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    • Mon Jun 29, 2009

    Making Video an Everyday Marketing Activity

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    Flip Ultra HDCapturing and adding video to your marketing and social media mix has become a necessary and increasingly expected part of creating your overall marketing message. With each passing day this task just seems to get easier. Camera prices have fallen while quality has risen, editing software is free and simple to use, and video hosting and streaming from sites like YouTube provide most of the heavy lifting when it comes to putting those videos online.

    Recently, I added a Flip Ultra HD camera to my portfolio of tech tools and, although I’m late to the party on singing its praises, I believe every marketer and every salesperson, for that matter, should own and use on of these babies.

    The fact that you can stick this camera in your pocket means that you can capture video stories anywhere they happen.

    • Have each salesperson gather customer success stories and testimonials during sales calls
    • Record customers giving your product a test or demonstration
    • Capture usability testing as you record people interacting with your web site
    • Record short videos of your strategic partners talking about their relationship with your firm
    • Capture highlights from every booth you visit at a trade show
    • Record salespeople giving successful sales presentations
    • Tour your office and record a “meet our staff member” each week

    The use of video will only grow more and more important, so making it as easy to capture video moments is one of the keys to getting in the habit of playing this game. Of course, don’t forget to fully optimize your videos on YouTube with lots of tags and very complete descriptions of the content.

    Things I like about the Flip Ultra HD:

    • Extremely portable
    • Very simple to use
    • High quality video and sound
    • USB connection built right in
    • Comes with its own simple software
    • Holds up to 2 hours of video
    • Relatively inexpensive – $199

    Here’s a quick in the field example – I shot this on vacation at Venable Falls in the Sangre de Christo Mountain Range in the Colorado Rockies. (You might turn your speakers down as the water is pretty loud)


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    Posted by: John Jantsch on Jun 29, 09 | 5:05 am
    Category: Marketing Plans, Web Marketing | Tags: , ,

    Comments
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    • Adi
      I guess the only issue is making it of suitable quality. I've been trying to produce frequent video content for my company and have run into concerns about their quality. I have no training in video production so it's pretty much of the point and click kind, which is the way with YouTube, but still I'm getting resistance.
    • Don't have anything to add about the Camera, but I really enjoyed the video. I grew up next to the Sangres. Brings me back fond memories. Thanks! :)
    • Naomi - I've spent a lot of time in CO but first in this location and I fell in love with it, already looking for a place there.
    • Yes, it is so lovely. I really miss those mountains. I always think I didn't appreciate them enough when I got to look at them every day.

      Not sure what side of the Sangres you may be looking at for a place, but my stepmother is a real estate agent in Custer County. I'd be happy to pass you her contact info, if you are looking at that area and if you'd like.
    • I agree! I also just invested in a Flip a few months ago, and I've been using it practically non-stop! It's great for recording speakers at conferences and quickly cross-posting to social networking sites, and I've used it for testimonials as well as personal use--when I drove across the country for a new job in Seattle, I took short video clips along the way and posted them to Facebook so my connections could follow along.
    • Heidi - love the cross country video idea - travel pics are always great - I plan to carry this to conferences and really start capturing a lot more in the way of video interviews.
    • Nice camera and great suggestion, does any one think video resumes will be big in the future?
    • This is a great idea and I have been trying to explain this to some of my local clients. Video has become the best way to capture someone's attention on the internet and if a company is not using it, they are missing out on tons of possible sales. Thanks for helping me with a few more ways to explain to them why and how to use video.
    • mark706
      brendan,
      what business do you have?
      what clients are you trying to attract and do you service?
      web-based video advertising for small businesses, IMO, is crucial, and has little or no cost...
      is there a service you use?
      i saw something about AdWido, seems interesting...
      www.adwido.com
      i think thats the right name...
    • John,

      I have been carrying a portable digital camera for a while (although not the "Flip"). To add an important point to your great article... If you are doing interviews be sure to get as close as possible, because these internal microphones built into the cameras are not like using a plug-in lavalier or hand held mic, you must get close and avoid interviewing under office air conditioners and ventilation systems.

