Ten years ago, people in the know were posting links and placing banner ads on websites to promote their businesses; with the advent of near-universal broadband, videos are becoming the way to make it all happen. What’s more compelling than a message that combines visuals and audio for multi-sensory impact?
Since the silent films wowed our ancestors and black-n-white TV blew our grandparents’ collective mind, we’ve been in love with the screen, huge or small. From the big-as-a-barn flat screen to the moderate but totally hi-def laptop, the world is watching more video than ever—but not nearly as much as we’re going to watch next year, and the year after that.
With the advent of the cell phone, we’re even forming strong attachments to wee little phone screens, and now that video cameras are super-affordable, anyone can be a movie-maker. Everybody’s a star, a blogger or a small filmmaker, and YouTube is providing all the audience you could want—as long as you know how to access it.
But the movies can break your heart, and plenty of people who thought YouTube would be the perfect place for advertainment are learning that it takes a bit more than just making a short video to get that video seen by thousands of avid viewers.
The good news is that, with some planning and follow-through, you can make your video go viral, presenting your products, services or corporate messages to a huge audience, at great savings to the traditional advertising budget. It’s not a lazy person’s game, but a little hard work can pay off beautifully.
In creating and distributing a video, there are five main points (and a slew of minor ones) to consider. You have to take into account the:
a) Advertainment – should the brand name be evident in the video?
Viewers and content providers are notoriously hostile to outright ads: most experts agree that viral video production involves giving something up—notably, your usual expectation that a video promotion should actually contain the name of the product you want to sell. Some say that it’s smartest to create a video that amuses, shocks or otherwise entertains, and provide a link to your website on the page. Others contend that embedding the message in the video isn’t a bad thing as long as the video is sufficiently engrossing. The message to take from the entertainment vs. advertising debate is that content counts: if your video isn’t compelling, people won’t forward it on.
We say that the video must be either one of these three things in order to be of interest:
Of course, what makes a video compelling hasn’t changed much: scantily-clothed women, bright colors, plenty of sound and a tight story line add up to success. Remember though, that it all needs to happen in a short period of time: as little as 15-30 seconds. With fantastic content, you could probably go as long as two minutes.
Great video quality makes viewers happy, but you don’t have to be Scorsese to make fun, challenging content that’s going to generate discussion and excitement. Get the best audio and visual you can, but don’t get too hung up on perfection; part of the YouTube experience is seeing “real” videos by “real” people. Viewers don’t expect Hollywood gloss, but they appreciate being able to see and hear your videos.
b) Variety
When you’re thinking about creating viral videos, don’t just plan on making one: expect to make several running along the same theme. As short as the video-watcher’s attention span may be, if you’re doing good work, people are going to want to see more of it. They aren’t going to want to wait—they’ll forget you in the abundance of other videos—so have several videos ready to roll, and don’t be afraid to bring them all out at once. You’re not a film studio with yearly releases; you’re blitzing the channels with your message in several versions.
c) Title
Some people go to a lot of work to make a great video and then give it a dishwater-dull title, ensuring that anyone who sees the title will instantly look for something else to watch. Expend a little creative capital and come up with great titles. If one title doesn’t seem to be getting clicks, swap it out for another one. Experiment. Test.
Since the silent films wowed our ancestors and black-n-white TV blew our grandparents’ collective mind, we’ve been in love with the screen, huge or small. From the big-as-a-barn flat screen to the moderate but totally hi-def laptop, the world is watching more video than ever—but not nearly as much as we’re going to watch next year, and the year after that.
With the advent of the cell phone, we’re even forming strong attachments to wee little phone screens, and now that video cameras are super-affordable, anyone can be a movie-maker. Everybody’s a star, a blogger or a small filmmaker, and YouTube is providing all the audience you could want—as long as you know how to access it.
But the movies can break your heart, and plenty of people who thought YouTube would be the perfect place for advertainment are learning that it takes a bit more than just making a short video to get that video seen by thousands of avid viewers.
The good news is that, with some planning and follow-through, you can make your video go viral, presenting your products, services or corporate messages to a huge audience, at great savings to the traditional advertising budget. It’s not a lazy person’s game, but a little hard work can pay off beautifully.
In creating and distributing a video, there are five main points (and a slew of minor ones) to consider. You have to take into account the:
- Content of your video
- Optimization strategies
a) Advertainment – should the brand name be evident in the video?
Viewers and content providers are notoriously hostile to outright ads: most experts agree that viral video production involves giving something up—notably, your usual expectation that a video promotion should actually contain the name of the product you want to sell. Some say that it’s smartest to create a video that amuses, shocks or otherwise entertains, and provide a link to your website on the page. Others contend that embedding the message in the video isn’t a bad thing as long as the video is sufficiently engrossing. The message to take from the entertainment vs. advertising debate is that content counts: if your video isn’t compelling, people won’t forward it on.
