Tips for Marketing Your Business with Videos

Small businesses can find it difficult to reach customers, but with tips for marketing your small business with online videos, you can attract new customers that are ready to buy.

It used to be, businesses of any size or scope would put an ad in the local paper to attract new customers. Then, having a web-presence, even a single web page, became almost mandatory for a business serious about staying in business and making sales.

Advertising in the newspaper remains a “tried-and-true” method, and many businesses, large and small, have found that having web-presence does good things for their bottom line.

But online video advertising is one of the newest and most effective ways to reach potential buyers. These short commercials can generate twice the “click-throughs” of banner ads.

There are many “do it yourself” Internet sites that can provide locally-targeted, inexpensive online video ads, which are catering to small business owners.

Here are some tips for marketing your small business with online videos:

* Simplicity: Keep your ad “short and sweet.”
* Benefits: Make your promotion or discount the focus of your ad.
* Type Size: Don’t use more than two sizes in a single ad.
* Type Font: Again, don’t use more than two fonts in a single ad.
* Relevance: Use clean and simple graphics relevant to the ad.
* Testing: Methodically alter your ad to determine what achieves the best results.
* Content: Strive for authentic, personable ads with a clear message.
* Optimization: Make sure your video is “Google friendly” to get good placement in search results.
* Facebook: If you don’t have a Facebook account, make one, and add your video to your “wall.”
* Expand: Utilize the many video sites on the Internet (such as YouTube) to create maximum exposure for your ad.

These tips for marketing your small business with online videos are just the beginning, but the most important step in any project is getting started by taking that first step.
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Perry Lawrence is host of http://www.AskMrVideo.com – a website dedicated to helping businesses use video to get their message out.

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Choosing a Topic for Video

You have determined which video camera to use, and you have found the perfect spot to shoot your videos. The lighting is perfect, and you have everything in place, but now you have no idea what topic to choose for your video.

You are not alone. Many understand the purpose of video and some may be aware of the benefits it has for their business in the marketing sense, but all will have times that they simply don’t know what to feature in their video. First off, you must relax, your videos will be unnatural if you are nervous. Second, share what YOU know.

The biggest mistake folks will make is their attempt to promote something they don’t know much about. It is important to do your research and simply share your ideas. Perhaps you know a subject very well, turn that knowledge into a video series that is teaching your audience. You can make a video showing step by step instructions or simply showcasing your talents.

The ideas are endless if you simply relax and approach the making of the video differently. You may consider an article you wrote and turning it into a video or perhaps some information shared on an interview that many will benefit from. Videos are great for marketing your business, whether it is a product, or a service it can easily be showcased in a video. Don’t be afraid to think out of the box and share those thoughts on video, it works!

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

Convert your articles into Video

If you are an online marketer you know how important it is to market your business, services or products. With video becoming one of the hottest ways to market it is wise to consider converting your articles into videos.

There are several ways you can convert your articles into videos. One way is to use a program called Camtasia. If you are not familiar with this program it can be a bit confusing as well as costly. Another method that is cost effective is a program that will easily convert your articles into videos for you. By simply choosing music, some photos and your article you will soon be on your way to marketing your articles through video.

The program I am referring to is called GFX video writer. Not only is it cost effective but it is not difficult to use at all. Article marketing is a great way to market your business. This program comes with a variety of features such as fonts to choose from, backgrounds, slide transitions and more. Converting your past articles that may be accumulating space on your computer or possibly were forgotten can be given new life with this program.

Marketing your business online can be done in several ways, article writing, article distribution, audio, and of course video, my favorite. Now you can combine all into one and add another form of marketing. Try it and let me know how you like it.

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

SEO and Videos – Part 2

This is the second part of the SEO and videos, be sure to read Part 1 to get all the essential information you will need in order to have the search engines locate your videos.

Let’s continue with the tips in order for your videos to get the most exposure possible:

-Tags: implementing the proper tags for your videos is essential. The keywords used should be relevant to the content of your video. If you will be using the term, ‘video’ as a tag, be certain to have this word in your description and title. The basic rules that apply to articles or posts for tags, also works for videos. Be certain to have the description as well as the title coincide with the tags you choose.

