This short video was produced to show how quick and easy it is to produce a video from an existing blog post using the free Lumen 5 video tool.
Lumen 5 is an AI-powered video creation platform that turns blog posts into engaging videos. Using the tool is easy, intuitive and surprisingly fast. After producing a few Lumen 5 videos, I expect you could create one in as little as 10 minutes from existing content like a blog post. You can see my original blog post here http://bit.ly/LaoTzu8 to compare it with the video produced so effortlessly.
The creative and marketing possibilities are very intriguing and so far Lumen 5 is free although it may offer more features for a price in the future. For now, it's an interesting tool to explore.
Businesses, bloggers, trainers, authors and really anyone can use it to produce social content to drive audience engagement online. Great thing is you can focus on your message, visuals and creativity without having to touch the technology.
You can get more info and demos for the app at www.lumen5.com.
Jeff Domansky's insight:
With Lumen 5, producing video content for social media is simple, easy, intuitive and fast. My demo was taken from an older blog post about writing for the internet. Lots of potential for this tool.
With Lumen 5, producing video content for social media is simple, easy intuitive and fast. My demo was taken from an older blog post about writing for the internet. Lots of potential for this tool.
Session chair Alex Blyth kicked off the session, held at Outbrain’s Oxford Street offices in London, by pointing to the January 2014 Cisco study which predicted that by 2017 69% of all consumer internet traffic will be video.
He went on to argue that the potential of video should not be measured solely by the quantity of traffic it generates; the quality of the interactions is also key. According to Adobe’s State of Online Advertising consumer research in 2013, 67% of consumers think “a video is worth 1,000 words”. He confessed that for a professional writer like him this is a worrying trend...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Not to worry, if you're a writer. Video is a godsend for PR, marketing and content marketing pros. Adapt and thrive.
Most PR pros (79%) agree that video is not being used nearly enough when it comes to content. However, according to a recent survey conducted by PR News and PR Newswire, that is about to change.
Mixed-media strategies will play a key role in PR in 2014 and beyond. To illustrate that fact, here is an infographic that breaks down the survey’s recent findings....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
This infographic shares a ton of valuable insight into public relations...
Content - As Vine and Instagram Video battle for users, one thing is clear: People go crazy for online videos. Here's an infographic explaining why consumers watch product videos and their effect ...
All those product video views translate into more sales for businesses.
Shoppers who view video are 174% more likely to purchase than viewers who did not, according to Invodo. And almost 40% of consumers report that videos increase their likelihood of making a purchase on a mobile device....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
This infographic and post provide useful ammunition for marketing, PR and content marketing pros who need evidence that video in social media returns an ROI. Take a look.
Take a moment to think about what’s just happened in the last 6 months.
- Facebook allows images in comments.
- Instagram allows videos.
- Twitter allows video through Vine.
- Podcasting is back in a very big way.
- LinkedIn rolls out video ads.
- Google+ Hangouts integrate YouTube, Slideshare, and many other media types.
Think about how many different kinds of content these changes encompass. Video. Audio. Images. Text.Think about what it costs to license information from all of the different stock sites you work with on a regular basis.The public relations agency of the future will have a library, a digital repository of content that’s ready to go at a moment’s notice, and the associated creative team to help build and maintain it. Forward-thinking agencies already do....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
The PR agency of the future is a publisher who will need many visual resources..
YouTube newbies should check out The Small Business Guide to YouTube, a helpful microsite that shows a step-by-step guide for getting started with YouTube marketing.
Created by Simply Business, this one-page destination covers everything from creating good content to preventing legal issues. With so many instructions to read through on YouTube’s help board, this site speeds up the process by briefly summarizing all the FAQs on one page and then making detailed answers easy to find. The page is designed as a flow chart that takes you through a series of “yes” or “no” questions that lead to the answers, which are outlined in a slide show presentation.
It starts with the basics — “Do you know how to create a YouTube account?” — and moves into more complicated territory, like the various monetization options and how to measure your success in YouTube analytics. Every time you answer “no,” you’ll see a new slide that’s filled with checklists, videos, and links to articles to fill you in on what you don’t already know. (And who doesn’t love saying no?)...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
I highly recommend this small business guide to YouTube. It's loaded with valuable advice and marketing tips.
