Smarter, Faster, Cheaper: Non-Boring, Fluff-Free Strategies for Marketing and Promoting Your Business

Chapter 7. Tapping into the Power of Online Video: Forget Viral, Focus on Function

If you are looking to educate, entertain, inspire, sell, market, introduce a product or service, add personality, and/or humanize your business—there may not be a better way to accomplish this than online video.

While nothing beats face-to-face real-world communication (I know—shocking, right?), the closest thing to it is video. And you wouldn't send an actor in your place when meeting with someone would you? Well, the same thing applies for video. The best voice is you (that whole authentic thing): the entrepreneur. The face.

Everyone wants to create a "viral" video. And sure, this is an insanely effective marketing weapon if you can do it correctly. But rather than trying to reach tens of millions of viewers, the real benefit of video to your business is providing content for a targeted market.

Think about this for a second: you can shoot video with an inexpensive camera and upload it for free for the world to see. And if not the world, at least your current and potential customers. Read that again.

Now take a pause.

I believe we have underestimated the power of what online video can do for your business.

It really is as easy as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5:

1. Camera (some ideas below)

2. The Internet + Distribution Method

3. An Idea

4. Promotional Strategy

5. Monetize and Measure

The price of video? Don't panic. It's way cheaper than you might think. No, you don't need a 20-person crew and a $15,000 camera.

And the best part is that everything ...