Video Marketing

What to Do with this Multimedia eCourse

September 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

During this course we’ve talked about:


  • Adding audio to your website or blog.
  • Adding video to your website or blog.
  • Using video demos to capture attention.
  • Interview people for quick, quality content.
  • Hosting teleseminars.
  • Hosting webinars.
  • Podcasting.
  • Creating testimonials, reviews and case studies.

Phew! Have I overwhelmed you? I hope not. There’s a lot of information to pass on, and a limited amount of time – and space – to get it out. But don’t think you have to do everything at once. Take it a step at a time, and remember to keep making forward momentum.

You know the one thing I hate most is to see people take in tons of great information and then do nothing with it. Please don’t do that.

What you can do next is take action. Decide on one thing you can do right now and get going. Maybe that one thing will be signing up for Audio Acrobat, downloading Audacity, getting an account at Instant Teleseminar or hosting your first Webinar using Glance.

Whatever it is, take action! Small steps add up to great strides, and those strides will add up to great profits. But it all starts here, today.

Share with us what you are going to try. Leave a comment below. Then when you do it, come back and tell us how it went. We’ll all come and check it out!!

All the best in your multimedia adventures!

Joanne

 

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Using Videos For Testimonials, Reviews and Case Studies

September 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Want an easy way to add more content to your website while increasing your potential for sales? Testimonials, reviews and case studies are great sales tools that are easy to create and that visitors love to see.

Today’s lesson covers how to use these tools in your business.


Testimonials

Interview a customer – If you work with customers in person or have the opportunity to connect with your customers, then take the time to record a quick interview on their experience with your company. Remember to keep it realistic, and don’t prompt your customer to make outrageous claims that could get you in trouble with the FTC!

Record your own – If you have had an exceptional experience with a company you’ve purchased from, record your own testimonial. This resulting audio or video can be used to pass on a quality product or service to your website visitors or customers. It can also be used to promote a product through an affiliate program.

Set up a Feedback Line – One of the features of AudioAcrobat is that you can set up a feedback line. Your customers can leave audio feedback that you can then add to your sales page.

Reviews

Product reviews are in demand. When most Internet users are looking to buy a product, the first thing they do is search for feedback and online reviews. They’re not looking for reviews from the company that created the product; they want to hear from real customers with real experience – good and bad! That’s where you come in. These type of video reviews can get you search engine traffic, build your own brand as an expert and earn you affiliate commissions.

Case Studies

A case study is a step up from a review because it allows someone to follow your customer experience over a period of time, from beginning straight through to results. Record your use of a product by starting at the first use and creating a series of videos that show you figuring the product out, using it and what happens after.

So that’s it for today. No techy stuff at all! Just something to think about and a few ideas to use to boost business.

See you tomorrow when we sum up the course and what you can do to use it to its maximum potential.

Joanne

Filed Under: Blog, Blogging, Video Marketing

Easy Multimedia Content – Interviews

September 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Welcome back! I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s lesson on how to use video on your blog to demonstrate a product and encourage more sales.

Today we are going to be digging deep into the multimedia world and talking about using audio on your blog, specifically audio interviews.

Audio interviews can nicely tie together with video demos. For example, you can demo a product and then interview the creator of that product. Or you can demo your own services and then interview a customer who’s had great results. Either way, these techniques work individually but they multiply in power when used in combination!

Interviewing people is a great way to add expert advice and experience to your own blog. Though experience doesn’t have a direct monetary value, in most cases the value of featuring experts on your blog is a huge gain and return on your time investment. When creating audio interviews, you’re going to come across a few issues. The first: Who will you interview? The answer to that question depends on what you hope to gain from that interview.

Do you want to:

  • Generate leads?
  • Generate instant profits?
  • Plant seeds for future profits?
  • Generate traffic?

So once you decide who you want to interview and what your formal goals are for that interview, the next topic is what’s the easiest way to set up an audio interview so you can quickly add it to your site and use it to get more subscribers, more sales and increase your profits.

The first thing you need is a guest. The next requirement is a recording system. Finally, you’ll need a system for placing that recording on your website.

