Seven Reasons Why Your Business Should Use Video Marketing

Are you looking for a new way to boost brand awareness, drive traffic to your site and increase sales conversions? Today, the answer may be as simple as harnessing the power of video. Video marketing is on the rise and proving to be an effective way for companies to get the message out to prospects and customers.

iSpeakEASY workshops take the fear and hassle out of adding video to your website, but before you click the workshop link, read these reasons how web video can help. 

Jimm Fox, President of One Market Media and author of the Marketing with Video and Rich Media blog, says video and video marketing will play a dominant role in the next phase of the Internet’s evolution. He offers seven compelling reasons why web video should be a top marketing priority this year:   

1. Better ROI
Adding video to your online marketing campaign can significantly improve your results. In a recent study by Eyeblaster of online advertising campaigns, video increased dwell rate on ads by 20% and dwell time by %100. Another study by dynamic logic also indicated significant improvements in brand favorability, aided brand awareness and purchase intent of rich media ads with video compared to traditional static display ads.   

2. Traction
ComScore released web video consumption results in September 09, which indicated 85% of people online consumed an average of 10 hours of video a month online. That number continues to grow every month. 26 billion videos were consumed in September in the US. Video has taken root on the Internet to the point where visitors to Web sites are now looking for video content first.   

3. Engagement
Video is the best way to keep visitors to your site engaged and the best way to engage people with your brand. Time-on-page and time-on-site numbers increase when you add video. Images, podcasts, polls, charts and graphics are all great but nothing engages a Web site visitor more effectively than video. There are hundreds of blog posts and articles like this one where Patrick Moran explains how his sales team improved their close rates by 20% and online registrations by over 25% using web based video.   

4. Video Is A Top Priority for Marketers
According to a recent survey by Marketing Sherpa, for the second year in a row video marketing is the top priority for marketers surveyed, ahead of SEO, PPC, social media, email marketing and all other online marketing tactics. Turnhere has also released a study in the fall which revealed the same results – “When asked to rank various online marketing priorities for 2010, video was ranked as the top priority.”   

5. Ubiquity
In a recent post conference interview Jeremey Allaire, CEO of Brightcove summarized the outlook for web-based video this way,“Video will become as ubiquitous as text on the web.” He went on to say, “what we’ve seen happening over the last year is this incredible growth in the number of organizations and corporations, of all types, of all industries, of all sectors of societies, embracing video to enhance what they are doing on the web.”   

6. 2010 Marketing Predictions
A year-end article by Junta 42 reviewed hundreds of blogs and articles to summarize the predictions of leading marketing experts for 2010. Topping the list – the growth and dominance of video.   

7. SEO
Type in ‘Video’ and ‘SEO’ in Google and you will discover many articles explaining how video can improve your SEO results. With the launch of Universal Search from Google, you should expect to see more and more video results occupying the search engine results that are served up by Google. That means Google is prioritizing video in its search algorithm. Not only will video help promote your products and services online, it can also help those products and services get found online. 

iSpeakEASY workshops make it easy for you to receive the benefits of web video. We do everything but the talking and we will help you with that!  

You receive coaching to create a clear and concise message, tips on how to look good in front of the camera, and the opprotunity to observe other business owners practice their presentation. You are recorded by a professional videographer using state-of-the-art equipment.  Your video is enhanced and edited before the final product is delivered to you. We can even help you post it to your website (additional fee).

 

 

 

 

Reprinted with permission from Jimm Fox
Web site: http://www.onemarketmedia.com/
Marketing with Video and Rich Media Blog:
http://www.onemarketmedia.com/blog/2010/
Email: jimm.fox@onemarketmedia.com   

 

The Power Of A Pause

Speaking Tip #20

Have you ever looked at a garden of flowers all of one color? It can be quite pretty. If  however that same garden is accented with flowers of a contrasting color – the garden becomes beautiful. While purple flowers are nice, red flowers next to them provide accent and contrast that allow purple to shine.

The same can be said for the value of silence during a presentation. Speakers often feel they need to fill the room with sound, but properly placed silence in the form of a pause adds emphasis to the words being spoken.

Too often speakers associate silence with failure on their part – after all, they are the speaker and their job is to speak. The reality is their job is not to speak, but to make a point. Including moments of quiet adds emphasis to their words and allows the audience to digest what they have heard. When we read, pauses are built in – they take the form of a period or a paragraph break.

Many speakers are afraid of silence and increase the speed of talking to avoid even a moment of quiet. When you are the one in front of a group, even a few seconds of silence may seem long and unbearable – but to the audience it feels comfortable.

In speaking, silence in the room can be a positive thing as it allows the audience to catch up with the speaker (remember, the speaker already understands the point –the audience may not). Silence allows time to think or to formulate an answer to a question asked.

