Sunday 29 April 2012

10 Video Tips for Businesses on Pinterest

Since Pinterest was founded in 2008, it’s proven one thing: People love their visuals. And it looks like the site is becoming a hot space for online video marketing opportunities as well, with its recent integration of the Vimeo platform.

SEE ALSO: Need More YouTube Views? Try Pinterest

The video platform addition makes sense, given how video continues to grow on the network. For example, despite Pinterest’s “no-follow” links rule to third-party sites, videos on the site are being indexed by Google at a rapid rate. In late March, Google had indexed 1,170 Pinterest videos. By mid-April, that figure jumped to 5,870 video results — an increase of more than 500% in just three weeks.
What that should tell brands and marketers is that now is the time to start looking at Pinterest as a video marketing vertical. Here are ten tips on how to get the most out of using video on this site.

1. Customize the Thumbnail Images





Video thumbnails that are nicely photographed and appear to be art directed will blend in much better on Pinterest, and typically draw more attention than a video still frame. However, if you’re not a youtube Partner, the images you get won’t always look great. Vimeo offers a far better solution where you can upload your own custom thumbnail. This leaves quality control in your hands.
When selecting a thumbnail, find or create an eye-catching image that properly represents your video. If it’s a company product, consider setting it against a white background. If it’s more of an idea, then find a visual that provides a unique way of showcasing your theme. Whatever you do, make sure that your primary visual can clearly be seen at thumbnail size, and is not obscured by the default “play” button.

2. Have Descriptive Video Pins and Pinboards


Pinterest recommends you create at least a few boards that cover a broad range of interests, rather than maintaining a single board devoted to one topic. Yet, some brands make the mistake of placing all of their videos on a single pinboard and non-descriptively titling it, “videos.” Don’t do that. You wouldn’t think of titling a pinboard, “images.”
Instead, look for ways to combine your originally-produced videos with curated videos into pinboards around keyword-rich themes, and place them next to related static images you’ve pinned. For example, a product pin can be strategically placed next to an interesting video showing a lifestyle experience or demo of that product. Merchandising images and video together can prove to be more influential with viewers.

3. Keep Your Videos Short, When Possible





Pinterest is designed for quick browsing and pinning, so you don’t want to make people feel like they’re going to be stuck watching a long video. Naturally, there will be exceptions, as some video themes, like DIYs or demos, may require more time. In either case, make sure to list the length of the video right in the description since viewers are becoming conditioned to seeing that in YouTube and search engine results.

4. Clearly Describe Video Content


Don’t ever leave your description field blank. Describe to people what they can expect to see before they click on the video. Even with an eye-catching thumbnail image, and a relevant subject, people still read the description field of a video to make sure it’s worth their time.

5. Curate Fresh Videos with Fresh Descriptions


Always consider taking the most popular and freshest videos that relate to whatever product, solution, lifestyle, or event you are a part of, and curating them. I recommend creating your own unique title and description instead of duplicating what appears on the original video page, so as not to appear “spammy.”

6. Include “Pin This” Annotations


When you are using your own YouTube videos, Brian Honigman, the digital marketing manager at Marc Ecko Enterprises, suggests including annotations with a call-to-action for your audience. Basically, tell your visitors to “pin this video to Pinterest” or provide a link to your Pinterest profile as a way to connect.

7. Add “Pin Me” Notices in Video Outtros



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Of course, you can always feature your own call-to-action in the video content you create. Simply include something like “Follow me at pinterest.com/[pinterest name]” in your video outtros, like the example above. It makes for a great reminder for users to engage with you in another way and in a different community.

8. Put a “Pin It” Button Next to Your Video Player


You likely already know that you can add the Pinterest follow button to your website or blog. You should also have it embedded right under the embedded video player on your website and blog pages. It’s just one more way your visitors can get to key content.

9. Create a Pinterest-Specific Video Campaign


Some brands are now developing video campaigns to encourage users to follow them on Pinterest and pin their items. Take this Pinterest video campaign from a U.K. insurance comparison website. Their Driving in Heels video was part of a contest where users submitted the craziest shoes they have ever worn while operating a car. This turned out to be an effective cross-marketing strategy. It created awareness about a public safety issue (unsafe driving habits), while also generating increased brand awareness through theme-based pinning.

10. Repin Videos by Others


Pinterest’s best brand practices page says “repinning is one of the most social activities on Pinterest and it’s how any user really builds his/her network of followers.” One way to do this with videos is to find influencers in your industry who already have Pinterest profiles, follow them, and include their videos on your own pinboard. Make sure to notify them about it on the comments section of their original pins. Better yet, you can create a custom video that comments on some of the more interesting “Pin-fluencers” in your community. Both of these are acceptable ways of reaching out to thought leaders and brand leaders.
What other online video marketing opportunities are you seeing with Pinterest? Have you used video on Pinterest with a business strategy or an interesting business outcome? Let us know in the comments.
author:Grant Crowell
source:mashable.com

Thursday 26 April 2012

Video Marketing Tips For Smart Bloggers - Drive Massive Traffic Plus Income!

