Video Marketing – 3 Essential Steps To Get Found On YouTube

Because YouTube has become the 2nd most used search engine behind Google, it’s become an important component in driving free traffic to your website. But to do this you want to describe and post your YouTube videos for best results to even be viewed.

Here are 3 steps you need to pay attention to and have in place before you post your video on YouTube.

Have a great headline

When you upload, your video to YouTube, the name of your video is automatically entered in the headline space. Don’t just keep that name though! You want people to watch your video don’t you? Even though the name may be a good description of what they’ll see, you also want to entice people to view it.

Use strong keywords and power words in this headline. assume you posted a promo video for your dog training video series. You could say this:

Dog Training Promo Video

Pretty descriptive but kind of ho hum and boring. Besides, they are at YouTube so stating that it’s a video is redundant, don’t you think? Change it to this:

Dog Training – Teach Your Dog To Heel In 3 Easy Steps

See the difference?

People love tips, steps, techniques and this headline speaks to that. It also includes a strong keyword – dog training – as well as the power word, “your.”

This headline is also searched by Google so spend some time and come up with a good one.

Use good keywords

YouTube calls these tags. One way to search for good keywords is to use Google’s Keyword External Tool.

Keywords should be pertinent to the content of the video. Don’t use words not related just to get a viewer’s attention. They will see right through that and having them click off your video within seconds is not what you want them to do! You want targeted traffic looking at your video. In this case, you want people who have unruly dogs who need help training them. These are the people who will most likely buy your program.

Use these keywords in your information box

Google and YouTube search this information box as well so make sure that within this area you entice the viewer to watch the video by telling them the benefits they will receive. In this context, you will sprinkle your keywords throughout. But don’t just type your list of keywords! You want this to be readable and make sense.

Think of this information box as an extension of your website and use good copy with links back to your site.

For great ideas on how to do this for your business, you can look at our YouTube channel – YouTube.com/HowToSellYourVideos to see how we do this. Two other great marketers who do this well are Lou Bortone at YouTube.com/lbpromo and Jessica Swanson – YouTube.com/JessicaSwanson.

Why You Shouldn’t Use Free Video Sharing Sites to Host Your Videos

YouTube, and other appropriate free video sharing sites, are hands down one of the most important and economical strategies in your marketing. However, there are some good arguments against using YouTube, or other free sites like Vimeo, Vidder, etc., as your primary video hosting site.

The first thing to consider is their logo is displayed on the video, which hurts your branding efforts. You’re technically promoting the other sites AND your business at the same time. It sends a confusing branding message – even if your logo is on your video. Granted, the logo may disappear as the video plays but if you get the cursor near it, it usually pops up again. It also is prominently displayed on the screen image when the video is not playing.

But that is only one item of concern.

Secondly, embedding a video from there not only promotes YouTube or other free site, it makes yours look less professional. Sure, you’re getting free hosting and bandwidth, but that may be subtly tarnishing your image, and that could potentially lead to fewer sales and less clients

If you don’t take your business seriously enough to invest in hosting your own videos, how seriously do you think your customers or clients will take you or what you’re selling? They may feel you don’t deliver quality products and be hesitant to buy from you.

Since there are many affordable and easy options for converting and hosting your own videos on your site, using free video sharing sites such as YouTube to host your videos isn’t a good investment in your business.

Again posting to these sites is a great marketing tool…just don’t rely on them to be your primary host. Host the videos that show on your site on your own server, and then let your YouTube video lead viewers to you.

And now I invite you to learn more by visiting HowToSellYourVideos.com to get started right away using videos to grow your business.

Kim Miller is a successful video producer and publisher whose company, Panorama Studios, specializes in producing and selling special interest, educational and how-to videos. She is co-author at the HowToSellVideos.com blog, your source for advice and resources to successfully produce and sell your own videos. Visit the website for your FREE “How To Sell Your Videos” kit.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Why You Should Consider Using A Teleprompter

In my imagination I can get in front of the camera and share my wealth of knowledge eloquently and flawlessly. The truth is I can barely get two sentences out without stumbling. I don’t know what it is, because I’ve spoken in front of large crowds often, but that camera just makes me tongue-tied.

