Archive for the ‘Video Marketing’ Category

Use QR Codes to Serve Up Product Videos to Your Customers

Monday, February 13th, 2012

Do you own a retail store or have some sort of physical location that your customers can come to buy your products? If so, how are you engaging your customers when they are at your location? Customer engagement is an absolute must for all business owners. If your customers aren’t engaged in your business then they are going to leave your store as quickly as they entered. A great “non-salesy” way to get your customers to learn more about your products is to use QR codes as a way of encouraging customers to watch product videos while they visit your store.

How to Use QR Codes to Serve Up Product Videos

qr codes in store videoDo you have any products that customers always have questions about? Do you sell technical products? Do you have products in your store that customers absolutely love and always come back to tell you about? All products have a story. All products need to provide customers with value. Some products are intuitive enough whereby customers don’t need extra information. Other products need to be explained before customers are willing to buy them. If you’re looking for ways to engage your customers when they come to your store, then why not use QR codes and product videos to do it?

Here are a few of the major steps you need to take to execute this marketing tactic in your store:

  • Find 4-5 products that you think would benefit from a little more attention and explanation
  • Shoot quick 30 second to 1 minute videos for each. Pick a topic for each. They all don’t have to be “How-To” videos or “Customer Testimonials”. In fact, it would probably be better if they were a little different.
  • Upload them to your YouTube Channel
  • Find a QR code generator that can display URLs and create a QR code for each product video
  • Print each QR code on a sign that can be displayed on or near the appropriate product
  • Start promoting your new marketing tactic online and in your store – Let your customers know how they can get access to these great new videos. Most customers will have smart phones with the capability to scan QR codes and watch online video.
  • Train your employees on how they can help your customers interact with QR codes in your store

Benefits of Using QR Codes to Serve Up Product Videos In Your Store

Using QR codes to serve up product videos to customers who visit your store can offer a business a number of different benefits. Here are a few of the top benefits of using QR codes for video marketing:

  • Increases sales
  • Engages customers while they are in your store
  • Builds a deeper relationship between you and your customer
  • Increases the customers’ product knowledge
  • Keeps customers in your store

Increasingly we are seeing businesses use technology-enabled engagement tactics to educate and engage their customers. QR codes are fun. Videos are engaging and can be educational. Using QR codes as a way to get customers to access your product videos can be extremely impactful for those business owners who implement it properly.

5 Types of Videos to Serve Up Via QR Codes

So, are you thinking that this might be a fun tactic for you to try at your business? If so, here are a few ideas for different types of product videos that you can serve up to your customers through QR codes:

  1. Technical videos
  2. Customer testimonials
  3. Fun facts
  4. How it’s made – Talk about how the materials used in the product are sourced (ie. organic, fair-trade, etc.)
  5. Product benefits

These are just 5 different types of videos that you can create, but there are probably a lot more. What you want to do is think about your products and your customers. What type of videos would your customers find most valuable? Once you figure that out, the rest is easy! ;)

Has anyone ever used QR codes to serve up product videos to your customers? If so, please share your experiences with our readers by leaving a comment below. We appreciate it!

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Posted in Video Marketing | 6 Comments »

Shoot a Commercial for Your Small Business

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Do you own a small-to-medium-sized business? If so, you probably haven’t considered ever creating a television commercial to help promote your business. Why? Because it’s just way too expensive. Plus you’re probably noticing that TV ads are rapidly losing their effectiveness for helping to sell products and services. With all of this being said, it doesn’t mean creating commercials for your small business is a bad idea. Notice I didn’t say, “…creating TV commercials…”. New video recording, editing, publishing, and promoting tools are popping up everyday, which brings down the costs for creating a commercial for your business.

Say goodbye to this…

Commercial YouTube Small Business

Create a Marketing Plan for Your Commercial

The BIGGEST piece of shooting a successful commercial for your business is Planning. We always say, spend two-thirds of your time planning, and one-third of your time executing your promotional campaigns. Video is no different, and actually one of the more important marketing tactics that this division of time is necessary. You don’t want to re-shoot your commercial, right?

