Sep 26

Why You Can’t Afford to Ignore Online Video

By Dave Conklin Digital Media Trends Comments Off

Video is everywhere we turn these days, especially online. It seems like almost every page we land on has some kind of video content, and once you understand the many benefits online video brings to the businesses behind it you will wonder why you haven’t taken advantage of it yourself!

Why Video?

It is common knowledge that when faced with the opportunity to choose, a vast majority of web users will choose to take the path of least resistance when consuming information. This means that video is immediately a top choice because it is almost entirely passive on the part of the viewer. All they need to do is click “play”, sit back, and enjoy the show.

Combine this with the growing number of people who are browsing the web and watching videos on the go from their mobile devices and you have arrived at a virtually limitless opportunity to get your message out there and in front of a lot of people.

What Can Online Videos Do For You?

Bear in mind what I said earlier about the potential reach of online videos and add social media into the mix. Imagine all of the ways that videos can be shared online including social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. You can find videos on blogs, in forum posts, and even on the home pages and product pages for businesses all over the web. And it’s a small wonder because pages with videos are over 50% more likely to appear on the first page of Google results, and who doesn’t want that? Online video can be just one of many SEO services that a high end SEO company can offer you.

In a nutshell, online videos can do a lot of good things for your business including making it more likely that someone will see your message and making it easier for people to consume that message once they find it. And the whole time this is going on, videos are also working in the background to increase the time people spend on your pages and just generally garnering some search engine love for your pages.

Ignore Online Video Marketing At Your Own Risk

All of the benefits I’ve described are waiting for you to come and claim them, so what are you waiting for? Online video is no longer something that can be ignored or selectively adopted. It has become a force to be reckoned with and is appearing everywhere we turn.

You Don’t Have to Go All-out to Reap The Rewards of Online Video

All you really need to take the plunge into creating your own videos, is a decent video camera (several models are available from major brands for under $200) and some imagination. Everything else from that point on like video editing software, props, backdrops, etc is icing on the cake and can come later. If you don’t have the cake (a video) all of the icing in the world isn’t going to change that.

What You Should Take Away From This Post

What I want you to take away from this post is the knowledge that video is here to stay, it’s a major form of online communication, and it’s pretty darn cool. People love it, search engines love it…what more incentive do you need? Get out there and make a video today! It doesn’t have to be premium professional-grade stuff with bunches of special effects and transitions. Speak from the heart about something you are passionate about and everything else will fall into place. Host the video somewhere like YouTube, Vimeo, or Wistia and you’ll be ready to share it with the world! Distribute the video using services like Preview Networks and you’ll increase your audience and brand message exponentially.

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is a content marketing platform for brands and content aggregation and syndication platform for publishers. We provide the tools for brands to centrally distribute and manage marketing and PR content across media destinations, devices, and commerce platforms; allowing media partners to automate content acquisition delivering audience and advertising revenue growth.

About the Author

Dave Conklin is an entrepreneur and internet marketer with more than a decade in the business. His latest project is RankPop.com, a high end SEO and content marketing agency. He, with his team at RankPop, is a guest blogger for Preview Networks. You can learn more about RankPop here!

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Aug 24

A New Way to Approach Online Video Production

By Heather Timmerman Digital Media Trends Comments Off

If you follow any marketing and advertising blogs or news feeds you will find that there is no lack of recent articles or data suggesting that online video is how businesses should market their products and services. In fact, our most recent blog post discussed how online video is the content marketing of the future which was inspired from a growing theme that can be found in many of our past blog posts, based on market trends.

Image courtesy of hotelmarketingstrategies.com.

One thing is to read about how increases , encourages sharing, and creates a more engaging experience for the , but it is yet another to take action and make online video happen for your business. The task can appear daunting, especially for those who have never thought of marketing products and services in this way. There are various traditional and nontraditional ways to approach this task.

Traditionally it starts with the internal development of a concept, into a storyline, and content sourcing (both graphical and editiorial). Then with the help of a video production company comes the physical shooting, editing and recording of the video itself which requires both internal and external resources to work together in harmony.  Or, you can pitch the concept to a creative environment like Poptent which introduces an entirely new way to approach creating video assets.

A recent article by ClickZ summarised the concept beautifully, but essentially you pitch a video idea to a community of creative artists, put a price tag on it, and give it a deadline. Afterwards you receive a series of video submissions to choose from after which you award one lucky recipient. Sounds pretty easy peasy! The tricky part is deciding how and where to market the new video asset. That’s where Preview Networks comes in.