Incorporate silence and pauses into your talk to create emphasis and add drama. The next time you speak, state your point and let it hang over the room while you silently count to five. Ask a question and wait for the audience to answer.

Adding space between your words and your thoughts will help the audience better understand your point and will improve your effectiveness as a speaker. Remember, it often takes an opposite to emphasize something. Stars are brighter when the sky is dark, traffic is always slower after you have been driving quickly, and a fire is warmest on a cold day. Give your audience the opportunity to experience well placed silence in the midst of your talk.

 

© 2007 iSpeakEASY – This speaking tip is one in a series provided to you by iSpeakEASY: We Help People Profit From Their Words.

 You are welcome to link to this page. If you wish to reprint or repost this article, please email us for permission. Call for information on individual coaching or group training.

Give Your Best

Speaking Tip # 55

 

 “I am not really prepared for this presentation tonight” the speaker stated as she opened her talk. “I have not been feeling well so did not have time to prepare. I did not want to let you down, so I came anyway.”

 

 As a member of the audience, what is going through your head at this point in the talk?

A.           Great, I busted my butt to get here only to get a second rate presentation

B.           On top of being bored, I will probably get sick from his germs

C.           Maybe I can sneak out the back unnoticed and get something important done

D.          All of the above

The speaker has barely started his talk yet his credibility is already lower than the floor.

There are many reasons for not being prepared for your talk but no real excuses. You knew you would be expected to speak and probably procrastinated on the preparation. Your audience has sacrificed to come hear you and deserve your best. If you can not deliver, consider alternatives that may save your professional credibility.

 “I am under the weather today and will not be able to deliver the seminar I promised you. I am very disappointed and apologize for the inconvenience, but want to be at my best for you and do not want to risk sharing my illness with you. Let’s reschedule for next week.”

Which feelings do you think you will experience after reading the above email:

A.           Disappointment yet happy to have an extra 2 hours in your day

B.           Appreciative of the courtesy of the speaker

C.           Excitement for the high quality presentation you will get when she recovers

D.          All of the above

The first speaker demonstrated lack of respect for the audience – they were not important enough to him to adequately prepare. His talk should have been planned in advance so that last minute “stresses” would not have an impact.

The audience will judge your professional abilities based, in part, on how well you present. A second-rate performance indicates you are a second-rate professional. A first rate delivery indicates you take time to plan and prepare in all aspects of your life and work.

Your credibility is on the line every time you present. A single bad presentation will not destroy your career and it won’t do anything to enhance it. Presenting is one of the best ways to build your business, gain support for your project, and influence others. The audience is giving you the most important item they have, their time. Honor that by delivering your best to them.

 

© 2009 – This speaking tip is one in a series provided by iSpeakEASY. We help people profit from their words.

You are welcome to link to this page. Permission is required to reprint this in a newsletter or other format.

Call for information on individual coaching or group workshops.  www.iSpeakEASY.net  

Preparing For The End

Imagine making it through the first 26 grueling miles of a marathon and tripping and falling just before the finish line. How frustrating! All the preparation, all the work, all the sweat and you never reach your goal.

Oddly enough, this is where many presenters fail – at the end. They do a fine job of preparing, creating great graphics, practicing, presenting and then lose credibility during the most useful and treacherous part of the talk – the question and answer period.

During all other parts of your presentation, the speaker controls the content but during the question and answer period, the audience has the advantage. Whether speaking to a large audience or one-on-one, preparing for questions will help you maintain your credibility.

Tips for success:

• Brainstorm questions you may be asked and practice your responses.  Ask others what questions they think might be asked. Keep your answers short and to the point.
• Allow your host to field questions from the audience as this will diffuse potential hostility.
• Repeat or paraphrase questions back to the person asking. This affords you time to think, insures you answer the right question and tells the entire audience what question you are answering.
• Listen. Many speakers cut off the question before the person asking has finished.
• Watch the person who asked the question while you speak. This will help them feel you are speaking to them and will provide you with feedbacks on your answer.
• When you are done with a particular answer, ask if you have addressed their question.
• Be honest when faced with a question you do not know the answer to. Encourage the person asking to write the question down so you can research it and get back to them. Try asking if some one in the audience knows the answer.
• Prepare a closing remark for when you have finished answering the final question. You get the last word – make it count.

Whether you are talking to an audience of 1,000 or speaking one-on-one, being prepared for the questions will increase your personal credibility and help you reach your desired end.

© 2007 – This speaking tip is one in a series provided to you by iSpeakEASY. You are welcome to link to this page but reposting or printing this article require prior permission. Call for information on individual coaching or group training.