How many banks can you think of that put so much faith in the power of brand content that they began producing award-winning television and video shows on a daily basis? No matter how hard you try, it’s likely you’ll only come up with one: Jyske (pronounced You-ska) Bank.
Jyske Bank has created one of the most high-tech, in-house television production studios in Denmark. In fact, the company refers to itself as both a bank and a media company.Jyskebank.tv produces amazing financial programming, as well as compelling stories that the bank believes are relevant to its core audience of younger consumers and small enterprises.
Jyske’s brand content program is made up of two key values:
Remaining true to the organization’s guiding vision, which it calls “Our Foundations“Telling good stories...
It’s one of those terms being thrown around by marketing departments everywhere, but do you really know what it means? And more importantly, do you know how to use it to maximum effect?
We all know that online marketing has changed, and in 2013 ‘content’ is playing a bigger part than ever in driving traffic and keeping the search engines happy. In the wake of Google’s Panda and Penguin updates, this is something many webmasters are struggling with.
So what ‘content’ should you be producing when implementing a content marketing plan?
• Written –Check out this blog post for some top tips on writing quality content if you’re struggling.
• Images and video – These can go viral and are cost-effective pieces of content for your site.
• Social – Social signals are becoming more important in website rankings; use them.
• …and just about anything else you can think of!
You know what content you should be producing now. But do you know why? Here, we take a look at the importance of content marketing in 2013...
The Internet is all about sharing content in quick, readily accessible formats. The popularity of sites like YouTube, Flickr, Instagram and Pinterest give testimony to the fact that people like information presented in images or video. SlideShare, the “world’s largest community for sharing presentations,” is another easy way for businesses to share visual content and reach new and existing customers. According to the Content Marketing Institute, SlideShare receives around 120 million page views every month. Let’s learn more!...
In a world where half of Facebook posts are now images, Web editors swoon over responsive design and brands place photos in tweets, it’s clear the Internet has become a more visual place. Now, one company is looking to exploit the love of pictures with a product that both editors and advertisers can use to make digital images more interactive, engaging and, perhaps most importantly, super shareable.
"If you communicate through an image, people engage with it—we know that because of Facebook," said Neil Vineberg, CMO of the two-year-old startup ThingLink. "And if you put content inside an image, the engagements go crazy." Vineberg observed that images embedded with videos, annotations or links see clickthrough rates of as much as 50 percent.
Forbes recently started using ThingLink to enhance its storytelling on the Web, turning a pictorial of the Forbes 400 into an interactive infographic complete with videos, story links and data. Want to know more about Oprah or Warren Buffet? Just hover over a button embedded in the picture, then click. Some 100,000 other publishers have signed on....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
ThingLink looks very promising for enhanced communication in every sector from PR, marketing and content marketing to education.
There are some really great reasons why you should think about using Twitter’s new video sharing app to promote your business or brand. Vine is already extremely popular, which means it should become a part of your social media plan. Using Vine is also incredibly easy. Create a quick 6 second video, integrate it into your Twitter feed and make your tweets even more interesting. With a few creative yet simple ideas, you can make Vine an effective tool in your social media strategy. Read these 10 excellent tips and get inspired by several videos shown as best practice examples...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
These 10 tips will get you excited and on the path to video success with Vine. Plus several great examples. Recommended reading!
The Drum catches up with a selection of industry experts to ask their views on some of the big issues affecting the social media sector, such as video and data.
11 experts share their thoughts on video in social media...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Overwhelming evidence of the importance of video...
Video marketing thrives when companies use native ad tools to host content on their own websites.
...Content and video marketing help brands createunique online experiences for their prospective and current customers. When organizations host a variety of media on their corporate websites, they pull viewers in and extend the time they have to communicate value propositions. Moving forward, video content may drive the most on-site conversions.
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Good insight into B2B, B2C marketing use of video content and trends.
There’s significant momentum for publishers toward increasing the production of video content, on account of both the strength of video as a medium for storytelling and high video CPMs as advertisers begin to move their TV spends online (see the Chicago Tribune’s coverage for one example). An increase in video content across the board, of course, means that it’s all the more important that we have a sense of which parts of our audience we can hope to reach with video. To that end, below is a brief survey of the state of online audiences and their consumption of video.
Jeff Domansky's insight:
This is an excellent look at video consumption with some valuable lessons for social marketers and PR pros.
TThe story of how a small family business pulled off one the biggest successes in YouTube history....