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our content is available on MSN,, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 2,300 other online . We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

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Aug 18

Online Video is Content Marketing of the Future

By Heather Timmerman Digital Media Trends Comments Off

It’s no secret that video has exploded in the online space, nor that it is more effective than plain text and graphics. According to The Motion Effect Theory, human beings have an inherent preference for moving objects (Sundar and Kalyanaraman 2004) which is one reason why TV has been so popular for so long.

Image courtesy of Content Marketing Institute

With the evolution of the internet into our daily habits, it is only logical that as human beings we are drawn to moving objects on our computer screens as well. I’m not talking about moving ads vying for attention on the top, right and left of the content you are reading online. It’s the well done, well played online video inserted into editorial pieces and commerce pages that adds context and depth to any piece of information you may be interested in. “The combination of moving images, still pictures, graphics, sound, and text – with interactivity and mobile devices – appeals simultaneously to multiple senses making online marketing video the ultimate way to communicate, engage, and capture consumer attention” (Rick Dearborn, B2C).

According to Forrester Research, online video is 50 times more likely to appear on the first page of search results because of optimisation tactics like blended search and according to comScore, YouTube continues to be the main driver of online video content growth with 147.2 million unique viewers in the U.S. in May, 2011. Luckily for brands, videos are becoming increasingly easier and more affordable than ever to make. The important thing to remember is to create video content with a clear strategy in mind. If it is quality content, it will always find a place in the mind of the consumer. Reaching the consumer in more places than search engines and video platforms however, is a matter of strategic distribution and content management. Something we happen to know a little bit about.

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our content is available on MSN,, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 2,300 other online media. We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

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Jun 23

Brands that Embrace Video Improve Sales

By Heather Timmerman Digital Media Trends Comments Off

In the May posts regarding the Growth of Branded Content we talked about how despite the rise in both financial spend and consumption numbers, video was still an underutilised asset for many brands. Even though usage of video is increasing, in many ways that statement is still true when comparing the demand to supply. According to SundaySky’s quarterly report, 9% more retailers posted videos on YouTube in Q1 2011 compared to Q4 2010. However, the number of subscribers to online retailers’ YouTube channels increased by more than 20%.

Which covers only one source of video content. The biggest opportunity to embrace video content as a way to showcase products and boost e-commerce is the brand or retailer website. According to SundaySky “a staggering 68% of retailers are not yet exploiting the obvious and accessible rewards of using videos on their sites.” Combine video with SEO best practices and it is bound to equal big dollars, as the Zappos case study proves in the report. They generate more than $500K in incremental revenue simply by following video SEO guidelines.

Now imagine enhancing the e-commerce site experience to feature live video chat, like Lands’ End is doing to improve the online shopping experience. According to the Vice President of Customer Care Service, this has not only made the customer shopping experience more efficient and enjoyable, it has helped the bottom line as well. Regardless of the method chosen, the opportunities for brands to utilise video are plentiful,  and the benefits are very tangible.

Want to read more? Check out these articles:
Online Videos Increase Traffic, Conversions for Retailers
Selling the Goods: Retailers Embrace Video as Virtual Sales People
Live Video Chat in Ecommerce Websites: The Future of Customer Service?

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our content is available on MSN,, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 2,300 other online media. We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

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Jun 16

Product Videos Improve Consumer Decision Accuracy

By Ervin Draganovic News we can use Comments Off

With every passing day consumers are being stimulated to purchase products by e-commerce sites with greater information richness, improved user friendliness, and larger coverage. Even though the internet has only been around for the past 15 years or so, it has changed consumer activity considerably.

However, whether e-commerce sites empower consumers to make better decisions when purchasing a product should be questioned. While many have written that improved decision capability comes with the increase of information, most consumers are feeling overloaded with sheer volume of information at the point of purchase. The irony is that the total amount of available information has passed the point of what consumers are able to process. E-commerce sites that offer too much information confuse rather than clarify consumers. This may be very surprising, but the fact is that consumers just use a small amount of the available information when making decisions (Caildini, 2001).

Besides, e-commerce merchants have to remember that consumers are “cognitive misers” who try to decrease any amount of cognitive effort when making decisions and as a result of that are willing to settle for an imperfect solution in return for a deduction in search costs (Häubl & Trifts, 2002).

