Today’s post has less text than the other days I’ve posted. That’s because I want to drive home the point that I am making which is to experiment with video.
Why video?
Here are a few reasons why video is a great addition to your business:
- Helps your customers develop an emotional connection with you
- Sets you apart by putting your content on the second biggest search engine
- Saves time while still allowing for great content
I understand that you may have some insecurities about being on video (doesn’t everyone…at least in the beginning). Trust me though, YOU are the only one who is going to notice that thing that you think we are all looking at.
Sit back and enjoy (hopefully)
Go ahead and watch the video; it’s under 5 minutes so it shouldn’t be a killer on your time. I give you my word that I went with the first take and did no editing because I want you to be confident that you can do this too. If I can talk about unicorns, then I should be fine letting you see me stumble through a video.
And yes, I move around a lot. That’s me.
Also, I believe this video may end the debate about my similarities to Leo DiCaprio. You’ll have enough of a good look at me to know if I really DO look like him or not. 😉
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Okay, I get the whole “show them your face thing” and I’m doing video myself and all the benefits of YouTube traffic etc. I’ve been studying this a long time.
Here’s the thing about video that I struggle with. You get these beautiful websites which have great content and all the right things. Then you pollute them with lots of crappy videos. Is that a good thing?? I struggle with this on my own site videos as well.
Photography went through this whole “good enough” phase which ballooned with the advent of digital photography. Everyone who had a camera declared themselves a photographer and those photographers started doing the photos for their corporate brochures and websites.
Design also went through this with desktop publishing software. Secretaries were “designing” those corporate brochures, and driving commercial printers crazy in the process. I know those secretaries and those printers.
So I guess I’m still not sure if there is a real benefit to letting people see us in bad light, with bad audio and bad editing. Your friends and followers might forgive you the crappy presentation, but will the new people who visit your site for the first time come back again?
On some level I think it looks unprofessional. It’s a steep learning curve to produce video properly, but I want people to keep coming back to my site and not be put off. I spent a lot of time making my site look great and want my video to look great too.
As I said, I am guilty of making crappy videos too, so am working really hard to raise the bar from the usual web cam, flip cam junk that’s suddenly on everyone’s blogs this month. Sorry to sound harsh, but if I see yet another nocturnal rambling under the light of the laptop I shall scream!
Marlene, you raise really excellent points. I have a couple thoughts, more for discussion than debate since I agree with a lot of what you are saying.
[Before I start, I will say that it seems I get the best responses whenever I post something that throws traditional business on its ear. I love that! It means that I’ve at least caused people to think. I believe that most of us aren’t pleased with traditional business which is why we are starting our own…but maybe there are things we haven’t entirely let go of just yet. Maybe we should, maybe we shouldn’t…but we should at least be conscious of WHY we make our decisions.]
As someone who went to school to be a graphic designer, it was frustrating when secretaries took jobs away from us with their “crappy” desktop publishing. It was frustrating because I knew the design COULD be amazing if companies were willing to hire professionals. I knew that beautiful design could exist if done by someone with a passion for that creative process. However, design wasn’t their business. The level of design likely did not affect their business as much as it did mine since I was a designer.
As with my discussion in the comments with James Chartrand of MenWithPens last week, you should think twice before doing anything with your business. You are right to consider your audience since you have made a strong effort to do quality control on your site (and your ebook was top notch, btw!). And if someone has the funds to hire the professionals (photographer, designers, producers, etc), then it may be in their best interest to do so.
However, I wonder if our customers think that a self produced a video would really contrast as much with our image as we believe it would? Unfortunately if poorly lighted video is the norm, will we *really* stand out as being poor in our craft? (Not a justification for doing something poorly, mind you, just a thought.)
By not creating video (which we need to admit DOES appeal to a number of people, even if it is NOT professionally done), are we missing out on possible business because we haven’t met our customers where they are at? I know that we aren’t showing up in YouTube if we’re only producing text…which means we are one less place than our customer are. (Again, this might not be part of a business strategy, so not necessarily bad.)
For me, the issue of video boiled down to this: am I focusing more on art or more on my customers? Taken to the extreme (which is not what you are saying), we could focus on art entirely to the exclusion of ever producing something.
There are big discussions in the online business world about the place of art in your business; I’ve even written about it a number of times at my site. The problem is that people wait way too long to ever ship on their products because they spend too much time obsessing about the art surrounding their content. Unless you are in the market of video equipment (which you might actually be), then the video is only something surrounding YOUR art…which is the area of expertise you have set yourself up in.
Video isn’t my art, business is. While I do agree it can impact my business, NOT producing *something* would impact it more. Waiting for perfection is a dangerous trap that often leaves traditional business in a standstill. I advocate producing something to the very best of your abilities and then putting it out there.
