We’ve discussed the video topic before, most recently in this post. We keep coming back to it, because it’s still the best tool you’re probably not using …and there’s just no good reason for it to stay that way.
Our reminder came from running across a post by David Wells that’s really an interview he did of Steve Garfield …who, it turns out, wrote the book on the subject (“Get seen”). The interview enabled Steve to briefly cover the why and how of using online video in business …yes, even B2B business…
Why
Steve: “You capture the emotion of people. Companies are made up of people, and people have stories. Video is the best way to tell a story.”
How to start
If you have a smart phone, use that. If your phone lacks a decent camera, use the webcam on your computer. The main thing is to get started; start small and work your way up to better equipment. The barriers to entry for video have never been lower.
Think casual
“Every video you create doesn’t need to be polished and edited to the max. You can shoot simple one-take videos of you talking with your customers, answering questions, or sharing some interesting industry information.”
Steve uses the example of Chevrolet.posterous.com, which consists mostly of prospective customers reacting to a test-drive of the new Volt; no editing, no titles, no credits, no music …but it’s real and authentic, which people crave. It’s a great B2C example; but we found a super B2B case in a post by Thomas Clifford over on the CMI blog: a “behind-the-scenes” mini-documentary capturing the before, during and after of two speakers giving TEDtalks. Thomas goes on to provide a terrific how-to recipe for this genre; but our point here is simply that the event-based mini-doc lends itself perfectly to the casual (-seeming), cinema verite’ mode we’re talking about here.
Set ’em free
Keeping your video content locked up on your own domain just doesn’t cut it anymore. Post your videos on a number of different video channels, and leverage the search capabilities of these video platforms by using good titles and descriptions on every video you post. Don’t forget… YouTube has actually become the 2nd largest search engine in the world!
Want to go further? Get your video’s content transcribed; this will enable search engines to find and index all that keyword-rich “spoken” content within the video, and help pull in organic search. Just find a transcriber via Craigslist, or use a service such as Speechpad.
Biggest mistakes to avoid
The cardinal sin of video is having bad audio. People can put up with slightly blurry cameras or bad lighting; but if the audio is ringing, grating or otherwise of poor quality, it can give your audience a headache and will turn them off. You can get a decent microphone for around $100 that will give you great audio on any recording from your computer …so there’s really not much excuse.
Content and passion are what truly matter
If you’re not passionate about the subject matter of the video you’re producing, it will be painfully obvious to viewers (remember, they can see you!). Just be authentic and real, and share your knowledge with the world.
Now, let’s hear from you about your experience using online business video…
