Ideas that have been done to death and yet essential to inform the audiences, need a new lease of life. It is a world where trends arrive and are pushed on the back burner every season change.
What’s a Vlog – Vlogging is one concept that is fast catching on, with bloggers taking to it in a big way. The term ‘vlogging‘ is a recent arrival on the internet marketing and blogging scene. Initially known as a podcast, vlogging allows a blogger to support his blog post by embedding a video in it.
Marketers have found that their audiences receive visuals better than the product descriptions in textual form. Vlogging makes sense for them as their potential customers may not be fluent in the language used on the website. Research indicates that market exists even in far off countries of the world, where English may not necessarily be the primary lingua franca.
Vlogging enables such marketers to demonstrate their products/services by showcasing the product or by explaining in chart or tabular form the benefits of specific services.
For bloggers it might be slightly difficult to measure up to the professionally developed videos that a marketer has. However, with great ideas and basic technical knowhow, bloggers can embed awesome videos within their blogs.
Six Ideas To Get Going:
1. Be Original –
Proliferation of new media has ensured that audiences have access to a plethora of information, at their finger tips. The days of ‘ooh and aahs’ have been replaced with ‘been there done that’.
Keeping ideas and implementation original is next to impossible as someplace yet another blogger is thinking on the same lines. But this should not deter a blogger from coming up with great ideas and methods to implement the same.
Originality will find many takers compared to the ones that are a rehash of somebody else’s work. If possible make your own videos and embed them within the original blog post rather than hosting the same on others website.
2. Should Add Value
Value addition is the key to successful vlogging. Some audiences find it tiring to go through reams of information in text form. When such audiences come across visuals, their first action is to click and find out whether the written info is available in visual format or not. By adding videos that support the blog post, it takes the audiences experience to the next level.
3. Focus on Audiences
Vlogging should educate, inform and at the same time entertain the audience. Preachy vlogs would leave the audience cold and unresponsive. Use a language that your target audience understands. Engage the audience in the blog by addressing them in the first person and asking opinion or questions in between. Vlogs that include the audience within the conversation are easily understood and accepted quickly.
4. Quality Control
Emphasis on quality rather than quantity. A short video with precise information is accepted better than a long video with loads of inane information. Ensure that the quality of equipment like web cam, speaker, mike and lights used is good. The equipment need not be expensive; however it should be in great working condition.
While producing the vlog ensure that the camera is positioned correctly and covers the required area. The area to be used for recording should have adequate lighting and the voice/sound clarity should be optimum. And before taking the plunge, practice as an awkward anchor spoils the entire visual chemistry. Prepare the script in advance to avoid last minute glitches.
5. Research and Learn
It makes no sense to start creating vlogs as they are in trend without understanding what the medium demands. Research and learn from different vlogs being hosted on various websites. This will not only give ideas on how to go about creating vlogs but will also indicate what mistakes to avoid. Learn from other’s mistakes rather than committing your own.
6. Be the Pioneer
The early bird catches the worm. Well, not the virus one, but as in ‘audiences’. The blogger who first gets the news out always have greater hits as compared to bloggers who just do follow ups or updates. Be the pioneer in the field by introducing innovative methods of vlogging.
So what are we waiting for. Set Camera, Roll-start vlog!
I learned something new today. 🙂 Your ideas were really great! Keep up the good work! Thanks for sharing..
Nicole Schuman recently posted..ppi claim letter
I love these tips and even as a pro blogger – or at least a full-time one 😉 I concur and WELL-DONE and well-written with your writing voice through and through. I love it!
Sounds like old wine in a new bottle. Personally I think most people prefer textual content to videos unless the videos are really quite small and explain some concept that’s harder to explain in a textual format.
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