Even our best produced stuff in our area of expertise will look different to us a year from now, right?
Again, fantastic questions and very good points!!!!!
Great thoughts David. Ya, I’m not trying to incite a debate, but just put out my personal struggles about this whole topic.
There’s a range of bad out there too. I really can’t stand to watch 5 minutes of the really crappy stuff no matter who is speaking. It’s too painful. But if people are making a bit of an effort to light, mic and edit their work, I am far less critical. In those cases that quality barrier is lifted. Of course maybe “too” polished will make you seem a bit fake.
I also try to use text along with my video for the people that like to scan and read instead of waiting for the video to finish. This also helps to appeal to different types of learners.
I’d like to hear some numbers, some customer surveys about what people think when they see our home movies. Lots of hype out there now, but I’d like to really know what people think.
I think we’re in the early stages of a video ‘learning curve’ for the
public, much like that of web design. Remember the horrible designs that
were all over the web in the early days? That’s just not acceptable any
more. People have been educated to expect at least decent design as a signal
that the content is credible.
I think the same will be true of video soon, but we’re not there yet. The
public knows we’re still learning and is willing to accept home
movie-quality video — for now. However, crappy video quality from old,
out-of-date equipment is already unacceptable. Almost everyone can afford a
decent camera these days and everyone knows it, so the expectation is now
higher.
~LaVonne
Ooh, I like this conversation. I was just logging in to say something along the lines of what LaVonne just said. My mom {who has an uncanny knack for knowing what will work in advertising & marketing, & helped me out tremendously with this stuff when I owned my retail shop} was watching over my shoulder as I watched a blogger friend’s latest YouTube video {no, not yours, David}. She commented, “These are the early days of online video. You won’t see people doing anything this low budget-looking in 10 years.” She then commented on the blogger’s “unpolished” appearance, bad lighting, deadpan stare into the web cam, and “rambling” delivery. And my mom is all for people who have an unique POV — she’s not into corporate-y and slick by any means and totally digs an indie approach.
Her point is that, as LaVonne says, we’re in the early learning curve of making video for biz marketing. Just like the crude website designs of the mid 1990’s, we’re seeing a flurry of crude, “homemade”-looking video {the earliest few videos on my own YouTube channels included, as I myself just got some training and a clue}.
Still, I don’t mind these simple, straight-into-the-webcam videos. And they definitely *wouldn’t* dissuade me from hiring a creative professional. The only way their video could do that is if they came off as a jerk in it! Seeing someone a bit unpolished and not so laced up actually raises my comfort level with them, which is a good thing.
Now, for small business owners/creative professionals trying to attract *corporate* clients who have slick branding and very precise production values, then yes, a crudely shot video very likely *would* make them think twice about hiring said video star. But I find that for many of us creative solopreneurs with online businesses, our primary market is made up of other creative solopreneurs who “get” what we’re doing. 🙂
Seriously, when you write it’s like golden happiness comes out! Perhaps you should be a copywriter. 😉
I love the discussion that is unfolding here. As I said in reply to LaVonne’s comment, I’d love to see someone step up and start teaching people how to take their video to the next level. I totally agree that for now, these crudely shot videos work, especially with other creative solopreneurs, but as you said the time IS coming when they might start reflecting negatively.
Again, I love the discussions being spawned by people serious about their business!
True! The evolution of expectations is something that should not be discounted. Another reason to start experimenting now while there is wiggle room. I’m sure that is similar to how the current mega-bloggers started; in the beginning there were less expectations of a blog than there are now.
Maybe one of our Customer Love Challengers needs to do some research and put out some How To guides on creating GOOD video. Just a thought!
Apparently, the gender divide we’ve talked about is wider than I thought.
Elizabeth Potts Weinstein is well known in my female-centric circles, and
has a passionate following of mostly-female bloggers who are learning video
from her.
Here’s her latest course: http://liveyourtruthonvideo.com/
I signed up for the basic-basic quick start for $37. Very useful!
~LaVonne
Haha! Yet another example of how our joining up has been awesome. So many people out there to know. 😉
I think that adding the text is great! Personally I prefer to read something even though I know there are other types of consumers out there. If I find text engaging, THEN I click on the video. (Funny, I know since I just pimped the idea of doing video. It’s all about the customers though, right?)
Your point about the range of bad is a smart one too. For $150 I bought my FlipCam HD which is what I used to record this video on. While I realize it’s not Hollywood quality, it’s freakishly better than my webcam. When I get the funds, I want to buy one of those super duper video cams that make everything look like magic. 😉
I’d love to hear some numbers too. Anyone have a testimony about using video?
