steal these ideas | stand out with video marketing

did you know? youtube is the number 2 search engine after google. and video is one of the most underused marketing strategies by little businesses. yes, a there are a lot of bloggers & information providers using video, but are your competitors or the complementary businesses in your niche?

if not, then video could be a great way to stand out amongst the competition, to improve your SEO, to connect with your customers, and have some fun with your marketing.

the other great thing about video is that they are immensely sharable! awesome videos get liked, pinned, tweeted, shared, and viewed multiple times; so if you make a good one you can increase your word of mouth marketing even as you engage with fans, answer objections, offer expertise, and build SEO – all at once!

ah, but the question is "what the heck would i do with my video?" here are some examples & ideas to inspire you…

tell a story, like rocking green

this is a great example of a video that just uses images, text, and music but is still powerful. you don’t need to be a ‘talking head’ in a video!

inspire people, like danielle laporte

i want to watch this video every day. give your customers & fans something that makes them feel uplifted, motivated, encouraged, not alon, or just plain freaking awesome.

be memorable, like megan auman

lots of steel (jewelry) from megan auman on Vimeo.

this video is short and simple, but megan shows what she does in a really cute way. you can see another one from mgean here in her about page; in that one i love how she shares her WHY, as well as her expertise & talent, and the process that goes into her work.

help people, like marie forleo

marie’s videos are one of the few i consistently watch because she offers concrete help (no ‘if you just buy my thing you will get the answer) but she is also fun to watch, and you feel like you get to know her. (you can see all of marie's awesome videos here on 'marie tv' and you can sign up for her FREE 4 part video series which goes more in depth into rocking your online marketing - find that here.)

entertain, like dollar shave club

i have shared this video before in my post on ‘make me feel good about my purchase’ but i couldn’t write about video marketing and not include it. you will want to share it with someone. trust. and isn’t that what you would want with your videos?

guest post | Make Your Business Stand Out With Multimedia

a guest post by Alison Dias-Laverty of Photoshow on DVD sharing an idea for marketing your business online

The advent of technology has brought about an exciting introduction into the world of multimedia. There are many ways you can use it in your business to create awareness and capture the attention of your customers. All you need is a little creativity to get yourself moving.

 Your Very Own Web Slideshow

 A very simple marketing strategy is using photos and videos of your products and services to create web slideshows. These will show your potential customers a personal look into your business and offerings, and make your business more memorable to visitors.

 When you create a web slideshow, you will be able to incorporate your brand, logo, contact details, information on your products and services, use music or even a voice recording. And you can do all of this without burning a big hole in your budget.

 There are many free trial softwares that allow you to create slideshows:

• http://www.smilebox.com/  Creates a simple slideshow
• http://animoto.com/  A more creative Slideshow
• http://www.photodex.com/ Allows you to create unlimited short slideshows

 These softwares allow you to create web slideshows using your photos or short videos, add text and motion effects and use royalty free music. Make sure you incorporate your brand into the web slideshow and display your products or show your services.

Once you have created your web slideshow, you can create a free YouTube account and link the slideshow to your website. The popularity of the various social media channels makes sharing multimedia easy and effective; you can enable sharing your videos on Facebook and Twitter in your YouTube account.

Here is the slideshow we use on our business site; it shows examples of what we do and why we do it, and ways in which people can make use of our service.

Slideshows are just one way of adding multimedia to your business promotion; there are endless ways to use multimedia in your business and give you the ability to tap into the ever changing world of technology. Have fun with it and make an impression!

an additional note from karen:

thank you so much alison, for sharing this idea. i have been reading more and more about how valuable it is to have a little piece of YouTube property for your business: it is the next largest search engine after google, google ranks YouTube links quite high, it gets a shit load of traffic and it is a relatively untapped resource for little businesses (say compared to facebook pages!).

a slide show is a great option for those not wanting to get themselves in front of the camera in full video format. i know i have been hesitant about just talking in front of the camera to create a YouTube video (is it just me or do you hate seeing yourself on video?) but a slide show is something i can see myself doing!

some further reading on YouTube as a social media strategy, in case you still need convincing =)

• http://prinyourpajamas.com/making-a-case-for-youtube/
• http://thebowditchgroup.com/social-engagement-for-small-business-using-youtube/

Alison Dias-Laverty is mother of 2 and a Portuguese Eurasian originally from Singapore who now calls Brisbane home. With over 20 years experience in marketing and multimedia within the corporate sector, she started her own multimedia business specializing in the creation of slideshows and video conversion. She provides services with a personal touch and also has a blog to share resources and tips to help businesses and individuals make better use of technology. Visit the Photoshow on DVD website and facebook page.