Go over what your goals for the commercial are, then develop the idea for the commercial (which should be geared towards achieving your goal and include your marketing message), write your script, and then put together a Shoot Day Guide (a list of helpful reminders for the day of the video shoot). Once all of this is taken care of, find your “talent” (if you’re not going to be in the video), get them a copy of the script, explain the purpose of the commercial, and answer any questions they have. Once you’ve done this, it’s onto shooting and editing your commercial.

Shoot and Edit Your Video with iPad

There are a number of different tools out there which can help you shoot and edit your commercial. You can purchase a video camera and editing software for your Mac or PC. You can outsource it to a video marketing company. You can also use iPad 2 to do it all for you. iPad 2 comes with a video camera. As for video editing, all it takes is an iPad app like ReelDirector 3.0 to get the job done. We recommend you use iPad for both shooting video and editing (as long as you’re not looking for HD quality video). It’s cost effective, easy to manage, and all occurs within one tool.

On Shoot Day be sure to arrive on location earlier than everyone else. Get everything setup (except for things that others’ are responsible for) that you can, so that everyone is impressed with how prepared you are. This will set a professional tone for the shoot. Be sure to shoot video from many different angles. Yes, that means you have to record the script multiple times. That’s OK. You want to be able to edit in different angles for the final video. If there are any difficult words in the video script, be sure to get the talent to say those words many different ways at the end of the shoot in case you have to edit in the word later. Capture b-roll footage, which is footage of the location, talent, etc. You can never have too much video.

Once your shoot is finished it’s time to start editing. Again, video editing can be handled in a number of ways, but it’s probably easiest to use a great video editing iPad app. You want to keep your commercial to 30-45 seconds as to not lose people’s attention. It’s also a good idea to create both an introduction and closing for the video. Maybe that’s just your logo showing up on screen. Maybe it’s a narration. There are a number of ways to handle the introduction and closing, but it’s good to get some branding in during those portions of the commercial.

Publish Your Commercials on YouTube

As for publishing your commercial. No more do you have to bog down your website. Simply add your commercial to your YouTube Channel. YouTube is a great tool for small business owners who want to produce video content to drive sales for their business. Upload your commercial to YouTube, optimize it by adding things like a Title and Description full of keywords. After your commercial has been optimized on YouTube, it’s time to start driving traffic to it.

Promote Your Commercial on Social Media

Social media channels like Facebook and Twitter are great tools for driving traffic to your commercial. You can even write a blog article about your commercial (perhaps providing background information or sharing a funny story from Shoot Day, etc.) and embed the YouTube video within your article. If the commercial is funny or informative (hopefully both) you will also benefit from viewers sharing it with friends and family, probably through social media and e-mail. Over time, you will find unique ways to get your commercial in front of your target audience. With that said, this can’t happen if you don’t take the time to shoot a commercial for your small business.

So, what say you? Are you envisioning a funny commercial for your business? Will you actually move forward in shooting a commercial for your small business? Today provides opportunities like never before for innovative small business owners. Take advantage. Shoot a commercial for your small business today.

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Posted in Video Marketing | 4 Comments »

Small Business Uses a Teleprompter Mobile App to Help Record Video

Sunday, February 6th, 2011

Video Marketing for Small Business is booming as costs are dropping (sometimes to $0 – ie. YouTube for hosting & promoting), more efficient tools are coming to market, and business owners are finally ready to start embracing Content Marketing. This perfect storm for Video Marketing has lead us on a never-ending search for great online video tools. Luckily or us, the latest video tool that we’ve discovered actually came to us (in the form of a new Catalyst client – full disclosure).

