“Video killed the radio star.” So says that ‘80s song. But in the Internet age, where viral videos make or break careers, video births stars of all sort. Knowing how to manage this influential tool would pay dividends for companies looking to build, protect, and grow their business.
Vloggers and other media-savvy users are now commonplace in YouTube, and it isn’t considered unusual for companies and businesses to dedicate a good portion of their budget creating videos that advertise their products or services.
Online media content has a vital role to play in establishing presence for many companies. When well-made and optimized for targeted search terms, online videos are an excellent way to present a brand image and foster a sense of brand recall, with the added benefit of costing less to broadcast and promote than traditional television ads. They also play a significant role in online reputation management; videos and other media content attract web traffic relatively quickly, particularly when promoted over multiple platforms, quickly rising in search engine ranking.
Using media content such as videos is no small task, however. Creating quality content—through superior writing, excellent production values, but ideally both—is the crucial first step. Good production values for videos are a must; companies should strive to get as much quality for their money as possible. Even small companies can create good video content with proper planning and budget utilization. Likewise, terrible videos, save for those done deliberately bad in humor, are usually not a good idea.
While videos sometimes become viral by themselves, even the best ad campaigns often become overlooked without initial dissemination. Though ads are available for web video platforms, promotion using the company’s own social media assets is a lot less resource-intensive while being just as effective, exposing the content to the company’s social media followers quickly.
Video streaming is perhaps one of the most widely used public aspects of the World Wide Web. The role of videos in creating a positive online presence is fast becoming a requirement for larger companies and a rewarding investment for smaller companies. Video content is a great addition to any public relations or online reputation management campaign and indispensable for viral online marketing.
This awesome video by Volvo featuring Jean Claude Van Damme in the most epic of splits pretty much sums all this up.
REFERENCES
http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2013/11651/how-video-plays-a-crucial-role-in-the-rise-of-content-marketing
http://www.prmoment.com/1457/the-importance-of-a-great-video-in-pr-and-how-to-create-a-film-that-works.aspx