Building Mailing Lists, List Building, Social Media, Niche Marketing

This week both YouTube and Vimeo announced beta testing for HTML 5 video. But what exactly is HTML 5 video and what does it mean to you? Here’s a breakdown on what you need to know.

First, the overwhelming majority of video you see on the Internet is Flash. And to place Flash video on a web site for people to view, you need a few things. You need the video itself in a Flash format, you need a player for the video (the thing with the play button), which is also a Flash file. You need embed code which makes the video and player work together on a web page and the viewer needs the Flash plugin installed on their browser.

It can get pretty confusing for people trying to place videos on their web site (at least at first).

HTML 5 is the latest HTML standard for the web… and it aims to make video on the web much simpler for people. Instead of all the stuff I listed above, you just need your video file. Then you can place the video in your web page using a <video> tag… just as easily as you place images on a web page.

Sounds great, right? Well, not exactly. At least not yet.

First, HTML 5 is only supported in the latest and greatest versions of web browsers (and Internet Explorer still doesn’t offer full support). That means instead of downloading a plugin to watch video, viewers would have to download the latest version of their browser.

And second, HTML 5 has sparked a bit of a video war…as to what video format should become the web standard in HTML 5. Firefox decided to support a video format called Ogg Theora. That means to take advantage of the easy-to-add-video features of HTML 5, your video must be encoded in the Ogg Theora format and any existing Flash videos must be re-encoded to the Ogg Theora format (again, this is if your viewers are using Firefox).

Other browsers are somewhat more liberal, or not…Google Chrome supports Ogg Theora and H.264, while Safari doesn’t support Ogg Theora at all.

As a side note, a big part of this “video war” is due to Ogg Theora itself…not only in terms of existing Flash videos having to be re-encoded to the Ogg Theora format…but Ogg Theora is also perceived as producing lower-quality videos than H.264…among many other things.

Still a little confused by all this video format/browser/HTML 5 stuff?  Well, you should be.  What started out as a way to make web video simpler for people has turned into a bit of a mess.

And it looks like the major video sites (where the vast majority of people go to watch video) will ultimately have the final say in how the whole HTML 5 video thing plays out.

Which brings us back to the title of this post…YouTube and Vimeo begin offering HTML 5 video.  Both of these sites, for now, and when it comes to HTML 5 video, have chosen H.264 over Ogg Theora.

That means you can go to Vimeo or YouTube and watch a limited selection of videos using HTML 5.  You’ll need Safari or Google Chrome or Chrome Frame on Internet Explorer to do this.  Firefox users are out of luck.

For YouTube, click here to join their HTML 5 beta program and watch HTML 5 videos.

For Vimeo, click here and select a video on their site.  In the lower right corner of the video description, you’ll see a blue link that says “Switch to HTML 5 player”.  Just click on it.  Or you can learn more about Vimeo’s HTML 5 video offerings be reading their blog post here.

About the Author

Dave Kaminski is a professional copywriter, videographer and 10-year veteran of direct response marketing whose work in multimedia advertising has resulted in millions of dollars worth of sales. A former U.S. Marine, Dave specializes in teaching entrepreneurs how to effectively use web video in their marketing efforts.

Dave also offers highly recommended online coaching classes on how to create web video, as well as promote and market them, for both MAC & PC users. For more information on creating web videos, please go here

|   Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

So back in December of 2007 Google’s Video team announced changes to their sitemap protocol. Specifically changes to the way Google uses sitemaps to index your video content. Now this can be done for a number of different sites that have videos, but would be an absolute killer change for sites that contain mostly video content, and we all know there are a lot out there.

How do I create my video sitemap according to the standards?

To create your video sitemap, even if you just have a dozen or so videos on your site, or even less, and just want to test out the service to see what kind of exposure your video’s get now that Google can crawl them and pick up meta data about the video such as aspect ratio, runtime, etc. I would take a look at the step by step guide to creating video sitemaps here.

How do I submit my Video Sitemap to Google?

Again, you can use the guide set up on Google’s Webmaster Guide for this topic.  I have also added a screenshot below of where you would go to do the submission.

If anyone feels like they have more to add to this quick guide on video sitemap creation, submission, feel free to leave comments, tips, suggestions and I will give appropriate credit to whoever submits an actual valid tip that I use, but as always feel free to leave comments about general SEO, SEM and Local Search as well. Questions are usually answered within one business day, and if can’t be answered as a quick FAQ, I’ll let you know that as well.

Another note worth mentioning is that when your videos do end up getting indexed by Google and end up on YouTube there will be the ability to easily embed videos in to certain websites, so in essence this makes your video content “portable”, which is huge.