Teleprompt+, a Teleprompter application for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch was created in April 2010 by Bombing Brain Interactive. Since it’s creation, Teleprompt+ has become known as the highest quality teleprompter application on the market. This article is going to review the features of Teleprompt+ and explain how small businesses can take advantage of this great new mobile tool for Video Marketing.

Teleprompter for iPad

What Features Does Teleprompt+ Offer?

Teleprompt+ can be used on multiple Apple devices, but for video recording, we recommend that small business owners purchase the iPad version. The main reason that it is best to use the iPad version for creating online video is simply due to the size of the iPad when compared to the other devices. You can position your iPad out of your recording space, while still being able to see the font clearly. The second reason for using Teleprompt+ on the iPad is because Bombing Brain also offers a free teleprompter remote control for the iPhone, which can be used to control Teleprompt+ on the iPad during your video recording sessions — Pretty cool, huh?

Teleprompt+ offers a variety of excellent features, which is why it’s known as the highest quality Teleprompter application on the market today. Some of the built-in features are:

  • Script Editor – Easily write your speaking scripts directly in Teleprompt+ using the built in text editor, or by copying and pasting from Mail, iWork, or any other iPad application. You can even import Google Documents into Teleprompt+ AND Dropbox!

  • Progress Tracker – Track your progress using the integrated timer display (estimate, actual, and remaining time)

  • Easy-to-Use Teleprompter Controls – Pause, play, and adjust playback speed live during prompting. Scroll text during prompting using normal iPad swipe gestures

  • Customization is Easy – Customize the following appearance and playback settings per script: Scrolling speed, Start countdown, Timer display, Font type, Font size, Text color, and Background color

Use Teleprompt+ to Help Record Video

Have you watched those YouTube videos where the business owner appears to be “winging it”? The quality of the video is usually lacking when business owners do not use a teleprompter when recording their online videos. For many, Teleprompters are still too expensive, so they decide to forgo the purchase, and their videos usually suffer because of it. Now, for less than $10 you can ensure that you stay on point during your videos, communicate your message properly, and do so in a timely manner. Using a teleprompter when recording video helps keep the video on point, which means your 3 minute video WILL NOT turn into a 6-minute ordeal. Your prospects and customers don’t have time to watch 6 minutes of you fumbling through your message. Use a teleprompter to keep your online videos concise and on-point.

iPad standBombing Brain Interactive has even forged partnerships with other organizations, like IK Multimedia, to create Teleprompter accessories. IK Multimedia created iKlip, a teleprompter stand or the iPad. By making this additional investment you can be sure that you’ll be able to position the iPad wherever necessary when recording your video. iKlip is only $39.99, so for less than $50 you will have a reliable teleprompter to help you record QUALITY videos for your small business.

Benefits of Using a Teleprompter iPad App

We have already gone through a few of the biggest benefits to using Teleprompt+ to help record videos for your small business, but we will go through a few more, as it’s really important to create quality videos; Teleprompt+ can help you do that. Here goes:

  • Save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in upfront costs to purchase a standard teleprompter
  • Easily input, edit, and remove video scripts
  • Keeps your videos on track time-wise
  • No lugging around heavy teleprompter equipment – Just bring your iPad, iPhone, & iKlip

Hopefully Video Marketing tactics are part of your 2011 Online Marketing Plan. If you’re using video content to educate, and provide value to your customers, then you should definitely consider spending the $10 to purchase Teleprompt+ for the iPad.

