August 13, 2010

You may have heard the saying that content is king. But if you had to get specific about the online environment, the saying might be that video content is king.

The reason is simple – most people will respond much better to moving pictures and a story through video than any other type of content online.

If you are like most small businesses, though, video is likely the last type of content that you are actively using online to promote your business. After all, it seems much harder to produce than it really is. In fact, video can be the easiest type of content to create if you follow a few basic rules.

The 3 Basic Rules Of Using Online Video

1. Get an easy to upload camera (like a Flip Cam).  This will make the process of getting your video online much easier and make it more likely you will actually follow through and do it. The downside is that you don't have many editing options with the software provided, so make your shots count.

2. Shoot exactly what you want so you don’t need to edit anything. The biggest time investment in using video is having to edit afterwards, so as much as possible, film things in one take and only get what you will use.

3. Make sure to get close enough for good sound.  Video quality is no longer the major issue with online video as long as you are using a real camera and not a mobile device. The issue with quality usually comes from sound – so try to get close enough so everything you want to hear will be audible, or invest a bit of money and buy an external microphone. 

Once you have these rules down, you are all set to create videos to promote your business. The first part of having everything ready to go is the easy part. The harder part is answering the question about what your content should be.  Let’s look at a few examples of how to make this process easier.

5 Super Easy Ideas To Promote Your Business With Online Video 

1. Answer your customer’s biggest questions. In any business, you likely field the same questions from customers or potential customers over and over. Whether your business has a product or service to sell, if you can use video to effectively answer those most common questions, then you can not only use video to promote your business but also as a way to field those questions in a more engaging and shareable way. 

2. Creating an “unboxing” situation. The art of “unboxing” is becoming popular online as a way to experiencing a product without buying it. In an unboxing video, someone simply places a camera on a tripod and films themselves unpacking a product so you can see the packaging, what comes in the box and virtually watch the experience you might have if you did purchase the product. These types of videos help demonstrate to potential customers what their experience might be if they did purchase your product and though it is better suited to tangible products instead of services, the concept could be extended to services as well. 

3. Do an office tour. This is exactly as simple as it sounds. While it may seem like a trivial exercise, simply letting potential customers have a virtual look around your office can do wonders for helping them to see you as a real business with real people instead of a yellow page ad or a static website. 

4. Interview your best customer.  Not everyone will be able to get their customers to talk on camera, but if you have a customer that you have a particularly good relationship with, ask them if they would be willing to talk with you in a short video to share what they like about your business and why they might recommend you. 

5. Demonstrate your product or service in action. Think of this as a simple demo video, where you can show how your product works or demonstrate the thinking behind your services in action. Ideally, you can just capture something that you already do every day on video. 

Using video online can help you bring your small business to life and it does not need to be a daunting task requiring a professional crew and big investment.  So what are you waiting for?

Join the conversation ( 10 )

• Rohit Bhargava 1 year 5 months and 24 days ago

  

  Thanks to everyone for all the great comments!
  
  @Casey - Thanks for raising the important aspect of being relatable. You're right that sometimes being more genuine with your video can help people to connect with it because they associate better with you as a person.
  
  @Jeff - Those are some great anecdotal success metrics and ones that I have heard from others in terms of the impact of video.
  
  @Jim - Great point about captioning, not only because of people at work but also for disabled audiences who may have trouble with audio for some other reason. There are now fairly easy ways to do this with YouTube and other video platforms, and the side benefit of this is that by doing captions, you add more text based description to your video, which can make it easier to find on search engines as well (since most search engines can't index audio from a video but CAN index a transcript).
  
  @Joel - Thanks for your thinking and commenting here. I agree with both you and Mary about the importance of not doing a crappy video. I do think you can have an effective video while still doing it as more of an amateur - just like a rock band can record their first single in a garage. Would they sound better in a studio with professional help? Probably. But sometimes you need to take an easier first step to get started.
  
  @Dena - Good point and thanks for the link to your post with more ways to use video. I enjoyed it.

• Dena Stern 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  I would argue that there are a few easy ways to use video that got left off the list, most notably, using streaming video like justin.tv to have conversations with your customers online. Really great companies I love like Method cleaning products or even Justin.tv themselves use this feature plus live chat to talk directly to clients and answer questions!
  I wrote a whole blog posts on different ways to use video (not mentioned here) at http://www.workingpoint.com/blog/2010/07/19/small-business-marketing-managementvideos/ for more creative ideas on how a small business can use video to build community online.

• Joel Marshall 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  I greatly appreciate your article on using video to promote your business. It is an extremely powerful and valuable tool. And I agree that "video content is king" when it comes to the interactive space. At no other time in history has it been this attainable for any brand to rise above and be heard above their larger competitors than now.
  
  With that said, I agree with most of what Mary is saying in her response to this post. Video is not any different than other mediums. Content is king, but how you are saying it is just as important as what you are saying. And the more important your message, the more important it is that you say it right.
  
