and How-To's

The content that you produce on your blog or your company's blog is essential. Do not put any content on your blog that seems interesting. It is crucial to strategize and plan for what kind of information you are sending to your audience and potential new followers. Irrelevant, random information will be overlooked and not shared among others. The content that you put out there needs to be relevant and needs to send a message to your audience. The information needs to be worth their time and effort to read over and/or watch. Follow these tips to ensure that your information will be noticed.

In regards to multimedia and visual aspects, Screencast with Screenr of your product and share it. Demonstrate a step by step guide on how to perform a task using Screencast, a how-to video, or show various steps in a series of photos. Try to incorporate as many different ways as possible to show the content. Taking alternate routes will instill interest in the audience and grab the attention of other potential clients. Portray your message another way. Create a music video and add it to your blog content. This new and exciting bit of content will keep the viewers attention and will cause them to want more. Share a cartoon on your blog of your choice or create an original cartoon to demonstrate your business' personality.

Writing a how-to video needs to incorporate certain details and instructions to be effective and successful. The first step is to write a "how-to" article. Within the article, be sure to give specific instructions with various screenshots or photos on the steps that need to be taken. Integrating photos into the steps with vastly help the viewers with the instructions. Step by step photos shows them what they should be doing and how they should be doing it. For those visual people, this is aid them tremendously. Add your view on your common mistakes in your industry and offer a solution to the problem or problems. To better understand, ask some help from the video production expert.

Specify ways on how to avoid or fix the problem so that the viewers know that your business is aware of how to combat an issue that arises. Because they are following specific instructions provided by your company, offer an incentive for them. Their time and effort is just as precious as yours so be sure to incorporate something to drive them to follow through with it. Along with the "how-to" video add a list of some things to avoid with the instructions. The viewers will appreciate the heads up before they embark on this task. It would be extremely helpful to relate the content to a current event or a factor that everyone will be able to recognize. Doing so will drive them even more to want to complete the task at hand. Incorporate all of these elements of multimedia, visuals, and how-to videos and you can ensure a successful blog. After these have been taken into consideration, target as many groups as possible.

Web Videos Versus Television

The internet has a way of drawing the viewers in and grasping our attention. Its quickness and availability keeps the attention of the audience keeping them involved and engaged on the internet. A way the internet holds the attention of the viewers is through the use of web videos. Web videos have the ability to visually stimulate our eyes and mind feeding the viewers more and more to keep them engaged. It helps the viewer skip over all of the extra fluff that is implemented into the text and hits them with the highlights, the good stuff. Television does just the opposite of video production. Television clutters the segment with advertisements every four or so minutes leaving the consumer annoyed and frustrated. Television does not simply get down to the point, but leaves the viewer hanging till the very last second. Living in such a fast paced environment does not require the extra fluff that television serves hence why web videos are of the utmost importance.

Web videos have a leg up on television in every possible way. Internet videos are short, sweet, and to the point. Video production makes sure to give all the information up front without the clutter that comes with television. The highlights are there for the taking within seconds of watching the video and can be viewed over and over again. There is not any waiting till the very end to get what is really wanted. Advertisements in web videos, if there are any, are reduced and very short. They do not litter the video and do not taint the viewer's perception.

The recall rates for web videos tower over television. There is simply no comparison between video production and television. Videos have a 65% recall rate compared to televisions 46% recall rate which proves how much more successful videos are then television. Not only the astounding 65% recall rate, but videos have a 50% brand recall (28% for television), 39% message recall (21% for television), and 26% likeability (14% for television) (Nielsen). These percentages demolish what television has to offer. Video production and online videos soar over television statistics crushing any competition. Video production companies create such products that draw in and keep the attention of the viewer within a short time frame.

In regards to cost, video production is much more cost conscious and is more of a bang for your buck. Television is much more costly and has less of an influence than web videos. Web videos have the ability to be distributed over multiple different sites including Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, among many others. Having this ability creates a wider audience ultimately communicating the company's business and product in an impressive manner. The audience also has the ability to comment on the videos and share their thoughts which increases customer service and helps enlarge business credentials. Video production companies produce videos that are continuously accessible. This constant accessibility keeps the audience coming back for more. The video can be viewed as many times as possible with a guaranteed lack of advertisements and buffering.

