When operating a small business, one has to go through the troubles of marketing and advertising using several means. Some wallow away their money on radio stations, some on direct mail or email lists and others on TV commercials. But in the age of Social Media and Web 2.0, TiVo, DVR, XM Satellite Radio and Spam Filters these means are fast becoming ancient. In this 3 part series, I will highlight several ways small businesses can promote their brand and products effectively, efficiently and most importantly at minimum cost in this new era.
First off is Online Videos. Nowadays more companies are starting to see the advantage to having online videos right on their website or Facebook and other social media pages. Regardless of what type of company you have, or what type of product you're selling, there are always online videos that can be used to up your marketing and sales. The reason you ask? Affordability. Below is a list of videos small businesses can use to raise marketing and or sales.
Commercial
Although using TV commercials is a good way of spreading the word about your business, it also costs a lot of money. A lot of small businesses don't have the necessary means to purchase airtime on several television channels. So not only is it expensive, it's also complex and time consuming. Now more and more companies are seeing the advantage of social media, and an online presence. You can showcase your commercial right on your website, or even your Facebook and other social media pages (You Tube, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.). This way you have a free medium to distribute your video.
Product Presentation
As a company, when you launch a new product you need to describe to consumers its uses and benefits. Gone are the days of lengthy instruction manuals, nowadays people are more susceptible to videos. Just think, wouldn't that IKEA desk be easier to set up if there was some kind of video presentation. The same goes for your products, not only do you get to highlight key benefits and uses, a well-designed product presentation makes you unique and puts you ahead of your competitors and their competing products. A product demo can be the difference between a sale and a snub.
Company Profile Video
Since we are focusing on using the internet as a means of marketing, you may also want to consider uploading a video of your business in this case. This way, your prospective client will be more comfortable with using your resources to better theirs. The sole purpose is to enlighten them about what you do. Again, a video like this is perfect for your online presence.
Promotional Video
This works just like a TV commercial, but picture this. You are at the movie theater and just before the movie starts, they show the commercial for a movie you have never seen. The movie commercial may last between 1-3mins but after that, you realize that you want to see the entire movie. So it caught your attention. That's the same kind of image you want to portray. Make your promotional video interesting by showing your prospective clients what you can do.
How To
By showing off this video, you want your clients to know what you can do. Do not give out too much; otherwise, they will get bored. Tease them and make it known what you can do to the extent that they would need you to do more than they expect.
Testimonials
This is a good way of letting future clients know that your present clients are satisfied with what you have done. Sometimes it is even good to have some of those clients do a video on how satisfied they are. This way it will interest more future clients and help them feel safe and comfortable. And again this can be added to your website and social media pages, further boosting your all-important online presence.
There are several other videos that can market your business, this article focuses on those that almost any business can use or do. Social media is evolving the way we do business. With Facebook having more than 500 million users, Twitter at 75 million and You Tube users watching a staggering 200 million videos daily, it is hard to ignore the fact that online videos should be used as a form of marketing in replace of outdated and expensive means and strategies.
Stay tuned for Part II of this 3 part blog series.
Roye Okupe is the CCO at Roye Productions, a marketing and branding agency based specializing in video presentation. You can find out more at www.royeproductions.com, blog.royeproductions.com or www.twitter.com/royeproductions
Orignal From: Marketing Your Small Business, With a "Small" Budget: Part I - Online Videos
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