Yesterday, Chris Brogan posted about the importance of developing your marketing mind. As an example, he highlighted Field Notes. According to Brogan, there are a lot of things Field Notes is doing right to entice us to buy their product. One thing he didn’t mention was video. But as I was browsing their site, I came across this little gem:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8w91CkuST1Q&feature=player_embedded]
It reminded me of something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately – I think makers are missing a huge opportunity by not using video more in their marketing efforts. Video has huge potential to help tell your story, communicate your brand, or just share the behind the scenes of your business.
Last year, inspired by this Sarah Vowell video essay, I started creating some videos showing sneak peeks of new designs I was working on. They were well received, but sadly I didn’t keep up the momentum. But I think it’s time to give it another go. (After seeing the Field Notes video, you can bet I got my Flip video camera
On the other end of the spectrum from my low tech video efforts, when Jess Constable of Jess LC was working on her new collection, not only did she photograph a look book based on the idea of “the best day ever” but she created a video as well. This polished little clip is a great way to communicate the rebranding of her company and show her jewelry being worn out in the world.
So whether you go the DIY route or hire a camera crew, I think there’s a huge opportunity for adding video to your marketing tool belt.
Have you ever used video to promote a product or your business? Are you thinking of trying it now?
Want to learn more creative ways to market your business? Sign up for the Marketing Kick Start workshop.
PS. I’ve gotten lots of emails from readers who are interested in taking one of the online workshops, but the day or time doesn’t work. In the future, I’ll be offering the workshops on other days and times to accommodate varying schedules, and I’m looking into the possibility of making the recordings available as well. I want as many people to access the classes as possible!
So smart. With Youtube and Vimeo, there is no reason why we can’t make our own commercials.
Video is such a great way to infuse marketing efforts with emotion and storytelling.
P.S. Jess LC’s video is gorgeous!
Okay – you’ve become a must-read! It’s kind of freaky really; everything I’m thinking about, you’re posting as info articles — I’m looking around my room for cameras now — lol!
You mentioned the Flip video camera; I’m wanting to buy something that makes it easy to upload — what do other folks think about the best recorder for someone doing it themselves? I’ve uploaded videos from my older BIG video camera, but it’s a pain. Can you get the same quality with the new smaller versions?
Stacey – The Flip is super easy to upload – it has a built in USB so you can literally plug it into your computer.
The quality isn’t as good as a professional camera, but you can’t beat it for convenience. (The videos I shot were all done with the Flip.) So it really depends on your goals – if you’re goal is to shoot a lot of quick, easy behind the scenes video, I would go with the Flip (or a similar product). But if you want pro-quality video, you’ll probably want something higher end. (but you’ll sacrifice ease of use)
I keep thinking I’m missing plenty of opportunities that video could provide – particularly since my boyfriend is a freelance filmmaker! We actually just got him to do a video for our group, the New Orleans Craft Mafia (http://www.neworleanscraftmafia.com/2010/04/new-orleans-craft-mafias-new-video/ ) and I have lots of ideas I’d like to do for my own business as well, but I guess it’s that old story about not taking advantage of the things closest to you. I need to utilize my boy and his talents a bit more!
According to him, video actually helps with SEO as well – supposedly Google ranks sites with video content higher.
Thanks – as usual – for this post. I’ve been toying with the idea of using videos as a marketing tool for a while, but have been kind of stuck for what direction to take it in that would best promote my products. Now I’m feeling inspired – I just have to hunt down a video camera. 🙂
Great post! I’ve been planning to use video in the future, (my business is still in the development stages) but this post has inspired me to get to work!
Thanks again!
OHMYMEGAN! I’m inspired. What a great post! It’s like one of those fun buttons on interactive websites that drive you to action. Video will be so much more fun than photos of my designs. I’m scheduling an afternoon next week to get working on it!
I’ve been wanting to do a video since I saw Chrystalyn’s awesome piece on how to rock her hair accessories: http://www.youtube.com/user/chrystalynjewelry#p/a/u/0/jFqkH5BDXWk
The trouble is, I have zero experience with film. Can I use the movie setting on my digital camera — will the quality be too bad?
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