      Also do a small "voice test" to make sure the person giving the interview is speaking loud enough.

      Great inmfo as usual.

      Bernie
    • Couldn't agree more and I cited this post in my blog here: http://bit.ly/YzNSM . Video marketing is the whole focus of my "Call-Back" video blog and cable TV program (www.geoff-callback.blogspot.com), documenting behind the scenes stories of live theatre to raise awareness, generate revenue and increase attendance. I own one of these Flip cams and it has come in very handy in the field. I often use it in conjunction with another camera at a different angel and then edit the footage together. I also just downloaded the new FlipShare iPhone app which takes sharing videos to the next level of ease and convenience ( http://bit.ly/OGBG9).
    • Oops- that link to where I cited your post is actually: http://bit.ly/oKjuJ

      Thanks again!
    • That is great quality for such a small inexpensive gadget. I cqan think of so many uses for that guy!
    • Very nice camera. Great ideas on what companies should suggest of their sales department, etc. Great stuff.
    • Online video marketing is the key business differentiator for web companies wanting to communicate effectively their product profile and benefits within the shortest possible time. There is nothing else that comes close to the effectiveness and persuasion power of a well designed video message.
    • Hi John, I have started to use Jing to video my blog and do a podcast. It seemed to me that some people are on the web but they want to do two things at once so I take take video of my screen and do the audio so they can choose. Agree that video is a great addition as an alternative, just like blog to podcast.

      The idea that you can capture valuable conversations on the fly and share them is awesome.

      The ipod has a nice attachment to to audio but not sure about video yet, sure it is coming!
    • Enjoyed your post. You are right about the direction of video and its application.
    • This is a great post! thank you for psoting this one.
      It was really a great help. It gave me additional idea
      about video amrketing.Thank you again and keep it up!
    • Good product, at Tradestead there are different kinds of such good consumer electronics with a very good price , I like it very much!
    • TxTurbo
      With many years of experience as a videophile, producer and editor, my only issue with this camera is it's stability. Even in your demo I can see how hard you were trying to hold it still, and how miserably the attempt was failing.

      Image quality is excellent, portability is excellent, audio is great, storage is wonderful. But if you can't hold the camera still, it still looks like a home movie. This is fine for some applications, but if you plan to use it for TV or web ads, promotional videos or displaying on a big screen at a conference, your viewers may pluck their eyes out.
    • Actually people charge extra to get that user generated look these days, but of course you can mount it as well.
    • TxTurbo
      This is true, but there's a difference between the 'handheld camera' feel and simply shaky. The handheld camera feel used on TV productions is created by a great camera operator and a tuned down stabilizer. It's organic and moves, but it's still smooth. To me, the video from this camera feels rough and shaky, like going 50 on a rough dirt road in an old pickup.

      Great camera, but I still wouldn't use it for any wide-scale marketing efforts.
    • Seh
      Creating video has become a strong part of my entire marketing system. Not only is it fun, but it's also been effective. I create short videos designed to catch attention. Then I lead these viewers back to a Free offer on my site. My traffic is targeted because I post at http://www.Adwido.com and they help target specific keywords and it's free to get an account.
    • saturnalia
      I've recently exported all my reels (commercial, television, behind-the-scenes and features) into Quicktime movies. I converted them to flash files and carry them around on a jump drive to showcase my work with Saturnalia Productions - http://www.saturnaliaproductions.com. They are so small I can email them as well if I don't feel like uploading them somewhere due to proprietary concerns. Everything gets smaller and more efficient to use - pretty nice. A small, easy to carry HD camera is great for me to scout and or communicate visual issues inherent to a location during pre-production. Thank you for the article.
    • Nice Product.. I guess its interesting to use that.. I tell my friends about this.. Thanks for sharing..
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