Monday, August 20, 2007
Online Videos are the New TV
It is quickly becoming a YouTube world. I’ve become increasingly convinced that online video has come of age and is now a medium that marketing and pubic relations professionals need to add to their tool boxes.
My son and his friends are amused by the Will It Blend series of videos where all sorts of items are thrown in a blender: Bic lighters, credit cards, tiki torches, light sticks – even an iPhone. It was funny, and seemed like more adolescent humor until I read the article about how the videos opened marketing and promotional doors for the for the Blendtec company (Viral Videos: How Sawdust and $50 Created Marketing Success for Blendtec.com). This is clearly moving beyond reposting of commercials or existing video content (see Windber Medical Center, for example) to be a mechanism unto itself.
According to homeward.com, “a recent Harris Interactive study found that about 42 percent of online adults in the United States said they have watched a YouTube video and 32 percent of frequent YouTube users said they watch less TV as a result.”
Many people have already identified that the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign will increasingly be influenced by YouTube and similar video sharing services. I’m convinced this is true, not by the (yawn) recent CNN/YouTube debates, but rather by the witty, effective response given by former senator and undeclared candidate Fred Thompson to an interview request from Michael Moore. Candidates who are able to master this medium will have an advantage on those that do not, in the same way that it has long been essential for them to master the sound bite and video clip for the evening news.
Although humor helps with the viral aspect of online video distribution, this is not a mandatory component of using video successfully, and neither is YouTube the only distribution channel. This is evidenced by some of the 3-1/2 minutes videos done by AngelVision, featuring a combination of still photography, words and music bed appropriate for e-mail, web, trade show or other sales efforts (see samples on client page).
Broadband access, the ubiquitous use of Macromedia (now Adobe) Flash, and the integration of social media concepts into video sharing sites has helped fuel the potential for online videos as a new and distinct communication medium. Yet again, it's time for communicators to proactively consider how they should be using a new medium in their communication efforts -- if they haven't already.
© 2009 Warren Allan Johnson
Posted by Warren Allan Johnson @ 8:00 AM | Permalink | |
My son and his friends are amused by the Will It Blend series of videos where all sorts of items are thrown in a blender: Bic lighters, credit cards, tiki torches, light sticks – even an iPhone. It was funny, and seemed like more adolescent humor until I read the article about how the videos opened marketing and promotional doors for the for the Blendtec company (Viral Videos: How Sawdust and $50 Created Marketing Success for Blendtec.com). This is clearly moving beyond reposting of commercials or existing video content (see Windber Medical Center, for example) to be a mechanism unto itself.
According to homeward.com, “a recent Harris Interactive study found that about 42 percent of online adults in the United States said they have watched a YouTube video and 32 percent of frequent YouTube users said they watch less TV as a result.”
Many people have already identified that the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign will increasingly be influenced by YouTube and similar video sharing services. I’m convinced this is true, not by the (yawn) recent CNN/YouTube debates, but rather by the witty, effective response given by former senator and undeclared candidate Fred Thompson to an interview request from Michael Moore. Candidates who are able to master this medium will have an advantage on those that do not, in the same way that it has long been essential for them to master the sound bite and video clip for the evening news.
Although humor helps with the viral aspect of online video distribution, this is not a mandatory component of using video successfully, and neither is YouTube the only distribution channel. This is evidenced by some of the 3-1/2 minutes videos done by AngelVision, featuring a combination of still photography, words and music bed appropriate for e-mail, web, trade show or other sales efforts (see samples on client page).
Broadband access, the ubiquitous use of Macromedia (now Adobe) Flash, and the integration of social media concepts into video sharing sites has helped fuel the potential for online videos as a new and distinct communication medium. Yet again, it's time for communicators to proactively consider how they should be using a new medium in their communication efforts -- if they haven't already.
Labels: Technology, Web
If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by e-mail or RSS.© 2009 Warren Allan Johnson
Posted by Warren Allan Johnson @ 8:00 AM | Permalink | |
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