VIDEO! This word has come up so many times lately that I … well … I am paying a lot of attention!
I've read several really helpful articles in the last few days – helpful to my B2B Marcom efforts.
First, MarketProfs sent me an email with a link to a great online article titled, Simple Steps for Adding Multimedia to Your PR Program.
I am intrigued with this because of something else I read this week. It was an article in AdAge.com titled, Ten Lessons for Marketers Using Viral Videos It was written by YouTube uber-video-dude, Kevin Nalts. Yes! The Farting in Public guy.
I integrate all sorts of information, sometimes coming up with good stuff, other times making an awful mess of confusion. In this case, these articles gave me some great inspiration and information that I can use in my B2B Marcom practice.
Allow me to mash-up a few quotes from these articles:
If print communication alone is no longer sufficient for print publications, it probably isn't sufficient for you, either. In my industry, ALL the trade magazines offer a robust online component, complete with video stuff. Get it?
Following on: The media has a high demand for video content. Use of video by newspaper Web sites is expected to double over the next 12 months. (Source: Borrell Associates)
And … Most Web users watch online video today. In fact, 1 in 5 say they stream video every day. (Source: Pew Internet)
Get it?
Baby steps for getting started:
1. Think visual.
2. Begin adding short videos to your Web site. Product demos, CEO interviews, ...
3. Start YouTube and Flickr accounts.
4. Learn the ropes before treading into the world of wacky viral videos.
Sounds easy enough. But what about …
Quality of the video is not what determines its popularity.
You may be a conservative organization, but don't let that keep you from this medium.
But, honestly, where is all this going?
This medium will become measurable.
If you are a B2B Marcom professional, you owe it to yourself to read these articles, and to get into video today.
When I started, I didn't know a thing about online video. I made a lot of mistakes … but I also made progress. Today I have online videos that garner thousands of views (in an extremely tecchie arena, rife with dry, old-fashioned product data sheets and application notes). People email me and tell me how much they appreciate the refreshing new perspective on what we do.
It's all so new and young. You haven't missed the boat. Grab the chance and get experienced before the end of 2007.