..We had to scale a content marketing effort quickly and decided that Stephen’s primary source of “rich content” would be video. He was a natural on camera and the lush and ancient countryside of Provence proved to be an ideal backdrop to explore wine making, food. history, art and local color of the region.
Stephen was in it for the long haul and consistently documented his wine-making journey in a very human and entertaining way. He talked about a labeling crisis that almost crushed his business. He created a funny video about the ridiculous paperwork he faced from the French government, what it was like to attend a wine-tasting competition, how the grapes were harvested in the first morning sunlight, and many other interesting little vignettes. He shined a light on his village, his pets, his family. He lost his balance on a grape harvester. He put a human and modern face to a stodgy, traditional business....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Wonderful small business content marketing success story from Mark Shaffer. How Mirabeau winery went viral on YouTube.
As I discussed in part 1 of this series we are now in a post-broadcast world. The rules have changed dramatically in terms of how brands connect with their audience. What hasn’t changed is the power of motion picture storytelling. A new form of communication is evolving that combines this power with social media: social video.
My definition of social video is digital video designed to be shared through social networks. Social video is different than broadcast video in many ways; you can’t simply post your traditional 30 second TV spot online and wait for the views to roll in. I am surprised how many brands are still doing this.
There are six principles of social video directly influenced by social media. To be effective brands need to listen first, be agile in terms of production, engage with their audience, be emotive, build momentum and (if you get it right) spawn a viral effect....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Get the picture? Social video is evolving as a communication tool. Here are six principles of social video to help you do it right...
The demand for visual news has changed the way the media reports the news. Digital PR can provide the images, audio and video for their websites.... a recent Q & A with top journalists and bloggers from major publications they all said that their editors demand visuals with every story.
Why? Analytics of viewer behavior shows that when a story has images, video or charts to support and enhance the text, it can increase views by as much as 9.7x.The L.A. Times calls it “No story left behind.” All of them agreed that they use outside video. The only caveat was that the images and videos have to be original, good quality and relevant to the story.
“Visual information reigns supreme, from video to images to infographics. Overwhelmingly, marketers plan to add more video to content marketing initiatives, necessitating increased investment in both technology and production resources. Marketers’ confidence in and reliance on content marketing is beginning to diminish their reliance on print and broadcast advertising, as well as public relations.”
- Altimeter Group: Content, the new marketing equation
Think like a publisher. Get your Digital PR team trained to produce excellent visual material that extends the story. And learn to do it fast. Work with the media and help them to tell stories that capture people’s hearts....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Visuals create impact and PR needs to produce and manage visuals to enhance communication and results.
What brought this about? A rapidly changing media landscape fueled by new technology:
In the year 2000 -
46% of US adults used the Internet 5% had broadband at homeNo one was wirelessly connected10% were using the so-called “cloud”—or hosted applications and services delivered over the InternetWhile there were vigorous conversations going on in forums and message boards, there were no social networksConnections were slow and stationery and focused around your own computer
Fast forward to 2013:
85% of adults use the Internet.66% have broadband at homeTwo-thirds of those online use the “cloud”Connections are faster, mobile and focused on outside servers and storageThe Internet is the third most popular source for news, trailing behind local and national television, but ahead of newspapers and radio broadcastsAlmost two-thirds (61 percent) of people get news online and 68% have watched a video news story online. (Pew Research Center‘s Project for Excellence in Journalism)
A recent research report by Invodo said that 52% of consumers say that watching a product video makes them more confident in online purchase decisions, and another 52% said they are less likely to return a product they have purchased after watching a video. Treepodia says that video increases conversion rates, from 14% increase for electronics to 113% for gifts.
There are statistics galore about how video increases conversions and purchases, increases consumer confidence and retention, decreases friction, is the best medium for mobile and tablet devices, and ends world hunger (well, maybe scratch the latter) I’m not sure we need to convince you how effective video is in helping your marketing efforts. Video has arrived – and is here to stay.
But what do you need to get into the game and use video to improve conversions on your landing pages? Introducing Video for Landing Pages 101, an introductory overview to help you navigate and plan your video landing pages...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
This is an exceptional post and tips for video in social marketing. It's a must-read for marketing, PR and content pros alike...
