(My imperfect video with less than desirable sound without my headset!)

I hate doing videos. I hate being seen. I hate being scripted. I hate being unprepared and stammering because I’m unscripted. I hate doing multiple retakes and video editing because I’m a perfectionist.

However, I love the results of video marketing. I love the increased views I receive. I love the feedback I get. I love connecting with my target audience in a more direct way.

I love watching videos. Sometimes I get tired of reading and I just want to relax for a few minutes, and watch and listen. I love seeing the person that I’m learning from speak. I love hearing what they have to say. It feels more real, more genuine. I feel more connected to them. I trust them more. I like them more.

How about you? Do you feel the same way?

Many entrepreneurs feel this way. Many coaches feel this way. Many virtual assistants feel this way. The fact is… many of us have a fear of being seen and judged. It’s something that we just have to get over and do it anyway. Your prospects want and crave video. They want to be entertained. If they’re not watching your video, they’re going to watch somebody else’s, and that somebody else could very well be your competitor! We all need to take every opportunity to put ourselves out there in front of our target audience, to be seen by them in various formats and reach them in different ways.

Video marketing is not new. It has been popular for a number of years and it’s still popular. People are so busy and overwhelmed by online content. Many prefer to watch a short video rather than to take the time to read.

Video on Your Website

Digital Sherpa says that, “80% of your online visitors will watch a video, while only 20% will actually read content in its entirety.” That’s a HUGE percentage! [1]

They also said that 1/3 of all online activity is spent watching video and that the average internet user is exposed to an average of 32.2 videos in a month. [1]

According to Wistia, “Websites with video are 50 times more likely to be ranked on Google’s first page.”

Re-read those statistics. Go shoot some frigging videos. Get out your smart phone or turn on your laptop’s web cam and shoot some video. Sure, professional videos are better (and I can give you a referral if you need some edited or spruced up, or if you need short marketing videos created for you, etc.), and you may want to consider professional filming for actual sales videos, but when creating videos for tips, updates, video blogging, etc., just find a quiet, well-lit place and start shooting.

YouTube Stats, Social Media and Live Streaming

Certainly don’t forget about YouTube. It has been stated that YouTube is the #2 search engine in the world. Wow. Let me repeat that. The #2 SEARCH ENGINE in the world.

Every day 100 million internet users watch an online video and 50% of users watch business related videos on YouTube once a week!  [1]

Post your videos on YouTube, but don’t forget to post and share your videos on all of your social media pages and profiles. Share them everywhere!

You can also do live steaming videos with recorded playback through GoogleHangouts and YouTube, Periscope, Facebook Live (coming soon to all profiles and pages), and more. These give you a way to connect with and educate your current subscribers and community, and they also give you the opportunity to attract new prospects. Do you need to do all of these? Not necessarily. It depends on where your target audience hangs out the most. Don’t be afraid to do some testing and analyzing to see what kind of response you get with the different platforms, and then focus more time and energy where you are getting good results.

Video in Emails

Click-through rates increase 2-3 times when marketers include a video in an email and “Subscriber to Lead” conversation rates increase 51% when video is included in email marketing campaigns. [1]

If you’re not using video as one of your marketing tools, you’re missing out on a big share of online traffic opportunity.

Do you use video as part of your marketing campaign? How have you used it and what results have you seen because of it? Tell me below!

Want to know how to add video to your email newsletter or campaigns? Stay tuned for my next article and I’ll explain exactly how you can do this!

[1] The statistics were from 2014 and were found at the following link – http://www.digitalsherpa.com/blog/25-amazing-video-marketing-statistics – which now redirects to another website.