Video!

A few months back, I read this article about how video is going to be the dominant marketing tool of 2016. Wait, I thought. YouTube is 11 years old, how can we say it’s the next new thing?

Video is uber-hot right now. All the new live-streaming video tools, along with Snapchat,  Instagram and Twitter are making it more popular than ever.

But I think a lot of businesses still shy away from video because it scares them. First of all, I think many people don’t like to watch themselves on camera. Secondly, the technical part of shooting and editing intimidates people.

If you can get over your fear of being on camera, and you can teach yourself how to shoot and edit video, you could have some very powerful marketing tools right at your fingertips.

But what about ideas? Here are 5 Marketing Video Ideas for Your Biz:

• Introducing the people that work at your company: you can tape short introductory videos, getting your employees to introduce themselves. This is a great way to create a real 1-1 connection with your audience, especially if you can get your employees to share info about themselves around what they like to do outside of their job.
• Product demos: show people how to use your product! Do you sell granola? Then film a chef using your granola to make a dish. Sell some kind of complicated software? Create tutorials showing people how to use it to the best advantage. Educate your audience.
• Testimonials: can you get your most enthusiastic clients to talk about you on camera? And say how much they love you and why they love working with you? Peer recommendations are a powerful marketing tool.
• Reviews: speaking of peer recommendations, can you get vloggers to review your product or service? People search for that kind of content all the time, and trust it much more than a paid advertisement.
• Work culture or values: do you support a charity? Participate in an annual cleanup? Capture that on video and upload it to your YouTube channel. Show the world that you are more than just the sum of your parts!

Here’s today’s infographic with your 5 Marketing Video Ideas for Your Biz:

Infographic courtesy of Website Magazine.