I don’t mind the homemade quality of the videos people are putting up, but in order for the video to be effective, the content still has to be good, and I want the person to be talking to me. I’ve seen a lot of videos on people’s sites lately where they’re not looking at the camera and are just rambling. This does not instill confidence.
The worst is when the whole point of the video is to talk about how they’re trying to overcome their fear of making videos. @PattyK_ can do that because overcoming fear is what she’s about. But if they’re selling some other type of service, their fear of posting a video isn’t relevant to me unless they’re a friend or client. I want to hear about the service they offer or some valuable content related to it.
As for the Leonardo DiCaprio thing, you don’t really look that much like him after all, but to be honest, you look better–uneven nostrils and all. 🙂
Don’t encourage him! Yikes, I’ve created a monster. :p
~LaVonne
Yeah, I wrote that before I saw that everyone was telling him he’s cute, LOL. We’re worse than a bunch of whistling construction workers. 🙂
Um…ya. I never said that I didn’t like it. Keep whistling girls. Keep whistling!!!
(Seriously laughing…and a tad bit blushing right now.)
I like your point Marlene and I think the question (for me and my tribe) would come down to “who are you trying to reach?”
My people like nothing LESS than a sparkly, shiny, high-gloss thing-a-ma-bob. But that’s them. And that’s where I fit in.
When I head to Nordstrom’s I expect one thing. When I head to Target another, and when I head to my local corner store something else. I know what to expect and it’s always consistent. So the question about video/photos/graphics comes to that — what’s the brand and what’s the brand worth. Is it working or not. And then yes, keep raising your own bar higher.
Too many people do not dare things that will eventually make them great for fear of not being perfect and I am on a rant to get them out from under their bushels…even if it means less than studio perfect lighting and CNN style scripting.
But the world is a big place and for sure there are tons of people who are no way no how EVER going to dig what I do, how I do it, what I say…and that is awesome too. My goal is to have the most amazing referral partners in the world who ARE their cup of tea — win-win!
David,
Good stuff. I’m thinking a video for a sales letter would be so much more effective. You and I have talked quite a bit about the importance multimedia content and I think video is truly in its infancy. AS we discussed in our teleclass the competition is going to be less and less as you experiment with multimedia content. My nostrils are perfectly symmetrical (LOL). Anyways, I’m really loving what you are doing with this customer love challenge.
Ha! I was thinking about our conversation regarding multi-media the entire time I was doing today’s post. So true that as you begin to incorporate different platforms into your site and business that you will set yourself apart.
I am jealous of your nostril symmetry. LOL
Srini, check out Elizabeth Potts-Weinstein’s video sales letters. She is a
great example of how to do it: http://liveyourtruthonvideo.com/
~LaVonne
You are so flippin cute. and I like the unicorn hair.
He IS cute, isn’t he? I love visualizing him squirm with embarrassed
pleasure. 🙂
~LaVonne
I definitely need to hang out with this crowd more often. Most of my tribe (before starting this challenge) was guys…who don’t really tell me I’m cute. LOL
And yes, LaVonne’s prediction of my response is spot on. 😉
That was an awesome video David. And also – you have amazing hair!
I’m hanging out with LaVonne’s crowd much more from now on (actually, I’m considering you all MY crowd too now). You gals are soooo good for my self confidence!
I can’t wait to get my hair cut this weekend and do another video so y’all can see how short I cut it each time. LOL
Well — girls are generally less smelly and more frequent with the compliments. I love dudes but I don’t always understand them.
oh, we are your peeps now. a regular set of groupies. lol.
I bought everything i need to videos for my site 3 months ago and haven’t done one video yet. Procrastinating. Any tips?
Start something, anything, soon, because you will need some practice with all the elements: lighting, audio & editing, not to mention operating the camera and uploading your finished product.
Just set up a “studio” and do a practice run and you’ll learn so much. Take a few minutes of video and then check it before moving on. Correct your mistakes early instead of doing a whole project without looking at it and listening to it.
Wise: “Correct your mistakes early instead of doing a whole project without looking at it and listening to it.”
And good advice for more than just video! 😉
I agree with Marlene. Start something. Don’t worry about it being a product, just go right this very second and record something. Say the ABCs. Sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. You don’t have to post it, but record something. Once you start, the fear of “What if” starts to disappear.
Do 5 or 6 confidence building recordings where you look at each one and decide to do something to improve upon it. Then immediately record and watch it. Repeat.
Take an hour or so and just record your gorgeous little heart out. Then tell yourself that the last one you do is for keeps, blemishes and all.
Trust me, once you get past that first hurdle, it gets sooooo much easier.