-Branding: many individuals who make videos will neglect to add their brand to the video. Not only with the brand be noticeable but it will also direct traffic to your main site.

-Use Video Sharing Sites: It’s great to place your videos on your site but in order to get more visitors it is wise to add your videos to sharing sites. Placing your videos on sites like Youtube along with links to your site and other content and videos will increase your traffic.

-Allow Embed Code: In order for your video to be seen by more people you can allow others to take your video embed code where they can share your video on their websites and blogs. Another perk with this tip is the backlinks that will be created which also help with search engine optimization and your ranking within the search engines.

-Ask for reviews or ratings: Yes, you read that last tip correctly. When you encourage visitors to rank your videos, the search engines will find them quicker and mark them as favorites. This again will increase your status in search engines which is ultimately your goal.

-Submit your feeds: Did you know you could submit your RSS or MRSS to sites as you can for written articles? Yes, you can. Here are some that you can submit your feeds to, Pure Video , Yahoo Video , and Blinkx .

As you can tell, there are many ways to improve your rankings in the search engines for your videos. Apply some of the tips provided or all the tips and watch your traffic explode.

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

SEO and Videos – Part 1

Did you know that SEO is essential for the marketing of your videos? First off, let’s go back and explain what SEO is. SEO stands for search engine optimization and it is what is used to find your content, video, audios, brand and more on the search engines such as Google and Yahoo. There are more search engines available and more and more popping up everyday but for this explanation I mentioned the most popular ones.

There are several tips to keep in mind when developing your video and implementing it on your site for the most exposure possible. The more exposure of your video, the more likely the search engines will find your video as well. In order for the search engines to successfully find your video consider the following tips:

– Unique Videos: this sounds like common sense, but unless your videos are interesting, or useful and relevant, they will go unnoticed. As far as relevant, you may consider how to videos or showing step by step instructions. Most importantly do not create videos that are irrelevant to the services or products you provide.

– Video Length: when creating videos be sure to keep them under 5 minutes in length. Folks do not like watching videos longer than 5 minutes, their attention span is limited. If you find that you have videos that are 5 minutes or longer, consider breaking them up into parts, in order to keep the attention of your target audience.

– Enticing Title: create a unique and enticing title, this will draw the attention of your visitors as well as search engines. It is also important to use keywords in the title that relate to your product, service, brand or theme.

– HTML: although your video will be viral it is important to create html which is in the form of text on the page you are placing the video on. The text content is what is needed to attract the search engines. So, it is important to include relevant text that perhaps describes the video in order for the search engines to identify your video.

– Include thumbnails: video thumbnails are another essential tool to attract the search engines to the videos on your site. The thumbnails are previews of what your video contains, this will help the individual determine if they want to view your video. Different video search engines will choose specifics ways to display your thumbnails, some will choose by the title or the first frame of the video where others such as Youtube will create a thumbnail from the middle of your particular video.

These are just a few tips that you can begin applying to the videos on your site for search engine optimization. Be sure to come back for Part 2 of this post for more tips that will help you and your video needs.

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

Lighting Tips for Video

When shooting your video it is wise to pick an optimum spot that will give you the best amount of lighting. If you are unsure about the lighting in your room, you may want to do several test videos to find the best spot.

Below I share some tips that will definitely help:

– Be aware of your backgrounds – try to avoid doorways and messy rooms, simply be aware of what’s behind you.

– Avoid white backgrounds – not only will white backgrounds tend to wash your skin out but they are quite boring.

– Notice the overhead lighting – some overhead lighting will give your skin different shades and shadows, be aware of the type of overhead light as well, too bright is not good either.

– Avoid lights in the background – lights in the background will create shadows and will be distracting

– Natural lighting is ideal – standing in front of a window with natural light shining in and a dark background make the best settings, giving you the best natural look

– Most importantly think about your setting – do you want a more professional look, perhaps your office is the ideal spot with bookcases behind you, if you want a more natural look go outside, but be sure the sun is not shining behind you or directly overhead.

