Anyone can be a filmmaker these days, and social networkers are learning more and more why it’s important to include video as a major component of one’s social media plan. This holiday season, the ‘Flip,’ one of the most compact video
camcorders on the market today is debuting just in time for Christmas,
Hanukkah and Kwanzaa .Will it be this season’s hot ticket item?
Here are some reasons why you or those social networkers on your Holiday gift list may appreciate the Flip this year!
Flip and Picture Quality.
If you’re going to use video to showcase your brand on your Web site or YouTube, you’re going to want the best. Even though Apple’s iPhone 3GS now includes video capability, as do many other smartphones, they do not yet offer the same picture quality as the FlipHD.
Flip Pricing
Social Networkers like to keep their costs down, and Flip is one of the least expensive camcorders on the market. Compare with iPhone that ranges from $199 to $299 for the device alone, plus a two-year AT&T; contract at approximately $70 per month. At $230, the MinoHS is the Flip’s most expensive model, and there are no additional monthly fees.
Video Increases Sales.
Social Networkers know that people buy from people they know and trust. Video presents you to your clients, prospects and customers up front and personal. While Flip won’t promise you more sales, there is a greater return on your investment based on the purchase cost and the quality of video (see #1 and #2 above).
Video is Immediate.
Got an idea or a message? Go direct from camera to the Internet without skipping a beat! The Flip contains a flip-out USB arm that plugs directly into a PC or Mac, to transfer video to YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and one’s Web site within minutes
Demographics.
You may be asking yourself, “Why should I invest my time and efforts into online video to promote my product? Only college kids watch videos, right?” Wrong. According to a nationwide survey conducted by Burst Media, online users between the ages of 35 to 44, and 45 to 54, are just as likely to search and view online video content as online users ages 18-24. Jodi Lipe, director of marketing of Cisco’s consumer products says their ad campaign for the Flip is targeted to young makes 18-34 and a broader 25-54 group," looking for high quality portable video camcorders.
Better-Educated Leads.
Customers are more likely to watch a visually stimulating video about your products than they are to read a long and tedious text document. The Flip’s 60 and 120 minute playback videos gives you plenty of time to motivate your potential customers or clients to learn more about your products and services before they purchase. True, shorter videos are sometimes more effective in piquing one’s interest, but the Flip gives you the best of both worlds, where longer vids can be used for webinars or instructional types of presentations.
There are also other reasons for social networkers to purchase a camcorder this holiday season, whether it be the Flip or another brand. Consider the following.
YouTube is King!
With an audience of 85 million viewers, YouTube is the place to be seen online. Not only is YouTube now the 4th most popular website on the Internet, it’s also the 2nd biggest search engine! Social networkers need to collect on a piece of that action.
Google Loves Video!
And not just because they own YouTube. Video puts your SEO on steroids! With video, you can dramatically improve your search engine rankings in a shorter period of time than any form of organic search techniques can accomplish.
Embed Your Videos into your LinkedIn Profile!
Today you can even embed your videos into your LinkedIn Profile and add some additional flair to yourself, your brand, product and services. (See my previous blog, "Embedding Video Into Your LinkedIn Profiles." )
Interesting to note, Flip’s microsite (www.doyouflip.com) invites users to submit their own "Flip moments." For social networkers this is a great opportunity to utilize another distribution channel to highlight one’s brand, product and services. Lipe indicates Flip’s objective is "to democratize video." To that end, Cisco is utilizing user-created videos in their advertising campaigns, from the everyday user to celebrity-shot videos from the likes of Usher, Stevie Wonder and skier Bode Miller.
From a social networking standpoint, the Flip can become your brand’s solution for jumping into the video production arena painlessly, with very little outlay and a negligible learning curve! (Buy here.)