Ever wonder how Brian Williams or your local newscasters deliver long strings of information without looking at notes or stumbling? Teleprompters! Think our president can make those great speeches without a hitch? Nope… he uses a teleprompter.

I don’t know why I waited so long, but I finally faced the truth and bought my own teleprompter. I have to say that it is incredibly empowering. I now can write out my video message in advance and deliver it without having to worry where I’m going with my talk, if I’ve left something out, or if I just started going way off topic. I can adjust the speed so that it seems comfortable and natural, and I can highlight sections so that my wife and I can both be on camera and look like we’re as professional as newscasters. It’s great!

Now I don’t hesitate to write out a message that I want to deliver via video, load up the teleprompter, fire up the camera and get ‘er done.

There are a lot of teleprompter options available, from using an iPhone or iPad, to dangling notes from your tripod, to good old fashioned cue cards. The thing I don’t like about off-axis options like cue cards is that you aren’t truly looking at the camera, and that just bothers me. The prompter I bought fits over the camera’s lens so that you are looking directly at the viewer.

If you start shopping for professional teleprompters you’ll often find them in the multiple thousands of dollars, but you don’t need to spend that much. I paid $799 for the Telmax OS-15, a 15 inch prompter, and as you can tell I love it. You can learn more about the teleprompters from clicking here http://ZaPrompt, and yes, I like them so much that I signed up as an affiliate.

If you are doing online video marketing or creating video products for sale, you will find that a teleprompter makes you far more productive and professional on camera. Try it!

Buyers Guide To The Perfect HD Camcorder 2010

Buyers Guide To The Perfect Hd Camcorder 2010

Author: Art Speck

Before reading any HD camcorder review, you should really know what the best video cameras have to offer by way of features, and then consider which of these features you really need for your video productions.

Only then will you be properly informed to choose the best digital camcorder suited to your needs and find the best camcorder deals for your purpose.

Are you making videos of family events, sporting events or recording the kids growing up, vacations, special interest videos, or more professional stuff like weddings, award ceremonies or instructional videos.

Whatever, you should always read any HD camcorder review and be sure to buy a High Definition Camcorder for the best picture resolution available in 2010.

Cheap video cameras such as a pocket digital camcorder may well suit your purpose if the camcorder is for the kids to use, where quality is secondary, but for more serious stuff, find camcorder deals which give you the special quality which only the best digital camcorder models can offer.

So let’s get to the point of this HD camcorder review, deciding about features.

Recording Format

Flash Memory is the choice for the best video cameras in 2010, where the video is recorded onto either internal digital flash memory or onto inexpensive flash memory SD/HC cards, therefore eliminating all internal moving parts in the pocket digital camcorder and allowing for an extended battery life.

Recordings are made as a file, which can very easily and quickly be copied from the pocket cam to a computer. Other recording formats are to MiniDV, DVD, hard drive or several others, but these all need more space and therefore the camcorder will be much larger.

Image Stabilizer

Note that there are two types of image stabilizer, optical and digital/electronic.

The digital uses software inside the camcorder, whereas optical uses mechanical components, usually tiny gyroscopes.

Choose optical whenever possible for a more stable and clearer image.

Zoom

Again, choose optical over digital every time, because digital only enlarges the pixels, therefore getting a grainy shot.Optical zoom wins every time.

Image sensors.

The choices are CCD or CMOS, either one or 3.

CCD sensors have been the norm for a while, but now more and more brands are appearing with CMOS sensors which are mass produced and used in cell phones, and therefore much cheaper than CCDs.

The research and development seems to be all going into CMOS sensors, so these may be the best choice.

Small camcorders will only have one sensor of either type, but Prosumer camcorders and Professional camcorders are offered with 3 sensors, one for each primary color, producing denser colors.