Are you the one who has got strong visualizations? Do you find visualizing your thoughts more interesting as compared to articulating them? Are you the one who is more into background color, music and other video effects while watching a movie? To wrap up, are you a video freak? If yes, how many times have you thought to turn your freakiness into cash? If you have not given it a thought before; do it now! Because we are going to tell you the right ways that could satisfy your passion and drive you massive traffic and finally massive income through overwhelming ad impressions. All you need is to create videos and upload them smartly!

We would highly recommend that you read these tutorials parallel to this one:

Become a VideoGrapher:

You can think of turning your passion into profession. Just like any other career, you need to pay attention and work hard for it. Since, it is not easy to produce competitive videos without proper knowledge. As the very first step, you need to determine the type of services you will be providing i.e. will you be filming weddings only or do you plan to offer extensive editing and professional commercial videos. You may prefer to take some video editing courses to learn film aesthetics, web compression, DVD compression, adding after effects, mixing of soundtracks and the use of film-making programs etc..
Of course, you need some equipment as well such as digital video camcorder camera, lots of storage, editing software, audio equipment etc..
You can then sell your videos online, as there are many sites waiting for your creativity. You can sell your videos to istockvideo, rever or can make on demand videos at Google; just to name a few.


-Promote on Video Sharing Sites:

top video sharing sites
YouTube is the largest video sharing network and people are earning lots of money by uploading videos there. You can even make a channel of your own, just like bloggers prefer having their own blog, to generate handsome living. But, do not stick to one site only. Make your videos viral by sharing them on top 10 video sharing sites.
1) YouTube
2) Metacafe
3) Dailymotion
4) Blip.tv
5) Veoh
6) VideoEgg
7) Grouper
8) Jumpcut
9) AOL
10) Eyespot
You must be thinking now that we should have described “how you can make your videos popular at such sites?” Of course, we are aware of your queries and to answer them we have got a complete post; http://www.mybloggertricks.com/2011/05/how-to-make-video-popular-in-youtube.html


-Promote on Pinterest

pinterest tipsHere comes your stunning showcase; Pinterest! You can pin your photos to feel the taste of flicker and can re-pin or comment on it, if you are addicted to facebook. Missing the video giant? You don’t need to miss it anymore because pinterest lets you upload your videos as well. So now you have your videos besides your photos on the same wall. If anyone is following your pins, he/she would definitely have a look at your videos unintentionally. It is just like that you entered to buy a showpiece but you came out with a painting, because it won your appreciation. Hence, do not forget to pin your videos at pinterest and make full use of it. It can gain drive traffic more than your imagination.


-Video Blogging—broadcast your blog:

If you are running a blog but unable to drive enough traffic; you can use video making skills to attract the crowd. Make videos relevant to the posts you publish. If you are writing tutorials; it would be a great idea to show all the steps in the video with audio recording as per needed. You can then upload these videos on video sharing networks such YouTube, MetaCafe and DailyMotion. Don’t forget to mention your blog link in the video. Promote some of your other post topics in the end so that people follow you on your blog to find out what you have got. This would result in creating two different traffic sources for same content; search robots would crawl the text and the videos will gain traffic from video networks.


5 Smart Tips To Make a Better Video:

We will quickly share some of the fundamental tips that you need to consider while making videos.

1-Your video should be easily understandable with subtitles, if required.
2-Present quality tutorials with easy to follow steps. Don’t make fast moves while teaching someone.
3-Do not speak too fast even if you are fluent enough with English because many people find it difficult to grab. Use simple language and speak as if you are talking to a naïve.
4-Apply all the SEO tips and tricks for selecting the title, adding the description and tag it properly.
5-Do not try to make video for nothing. Create one when its need is properly justified.


Your Say:

Today’s post was a bit different and did not focus our blogger fellows. Still, our blogger friends should give thought to video blogging because if you are not good at making video; you still have an option to embed one from YouTube that will add spice to your post. You can also make simple tutorials which consist of desktop recording using camtasia or camstudio. All this will add up to your current blog and website traffic and increase the number of your daily unique visitors and page impressions.  How did you find our post? Was it informative enough or did we miss something?We are waiting for your positive criticism.
Cheers!


source:
http://www.mybloggertricks.com/2012/04/video-marketing-tips-for-smart-bloggers.html

Sunday 22 April 2012

Top Reasons Why Your Content is Not Driving Traffic and How to Fix It

What is wrong with my blog?” “Why can’t I get readers?” If you’re creating great content on regular basis, but not driving traffic or engaging new customers then you need to understand what to change, before you expend additional resources.
To paint the picture: there are millions of bloggers, social media marketers, content marketers, startups, entrepreneurs, affiliate marketers, you name it, all creating content. There simply aren’t enough eyeballs to consume all this content, so most bloggers and businesses aren’t succeeding.
The mistake most people make is believing that “Content is king” is the whole story. It’s not! Creating great content is only one part (yes, it is important) of a successful blog or Internet marketing campaign. Think of it as a platform from which you can start generating business.
It’s “what you do with great content that counts“. So here are my top reasons for why most people don’t drive decent traffic volumes from their content:

1. Persistent self promotion

Stop talking about yourself. It’s boring. Instead think of how great it would be to have other people talk about you. Sounds like a dream come true? It’s easy to achieve – all you have to do is talk about other bloggers, businesses, products and services.
Check out the following posts that talk about how to drive traffic and social followings using “altruistic” business blogging:
By making sure that the people you talk about know your giving them great, free exposure you build up good will. Useful, if the people you are talking about just happen to be in a position to do the same for you.
Nurture connections based on mutually beneficial content and marketing. Sooner or later, you’ll start finding traffic arriving at your website or blog because someone else has mentioned how great you are.
If you learn something from someone else. Put it in your content. Let the person know. You’ll get far back-links and retweets than you get currently.
Solution: Plan your content ahead of time. Make sure that each article talks about an individual, product or services not related to you. Use that unsolicited exposure as “bait” to connect with new people.

2. Not incentivizing connections & relationships

Why should I follow you on twitter if all you are going to tweet about are your own products and services? I’m also trying to make a living.
Instead, use social media to find people who are in a position to help you. Work out how to help them. Then help them. It could be by blogging about them. Commenting on their articles. Recommending their books or products. Whatever.
Unsolicited exposure gives influential people an incentive to connect with you. The next time they release a copy of their new book, they might offer you the chance to give one away free, in a competition. Sure it promotes their book, but it’s also likely that they will promote your blog post to their own readership too.
Some of my most popular blog posts discuss other people. These articles became popular because of the beneficiary talking about them:
The exposure I received from these articles was far more valuable than if I had simply created self-focused content.
Solution: Create content that gives targeted individuals or companies a reason to connect with you and promote your content. Don’t be stingy with back-links.

3. Unrealistic expectations

Don’t expect things to click overnight. When success comes, it often comes quickly. Some sort of threshold is crossed and someone you never heard of seems to be everywhere overnight.
While this might happen immediately in a negligible number of cases, what’s more likely is that the blogger or marketer in question has been working for years. That’s just the way it is.
Your content could be fantastic. No-one cares. Or rather, no one cares until someone else says it’s fantastic. Until you have built up sufficient trust and credibility, no one is going to say that about you either. Why should they? What have you done for them?
Solution: Set smaller attainable short and medium term goals. Remember, everything you do is cumulative, so traffic and connections will trickle in at first, but flood in later.

4. Not creating “remarkable” content

It’s difficult to come up with something entirely new for every blog post. But make the effort to approach the problem differently. I find that giving content something of a “human” interest feel works remarkably well.
It’s the difference between looking at photos of scenery, and looking at photos of scenery with your friends in it. It’s far more interesting to read things about people you know. Even if the subject matter is all about business – reference other people.
Don’t simply add to the general background noise of content being poured onto the Web. If you want to succeed, find the angles that no-one else has.
Solution: Add a unique and original content pledge badge to your blog for free. Let it be a reminder not to post content you know is fluff or noise.

5. Not actively looking for exposure

Are you an active guest blogger? Do you create content for several sites? Is your blog feed aggregated by other sites? If you answered no to any of these questions then there is more you can do to gain a wider field of exposure.
How much time do spend promoting content you have created? Do you tweet about new content more than once? How many social networks do you use?
Here’s a great mantra for building a successful blog or marketing campaign – “Exposure. Exposure. Exposure.” Do everything you can to get eyeballs onto your content. The more people who see it, the more likely that a few of them will follow and connect with you, or even convert into paying customers, etc.
Content is the message. It still needs to be shouted out!
Solution: Find top blogs or news sites in your niche, and put some effort into getting content onto them. Sometimes its simply a case of adding your blog feed, other times you need to work for it.

6. Not willing to learn

It’s just impossible to sit down and start writing content that is going to make an impact, rock search engine’s and appear at the top of SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages), be remarkable, be innovative or industry changing, and so on.
It takes time to find your voice. Settle into a niche. Learn the industry. Learn who the players are. Become familiar with trends. New developments. And on, and on.
You need to read what other leaders are saying. I regularly look at new content from tonnes of great business people, marketers and bloggers like:
Solution: If you read something that it useful, follow that person and start evangelizing what they do. Make sure they know about it. More often than not, people who are successful are smart enough to recognize your value and connect with you – sooner or later.

7. Not leveraging great products and services

Often, using the right service at the right time can make all the difference when it comes to making a breakthrough. A press release that gets seen by the right person. A new website design that starts attracting customers. An improved eCommerce store that decreases cart abandonment.
There are a host of fantastic services available that can generate returns far in excess of the cash outlay required. Here are a few that you might consider:
Solution: Partner with businesses, and utilize products and services that can help you meet your business objectives in a cost effective and efficient manner.
Author: David Mercer
Source:http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/top-reasons-why-your-content-is-not-driving-traffic-and-how-to-fix-it-0164142