Due to these facts, building text-heavy e-commerce sites, including long bullet point product specification pages, is not improving consumer decision accuracy. Instead, e-commerce merchants should focus on building product videos that:

  • focus on the most essential features in the product,
  • give a good product demonstration,
  • highlight purchase information (price, delivery, and payment security),
  • have a short duration,
  • are well integrated
  • and are SEO optimized.

By allowing consumers to watch product videos, the cognitive effort will decrease as easier access to the important information is granted. Along with the decrease in cognitive effort, consumers’ decision accuracy will get improved as more information can be accessed and processed in less time.

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our content is available on MSN,, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 2,300 other online media. We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

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Jun 10

Leveraging the ROI of Video

By Heather Timmerman News we can use Comments Off

The video space is hot right now and there are massive amounts of data telling companies why they should invest in video when it comes to interactive marketing plans. Video increases conversion rates, encourages sharing, and creates a more engaging experience for the consumer, etc. However, there are very few articles that break down the return on investment as succinctly as video-commerce.org has done in their 3 part blog series on the ROI of Video Commerce Platforms.

Cleverly titled “How to make $645K from Video Commerce Tech in 24 Months by Launching 2 Videos a Month” the third blog post walks the average e-commerce marketing manager through an estimation scenario using 4 baseline numbers, assuming the average website sells goods or services online and plans to implement or publish video. The 4 baseline numbers include: Average Order Value, Average Conversion Rate, Number of Videos Available to Deploy on Day 1 and the Number of Videos Available to Deploy on the 24th month.

The video publishing options include: Video SEO, Interactive Social Video, Video in Email, Site Video Optimisation, Mobile Video (on-site), and Mobile Video (in-store). Using sample data from the company Liveclicker, an ROI scenario of the above methods, including production improvement from video analytics produces the following results:

  • Video SEO revenue of $88,854
  • Interactive/Facebook video revenue of $64,270
  • Video in Email revenue of $280,000
  • Site Video Optimization revenue of $119,884
  • Mobile Video Revenue of $12,691
  • Production Improvement from Video Analytics of $80,184

Total 24 month revenue of $645,883 attributed to investment in video commerce technology.

Not all video methods mentioned in the example may be appropriate for every company, but the possibilities are tangible. If you have the patience and perseverance to read all the way through the post and apply it using relevant data, it is a transparent and thorough way to see a projection of return on investment when it comes to video.

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our content is available on MSN,, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 2,300 other online media. We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

 

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Mar 22

SEO 101 for Cinema Sites

By Victor Potrel News we can use, Technology Comments Off

If you were to open a restaurant, the first thing you would think would be: “how are people going to find out about me?” And if you have the chance to be on the Champs Elysées (to take a French example), then you are sure to be seen.

Now replace this restaurant with your website and the Champs Elysées with the first page of Google.* You get my point, right?  Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for your website or blog is the key if you want people to find out about it.

There are a lot of things that can be done to help your SEO. An important one is the keywords you use on your website. The words you use in your pages, titles and especially website URL. Now, that’s a nice thing to know, but which keywords are the most effective for me?  Well, Google of course, provides a free tool to help you.

Google insight for search allows you to test keywords against others. You can filter by countries, regions, years and categories.  Once you entered your keywords, you can check their trend for people searching them. You can also compare them and have information on regional searches and associated key words.

Let’s take an example and stay in the French theme. A quick search for “bande annonce”(filmtrailer) against “bandes annonces” (filmtrailers) demonstrates the importance of checking your keywords – “bande annonce” has risen steeply since 2009 against a decreasing “bandes annonces”.  The volume of search for the two keywords is 51 for “bande annonce” against 6 for “bandes annonces”.  That is, the first one is searched 8,5 times more! What this means for you is that using the keyword “bande annonce” will increase your search engine position and help people find out about you.

Another interesting insight is the progression of searches for “bande annonce”.  Looking at this trend, we can see that the volume of search more than doubles in 2 years.  This is something to take into account for the needs of your audience when it comes to viewing trailers online.

Would you like more from Victor?  Check out his Twitter page: http://twitter.com/victor_ld

About Preview Networks

Preview Networks is Europe’s largest preview distribution network. We serve websites, ,  apps and . Our is available on MSN, , IMDB, , The Times, MySpace, The Guardian, El Pais, El Mundo, Le Monde and more than 1,500 other online media. We work with more than 300 companies including Sony, Fox, Disney, Warner, Universal, and Paramount. Learn more on previewnetworks.com

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