For many more options for selecting the best video cameras, visit the feature page of one of the best HD camcorder review websites with over 100 models of HD camcorders reviewed, with all the best digital camcorder and camcorder deals in 2010.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/gadgets-and-gizmos-articles/buyers-guide-to-the-perfect-hd-camcorder-2010-2174157.html

About the Author

Art Speck is an experienced videographer having worked for 30 years in the business.

Being retired now gives me time to enjoy my passion for video cameras and in particular high definition camcorders.

The year 2010 is digital HD Camcorder year, with every major manufacturer bringing out new, low cost HD camcorders with an enormous amount of new technology which lots of folk do not understand, so I have decided to write lots of articles like this one to explain the choices between features, brands and formats.

For a quick access to over 100 new HD Camcorders view this website.

Using Video for Content Marketing

From Mequoda Daily April 5, 2010 article by Chris Sturk

In a digital world, words may not be enough.

Content marketing doesn’t have to be just about the written word. It involves any type of content and the sharing of that content with some amount of it being free. The free aspect is designed to show consumers the value of your content before ever asking for their money.

Within the digital world, this content should be created to live harmoniously along multiple mediums.

Video as content

Google purchased YouTube in 2006. They saw the immense potential that YouTube had then, and still has now.

Let’s not forget that Google is the most popular search engine in the world. I don’t know about you, but many searches I’ve been conducting lately have retrieved video content on the first page of rankings. It seems that more cross-pollination between Google and YouTube is taking place.

So what does this mean for the current state of online video?

For starters, if you aren’t using video, and feel that it can fit with your content, you should seriously consider it. Using video will open new audiences of consumers who are primarily engaged by video content. This may include younger generations, adopters of video-ready devices like smart phones, or simply those who prefer to have more of their senses and emotions catered to.

Also, just because it’s video content, it doesn’t mean that it has to be extremely produced. With the help of programs like iMovie or Windows Movie Maker you could create video content comprised of images, slideshows or even PowerPoint presentations.

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A new means of marketing

We have all been victims of horrible television commercials for years. In fact, I have drastically cut down on watching TV because the advertisements were so mind-numbingly brutal that I lost all interest. If companies want to continue with screaming “messages” at their audience, they can do so. But I feel the days of that working consistently in a successful manner are over. I do not like to be spoken at, or in most cases screamed at, in order to buy a specific product. Show me the value and then I will consider it.

This is what content-based videos can do for marketers. If you have a product worth investing in and you understand the fundamentals of internet marketing that we discuss at the Mequoda Daily, then chances are with the depth and reach of the internet you will be able to connect with the correct audiences.

And unlike television commercials, online-based video content can engage the audience member. The video can be interacted with and the viewers can feel like they are engaging in an actual relationship with a company, opposed to being screamed at to buy something.

Video content and Google

If you do decide to enter the world of video content, be sure to treat the content as you would blog articles or other website content you’d like to have found by search engines like Google. By this I mean:

1. Make sure you optimize the video for keywords
2. Have a catchy, preferably keyword-rich title
3. Add keyword-rich copy to the page the video is on
4. Tag your videos with keyword phrases
5. Brand the video with your logo and link to your site if you’re primarily using video hosting sites like YouTube
6. Add descriptive meta data
7. Keep the video to an appropriate length and make it full of great content

Permalink: http://www.mequoda.com/articles/new-media-trends/using-video-for-content-marketing/

Looking For A New Pocket Video Camera? Meet The New Flip MinoHD

Are you looking for a new pocket video camera that makes a statement? Well, Flip Video recently introduced the second generation Flip MinoHD.
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A Video Kiss: Keep It Short & Sweet

I came across this great post by Gretchen Parks (http://www.FocusOnNetworking.com) via my LinkedIn account that offers perfect advice for keeping your viewers watching. Read on.

Have you ever been watching an interesting video only to notice that there was 13 minutes left to go? Suddenly the urge to click off hits you and you decide that no matter how interesting, you just can’t sit still for that long and you click to close. Although videos seem to be an ever increasing method of attracting attention online and are popular for their ease and convenience, that doesn’t mean that you can ramble incessantly and expect your viewers to continue watching.

