Ever since the election of Barack Obama back in November, and subsequently his inauguration, there's been a lot of chatter (and twittering) about our government becoming more transparent. After all, President Obama's use of social media during his campaign seemed to make him more accessible and made us feel like we could actually help him to shape policy in Washington.
Now, even though we haven't heard from him on Twitter since January 19th, he and members of his administration have posted weekly addresses and messages on YouTube on the White House Channel. In my opinion, I think this is great. I wouldn't necessarily call it transparency (we're never going to get that - it's US government); but he's making use of a popular medium outside of television to spread a message. So, the executive branch is on YouTube, so what about the legislative branch.
Um, yeah.
The official YouTube channel of the US House of Representatives is called HouseHub. I checked it out, and I did find some interesting stuff on there. Different representives (and senators) have their own channels, and in their videos they talk about issues that matter to them and what they plan to do. Some of these videos stir up some good discussion and debate in the comments (check out "Meet Senator Sanders" on Vermont senator Bernie Sanders' channel). But others, well, don't give me too much hope. Here's a prime example:
Was I just rickrolled by Nancy Pelosi? And her cats?
So, what do you think? Are congress's YouTube efforts a big step forward, or a big waste of time (for them and us)?
Today's guest post is from Adam Helweh of Secret Sushi Creative.
It's the second in a series of posts Adam is contributing about online
video.
It has been a couple weeks since part 1 in this 4 part series about online video for business. I explained huge number of users who reply on online video to educate, entertain, and potentially sell them on your service or product in a way that static images could never achieve. In this article we will cover some of the tools, devices, and software you can use to capture your online video, edit it, and get it online.
2008 has been a wild ride of a year, hasn't it? Social media has really started coming into its own, and everyone wanted to create something "viral" (including those of us in online marketing). So, as 2008 comes to a close, I'd like to reflect back on some of the viral videos that caught my attention in the marketing and social media sphere.
Today's guest post is from Adam Helweh of Secret Sushi Creative. It's the first a series of posts Adam is contributing about online video.
Put a hand up if you have ever watched a video online. Ok, keep it up if you have sent someone else a link to a video online. I bet there is a good chance that your hand is still up. Ok, now keep you hand up if you have ever uploaded a video online. Although you might still have your hand up, you might be surprised at the number of people who have not taken advantage of the increasingly easy and powerful medium that is online video.
Starting with this article I plan to provide a little insight into online video, some of the many tools used to create videos, which services to consider, and some of the ways to reach viewers. This series of articles should be especially useful for those who put their hand down on my last question; but even if you have uploaded a video before I hope you might still learn something.
Online video is only a few years old and has been gaining popularity faster than almost any digital medium. Previously those who wished to distribute video online had very limited choices. Since the debut of Youtube in mid 2007, things have exploded. Recent numbers by ComScore show Youtube's parent company Google, accounts for 63% of the US search market share. What is most interesting is that 25% of the searches on Google are Youtube video searches. Considering that 2.7 billion searches were generated by Google last month, that is a lot of people looking for videos - 621 Million to be exact!
The numbers say a lot, but here are a few other reasons to consider doing more than watching online video:
Inexpensive tools & software have made producing videos easier than ever (we will discuss this in part two)
Almost all online video services are free (more about this in part three)
Online videos can become "viral" and are easy to share with a dozen friends or 1,000 potential customers (covered in part four)
Online video is easily measured. Most services provide statistics on views, visitor demographics, and other valuable information (also covered in part four)
Video has always been one of the most powerful ways to communicate. Whether it is a how-to, show & tell, or "watch my kid!" video, getting it online and in front of friends, family, and customers is easier than ever.
Adam Helweh is the principal of Secret Sushi Creative, a new media marketing and design company located in the Silicon Valley. Adam has been involved with the creation of digital media for 10 years and currently advises clients on social & new media marketing strategies for their businesses. He also enjoys the show Lost, his cat Tiger, and of course sushi! You can contact him at adam (at) secretsushi.com.
Web content isn’t just about articles and blog posts. Content can be just as effective (if not, more effective) when it’s more…visual. There’s a really good chance that a high percentage of your visitors are visual learners – meaning you need to provide them with content that they can easily digest and understand.
Enter online videos.
Online video content can be a very powerful way to convey any sort of message to your audience while adding that much-needed personality to your business. It adds a dimension of value to your web content that isn’t necessarily achieved through text alone.
Now, I’ll be honest with you – I’m pretty new to online video creation. However, I realize how effective it can be as part of a content marketing strategy, and I wanted to publish a series on it in the hopes that you and I both would learn something more about it.
Future posts in this series will delve more into the creation and optimization of online videos. Meanwhile, I’d like to give you a few ideas in this post
Different Ways Online Video can be Used
Demonstrations/How-To’s: These can be extremely effective, especially if you have either a somewhat complicated product, or a versatile product with lots of uses. How-to’s don’t have to be focused on one particular product either – just keep your target audience in mind. Think about what sort of video content would be valuable to them, but still relevant to your website. Examples: Cooking demonstrations, arts & crafts how-to’s, home DIY demonstrations, exercise demonstrations
Interviews: This type of video is especially effective for B2B websites. Conduct interviews of thought-leaders in your industry at conferences, seminars, or even at your company. This sort of video content is meant to build credibility and authority by associating your company with a well-respected figure in your industry. Talk about the future of your industry as a whole or a specific aspect, or get opinions on recent industry news that impacts your customers.
Examples: Here’s a great example of the interview video for the online marketing industry.
Video sites to check out:IMBroadcast, FreeIQ (has how-to’s and interviews), DoGooder.tv (video site for non-profits)
Events: If your company regularly holds seminars or sessions at industry conferences, or participates in community events, take those opportunities to record them on video and post them on your website. This provides valuable content to your visitors who weren’t able to attend your events in person, and also shows your company’s community involvement. Examples: Check out the series of videos Search Marketing Expo posted here from the "What Is Spam" session at SMX East.
Video sites to check out: IMBroadcast
Humor: What better way to demonstrate the lighter side of your business then with a bit of humor? The key here is to show video content that is funny or lighthearted (and IN GOOD TASTE so as not to offend anyone) while still maintaining a thread of relevance to your company or products.
Examples: I posted a video in last Friday’s Whole Lotta Link Love that was a parody of Alanis Morrisette’s song “You Oughta Know”, which is a really great example of a humorous video that is still relevant to the company that produced it, HubSpot.
Also check out the Vimeo HQ channel on the video site Vimeo – all “behind-the-scenes” videos of life at the company.
Have you ever used online video content on your website? What worked for you and what didn’t?