Business Blogging and Lead Generation How To Do Videos - For Local Business Owners 8 Ways To Socialize Your Video Marketing Strategy What Is Video Marketing? A Valuable Strategy

Using Video To Market Your Business

Why Video?

Video is a big deal these days. Yet many businesses do not use it at all. Using video to market your business is a great opportunity. Part of the reason it's a great opportunity is that so many people who could benefit from it are not using it! Much of your competition is not using video!

Video is a great online marketing tool. Many people would rather watch how something is done than read copy from their computer screens.

When you know the routine it's easy to create videos. The process has a few tricks to maximize results. But it's relatively quick and easy once you get the hang of it.

Video and Search Engines

When we talk about online video we have to talk about YouTube. YouTube is the largest video website in the world. YouTube videos are uploaded at a rate an astonishing rate. It is estimated that 60 hours of video are uploaded every minute! The site is growing fast.

Google often shows videos listed among their search results. They call this "Universal Search". Many times there are just one or two among the 10 results listed on a page. But wow do those they stand out. Even if a video is listed at the bottom of the search page it seems to attract more attention than all the other text-only listings. Having your video on a search results page can be a great advantage.

Creating Your Video

Making your own video is easier than it's ever been before. Thanks to the many choices of cameras and easy to use websites you can begin making videos right away.

Many smart phones can record videos. This is the handiest way to do it since you always have your phone with you. To get better quality you should use a camcorder. Digital camcorders are common and do not require tape or disks. They are easy to use. Copying video to your computer is easier too!

There are numerous resources and video tips online to help you with the creation of your videos. The biggest tip is to use an external microphone or separate digital audio recorder to get good sound. If you don't try this you won't even realize the difference it can make. Getting good sound really does add a lot of quality. Lighting is another obvious concern. For indoor videos you should have plenty of lights. Outdoor lighting is best on shady days because shadows can be tricky to control.

Editing Your Video

You can get by without editing your video. But if you want it to be a bit more polished then using a video editor will do the trick. Many editors are available in the under $100 range. I've used Corel Video Studio for several years. Other editors in the same price range include CyberLink PowerDirector, Adobe Premiere Elements, Roxio Creator, and Sony Vegas Movie Studio. Check the web for a review of video editor software. With a video editor you can easily cut out unwanted pieces of video, add music and narration, and add on screen titles. After editing you will end up with a polished version of your video. This is the version that will be ready to upload to the internet. I usually create videos in the MP4 format, then upload them to YouTube.

Getting Your Video Online

As mentioned in the previous paragraph I use YouTube. You must set up a YouTube account before you upload your videos to it. I recommend creating a Google account and using that account when signing up for your YouTube account. You'll have one Google login that will get you into all of your Google products. Once your YouTube account is set up you should create your YouTube channel. Fill it in with all of your business information as completely and accurately as possible.

Use a video aggregator to publish your video to multiple video sites at one time. I don't use aggregators but many internet marketers do.

I recommend putting your website URL ("http://www.yourwebsite.com") in the description of your YouTube video. Also put the link to the YouTube video into your YouTube video description. The reason is that some websites copy videos from YouTube and display them on their own website. This helps optimize your Video and can generate more traffic as it gives you a back link.

Integrate Video on Your Website

After you've uploaded your video to YouTube the next step is to integrate the video in your website and other online properties. The video below shows how this is done. YouTube makes it very easy to embed videos on your website. Google places and other online business directories make it easy to include video within your business listings too.

More Reasons to Use Video

Besides that benefits of generating more leads for your business, video can make a much more personal connection between you and your potential customers. So much of the Internet is impersonal. There is a big lack of trust online, and rightfully so. To get customers and do business you must build a trusting relationship with your customers. Video can get this done faster than most things. I always recommend a simple, short welcome message on a website home page. One that greets the visitor and makes them feel welcome. Here's more video tips that will help with your video creation.