by Stu Marks, Chicago Area Business Video Producer 

Lower Cost or Free
Human to Human Contact
Much Longer Interest Level

When both large and small businesses are struggling, one thing is for sure, we are all looking for better or more efficient ways to bring in more revenue. Certainly, now is not the time to cut back on advertising. But, it certainly is the time to be smarter with our advertising dollars.

I have been involved in virtually every type of advertising venue from newspapers and direct mail flyers, to radio and TV furniture spots. And my opinion is that video on the web is absolutely THE BEST way to utilize an advertising budget in today’s economy. As a matter of fact, I’ll even say that there has never been a better time for video on the web, like product demonstration videos, customer satisfaction testimonials, and product or service videos than now.

LOWER COST or FREE Cost per unit can’t be beat by any other graphic advertising medium. The numbers of folks to see a video ad on a busy web site can be counted in the millions if you are actively managing your web site (If you aren’t shooting for millions, then only a few tens of thousands saw the video: a win/win situation). Imagine getting the same number of views on your video that a Super Bowl placed ad did! And you didn’t have to pay the millions to be seen. The cost per view is so low, that it can’t even be expressed in any demonization that The US coins. It’s lower than a penny!

HUMAN to HUMAN CONTACT I used to think that direct marketing through the mail was the best way to get responses, and most will agree. But, since the advent of web based videos, all of the old stand-bys are stepping aside for the new king of advertising. I’m not saying stop printing your color brochures, or sending out direct mail flyers, or buying local spots on the radio. I’m saying, get a video on your web site, and like FAST dudes and dudettes! Your brochures, flyers, radio ads, TV ads and all other forms of advertising should be able to point to your web site where the viewer is met with an eye to eye contact human being telling them how great your product was when they bought it, or tried it out. Nothing is more powerful than hearing stories being told from a fellow buyer’s point of view, eye to eye, and mouth to ear. It’s like a warm hand shake and arm over the shoulder, welcoming your potential customer into a greater fold of other buyers who have already stepped into the water and found everything just fine there.

“Yep, no sharks in here. The water’s fine. Jump on in, friend.”

MUCH LONGER INTEREST LEVEL = MORE POWERFUL IMPACT It’s a proven fact that the more time an individual invests in your advertising message, the more likely they are to either search out even more info about your company and product, or buy outright right then. And the good news is that video done right maintains viewers longer than any other media. Color brochures get put down or tossed before being completely read way more often than a good video fails to get finished from start to finish. The same is true for flyers, email campaigns, phone calls and pretty much anything else we can think of.

In going through one’s possible advertising mediums, I was reminded of the few times I’ve seen airplane flying banners dragged behind small craft over large cities and heavily populated county fairs and summer beaches. How many reading this right now saw flying banners behind airplanes AND WEREN’T ABLE TO READ THE BANNERS? Show of hands? Yeah, that’s what I thought. The only thing I can remember reading from one is something about a Ford. And that’s only because the famous Ford logo was part of the banner.

Each advertising medium carries its own set of rules and specific conundrums through which it must leap in order to get viewers. And video is the absolute shortest distance between your message and your potential clients.

For the last several decades, humans in the western world, and now the entire industrialized world, have been more and more drawn to visual mediums like TV and video. And, with the advent of so many viewers on high speed Internet, it’s no wonder that companies as large as E-Trade have spent big bucks (something most businesses don’t need to do) getting into the online video game. The hits on those baby commercials are huge. You gotta’ know that when big name Hollywood directors and writers are taking time out from TV scripts and Hollywood movies to produce web videos, that something is there.

So, you want an edge over your competition? You want to increase service sales, increase retail sales or increase product sales? You want to get some massive traction from those web testimonials? Then, you need to add a web video or better yet, a web video series to your company web site. Check out this page of testimonials.

Here’s how many businesses of all sizes are implementing video in their lead generation cycles:

-An Online Video Product Demonstration will not only increase inbound leads to your web site, it is also the single most powerful and convenient sales tool for your inhouse and outside sales forces. And, the video can be easily published to DVD and play in trade shows or be carried around by outside sales persons and played on a portable DVD player: right in the car or in the office.

-Your web testimonials can be turned into Customer Testimonial Videos and also play online and from a DVD. Make sure you contact a company that specializes in Testimonial Video Production.

-Some of the best Sales Videos are no longer just at trade shows. They can be found on the web. Handing your sales force an online sales video is like handing them a raise and a guaranteed increase in your bottom line as well.

Here are some more reference articles on succeeding with video:
The Perfect Product Demonstration Video
How to Increase Sales With Video — Hands-On Tips
Quick Quiz: How to Tell if Your Business is a Video Candidate