About the Author:
Geoff Simon is currently a Web Production Assistant with Disney Interactive Media Group working on Disney Family’s website portfolio which includes Family.com, FamilyFun.com, CelebrityParents, iParenting and others. He also maintains a personal blog at http://simon-searchmarketing.com, a small boutique firm specializing in local search, new media and online public relations. Geoff has over 10 years of database, direct and web marketing experience. He can be found on twitter @geoff_simon.

About DevWebProUK
DevWebProUK is for professional developers … those who build and manage applications and sophisticated websites. DevWebProUK delivers via news and expert advice New Strategies In Development.

|   Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

Although online video has been around for some time now, it has seen extensive growth in the past couple of years. Based on research from comScore, YouTube is even the second largest search engine following Google. According to Kevin Ryan, CMO of WebVisible, marketers have finally realized their need to utilize video.

He went on to say that they understand the importance of having their own YouTube channel. This allows brands to have control over the message they send out to the public. Another method for maintaining that control is hosting video on your own site, as we do here at WPN. With video hosting, there are costs involved as well as the need to provide high quality production to reinforce the brand.

Overall, people are beginning to take video a lot more seriously. Ryan still refers to the space as the “Wild Wild West” but says we are starting to see inklings of what it could look like in the future.

 
About This Article:
This article was provided via WPN Videos – The Value of Video Branding on Oct 9th, 2009
 

|   Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists   |   Digg

Everyone wants to do more business. Everyone occasionally runs a promotion, a new marketing initiative, a product launch, or a new seasonal lineup. Everyone has a website stuffed with all kinds of content ranging from the important to the useless. But only the truly smart business minds understand that campaigns require their own space and identity if they are to succeed. And when it comes to using the Web as your vehicle for such a campaign, the obvious solution is a Video Campaign Microsite.

What’s A Video Campaign Microsite?

Video Campaign Microsites are websites that employ a series of highly focused video presentations designed specifically for the purpose of promoting a single marketing initiative aimed at a highly targeted audience. Video Campaign Microsites are dedicated to delivering an engaging online experience that compels an audience to act by taking advantage of the marketing initiative’s offer. These sites benefit from removing all the corporate clutter and irrelevant information that inhabits most business websites and generally gets in the way of an effective marketing presentation. Video Microsites are often implemented by means of a direct email campaign or depending on the budget, magazine, television, or radio advertising. You can also channel corporate site traffic by means of a graphical home page link.

There are different styles of video Microsites that you can employ depending on your brand personality and the goals of the campaign.

1. New Product Launch Video Microsites
The launch of a new product or a seasonal line should be an event, and there is no better way to attract attention and generate public and media interest than to create a brand new website environment dedicated to that launch.

2. Promotional Campaign Video Microsites
A sale is just a sale, and today’s sophisticated buyers have seen it all before, so unless you make a big event out of your promotion, all you’ll end up doing is selling your regular customers the products they would have bought anyway but at a lower markup. A big media splash attracts new customers, new media attention, and old customers you’ve lost.

3. How-To Video Microsites
There is nothing more damaging to your brand or your bottom line than customers who hate you, and who tell their friends and colleagues. A surefire way to make people angry is to sell them something they can’t figure out how to use properly, and a buried FAQ, or a complicated list of instructions in twelve languages and 9 point Times Roman is just not going to cut it. A how-to video site can show people how to use and get the most out of your products or services in a way they will understand and appreciate.

4. Video Mocusites
There is one thing that you definitely cannot be on the Web, and that is boring. Boring websites are the kiss of death. The Web is a crowded place and no matter what you’re looking for, there are probably dozens if not hundreds or thousands of other companies doing the exact same thing, the same way, and probably for less money. You may think you’re different but your Web audience won’t, unless you present yourself in a whole new differentiating way; and one way to do that is with a Video Mocusite. A great example of a Video Mocusite was the Chili’s restaurant chain’s PJ Bland’s campaign.

5. Video Docusites
Where the Video Mocusite takes an entertaining, humorous, and satirical approach to communicating your marketing message, Video Docusites takes a look at the history, longevity, innovation, and success of a company in order to build confidence, loyalty, and brand identity. Ford’s Bold Moves Docusite was a good example of this kind of campaign.

6. Concept Video Microsites
A Concept Video Microsite is about presenting an idea. Some products and services are so innovative or different that they can only be sold if you communicate the concept behind them. Other products may be similar to competitors but the way they are sold is different and creative. In these types of instances the Concept Video Microsite is the answer. The SonicPersonality and 136Words sites are examples of Concept Video Microsites.

