You hear it over and over… You have to use video to be successful in your online marketing. My clients will ask me, “do I really have to use video?” My answer to them, and to you, is: Yes, No, Maybe…

While I agree that video, done right, can be a great benefit to your marketing efforts, video gone to the dark side can turn potential clients away faster than meeting an ugly thug in a dark alley.

So, what makes a good video, and what makes a video turn to the dark side? I’ll sum it up in one word…

PROFESSIONALISM

Okay, let’s look at some ways to present a professional video, or not…

First, let’s talk about setting. Where should you record your video? There is no disputing the expertise of Andy Jenkins when it comes to video marketing, however when he released his video series to market Video Boss he seems to have sparked a craze that most people just can’t pull off. Andy was walking on the shoreline of the ocean while he recorded his video. Looks great, lovely scenery, shows him as a normal person. Why can’t everyone pull it off?

POOR SOUND QUALITY

How many videos have you seen recently with people sitting in their backyard, or walking outside, or sitting on a deck or hotel balcony, and you can’t hear a word they are saying because of wind blowing across the microphone, or airplanes passing overhead, or a siren in the background? If I can’t hear and understand you, I most likely won’t choose to do business with you. It won’t matter how great you look silhouetted by the sunset, or how successful you look sitting on an expensive hotel balcony.

Then there is timing and format for your video. Now this is just my opinion, but if you set your video up with no way for me to know how long the presentation is and no way to pause it, I’m not highly likely to watch the entire thing, unless I’m already determined to do business with you.

Be respectful of people’s time.  Keep your videos short. People don’t have time to watch a 30 minute video that drones on and on about how great and wonderful you are, or your product is. While all that may be true, if you just spend your time with this type of presentation, it’s unlikely that your prospects will watch the entire video, or if they do, they may not watch future videos you produce.

Use some type of professional presentation software. Personally I like PowerPoint and Camtasia. There are many other good options out there. Don’t be cheesy and film someone holding up hand written poster boards. Seriously, I’ve seen this done! It looks like you have no clue what you are doing and the likelihood is that you will lose your prospective customer’s confidence.

If you use presentation software, you have some options in how you present your message.

Many people right now are choosing to write their entire script on slides and just read the slides to me. Really? Guys, I can read and unfortunately much of the time better than the presenter. If you choose this option, rehearse the script until it flows easily off your tongue. I’ve seen “professional” presentations where the presenter stumbled around so much I was convinced that they had never even seen the script before they recorded the video.

You can also choose slides that contain pictures, with or without captions. This is a better option if you are concerned about not reading your slides word for word, or want to ad lib just a bit.

You can also step in front of the camera and show the world your smiling face. If this is the option for you, please maintain a professional manner. Dress the part. You don’t have to be in a suit and tie or a dress, but please don’t look like you just stepped off the stage as the drummer for a heavy metal band, unless you’re marketing your heavy metal band.

And by all means DON’T flirt with the camera!! No matter what gender you are, flirting with your prospective customers will offend a large segment of them.

I hope these simple tips will start you on the road to truly effective video presentations.

Should you be using video? If you do it right, ABSOLUTELY. If you make it cheesy or unprofessional, it’s more likely to hurt you than to help you.

Until next time…

Live with passion and purpose,

Vanessa

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