When it comes to video marketing, the acronym, KISS is a great rule of thumb. Keep it short & sweet so your fans do not start hitting close, delete, unsubscribe, or anything else to get you off their screen. I can ramble with the best of them (and women tend to do that more than men), but there is something to be said for brevity when it comes to shooting video.

One way to keep it brief is to carry your video camera around with you and shoot short snippets as you do life with small teachable moments that you can share throughout the day. There are many moments in the course of the day that have a correlation to something we do in business. Find them and use them. Five 1½-minute videos will go farther than one 5-minute video.

If you cannot or don’t want to carry your video camera with you throughout the day, make sure to write a note to yourself or record into a voice recorder what your idea was so that when you get back to the camera, your idea is ready to go. Record your small ideas. Hang onto your big ideas that might include a lot of content, break them down into a video series. These make great video training courses that can be given away with a purchase, to new list subscribers, or as exclusive training for your team.

Don’t forget the video camera the next time you go on vacation either because making videos is a very quick and easy way to share your vacation with your fan base, while also proving to your tax accountant that you were actually doing business while you were traveling with the family or visiting world landmarks.

When you load your videos onto a video sharing website, make sure to list your website address as the very first item in your description so that viewers see that first and can click your link very easily if they like what they see.

KISS your videos and keep them short & sweet and make the most efficient use of your time while also providing yourself more linkable videos to get more traffic to your web pages.

Running Low on Leads? See These Seven Free Videos to Show You How To Attract More: http://bit.ly/1zFOIf

Gretchen Parks
http://www.FocusOnNetworking.com
206-338-3824

The Secret To YouTube Success

Are you posting and or hosting your business video clips on YouTube or any other popular video hosting site? You should! When asked, many of our customers say they found us through YouTube. But there are tricks to using YouTube successfully and our friend Doc Yankee’s little Mojo Video is a must-watch. Here it is from his site – http://docsmarketingmojo.com

5 Tips For Better Video

The following is from Perry Lawrence at AskMrVideo.com. He gives 5 easy tips for creating more and better video. Recorded on September 2, 2009 using a Flip Video camcorder.

I post it here because his site is one of the best resources we found on using and making money with video.

Top Five Tips to Producing Testimonial Videos People Will Believe

Testimonials from happy customers on your site is very important and powerful. Video testimonials are even that much more powerful and promote regular and long-term recommendations that will deliver you significant business benefits.

Not all testimonials are created equally. Here are some key items to keep in mind when you are collecting your testimonial videos.

1) Use real customers that have had a great experience with your product or service. You’ve seen ads where they (say) paid actor, not an actual customer. While delivery is important, don’t worry if it doesn’t sound scripted or professional. You want your testimonials to be from real people and believable.

2) Be a director. Coach them to make sure they give you a persuasive testimonial. Since they probably will not be that comfortable in front of the camera, giving them some direction as to the message you want them to deliver will be very helpful.

3) Have them give specifics not generalities about why to do business with you or buy your product. Consider these two statements. “I really liked working with XYZ.” “Before I hired XYZ bookkeeping services, I spent hours on my own books and struggled with learning the software. Now all I need to do is look at my monthly reports and because I freed up 20 hours a month from bookkeeping, my sales have increased by 20%.” Which one persuades and informs you more?

4) Collect as many testimonials as you can and only post the most powerful ones. And don’t stop collecting testimonials and updating them.

5) Be honest and upfront with your customers as to why you want them to give you a testimonial and that it will be on your website. Having them sign a simple model release is a good idea. Make sure they state their name and where they are from. You don’t have to state the exact city or town if they do not wish; you can have them state the area of their county, state or the country. If they are representing a business that is endorsing you, have them state the business name also.

A recent Nielson Company report states, “The recommendation of someone else remains the most trusted source of information when consumers decide which products and services to buy.” 78% of respondents said they trusted – either completely or somewhat – the recommendation of other consumers. Video just enhances this recommendation. Don’t forget to add this key marketing tool on your website.