Rolling With The Punches in Video Content Marketing

Week two of our efforts to dive (slowly & carefully) into the depths of what it takes to add more video to your content marketing is underway and we’ve already learned a really important lesson: roll with the punches.

You might remember from last week’s post that we were planning to kick off our series of video interviews with some smart folks around video. As can happen in any content process, the odds of internet and video content were not exactly in our favor. It’s kind of difficult to record a live-stream, cross-country interview without a stable internet connection, so we had to make a change of plans.

Perfect teachable moment.

Video strategy involves a lot of variables. I think that’s why so many shy away from it. Writing a text-only blog post simply involves fewer logistics. You sit down, you write, you edit, you publish. Maybe you add an image or put together an infographic if you are feeling really brave logistically. Video can involve all of those things if done correctly. You have to write out a plan for what it will be, maybe even a script, and often create some visual collateral to go with it.

As we discussed last week, despite the urge to jump right in, because of these additional logistical considerations, it is super important to have a plan to get started adding any video content to your marketing efforts. That being said, even the best laid plans are often thrown asunder by the mighty whims of internet connectivity and technological functionality, so it's almost as important to have a plan for what to do when things go wrong. What can you do?

Just keep swimming.

When we set out to create this new stream of video content, the plan on paper was to set up a regular day and time for building the content. We chose Wednesday afternoons based on some analysis of some of the existing traffic going on around other hashtags and video chats. That was all part of the plan, anyway.

In our case, the plan for what to do once we got our technical difficulties ironed out was to take the time to record a PREVIEW of the video conversation we had intended to have live. After it was done, both I and the guest (@JenKnoedl) felt like we were glad we did it and that the video PREVIEW should have been a part of our PLAN from the beginning!

As a result, we changed the plan and, each week, before we record #OMGVMS as a LIVE VIDEO Q & A, we’ll record a brief conversational preview video with the upcoming guest to let folks get a taste of what is to come. Perfect! 

Remember, having a plan for how to get started incorporating more video into your content marketing is tough to do if you haven’t really worked with any video tools before, so having a plan for what to do when things go wrong is almost just as important.

Our conversation this week will cover the PacMan Power Pill of Video Marketing: Testimonials. As you will see from our guest, Jen Knoedl, who literally wrote a book about it, these simple, time-honored video elements are a great way to get started adding video to your content marketing efforts, but there’s much to consider when making a plan, even for the “simplest” of testimonials.

As I mentioned last week, having a plan is only part one. Part two is getting some help. Jen’s expertise in testimonials is a perfect example to illustrate that even a marketing department of one doesn’t have to do it all alone, and shouldn’t. Where do you find the help you need? The answer may be closer than you think, especially when it comes to video testimonials.  

Tune in to find out more!

You can also submit your questions in advance! We’re using a tool called CrowdCast as a central hub for our new show. It allows us to give potential viewers the chance to login and ask questions in advance (and even upvote questions asked by others.) The tool we are using to record the live video conversations is BLAB, an up and coming platform among social media early adopters, and it embeds right into the CrowdCast platform, so you can find us in either place.

If you’ve got more questions about CrowdCast, BLAB, or any of our efforts, you can hit me up on Twitter via @VideoIn and I’ll also be monitoring the tag #OMGVMS as well. I look forward to hearing from you!