Video and Small Business Marketing
July 21, 2009 by Linette Gerlach
Filed under Business
Is video a good method for marketing your small business? Someone asked in the comment section on an earlier post if video was a good way to market a small business. I think online video can be part of your marketing strategy, if you do it the right way. Video marketing is becoming more and more popular these days, and there’s a reason.
Image sxc.hu
Most of the time it doesn’t cost you anything to upload your video, and some websites will even pay you for good video content. Video is easy for people to grab and post at their own website, or link to. Make a really good, interesting video and it could even go viral.
If you’re going to try your hand at video marketing I have a few tips for you.
- Don’t make a video screaming “buy my product.” No one will watch it, and it will probably be a waste of your time.
- Create a video that helps someone out. If you sell gutters, make a video demonstrating how to install your own gutters. If you sell cake decorating supplies, make a video on how to get started decorating cakes.
- If you make your videos helpful and interesting, people will watch them, they may even tell their friends to watch them, and embed them, or link to them from their blog or website. That can be some great marketing, for little or no cost.
- Make sure you make the video relevant to your company, or at least include something that will make people remember your company.
- Don’t be afraid to include your website, or company phone number at the beginning or end of the video.
If you make an interesting video that people want to watch, link to, and talk about, video marketing can be a great way to promote your small business.
Think more than just YouTube. There are many places you can upload your video, most are free, and like I said earlier, some sites will even pay you for good quality video content. Maybe I’ll roundup a few video sites and make that the subject of a future post.
Yes, video is a great option for small business marketing. It allows small business to communicate with their customers and bond with them in a sense allowing the to know, like, and trust them which are the requirements of a loyal customer base.
Great article Linette.
At vzaar.com we couldn’t agree more as we are in the business of hosting and streaming video for the growing number of businesses that want to add video to their websites.
To your first point because we have an application that enables eBay sellers to quickly and easily add video to their eBay listing we get a lot of videos where the user is highlighting the product they are selling…however by the most compelling ones are where the seller takes the time to explain how the item works, its working condition, its imperfections etc
However, the fastest growing type of video we’re seeing uploaded is the instructional guide where a business explains to the viewer how an item works or how it compliments other such items. Plus it is a great way for the seller to cross sell other items!
Your final point is one worth commenting on. There are a lot of choices out there when it comes to streaming so decide what it is that you desire the most from your videos.
- Is it a bandwidth allowance (most sites offer a limit) per month
- Is it video duration? YouTube allow up to 10 mins, at vzaar we have no restrictions.
- Is it player features. Borderless players, coloured borders, auto play are all features that businesses now want to give then greater control over their asset.
- Are you happy carrying someone’s else brand (think YouTube or Vimeo). There are plenty of solutions, like ours, that offer users the chance to stream video in an unbranded player.
Some things to think over…
Hi,
This is really a great article Linette. I agree video marketing is a great option these days; it’s more interactive and easy to understand. Visuals can efficiently communicate your message as compare to words.
I agree with you on migreen8753. Video is one of the most effective & cheapest ways to promote business. More viewers = more traffic, more traffic = more leads. I do video marketing for small local business to promote their products or services. I appreciate great tips! Thanks