Guest – Look for guests with experience in interviews. It takes time and practice for someone to sound real and personable via telephone. You want someone whose message fits your values and your business, and who sees the worth in doing an interview with you. If your first target declines, keep asking! No one will know whether the interviewee is your first or fourteenth choice – and don’t you dare let anyone (especially the interviewee!) know they’re a back-up!

Recording System – The easiest way I know to record a phone interview is to use a regular phone, three-way calling and an account with Audio Acrobat. Call your interviewee, call your Audio Acrobat line and then set your recording. Once the call is complete, hang up, and your call is transferred to an online system where it can be downloaded or added to your site.

Playback System – Now you will need a way to play that audio on your website. If you’ve used Audio Acrobat it’s easy. Log into your account and grab a piece of code, place it on your blog, then you’re done! You will have an audio player on your blog that people can click anytime, 24-7, and hear the interview (or even download it if you wish to allow that option).

So, let’s review. Here are the three steps you need to create an audio interview:

  • Call Your Guest
  • Record Your Call
  • Place Your Recording on Your Website

Broken down it doesn’t sound so complicated, does it? Now, you’ll probably notice that I’ve given you only one option here – Audio Acrobat. The reason why is that I’ve found that too many options leads to compete overwhelm and inaction! IF, however, you choose not to use Audio Acrobat, there are  other options. [How to Add Audio to Your Blog] Just remember these three steps and you’ll be breezing your way through hosting memorable audio interviews on your website, capturing attention and bringing visitors back for more.

Now if you’re ready to host your own audio interview, go for it! It’s my goal to spur you into ACTION so you can realize true online profits with multimedia. Make your plan, invite your guest, record that call and get it on your site. So don’t wait and get going on hosting your first audio interview – you won’t regret it!

See you tomorrow when we talk about hosting teleseminars for more traffic!

Joanne

p.s. If you need an easy way to record, host and playback that audio be sure to check out Audio Acrobat.  You can purchase it here on Amazon:: Audio Acrobat

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How to Capture Attention Using Video Demos

September 8, 2011 By Leave a Comment

In today’s lesson we will cover video demos and how they can be used to generate leads and profit for your blog.

What is a Video Demo?

A video demo is a video that demonstrates how to use a product. The product can be a physical product, an information product or a software program.

Depending on what market you serve your video demo will be in one of two formats:

1. Hosted – If the product is a physical product you’ll want to show your visitors in person – with a host – what they can do with it. Informercials are a good example of this. Ever seen the Sham-Wow guy, Vince? Well, his infomercial is a good example of a hosted video demo.

2. Screencasting – If the product is digital or a software program you’ll want to do a screencast. This is where you will demonstrate on your computer while recording both audio and video.

How Do You Create a Video Demo?

Now that you know what types of demo you can create, next you’ll want to know how. Let’s run down what you need:

  • recording equipment (e.g., Flip Camera or Camtasia Screencast Software)
  • simple script or notes
  • product links

Using either of the recording methods, walk your viewers through how to use the product. Show them how easy and great it is, and what it can do for them. Will it help them accomplish a task more quickly, more efficiently, for less cost? Keep it short and sweet, and focus on the biggest benefits to the user.

How Do You Make Money?

Even if you record the best demo in the world, you won’t make squat if your video doesn’t include a clear call to action. Know the purpose of your video. Is it intended to:

  • Generate leads?
  • Generate product sales?
  • Gain new clients?
  • Sell an affiliate product?

Knowing your goal will help to guarantee you create an informative video that gets viewers to take action!

Now that you know what to do – go do it! Don’t waste time worrying and perfecting – just get going!

To get you started, here are a few resources for video-creating equipment or software:

Kodak Zi8 Camera (for in-person videos) Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black)

Camtasia (for screencasts) Camtasia Studio Version 7

See you tomorrow when we talk about using audio interviews on your blog!

