Five Video Perfect, Speech Opener Ideas

 My Web Writers

If you’re not using video yet– you should be.  When using video as a way to communicate mass messages, these following five ideas will help you to open with strong and compelling calls-to-attention and to pique your audiences’ interests.

1. Start with a demonstration.

Video presentations can do what would not be nearly as effective in front of a large, live audience. You can open your speech with a hands-on demonstration, talent, or trick – especially one that can be zoomed in on. Many people learn by doing and so a speech that begins with an immediate action captures interest and improves retention. This makes the audience want to know the connection between your demonstration and what you’re about to say next. We like the Shindigz video collection because of the quality and quantity of helpful tips and the ways in which these party products are demonstrated by Wendy and Mary.

2. Add emotion.

A video speech or presentation is also a key opportunity to employ an emotional appeal to your audience. You can begin with a montage of photos with a voiceover, words or a story from someone else or tell a story that is personal to you. Music can greatly enhance the effect of this. Another important benefit of this speech opener is that it helps to create a relationship with the audience. Through video you can sometimes lose that “human element” that you get from a live presentation, but by incorporating emotion you ensure this important element is still present right from the start. We think the Dove Real Beauty Sketches demonstrate how to effectively tug at heartstrings.

3. Incorporate humor.

The use of humor is a tried-and-true technique for many different styles of speeches. Remember that with video, you have the advantage of zooming in on facial expressions to really emphasize the humor in a story.  Telling a joke is a perfect speech opener idea for this medium because it helps to break the ice and set a warm and friendly tone. Whether dry or sarcastic, humor like Apple Coasting will bring a welcome chuckle.

4. Reference another well known speech or video clip.

Countless video clips have risen to stardom overnight after going viral on social media. These have become just about as well known as classic novels, especially depending upon the generation you ask. Including a short clip from a well known viral video as the opener of your own video speech is a great way to capture an audience’s attention and to prime them for your message. Ideally, such a clip should be relatable to the rest of your speech. With the many, many viral videos to choose from, you should be able to find something that can be woven into almost any message.  We think this Cimorelli and Matty B spoof of Cary Rae Jepson’s Call Me Maybe is a fun way for up-and-coming singers to partner and credit a well-known singer.

5. Do something completely unexpected.

Finally, video speeches are a great opportunity to do something completely unexpected and harness this as an effective opener to capture your audience’s attention. You’re able to zoom-in, edit, add special features and use props much more easily than you could in front of a large, live audience. So stretch your creativity and really think outside the box for an unexpected opener like a special effects trick, goofy song or sound effect. This can be in relation to the topic of the rest of your video speech or it could be a complete contrast that will keep the audience guessing.

There are many great opportunities to open your video speech that will capture your audience’s attention, build your credibility and set the stage for a powerful message.  These are just five to help get you started. They key is to remember that you must tailor your message to your audience and your medium. A video presentation or speech has unique challenges and advantages of which you should be aware and take into consideration. With the right opener and ever-advancing technology, your message can travel as far and as fast as your viewers are inspired to take it!    ~Stephanie & Jean

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How Video Helps Your Website’s SEO

Resolve to Include Video in Your Content

How Video Helps Your Website’s SEO

by My Web Writers

On the Internet, video is one of the most sought after types of content and it can play a key role in increasing your website’s SEO. Video, more than any other content type, can keep viewers on your page for longer. As Google places increased value on how long visitors stay on a page, creating videos that browsers will watch is a critical, creative way to use content to your advantage.

Stickiness and Conversion

Video helps the stickiness of your page in a number of ways. First, as noted above, Google Panda looks for a difference between a short click and a long click. In a short click, the viewer clicks a link and then quickly clicks away, which indicates to the algorithm that the page is of low-quality. Videos increase viewer engagement with your page, so they help create long clicks. Further, according to comScore, an internet research company, videos are the fastest growing content on the internet. Using video content increases the likelihood that your page will be shared to other viewers or on social media.

 Embedding and Social Media

Shares on social media and links from other websites are an important way to boost your SEO, but they’re also the SEO component you have the least control over. The best you can do is create engaging content and set your site up for success, but you can’t make people share your content. To increase your video’s likelihood to get shared on social media, consider how you embed your video. If your video can only be embedded on your website, it inherently has a higher SEO rank, but allowing other users to embed your video increases the chances that it will be shared elsewhere, including social media sites such as Facebook and Pinterest. Along those lines, make sure your video has a clear, engaging thumbnail picture to entice viewers to actually watch the video once linked to it.  For more information, see our post about Video Basics.

