Leveraging Video, Part Two: How to Use Your Videos Effectively

June 25, 2014
Marc Cerniglia

There are some businesses out there that will create great video for you…but then what?  You have all these videos, so what do you do with them?

In part one, I shared some ideas about what kind of video to create.  Now, I will share some insight on what you can do with your videos that can produce marketing results.

Use Them on Your Website
This might be the most obvious answer, but let’s dig a bit deeper into it.  How you use your video on your website matters.  First, I recommend embedding from YouTube, more to come on that. Don’t just stick your video anywhere.  If its an introduction video, put it front and center on your home page.  If you have a video series such as a video FAQ, create a video library section of your website, or perhaps release your videos as a series, such as posting one each month.  A series that is continually added to makes your website feel current, and Google will notice that you are adding new video over a period of time, versus all at once, which helps from an SEO standpoint.

Upload Them to YouTube
I know there are other options out there such as Vimeo, and I would NOT say its a mistake to upload elsewhere.  But lets look at 2 facts.  One, Google owns YouTube.  Two, YouTube is the second most used “search engine” in the world, behind….Google themselves.  Because of this, I strongly prefer and recommend YouTube for your videos.  When uploading them, also be sure to include a description, a link to your website, and tag the video with some of your keywords.  Also, take a second and go into advanced settings to put a location on your video, as Google is gearing it’s algorithms more and more to be based off of location.

Share Them on Social Media
Video, like photos, has better engagement than text, so social media is a great place to share your videos.  And since you should have added your videos to your website, and not just YouTube, you should be able to link to the video on your website.  Much better to send someone to your website than YouTube, right?

Add it to Your E-Newsletter
So many businesses are sending out e-newsletters these days.  Video is a great opportunity to make yours stand out from the rest.  Not only will it look more visually engaging, but for those who don’t like to read very much, perhaps they will click play!  Again, if the video is on your website, then they will click play within the e-newsletter which will take them to your website to watch it!

The bottom line is, video enhances what you’re doing online.  It makes your website more impressive, helps search results (Google loves video), and makes your social media and e-newsletters more interesting.  Most importantly, well done video creates credibility, making your look like the expert!

If you want help creating and using video, or want to talk about your internet marketing overall, reach out to me!

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Marc Cerniglia

Marc is a founding Partner at Spotlight Branding, an internet marketing and branding firm for lawyers. He is passionate about helping lawyers understand the truths and myths about internet marketing, and educating them on how to get the most out of their marketing efforts.