7. Sponsored Video Webisode Microsites
Sponsored Video Webisode Microsites are a great marketing vehicle for those companies with the guts and foresight to recognize what the Web is all about. These types of campaigns attract an ongoing loyal audience because they are bite-sized mini programs or episodes designed to entertain and/or educate without an overt sales pitch. If conceived and designed properly your program content delivers your emotional and psychological value proposition while the accompanying pre- and post-commercials deliver your direct pitch. Think of it as sponsoring your own private online mini television series.

8. Demographic Video Microsites
When a company has different campaigns for different demographic markets, it should present them separately to avoid confusion, mixed messages, and a dilution of the brand identity, image, and personality.

Microsites Help You Avoid Information Overload

Fashion and apparel companies, for example, all have seasonal product lines that need to be promoted in a current, if not trendy, manner. Dumping such a campaign into your regular corporate Web environment gets in the way of achieving the campaign’s marketing goals: the audience looking for new products and promotions is not interested in your Investor Relations or Career Opportunities, and likewise, the people looking for jobs and investment information aren’t interested in your holiday specials. It doesn’t matter how good your presentation is if you bury it so nobody ever sees it. If website visitors can’t find what they’re looking for fairly quickly, they’re gone.

And why should a fashion or apparel company use video at all? The answer is simple: there is just no better way to present how a garment looks on a real person from all sides and angles, and when they move. Add a little voice-over description and you’ve got your own little fashion show designed to move product whether online or in-store. Too many companies, especially e-commerce companies, still ‘think print’ even when they are using the Web as their main marketing communication vehicle.

Microsites Help You Avoid The Confusion of Mixed Messages

If there is one thing that will kill your marketing, branding, and positioning faster than anything else it’s sending mixed messages to multiple audiences using the same venue or vehicle. Fast food companies are continuously running promotions and they use television as their primary marketing communication vehicle. The problem is television commercials are a shotgun approach: you broadcast a commercial and whoever sees it, sees it. Sure there are sophisticated demographic analyses of those who watch what and when, but even with that knowledge the perception-leakage is substantial.

About The Author
Jerry Bader is Senior Partner at MRPwebmedia, a website design firm that specializes in Web-audio and Web-video. Visit www.mrpwebmedia.com, www.136words.com, and www.sonicpersonality.com. Contact at info@mrpwebmedia.com or telephone (905) 764-1246

|   Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists   |   Digg

A Checklist for More Traffic and More Views

There was an interesting session on online video at Search Marketing Expo (SMX) East, which WebProNews attended. The session was called “Video Search Marketing Beyond YouTube”. The following tips come from a combination of presentations from that session from speakers: William Leake of Apogee Search, John McWeeny of TurnHere, and Eric Papczun of Performics.

Do you have trouble getting the performance you want out of your video efforts?

The tips are all aimed at making your online video efforts more successful by optimizing them for search engine performance and ultimately driving more views and traffic back to your site. So, here they are in no particular order:

1. Encode video files with good metadata like titles, dates, authors, descriptions and keywords.

2. Offer multiple formats (e.g. mov, mpeg, mp4, flv).

3. Include keywords (and the word “video”) in the filename.

4. On the page, follow general SEO principles for optimizing (title, meta, H1, etc. tags and URLs).

5. Include contextually related links to articles and other videos on the page.

6. Post captions and/or abstracts as additional relevant on-page content.

7. Use Unique URLs.

8. Use one video per URL.

9. Use embedded players rather than pop-ups or links to files.

10. Create nav links to the video content.

11. Place video files in one central directory called “videos” off the root of your folder structure.

12. Enable comments.

13. Include social bookmarking tools.

14. Allow visitors to subscribe to your videos.

15. Let viewers grab your embed code – easily (with a link).

16. Remember internal linking (consider site-wide links in your page footer).

17. Distribute your video to the top video search sharing sites.

18. Include titles, descriptions & keywords on YouTube, etc.

19. Create a video site map with a mRSS feed.

20. Control associated page text to optimize for search engines.

21. Control the player (which may drive future video SEO).

22. Shorter videos are better.

23. Don’t spend a fortune.

24. Include end slates with URLs.

25. Drive people back to your site.

26. Thumbnail images matter.

27. Look for new opportunities for video placement (think about things like Google’s product search).

28. Figure out what keyword phrase is most relevant (and winnable) for your video.

29. Look into including videos in Google Place Pages.

30. Set up a Google video XML sitemap.

31. Use tools like Tubemogul’s to optimize metadata across the major video sharing sites.

32. Track viewership.

33. Advertise with video via rich search ads with Google/Yahoo and YouTube promoted videos.

34. Make sure your videos live on your domain and use 3rd parties for distribution purposes.

35. Stay on top of technology changes and new standards.

 
About the Author:
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Twitter: @CCrum237

|   Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists   |   Digg

Now you can learn about the power of marketing with online videos.