In my previous post, “Using Video Content to Drive Brand Awareness, Leads, and Sales,” I took you through the first four steps of the definitive B2B video marketing strategy. In this second post, we focus on executing your video content strategy, maximizing impact, measuring results, and ensuring that you create sustainable campaigns that add long-term value to your organization....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Really practical tips to help you move forward with video marketing.
Videos have the ability to connect with prospects in a way you can’t through text, e-mail, or even a phone call. This is especially significant because in sales, you’re selling yourself: the product comes after you’ve established a connection. Imagine being able to talk to a prospect who already has a connection with your company; that changes the dynamics of the conversation.
Anyone in sales knows that people buy from people they know and trust. Videos have the ability to connect with prospects in a way you can’t do through text, e-mail, or even a phone call. This is especially significant because in sales, you’re selling yourself - the product comes after you’ve established a connection.
Different Types of Video Marketing
Let’s take a deeper dive into the different types of video marketing:
- Promotional: Showcases your products and services
- Testimonial: Highlights your talents by showing clients raving about work you’ve done
- Thought Leadership: Presents new or useful information relevant to your industry
- How-To: Informs prospects on how they can use your product or service
- Product Information: Explains new features, benefits, solutions, troubleshooting
- Entertainment: Shows your brand’s human side; leverage viral videos, contests
There are many more examples of how to use videos in your marketing campaigns. Larger corporations may elect to use videos as internal information pieces to help sales or customer service representatives....
Video is becoming a must-have for brands that want to make an impression on consumers. Web video is seeing massive growth. Watching video online has gone from a niche activity to mainstream. With new devices, video everywhere has become a reality. The implications of online video’s growth for the digital advertising industry are huge. Sight, sound and motion is of utmost importance to brand advertisers. It can pull on heartstrings and entertain people the way banners have never been able to do. That’s led to Web video ads being the bright spot in an otherwise tough market for publishers. The big question is whether the growth in inventory will continue that trend. Here are 15 must-know stats on online video....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
More on the importance of video in your content marketing program.
So let’s talk a little web video today, especially the myth that creating awesome HD vids is super expensive. Here is a complete setup that I use that you can get for less than $315 – including the camera, tripod, microphone, editing software, and more (crazy, right?!). This is the setup I’ve been using lately for 95% of my videos, and now you can steal it. Watch below (and prepare to be surprised about how simple it is).
In PR and marketing, we’re all about using different kinds of media to push the brand message and get the audience involved. We have to skillfully weave videos, print, email and social together in order to paint a larger picture and take the “big idea” to the consumer on the street (or the laptop). But what if we could present target audience members, investors or even clients with all these different kinds of media in one self-contained, embeddable package?
Marketing veteran/entrepreneur Tim Bahr thinks he has found the solution to this challenge with the NextWorks “content capsule”. Here, for example, is his company’s own promotional unit...
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Intriguing PR and marketing possibilities: Meet the All-in-One Multimedia ‘Content Capsule’...
Pepsi disguises another famous athlete to prank unsuspecting people. Donning glasses and a fake goatee, world famous NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon pranks a car salesman into taking a test drive with him in a 2009 Chevy Camaro. "I don't know if I can handle it," said a disguised Jeff Gordon to the unsuspecting car salesman. "I've never driven anything like this before." "I think a way to really make you feel comfortable would be to put you behind the wheel," replied the salesman.
And off they went doing wheelies and sharp turns while going at max speeds. The video, of course, was sponsored by Pepsi Max, which previously disguised NBA All Star Kyrie Irving as an old man named "Uncle Drew" who dominated streetball games....
Video marketing is quickly becoming a speedy, effective and SEO-friendly way for marketers to reach consumers. Video marketing is quickly becoming a speedy, effective and SEO-friendly way for marketers to reach consumers. This can be especially true for small businesses, as well as those who don't have traditionally "camera-ready" products. Read on for four tactics from two video marketing leaders in small business, including one who generated one million video views on YouTube. These tactics will take you from the genesis of an initial idea to cultivating a robust video program....
Jeff Domansky's insight:
Wasp Barcode case study shows the power of YouTube.
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You can enter several keywords and you can refine them whenever you want. Our suggestion engine uses more signals but entering a few keywords here will rapidly give you great content to curate.
With Lumen 5, producing video content for social media is simple, easy intuitive and fast. My demo was taken from an older blog post about writing for the internet. Lots of potential for this tool.