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Posted in Video Marketing | 5 Comments »

The Power of Viral Videos: Web Video Leads to Record Sales

Wednesday, December 15th, 2010

Have you heard of xtranormal.com yet? If not, please check it out right now… Ok, are you back? Did you understand the concept? xtranormal.com allows ANYONE to create their very own animated videos. Their tagline is, “if you can type, you can make movies…” The best part about xtranormal.com? Like many other online tools, it’s free to use.

xtranormal.com Animated Video Leads to Record Sales

Before we get too far into how small business owners can take advantage of xtranormal.com, let’s take a look at an example xtranormal.com animated video. The video below was produced by a Gold & Silver dealer. The dealer wanted to use the video to explain how JP Morgan Chase, a global megabank, is manipulating the price of silver. The goal of the Gold & Silver dealer was to educate the public in an entertaining way to the manipulation and use that to explain why investing in silver is a good idea. Their call-to-action was to buy silver and gold. Let’s just say they achieved their goal. Within days of releasing the xtranormal.com video it went viral and the Gold & Silver dealer sold so much gold & silver that they ran out of inventory. Let me repeat that, a Gold & Silver dealer used this extraordinary new online tool, xtranormal.com, to create an animated video with the goal of educating customers & prospects on why silver is a great investment and within days sales increased so dramatically that they actually had to turn customers away!

So without further ado, check out the video below for yourself.

Creating xtranormal.com Animated Videos for Your Small Business

Did you watch the video above? Pretty awesome, right? Yes the voices are monotone, but that’s actually part of the fun. If you get creative you can develop a really entertaining animated video for your business. The xtranormal.com web tool allows you to easily turn text-to-movies, select scenes and configure animations. All that you need to do is create the script and go to work on developing your xtranormal.com animated video.

We’ll definitely write more about xtranormal.com in the coming months. There are a ton of different ways that small businesses can take advantage of this great new online tool. For now, take some time to learn how to use xtranormal.com and start brainstorming some creative ideas for how you want to use the tool.

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Posted in Video Marketing | No Comments »

Use YouTube Videos to Create a Deeper Connection with Customers

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Are you using video to promote your small business? Although we have discussed using video for marketing your business in some earlier posts, like 5 Inbound Marketing Ideas for Hotels, and Retail Clothing Boutiques Host Their Own Local Fashion Shows, we have not yet fully dedicated an entire post to Video Marketing.

As many of our readers know, Catalyst Marketers subscribes to a content marketing philosophy. It’s our opinion that as a small business, you create content that’s relevant to, and perceived as valuable by, your target audience. You then use social media to promote your content, and drive followers back to your website/blog. Content comes in four forms, written content (like eNewsletters, blog articles, etc.), audio-based content (like MP3s, Podcasts, BlogTalkRadio.com shows, etc.), visual content (like Flickr Slide Shows), and video-based content (like YouTube videos, Skype interviews, etc). Today, like no time before in the history of using video to advertise your business, small business owners can easily, and cost-effectively create, host, & maintain marketing videos.

YouTube Videos to market my businessMany business owners can purchase a commercial grade HD video recorder for about $1,000, which allows you to shoot your own high quality videos. You can then hire someone to edit your videos, like Atlanta Business Video, or edit the videos yourself. If you hire someone, you’re going to pay about $75/hour. If you do it yourself, you’ll spend 8 – 10 hours getting your video ready for prime time. Then, you can take advantage of YouTube by creating your own branded YouTube Channel for your small business. Now you don’t have to pay anything for hosting your videos online. This means, that for a one-time investment of about $1,000 for equipment, a few hundred bucks to hire someone to edit your videos, and free hosting & distribution through YouTube, you have a professional quality video for your business. That’s pretty powerful stuff when you think back to just a few years ago when the average small business owner couldn’t use video to promote their business.

Here are a few ways to use video to promote your business:

  • Customer Testimonial Videos
  • Product & Services Review Videos
  • Event-related Videos
  • “How To” Videos
Foursquare stats

Creating video content for your small business is one of the very best investments you can make. It gives people a glimpse into your business in ways that they cannot get through reading a blog article (I’m not saying you shouldn’t have a business blog, just that video takes content to the next level). Video is the next best thing to face-to-face meetings, and now, more than ever before, small business owners have the ability to create high quality videos, for costs that are affordable. Are you using video to promote your business?

Contact us if you want some help creating high quality videos for your business.

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Posted in Video Marketing | 2 Comments »