Sucessful Online Marketing Using Video

There are three basic but very important reasons why VIDEO should be an integral part of any online marketing plan.

1 – Video makes for nearly instant BRAND AWARENESS

2 – Video ENGAGES THE USER to become involved with a web site, Facebook page or (of course) a YouTube channel.

3 – By having quality video on your site, your rankings in the search results are vastly improved. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION is key to any online marketing plan.

According to Jesse Noyes in the December 10, 2012 edition of CONTENT MARKETING, “It’s no secret that online video has become one of the hottest trends in content marketing. But it’s not just that video is big right now – it’s that it’s getting bigger. Earlier this year, Social Media Examiner reported that video was the number one area where marketers planned to increase their investments for 2012. As a result, online video usage rose 12% amongst B2B content marketers.

Mr. Noyes also points out these 5 key stats about online video marketing.

1 – Over 85% of the country’s internet users viewed video content in September 2012 alone. Is this really a surprise? It seems like the whole world is online viewing the answers to their information needs, purchasing requirements and leisure activities.

2 – About half of the people said they would be more likely to get more information about products and services after seeing them in an online video.

3 – 70% of B2B marketers use some form of online video in their campaign strategies.

4 – YouTube averages 4 billion…that’s right, 4 billion hits each and every day, and 60% of B2B marketers use YouTube to further extend the reach of their messages.

5 – Lastly mobile viewers tend to watch even longer than those of us on laptops and PC’s. The number of mobile users is expected to reach over 60 million by spring 2013.

There’s a large audience out in the world looking for what you sell, what you provide. Online video is a key tactic to get YOUR message across in ways that were never possible before.

Amy Porterfield writing for SOCIAL MEDIA EXAMINER back in May of 2010 said “There’s no doubt that online video marketing is on the rise. Numerous studies and statistics prove that video works. In fact, Forrester Research found that videos were 50 times more likely to receive an organic first page ranking than traditional text pages. That’s a pretty impressive stat!”

As the years have gone by her words ring as true as ever! She goes on to say

“Online video marketing is attractive to many businesses today for numerous reasons. Making videos and posting them online is fairly inexpensive. Plus, online videos stay online forever. If you spend the money to record once, your video could still be getting views a year from now. In addition, social media sites and video go hand in hand and most sites encourage video posting and sharing. The viral video opportunities are endless when you use the right strategies to create and post your videos online.”

The power of video is quite plain to marketing professionals. But the use of video is not some mysterious and exotic tool unto itself. Video follows the same tried and true advertising and marketing rules as any effective medium. First and foremost provide a clear, concise and targeted message. If you sell a large variety of ladies shoes and just a few dresses put the big emphasis on the shoes! Keep the message focused and accessible. Say what needs to be said so ANYONE can understand it.

It is advisable to have clear contact information as well an offer, a call to action.

Since video is such a powerful tool in the branding arena, remember that QUALITY COUNTS. Amateurish low budget productions may be somewhat funny and possibly endearing in the short run, but you need to be careful with what lives online. The wrong video can have just as large a negative effect on your message and branding as the right video can portray a positive look. Decide who and what you are BEFORE you endevour to begin a video campaign online.

Fortunately professionally produced videos can be had within the reach of most

marketing budgets, and certainly when compared with the costs associated with other traditional marketing methods.

Produce the “story” of your business, your product or service and place it in multiple locations on the web. Start with a YouTube channel. If you don’t have a YouTube account that you can post videos on, then you are missing out on a lot of traffic and potential business! Once you are there, you can then additionally embed the videos on your web site.

If you have a Facebook page, upload the same video there. Facebook is one of the biggest websites in the world. Facebook has more than 1 billion users! Create your own page, comment on other people’s pages, post photos, even run a very minimal ad, and also get people to like your page. By doing these things you will be increasing your exposure in a positive and meaningful way, once again interacting with potential clients.

You are now getting great online coverage with a single production. Where to from here? From time to time update your video, or create new shorter videos to address specific issues such as new products or services; new rules, regulations or educational materials; personal messages from your sales people or CEO; testimonials from satisfied clients. Your videos will create a “working interaction” with both clients and prospects that simply cannot be achieved in any other manner.

According to the SOCIAL MEDIA EXAMINER, April 15th, 2013 “76% of marketers in the United States plan to add videos to their sites, which places their importance firmly over other forms of social media. According to Adam Hudson, CEO of Fire Starter Videos, a Hollywood based corporate animation company, the reason is simple.

“The great thing about explainer videos, is that they tell consumers exactly what a company does quickly and in a way that makes it easy to understand. The art of explanation is only now revealing itself as companies realize that they have an ever decreasing window of opportunity to get their messages through to consumers with shrinking attention spans.”

If you are using the internet to get your message across; to sell you products or services; to educate or inform…video needs to be a significant part of your marketing efforts.