The secret to online distribution is sending your content to as many video, social media, social bookmarking, social networking, pod cast and pod casting directories, sites and blogs as possible. Done correctly you’ll domainate search engines and own your product niche when people search for your products and services. The problem is TIME!

Traffic Geyser automates the entire submission process saving you time and money. Upload your video or videos, fill out keywords about your business, products or services and Traffic Geyser then distributes and syndicates your content to the most popular social media sites in minutes!

Want to learn more? Visit TrafficGeyser!

To get a FREE trial – go here

Sign up with Traffic Geyser today! | FREE trial

| Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

Go to YouTube. It seems anybody can make a web video (or try to). Videos create attention, awareness, they entertain, THEY SELL! With faster broadband speeds, video marketing is now a “must” in one’s online business tool kit.

As statistics show, web video marketing/advertising is known to give you a higher percentage of sales BUT poorly done or thoughtout video ads have just the opposite effect.

<-- See this quality comparison video ...

Have you created a web video for your site, squeeze page or even YouTube and after the time spent wished it had come out better, was more professional looking? Have you wanted to make a video ad or presentation for the web, but really haven't a clue how or what too do first?

Check out this excellent resource tool created by Dave Kaminski, WebVideo University. It’s a four-week online training course set in a “virtual classroom” environment. It provides step by step video-based lessons that show you how to create ‘professional looking’ web commercials from start to finish

Here is an 81 sec video from Dave Kaminski about the program.

After seeing most of the video ads put out by various people thus far, this is a MUST HAVE!

For more information, please go here.

| Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

Originally posted in: July ’09

I see that several of you have taken advantage of the current 7 day trial offer for $1 at Web Video University. I cannot say enough about this great video training program offered by Dave Kaminski. Everything is taught via easy to understand video based tutorials, and are offered both for MAC and PC users.

Whether you’re a web based business owner looking to drive more sales, a YouTube posting fanatic, a musician wanting to make music videos of your material, whatever… these classes can teach you almost EVERYTHING about creating web videos (from software to use, to cameras, techniques and tricks, lighting, 3D …) To find out more, go to www.creatingwebvideo.com (choose selection one for information on classes).

My Testimony About Web Video University
A few months back I wanted to get into making videos for my web business. I knew ‘nada’ about how or what to do to accomplish this. I stumbled accross Dave’s website and paid for the 4 week course that was available at the time. I do not claim to be anything still other than a video newbie, but if you visit my YouTube channel, you’ll see a few of the videos that I personally have done thus far. Not only were they a blast to make, but I have started to get a few offers from people for me to make videos for them (extra income).

Check out the 7 day offer for $1. If you know web video, wanna know web video, think you wanna know web video – get over there today and start the classes.

Click here to visit the Web Video University website.

| Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

This is a fun video I just did using bits and pieces of some of the video contest entries made by fellow Alex Jeffreys’ students. This is my feeble answer to Derrick Siu’s 500 video.

Sorry I couldn’t add everyones or even find everyones videos …

Student videos used (in order of appearance)…
Steve Harold – http://www.steveharoldmarketing.com/blog
Garry Parkes – http://garryparkes.com/
Nigel Yip – http://www.nigelyip.com/
Dave Dunn – http://www.davedunnonline.com/
Jim Kowalczyk – http://blog.nettcash.biz/
Jeff Sargent – http://sargentmarketing.com/blog
Renee Olson – http://marketingwithrenee.com/
Rob Brooks – http://www.marketingwithrob.com
Paul Livingston – http://www.plivingston.myccblog.com/
Doug Stewart – http://dougstewartonline.com
Derrick Siu – http://thenetexperiment.com/
JJ and Jason – I think
Alan Kiel – http://alankiel.com/
Gaielle Sharp – http://www.sharpmarketingmethod.com/
Theresa Mahew – http://theresamayhew.com/
Lori James – http://www.everythinghomebiz.com/
Nitin Mistry – http://marketingnicheprofits.com/

If I missed anyone’s video credits, please let me know …

| Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists

Ordinally posted on: May 18, 2009

eSlumDog Millionaire is now “live” and available for purchase and immediate download.

What is eSlumDog Millionaire?
eSlumDog Millionaire is a complete system with 15 modules that have step by step instructions. Each module is written in basic English and comes complete with 15 mindmaps and 15 blueprints (video series also available) that will show you how to get ‘real’ traffic and money …

If you’re feed up with false promises made by those gurus, super-affiliates and hot-shot internet marketers, and you want results, then visit www.e-SlumDog.net now and get eSlumDog!

| Subscribe to Building Mailing Lists