– Best tip is to practice, practice, practice – the more often you take videos, you will soon know which lighting will work best for your complexion and which setting will be ideal for your video project and most importantly – HAVE FUN!

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

Using Video in you Emails

We all know that in order to succeed with an online business or any business for that matter you must stay connected. With an online business staying connected is the foundation of building long-lasting relationships that can lead to sales, partnerships, networking and more. Since I enjoy videos, and I’m sure you do as well, why not stay connected with video emails?

Instead of the same old text email, which is still very effective, use a video to convey your message. The difference of viewing and hearing your message supercedes that of a text.

You can use a video email to promote a new project, new website, promotion or simply a way to connect. Some have incorporated videos into their newsletters as well. You can make the videos as long or as short as you like. Remember that the attention span of most is not very long. Most videos are between 3 and 4 minutes in length unless they are educational or music videos.

Video in email is a fast growing trend and the increase in click through rates can be as much as two to three times. Some things to keep in mind if you intend to incorporate videos into your emails:

– Respect your audience’s time..keep the videos short and sweet (try to keep them less than 2 minutes)

– Incorporate a tracking system to determine the click-to-view of the videos

– Be creative and use the videos to grab their attention, don’t overuse the video system

– Don’t add large or extra large animated GIF’s – {those are annoying}

– Most importantly..have fun and experiment

Next email you send consider adding a video for more impact, you’ll be amazed at the response.

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

Using Video to Sell Products

We all know that the use of videos is not new, especially when promoting a product. However, did you know that by including a video to your site your amount of sales can actually increase? Although many will not necessarily watch the video, simply having the option to view a video is a plus.

Including a video on your site of a product you are selling or promoting will give the consumer two viewpoints:

1. The trust factor is increased – the client or customer will trust you the company or business owner more if you are willing to place a video on your site. It also shows that you believe in what you are selling and are willing to promote it on your site with the use of videos.

2. You care – investing in the time to include a video as well as explanations, examples, testimonies, etc of a product you are selling or promoting will tell the consumer that you care about your site, and your product. You will be viewed as more reliable and your sales will increase.

When implementing the use of a video on your site, you may want to consider the following:

1. Add a link for the view to click on to view the video

2. Embed the actual video to your product page

Embedding your video to the product page will actually generate a higher view rate. Although both options are great, when given the option of clicking on a link or viewing right away the later is more effective. Also take into consideration the display format of your video; the most common spot is above the page fold.

Another point to keep in mind is a very important one. We all know that including videos will increase your view rate but just as creating good content, it is wise to create quality videos as well. No one wants to view a poor quality video, which can actually be detrimental to your site and product. Remember quality is best in all mediums.

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing and production.

Using Video as a Marketing Tool

Have you thought of using videos to market your business or service? If not, it’s time to start. If you have an online business or offline for that matter using video as a marketing tool is a wise choice.

Although there are many that will want to read more about your business or service, the majority are enticed by visuals. Don’t believe me? Sit for one afternoon and simply count all the commercials and infomercials that are broadcasted daily. This same concept can be applied to your business. Adding videos to your marketing plan will help your market and community connect with you.

It is difficult to express emotion with words, although there are many that can do it successfully. With the use of video, your viewer will instantly connect with your emotion and passion. You don’t have to go to the extreme as such individuals on infomercials but simply describing your product or service is a way to connect with your audience and ultimately your customer base.

A few points to keep in mind when using video to market your business or service:

– Don’t be too flashy: it may work for some on television but you don’t want to categorized as a infomercial salesman type

– Be honest: your audience, target market, customers and clients will be able to detect instantly if you are not being honest, perhaps some may not right away but ultimately they will.

– Be clear: when using video be sure to be clear in both the quality of the video itself and in your appearance and words

– Be concise: keep your videos short and sweet, many will disagree on length of video clips, so the best bet is to determine how long you will sit through a video and gage your videos to that length. Many will not sit for more than 3 minutes and you don’t want to lose the attention of your market.

Ultimately, using videos as a marketing tool is a smart and innovative idea that many are using. What are you waiting for? Start today!

– Perry Lawrence (aka Mr Video) is host of AskMrVideo.com, a website devoted to all things relating to video marketing.