Articles on creating video content for the web.
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We are entering a time when we will see video everywhere. 80 % of web traffic will be video by 2019, say the forecasters including Facebook and they should know. It really is essential for any organisation wanting to promote their content with social media because more and more people are accessing the internet on their smartphone and video works far better than text on a small screen. The largest organisations have the resources to get up and running straight away though they are not usually the first to adopt new technologies. For smaller organisation without in-house resources it makes more sense to outsource video production. It is an innovation that doesn't have to cost the earth to get high quality productions at an affordable price.
Social media is no longer optional. But that doesn't mean every organisation need to use every platform. On the contrary it is more effect to concentrate on two or three. So whether Youtube, Snapchat, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram or Twitter is best for your organisation will depend on the type and activity of the organisation. Youtube is great for "How To..." videos. It's also a major search engine where people go to find stuff, but it's not very good for connecting with networks of people. Facebook on the other hand, is much better for that. Then again, if your playing to a professional audience, LinkedIn may be better.
People need to be able to find your content. That rules out Facebook. While it is getting better, i is still not really a platform for finding content, it's great for finding communities. Youtube is much better for searching but not good for connecting with like minded people. Facebook is much better at that. If you are working in a professional setting replace Facebook with Linkedin or Twitter. By runing promotions on one platform and linking to content on another you have the best of both worlds. Create a Youtube channel to house your broadcasts and use Facebook Live for making personal invitations for people to view your recorded and live content on Youtube. For seeking corporate sponsorship use LinkedIn in preference to Facebook.
Content creators have control over email and websites, that's not the case with social media. That's why it's a good idea to have a website as well rather than relying solely on social media platforms. So one approach to make sure your content can get to your audience is by using a combination of platforms.
Email is still the most direct way to communicate with your audience, though it is likely that messaging services start to take the place of email for shorter messages but for substantial communications email is better.
Web TV follows the same formats as Free to Air television but with one big difference, production is a fraction of the cost. Start with a laptop, a mobile phone and an internet connection. What only a few years ago took a million dollar AV van can now be done with a laptop, mobile and wifi. The technical and the cost barriers have all but disappeared. The equipment we use to make documentaries with a small crew is the same equipment used to broadcast online, promote through social media and maintain a presence through a website. As always, the most challenging and the most interesting part of this story, is the creative part.
Everyone has a story they want to tell. That doesn't mean everyone wants to hear it. Knowing which story your audience wants to engage with is critical. Ask yourself what you want to achieve through your content? How do you want to serve your audience. See it from their point of view before deciding how to proceed.