 Boosting Your SEO

As you create the video content itself, there are more ways you can boost your SEO through the video. First, make sure the content is interesting and high quality. Also, consider where you host your video. According to TechCrunch, hosting your video on YouTube means it will automatically get logged by Google, increasing your SEO.

The keywords and title you use are also important. When naming your video, choose a title that uses keywords that get more hits in search engines. A creative, informative title is most important, but those keywords help too. Then, when choosing keywords for your video, make sure the keywords reflect the title of the video as well as the content. Google is invested in making sure videos are about what the title says they’re about. As internet users increasingly search out video, optimized video content can help your site’s overall SEO.

Finally, SEOmoz suggests including the transcript of your video on the page in which you embed it. That way, search engine crawlers can find not only the video, but text that supports your keyterms and content. Combined with quality content, videos can be an SEO or social media jackpot, but you have to make the right choices to set your video up for success.

From script writing to editing, consider adding  video services into your site’s SEO plan.  ~Kasey

Video Basics: Hosting, Sharing, and Content

By My Web Writers

Adding video content to your website, blog, or online store is a great way to generate traffic and audience engagement. Getting the most out of your video content require more than just a good idea and a camera, however. You’ll also have to make some key decisions about video hosting, integration, embedding, and more.

Image courtesy of Alviman

Video Hosting

A key decision for publishing your video content is whether you will host your video through a free service such as YouTube or through a professional third-party service. The majority of free videos on the internet are hosted through YouTube with another large portion on Vimeo. The major advantage of using YouTube is that your video will automatically be logged by Google, boosting its rank for your SEO. Plus, your content will be available to an enormous audience for free.

There are also advantages to using a professional service such as Vzaar or Wistia. The most obvious advantage is the higher quality of video you will get through a hosting service. Using a third-party service also gives you more control over the publishing of your video and where it is available. With customized services you can more closely link your video to your website so that, if the video finds a large audience without the help of YouTube’s base, your video will create a priceless link between the content and your company.

Video Embedding

Once you’ve decided on how you’re hosting your video content, you’ll need to consider how you will code and allow embedding of your video. One option is to restrict your video from being embedded outside of your domain or webpage. This strategy is strongest for SEO as it creates that solid, exclusive link between your video and your site. It also, however, reduces the likelihood of readers sharing your video on social media. Conversely, allowing people to embed your video outside your webpage increases social media viability, but decreases its weight in SEO. Therefore, your decision about how your video can be embedded hinges on whether you are counting on the SEO boost from sharing, +1s, tweets, pins, and Facebook likes or if you are relying on the content to hold its own on your site.

Further, little details can go a long way, so when you are considering how your video will be embedded, remember to choose a strong thumbnail picture. Thumbnail pictures should create an intriguing image of your content that also clearly captures the main point of your video. For example, if your video is a demo, your thumbnail could be a clear shot of the skill, craft, or food your video demonstrates. Thumbnails are important for earning clicks on Google as well as social media sites such as Pinterest.

Content and Integration

To make the most of your video, it’s also important to integrate video content into your website in a seamless manner that supports your other elements. First choose video content that makes sense for your site or products (Check out our tips for creative video content). For optimal integration, limit your videos to one per page and include the video content alongside other media, such as photos, as well as engaging text. For example, if your video is a demonstration, you could include step by step screen caps as well as a transcript of your video. That way, users can watch the demo as well as see and read highlights of specific steps. As always, the more engaging and high-quality your content is, the higher it will score in Panda and the more likely readers are to return to your site.

For your video content, writing, and production needs, My Web Writers has a range of services to help you create interesting, quality video content for your brand. Check out our samples and services to see if we’re a good match for your business.  ~ Kasey

Your 2013 Content—Resolve to Include Video

by My Web Writers

Image courtesy of Danilo Rizzuti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

Video content bolsters the usability of your website or blog and encourages customers to interact with your content and hopefully your products. This year, make a resolution to include more video content showcasing your company and your services or merchandise. There are plenty of ways you can create fun, innovative video content to draw browsers to your site!

