Monday, February 27, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
7 Tips for Creating Online Video
1. Try to keep your video short:
As online video watching continues to grow the trend of short-term videos continue to reign as king. This is because many online video audiences prefer fast and quick information and, in order to keep their attention, it is best not to go over the three-minute mark: keep this in mind when deciding on the type of video you want to produce.
2. Don’t ramble on:
For online video, it is important to get the point of your message across as quickly as possible so to keep your audience engaged. To make sure you do this, write a script outline before you shoot and include an introduction, 3 key points of your message, and a closing statement.
3. Ensure your sound is audible:
Many online audiences will forgive distorted frames to a certain extent but bad audio is not as easily forgiven. Test your sound before you shoot to see if you will need additional microphone support.
4. Make sure your shot is lit well:
Simply putting a lamp beside you will result in shadows on the camera. If you don't have the professional lighting equipment one suggestion could be to get in front of a window to allow sunlight and put a light fabric over the window. This will diffuse the light somewhat, creating a nice light. It will be flat light, but it will be way better than having shadows across your face.
5. Practice before you shoot:
In order to ensure a good, clear delivery of your key messages, you will require practice so make sure you do a few trial runs before shooting your final video and stay away from the use of em’s and ah’s.
6. Introduce yourself:
When shooting online video, always introduce yourself, first name and last, and state the point of your message at the start of your video. This will ensure your audience identifies with you and your message from the very beginning and can make an informed decision to keep watching.
7. Stay focused on your camera:
In order to ensure a professional delivery and that your audience stays engaged, try not to get distracted yourself. What this means is keep your focus on the camera, don’t look off screen and don’t fix you hair or touch your face.
- Rozlyn Gibson
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Video in the Cloud and your Personal Branding made easy!
To put it simply, “video in the cloud” is video that lives online and it is something that should get familiar with if you are looking for a new way to boost your personal and business brand in 2012.
Lets face it, online video was big 2011, but it is set to get even bigger in 2012! With its ever-growing popularity, this medium is an affective and efficient way of getting and holding your audiences attention in a much more personal way. This is why as more and more people are looking for fast and easy information, creating a your own online video’s is important when looking to boost your online personal brand.
But what should you consider when creating your “video in the cloud” to boost your online personal brand? Here are some suggestions that I think could really help:
Decide how to brand yourself using video:
Having already spent some time developing your personal brand, you will want to make sure any online video content you create does not contradict any text information you have already posted online either about you or your overall brand.
If you have already branded yourself as a Social Media Expert you will want to make sure that this carries over to any video content you put online or risk confusion on about you and your overall brand.
Title and tag your video appropriately:
When you choose your title and tags it is important to think about what key words your network may use when searching for you online. Placing a video in a search engine with a strong title and tagline can really help boost you in the searches, more so than text. This is because there are fewer words for the search engine to filter making titling and tagging a valuable part of how people find you online.
Remember content is king:
The only true way video will help your personal brand is if you have content that is not only worth watching but also worth sharing. To do this, think hard on you’re your audience is, what it is you want to say and also the tone you are going to deliver your message in order to engage your viewers.
- Rozlyn Gibson
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
4 basics to consider when creating your online video
Here are some suggestions on how to make sure your video is at its best:
1. Decide on your content
When creating an online video remember that the aim is to inform and keep your audience engaged. To do this, think hard on whom your audience is, what it is you want to say and also the tone you are going to deliver your message in.
2. Include call to actions
You have gotten your audience to watch your online video, then what? Make clear call to actions in the beginning, middle and end of your video, which tell your audience what to do next. These call to actions can be to check out your new product, browse through your website or to contact you for more information.
3. Set your stage
When shooting your video, whether it is shot on a webcam or in a full production, make sure you set your stage. What this means is to make sure you shoot on a clean and neutral background that is lit well, check your audio is audible with no background noise and dress appropriately.
4. Timing
As you are looking for your audience to be fully engaged, try keep your video short and concise as doing so will mean your will be more likely to watch your video to the very end. This will then increase the chances of them understanding your message.
I hope you have found the above tips useful and feel free to check us out at www.videobio.com, follow us on twitter @videobio or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/videobio
Until next time,
Rozlyn Gibson
Friday, September 30, 2011
Webcam for Seniors! Learn a new video skill today.
Monday, August 29, 2011
What's in a startup brand?
I recently attended the GROW conference in Vancouver, Canada. It was a terrific full day session jam packed full of startup entrepreneurs and expert speakers sharing great ideas on how to grow your business, raise financing, build brand and succeed.
It was very inspiring to be in a room full of like-minded people. Founders like myself who were at the same stage of business, challenged with the same things.
One of the panel sessions was on brand. While some of the panel conversation was relevant, I was surprised that so much time was spent on the conventional ‘what is a brand and how do you build one?’ and less on how a brand is valued.
There are still some burning questions that I have as it relates to brand, and I have spent my career building brands. Yet, in this new world of tech startups, many of the conventional brand principles do not apply.
So here it is-- brand valuation— in first and second stage financing, how does brand factor into valuation and how does the Founders brand play into this?
When I asked the question to the panel, the concentrated on the current state of brand awareness. In my view there are really three factors to look at in early stage brands; 1) The Founder brand, 2) Early stage brand awareness (within category) and 3) Brand potential (the quality, current and future value of the brand assets and trademarks).
The brand is ultimately in the eye of the beholder and, therefore, its value is subjective. Steve Jobs is an interesting case in point with his personal brand value pegged at 15% of Apple’s market value. And this is not purely because of his legacy and accrued brilliance but is very much related to his operational focus in how we actively micromanaged every aspect of his business.
Where do you think the value lives in a startup brand?