5 Tips For Making Video Online

So the other day at Summer Camp I gave a talk on how to make video online and afterwards I was asked the same questions as I get asked every single day of the week about making videos. Having made over 1000 videos in the last 2 years for various projects online I thought it would be a good idea to answer those 5 questions that I always get asked here in a blog post and have it as a simple resource to point people to. Making video is incredibly easy and is getting easier by the day as the amount of free online tools increase. Any good social media campaign should feature some form of video as it is incredibly engaging and adds dynamic content to your website or blog. Here are those simple starter questions answered…

1.What sort of camera should I buy to get started?

This is the question that I get asked over and over again and no matter how many times I ask people they just don’t seem to understand that these days the camera has very little to do with the quality of the video you are producing. Sure if you have a big company you could hire out a big production company but for the most part you will be able to shoot videos with camcorders or flip cams that cost less that $300. Spending extravagant amounts of money on the latest equipment will not provide a massive difference in quality for the Internet and while you are only testing it out you are better to keep it cheap. If the video starts to take off and you get bigger by all means look at upgrading. I would recommend either this flip camcorder that plugs straight into your computer and could not be more basic or this camcorder from cannon.

2.Where should I put my videos?

There are hundreds of video sharing sites on the Internet but one site stands like a huge towering elephant above them all, YouTube. You should add all your videos to Youtube and make sure to tag them correctly and add descriptions as your videos will also appear in search results on Google. Rather than uploading your videos individually to all the different video sites you should use Tubemogul to distribute your videos through up to 50 sites in one go. Using Tubemogul will save you a massive amount of time as well as allowing you to track the performance of your videos across different platforms. Also make sure to add your videos to Facebook so as you can spread them through your social network. I would always advise against hosting your own video as it brings a whole range of headaches and you are better paying one of the video providers such as Viddler for a pro account

3.I would be rubbish in front of the camera, what should I do?

This is the biggest reason that we don’t see more people making videos to help promote their business but there really is no reason to be scared of the camera. You don’t have to put on a huge performance or be madly talented to just talk for a few minutes about the subject you are most passionate about…your business. If you own a florist simply talk about flowers on video as you would to a customer. If you are a CEO of a company maybe whip the video camera out and give a few little tips on the business side of things. People always worry that what they have to say won’t be interesting and that nobody will care but even a pig farmer in Cavan would have an audience online if he was passionate about his business. Don’t be scared and just start that camera rolling.

4.What should I use to edit my videos?

This is where people get really worried but there really isn’t any reason to as there are some amazing free solutions out there to get you started. If you are using a Mac I would recommend that you go with the simple iMovie and if using a PC you should start of with the very basic Moviemaker that comes installed on most PCs. Both of these software packages are free and there are 100s of tutorials on Youtube and other sites and most of the functionality is as easy as dragging and dropping or cutting and pasting. If you do want to take it to the next level and add some extra functionality and editing skills such as logos and watermarking you will want to invest in Sony Vegas for a PC or final cut express for a Mac. Both are around $200 and have more features than you could ever wish for and you will also find tons of video tutorials for them online.

5.I don’t have anything interesting to talk about, who will watch my videos?

Your videos don’t need to be seen by 1000s of people for them to get the result you were looking for. They are simply a way of engaging your current readers and putting a bit of a face to your business. You just need to focus on your own particular niche no matter what it is and you can be sure that people will start watching them. The key is patience as it will take a few months to build up a following, don’t get down if you only have a handful of people watching your early efforts.The beauty is that you can embed your videos into sites like Ning and add them into your own websites and blogs. The hard work I always say only starts when you have your fully finished video and need to start promoting it. There is no such thing as a viral video, if you want your videos to get a lot of views you will need to work hard at promoting them and getting your message out there.

You now have no excuse, go on, start that camera rolling and get your video out there!
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