Joanne


 

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How to Add Video to Your Website or Blog

September 7, 2011 By 1 Comment

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I hope you had a chance to read yesterday’s lesson on ‘How to Add Audio to Your Blog‘.  The instructions I provided there will assist you as we take the next step – adding video to your blog. These two lessons are very important to your overall understanding of this ecourse, so pay close attention and I’ll try not to bore you to death with ‘techy terms’!!

Adding audio to your blog is a great first step, but video adds another dimension, another element that can make your market really feel like they’re getting a true look at your business and getting to “know” you.

Before I tell you how you can easily add video to your blog, let’s talk about how video is made and what formats it comes in. As with audio, video needs to be saved in a specific format in order to be used online. Then, like audio, the video needs a program to create a ‘player’ so that the visitor can view it right from your own website or blog.

Let’s talk video file formats:

.WAV – This file format is commonly used on Windows.

.AVI – This is a format that many video cameras save your videos in.

.MOV – This is a format that plays on a program call Quicktime. It is typically a larger file.

Unlike audio, there are a number of acceptable video formats you can use across different software programs and sites. Don’t let this confuse you! Just be aware that you might see different file types, so you can match up the file with the software or program you want to use.

A good place to look for common video-file formats is YouTube, since it is a huge online repository for millions and millions of videos. Here is the link to what YouTube considers acceptable video formats:  http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=55744

 

How to Record Video for Your Blog

How you record your video will depend on the kind of video you shoot. Let’s consider the options:

Video Camera – Most often you’ll use a video camera to record yourself or some other live action. There are many video cameras available on the market today. Most of the newest cameras will automatically record in a file format that is computer-friendly. If your camera is older, check the user manual to determine the file format. If it’s not compatible, then you may want to consider getting a newer model or you’ll need to deal with converting file formats (which can result in degraded video quality if you are not an expert). A great camera to buy for online video is the Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black)High Definition Camcorders)
. It’s relatively cheap (less than $200), easy to use (one button to push for recording) and you can upload your videos straight to YouTube for viewing or for adding or to your own site.

Screencast Software – There are a number of programs on the Internet that will record your computer screen and your voice together, and turn them into a screencast video. The stand-out program is Camtasia. It is available for about $300. Camtasia lets you create videos, edit videos, combine media, add fancy transitions, add arrows and other call outs and so much more. It also lets you edit in-person video too. You can find it here:  Camtasia Studio Version 7. If Camtasia is a little rich for your blood, try Jing; it offers much of the same basic functionality as Camtasia, but it’s free! www.jingproject.com.

 

How to Add Video to Your Blog

Like audio, video needs a software or a script to add a ‘player’ to your site. Here are some ways to add a player:

 

YouTube – One of the most common ways to get video online quickly and easily is via YouTube. While some people will object to using a third-party service, I personally see nothing wrong with using YouTube to put your professional videos right on your website. It actually does double-duty because you get exposure through a massive site AND you get a free web-player for you blog or website. Once you upload your video to YouTube, all you need to do is get the ‘embed’ code and place it in the HTML section of your blog post.

Video Sites – YouTube is not the only free video hosting site out there. Check out Google Video, Vimeo, Viddler and a multitude of other sites. They’ll allow you to upload your video for on-site viewing or to embed within your own blog, much like YouTube.

Audio Acrobat – I’ve mentioned this program before with regard to audio, but the great news is that  it will also allow you to upload videos as well. Consider, however, that the quality with a webcam will always be lower than a high quality or HD video camera.

Here’s my rule for navigating the sometimes confusing and (yes) frustrating would of audio and video technology: Do what’s easiest.

 

Don’t do it one way because some ‘guru’ told you to. Figure out what’s going to be easiest for YOU and then just get doing it. You can always figure it out as you go and learn on the job. To me this is the difference between being book smart and having experience. You can read all you want but until you get out there and try it you’ll never learn what works for you.

My recommendation?

YouTube is super-easy and accessible, start there.

Again, you can do this! Get help if you need to. There are plenty of video experts available out there. If you do need help check out http://www.Shelancers.com for a freelancer who can guide you in the right direction.

See you tomorrow when we talk about how to capture attention using video demos.

 

Joanne

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