is your small business taking advantage of video marketing online? You don’t need a crew of cameramen or a Hollywood budget to make effective marketing videos about your business. With over two billion videos being viewed on YouTube every single day, video marketing is a powerful tool that you should be leveraging to drive traffic to your site. Here are a few things you should know about getting started in video marketing online.
1. Internet users are actively and voluntarily watching advertisements online.
YouTube gets almost half a billion unique visitors each month! Did you know that the average visitor to your website will only stay for a matter of seconds? If you have an interesting video on your site, you can grab their attention and get them involved with your brand.
Create quick, entertaining, and informative videos about your business. Have fun with it! Social media tactics (especially video) should be about putting a face and a personality to your brand. Say hello to your audience, introduce yourself and your business, talk about why you’re doing what you do.
2. Your competition probably isn’t using video yet. Beat them to it!
While there were over 2 billion videos uploaded to Facebook just last month, the vast majority of them are home videos of friends and music, and random humor. The internet is enamored by video, but most small businesses aren’t taking advantage of this yet. Be among the first in your field and add credibility to your brand. According to the most recent survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, 7 in 10 adult internet users watch videos online. Add the videos to your Facebook, Twitter, website, and blog…
3. Videos rank
Can’t find your own website in Google search? Videos can help. Forrester Research reports that an indexed video has a 50 times greater chance of appearing on the first page of search results than a page of text. To use a fishing analogy, videos are the perfect lure to draw traffic to your site and increase your online visibility.
4. Creating a video is easy!
Most smartphones will record video, you can use your webcam, or you can get a record-free Flip video recorder that fits right in your pocket. Once you’ve recorded the video, if you want to edit it there are several free tools you can use. Here are a few:
While online videos certainly don’t need to be perfect (a few “umms” or unpolished cuts add a degree of authenticity to your message), a little editing can still go a long way. If you do no other editing, I suggest adding an intro and an outro screen that shows your website address and logo. Again, you’re building brand awareness and driving traffic to your site. Make sure your audience knows who you are and how to find out more!
5. Maximise the video keywords
Before you send your video out for the whole world to see, take a few minutes to research your keywords. Before you upload it, rename the file so it includes one or two of the keywords that you want it to rank for. Fill out your complete profile with links to your website. Anywhere that you have the option of adding a description or details about your video, fill it out as completely as possible.
6. Post your videos
YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, Dailymotion, Yahoo Video… There are heaps of sites where you can submit your videos. YouTube is by far the most popular, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be your only account. Anywhere you decide to post a video, make sure to complete your own profile with details relevant to your business.
Have you seen a really great example of video marketing? Share it with us in the comments box below.
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