  The message is important, but the production value also has an impact upon your brand. If you have a great product, but have poor packaging, print materials or videos, it negatively reflects upon your brand. Is a poorly produced video better than no video at all? A resounding "NO!"
  
  In today's world, of technology at our fingertips, it is important to remember this simple rule: "Just because you can, doesn't mean that you should." The availability of affordable HD cameras (including the one on your phone) and easy to use editing software have made it easier for anyone and everyone to create video ...(here comes "the big but"), BUT it hasn't made it any easier to create quality videos. It still takes talent, training and skill.
  
  Every piece of communication that you put out will impact your business and have either a positive or negative affect upon your brand.
  
  The more important your message/content is, the more important it is that you say it right. You could also say that the broader your audience is, the more important that you get it right. I can't think of a broader audience than the internet.
  
  Remember that every single piece of communication you present to your target consumer will have either a negative or positive affect upon your brand.
  
  If it is worth saying, it is worth saying right.

• Jim Hausch 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  Any thoughts about captioning videos since PC audio can be distracting in a cube-farm environment? How about folks whose customers might block YT at work?

• Jeff Ramos 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  I'm glad someone else agrees with what I've been telling a lot of local businesses and brands.
  
  It's something so easy, yet so personal and moving. I am actually taking an existing blog of mine and making it fully video. Within a week, the response has multiplied 10 fold.
  
  Who would've guessed?

• Jeff Ramos 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  I'm glad someone else agrees with what I've been telling a lot of local businesses and brands.
  
  It's something so easy, yet so personal and moving. I am actually taking an existing blog of mine and making it fully video. Within a week, the response has multiplied 10 fold.
  
  Who would've guessed?

• Casey Zeman 1 year 5 months and 26 days ago

  

  Hi Rohit, I have to agree with you a bit more then with Mary on this, however I do believe editing is needed for certain parts of your video. However, if you are conveying a sense of personality, sometimes less editing and more YOU is better. Video bridges that noticeable gap of impersonality that can be found with an online business. The most useful thing I can say is this: WE all have an audience, some people may prefer a more candid personality on the screen while others might want a bit more matter of fact, more about the business. Both ways are fine, however it has been my experience that "the everyday person" wants someone relatable rather than an esoteric figure in a suit and tie. thanks again!

• Rohit Bhargava 1 year 5 months and 27 days ago

  

  Mary - thanks for the well thought out comment and sharing a necessary caution about making sure your video has the right quality. I definitely agree with your point that quality means having a well thought through message and approach for how you want to use video. The ideas in this post were just examples of the types of videos you could do. I definitely do NOT think that having a good video is the same thing as having a professionally produced video and the problem with your analogy is that it is MUCH easier to fix a typo in written content than it is to edit out a chunk of a video and still have it make sense and look good. In that way, a video is less like written content and more like sitting in a pitch meeting with a potential customer face to face. Sure you might forget some big points and not deliver your pitch exactly the way you wanted, but as long as you prepare enough and are genuine in your delivery, you can make it work. The editing process is a BIG barrier to using video and I think it is important for people to realize that with the right amount of planning, they can still use video even without it.

• JAN KASAL 1 year 5 months and 28 days ago

  

  Hello,
  Excellent article and excellent response. Of course, everybody is concerned about the quality. Business owners always consider compromises. Studies show if the content is interesting the customers are willing to accept a lower quality (lighting, sound in this case). So, small business owners, start, start, now.

• Mary Fletcher Jones 1 year 5 months and 28 days ago

  

  Well, Rohit, I have to disagree that it is easy to market your business with video. It's advisable, yes! Easy, no. No worthwhile business communications tactic is a walk in the park, and video is no exception. When we're talking about your business, it should take some planning and investment before you put it out for the world to see.
  
  You write very well and have so much influence, which I am sure you must value. I can't imagine that, before you publish a blog post, you do not proofread, spellcheck, and edit your content for readability. You would not dream of publishing a poorly written article online under your name, would you? No, because that impacts your professional reputation. It is the same with video.
  
  Video is a form of communication. Poorly produced video for a business will communicate the wrong message to customers. Quality video takes time, skill, creativity and effort to create. Well-planned video that engages is worth watching and sharing.
  
  For these reasons, I disagree that you should try to save time by skipping the editing process or trying to shoot in one take. That would be like publishing a rough draft, or skipping spell check. I skimmed through some of your YouTube videos, and they could have been improved with just a bit of planning, attention to message, basic editing, proper lighting, and improved audio. With care, you can incorporate these quality factors, even in video you shoot with a Flip at a conference. And how about a little creativity and personality? But that takes planning.
  
  Is poorly produced video better than no video at all? The answer is yes. If you are a business owner and you can't produce acceptable quality video, and you don't want to hire someone to produce affordable video for you, then you always have the option of sharing good quality video others have produced on your YouTube channel or blog.
  
  Anything worthwhile doing is worth doing well.