We say that the video must be either one of these three things in order to be of interest:
- Entertaining/humourous
- Informative/Educative
- Controversial
Of course, what makes a video compelling hasn’t changed much: scantily-clothed women, bright colors, plenty of sound and a tight story line add up to success. Remember though, that it all needs to happen in a short period of time: as little as 15-30 seconds. With fantastic content, you could probably go as long as two minutes.
Great video quality makes viewers happy, but you don’t have to be Scorsese to make fun, challenging content that’s going to generate discussion and excitement. Get the best audio and visual you can, but don’t get too hung up on perfection; part of the YouTube experience is seeing “real” videos by “real” people. Viewers don’t expect Hollywood gloss, but they appreciate being able to see and hear your videos.
b) Variety
When you’re thinking about creating viral videos, don’t just plan on making one: expect to make several running along the same theme. As short as the video-watcher’s attention span may be, if you’re doing good work, people are going to want to see more of it. They aren’t going to want to wait—they’ll forget you in the abundance of other videos—so have several videos ready to roll, and don’t be afraid to bring them all out at once. You’re not a film studio with yearly releases; you’re blitzing the channels with your message in several versions.
c) Title
Some people go to a lot of work to make a great video and then give it a dishwater-dull title, ensuring that anyone who sees the title will instantly look for something else to watch. Expend a little creative capital and come up with great titles. If one title doesn’t seem to be getting clicks, swap it out for another one. Experiment. Test.
d) Thumbnail
When you post on YouTube, there are thumbnails that people can check out before deciding to watch the video. Don’t skimp on thumbnails! Another hint; thumbnails frame grabs are automatically chosen from the exact center of the video, so when you’re writing and shooting, make sure there’s something in the middle you want to see in the thumbnail.
When you post on YouTube, there are thumbnails that people can check out before deciding to watch the video. Don’t skimp on thumbnails! Another hint; thumbnails frame grabs are automatically chosen from the exact center of the video, so when you’re writing and shooting, make sure there’s something in the middle you want to see in the thumbnail.
2. Optimization Strategies
a) Tags
When you post a video, make sure to add keyword tags, and the line that allows people to link it to their favourite social networks. When you tag your videos, take the extra time to make sure your tags are unique, so that when viewers are looking for you, they find your video —not your competitors.
b) Networks
Clearly, the way to reach millions of people is to get your video in front of as many connected people as possible, and the best way to do that is by getting it on as many social media networks as you can. Forward-thinking companies have dedicated space on Tribe, Facebook and other social media networks including having it on Digg or Stumbleupon. Sending a link to your friends is the fastest way to get your videos viewed—and forwarded. And faster is better, because if you really want to make a splash on YouTube, the time to do it starts at Day One. Getting onto the Most Viewed Daily list (which takes 50,000 views) means also garnering even more views as the folks who check in to the most viewed videos check yours out.
Here is a list of the most viewed content providers/channels overall (scroll down).
Here is a list of video sharing platforms where you can upload your videos.
c) Blogs
Putting a link on a popular blog is a great way to increase your viewer numbers; if you don’t have a connection to a good blog, there is always paying the blogger to pose the video – but you didn’t hear it from us.
d) Forums
Generating a buzz in forums is most often the result of diligent, if undercover, work. When your video’s up, dedicate some time and staff to talking about it in the forums. Create a controversy, a debate. Throw in some outrage, or hilarity to draw more people in. If you do a good job, people will join the discussion—oh—and see the video!
e) Lists
Don’t forget the enduring usefulness of email lists. Drop a link into your newsletters or other emails.
Getting to the Most Viewed Daily means staying on top of things from the moment you post your video(s). You’re basically engineering a coup; don’t slow down when it comes to getting links up everywhere, checking in to see what the buzz is, and creating as much buzz as you can on your own. Consider working late for a couple of days to make your videos climb to the top.
Commenting at the bottom of videso may be a way to a democratic process, but you don’t have to be utterly bound by it. Pay attention to them because they may be telling you something important. Sometimes, when you’re close to a situation, you miss what’s obvious to outsiders. Sometimes videos are offensive to lots of people for one reason or for many reasons, and you definitely don’t want to alienate your audience. If you find legit viewers hate your video in a way that generates negative energy (instead of exciting debate) consider swapping it out for another, less challenging one.
At the same time, don’t be afraid to create some controversy in the comments will help get more viewers and also get them engaged.
Who does it well?
One of the best companies that are using a full suite of online marketing tactics including video is karmaloop.com . They have a online video site called Karmalooptv.com, which they have created as an independent entity. They regularly update the content (hip tv content in a news format) and distribute it through content partners such as Complex Magazine, Undergroundhiphop.com, ClintonSparks.com and others. They even have their own YouTube page and a Facebook fan page which they regularly update with their videos amonst other content.
Following the suggestions in this article may make the difference between a video that just does okay (or maybe flops) and one that makes a splash. If you find any of these hints helpful, send us the stories of your success!