Tutorials

Tutorials are among the most shared and most viewed videos on YouTube. Through tutorials viewers can learn recipes, crafts, sports skills, dance moves, even how to pick a bike lock. The internet has become a classroom, enhancing people’s hobbies and making DIY projects easier. If you have a skill or a product that warrants a demo, create it yourself! For example, if you sell sports equipment, provide demos or sample workouts. Tutorials are also a way to showcase individual talent. Amateurs such as Michelle Phan have launched careers on YouTube. Phan’s makeup tutorials became so popular she was offered a job as a spokeswoman for Lancome and was even featured in Vogue. A well-crafted tutorial on an engaging topic can do wonders for your web traffic.

 Your Business Image

Give customers an inside look at your business. Create short videos about fun traditions around the office. For example, Shindigz Party Supplies filmed their annual Turkey Bowling event, letting customers in on the fun. Give clients an idea of what your office and the people who work there are like and post it on the About Us section of your webpage or as a post on your company blog. If customers view your company as real people, not just a logo, they may be more likely to use your products or services.

Customer Interviews

Feature your customers! Interview customers about your services or how they use your products and showcase their response on your webpage. Filmed customer responses add extra credibility to the reviews you quote on your webpage, as viewers can put a real face to the response.

Video Contests

Hosting a video contest is a fun way to get customers involved in the creation of your video content. Choose a theme or a type of video and create a YouTube channel to display the entries. You can have customers vote on their favorite using the “thumbs up” button or comments or choose the winner yourself. Have entrants create tutorials about how they use your products, mini-documentaries about how your company helped them, or funny videos featuring your products. Find a theme that best showcases your company and let your customers get creative.

Mini-Documentary

Make your video content look like a real documentary. Film a day in the life of your CEO or a behind-the-scenes look at an event, game, or home that uses your products. With a combination of interviews and action footage, a documentary can showcase both customer reaction and your products or services in action. Plus, a documentary adds an edgier, more professional feel to your video.

 Not only is video good for your SEO, it also increases the likelihood your site will get bookmarked or shared on social media. My Web Writers video services including video script writing, video production, and video editing options. Check out samples of our work to decide if we can help you do more creative work with video in 2013. ~Kasey

When Bad Jokes Happen to Good People

by My Web Writers

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, “A difference of taste in jokes is a great strain on the affections.” While a bad joke with friends and family can be forgotten, with potential customers you might have just one chance to win them over.  Because senses of humor vary, using humor cautiously is in your best interest. That said, good comedy can evoke emotions that connect people to your purpose.

A Little Goes a Long Way

When writing funny copy, a little humor goes a long way. You know that person in your circle of friends who overuses bad puns, as though by telling every joke, eventually he or she will get a laugh? A little bit goes a long way, especially in marketing copy. Not only do you not want to overload your writing with humor and detract from the credibility of your content, subtle humor often reads better, showing your sophisticated skills.

One way to simplify your humor for a bigger impact is by choosing a consistent style. Consider the Allstate “Mayhem” commercials. The ads each feature actor Dean Winters as different embodiments of “mayhem”–a teen driver, heavy winter snow, termites, and so on.

The phrasing in the commercials features eloquent and funny descriptions of the disasters about to befall drivers or homeowners, but the humor lies most in the deadpan delivery. Further, the consistency of the different ads emphasizes the humor and creates strong branding for the company. In your copy, you can employ these same strategies by devising a unified comedic tone or running gag to use along with your stylesheet.

Consider Negative Reactions

If you consider your customer demographics, hopefully you can avoid a joke that offends unanticipated readers, but you should still consider how your writing might be read as distasteful rather than funny. For example, last year KIA ran a print ad that intended to depict the two sides of their new cars. The ad featured a cartoon strip of a teacher talking to a student and seeing her on one side as a little girl and on the other as a sexualized teenager. The company faced a big backlash because a large number of people thought the ad was inappropriate at best. In this case, failing to consider the implications of the joke forced KIA to deal with an offended public. Especially when joking about gender, race, politics, or religion, think through how others might read your humor, or avoid these jokes altogether.

Keep it Positive

All told, using comedy that is on the light side is most likely to make your readers and potential customers smile. By using jokes that refrain from making fun of a particular person or group of people, you depict your company as friendly and trustworthy rather than gossipy or mean. Upbeat jokes also work well with call-to-action marketing copy, so you can draw the reader in with humor and use active writing to bring in a sale.

Finally, remember to read your humorous copy aloud. Your writing should capture the tone and timing of the joke as though you were telling it to your reader in person.

~Kasey