Tag Archives: target audience

How to prepare engaging content for video

24 Jan

I keep hearing more and more about the need to have video content on our blogs and web sites. Here are a few of the concepts I’ve been mulling around as I prepare content for my future vlogs:

1) Know your audience

This is the most important point. Who are you addressing? What needs do they have? Ask your target audience about subjects they might find interesting.

2) Plan your objective first

Knowing your purpose and what you want to accomplish keeps you focused. It’s easy to start rambling especially when you get nervous (and most of us do get nervous when we have a camera lens in our face). When that happens the person watching will click somewhere else. A great template for an objective is to state what you want that person to gain from your video.

3) Capture their attention in the first 30 seconds

On the web, there’s a lot of competition for attention and an easy way to click, Next. Have a quote, an anecdote, or tell them what you are going to talk about in order to hook them within the first 30 seconds. Observe your own clicking rate when you are looking at a video and when you watch an entire video, go back and see what they did to hook you from the very start.

4) Support your objective with 3 points

Make sure you give some meat or solid benefit in what you are saying. Keep it simple and give three solid points. Three is the common number but it can be less if you give a solid example. Avoid more than three because that really is all that the average mind will remember. It’s better to say less and for it to memorable than to say a lot and not remember anything.

5) Close with a clear call to action

A clear call to action is where you encourage the listener to act on what they’ve heard. This is essential and often neglected.

It’s interesting that it’s really not that different from designing presentations and curriculum. The venue may be different but the same approach applies. Start thinking of topics and then move forward with your five steps to dynamic content that will engage, inform and encourage your viewer to positive action.

Advertisement

Tags: , , , ,

Five Social Networking Venues to Embrace in 2012

15 Jan

It’s that time of year again when we take stock in what went well and where we need to improve in the coming year. This blog is a result of a recent poll conducted on the HOPEpreneurs Facebook page which showed that the top concern for the entrepreneurs who responded was marketing and expanding their business. Social Networking is a great way to gain new customers. If done correctly and strategically, this method of marketing can double your number of customers with very little financial investment. Here are five social networking venues that you should embrace and optimize to reach more customers in 2012.

Top venues for social media in 2012 by Karen Sebastian, HOPEpreneurs1. Write a Blog

The foundation for a solid social networking strategy is a blog that is up-to-date. It is getting easier all the time to create your own web presence without spending a lot of money. Remember the KISS (Keep It Simple Sweetheart) principle and you will do great. Set up a schedule when you will blog and update the website consistently. I have two blogs in WordPress and have recently launched a new one on Tumblr, which is the fastest growing blogging platform.

2. Facebook

Earlier last year there were some changes that leveled the playing field for the business use of Facebook. The changes  can put you in a great place to increase exposure to your target audience. With a few tweaks to your business page you can attract more LIKES. When a person clicks LIKE on your business page, they will get your updates. You can also make posts as your business page.

3. LinkedIn

This particular program is strongly geared to professionals who want to stay connected. Companies are using it to promote their companies and check out potential employees. There are many new changes there as well that will benefit a small business and have great potential.

4. Twitter

Twitter has been around for a while and has recently started growing exponentially. It is a great way to connect with what others are doing in common interest areas. Begin to follow businesses like your own and get an idea of what you can give. Once you decide to jump in it’s a great idea to use either Hootsuite or BufferApp to schedule your ‘tweets.’ I will be sharing my experience with these applications soon.

5. Google +

This is the one that I am going to try next. It is not as popular as some of the other venues yet but is growing quickly. The main advantage it offers is to position your information favorably in Google searches. More to come on that one as I tackle it in the very near future.

No matter what you do, don’t get overwhelmed. Instead, pick one venue and faithfully populate it with your ideas and find your voice. Once you have that one down, pick the next.

I am diligently keeping up with these Social Media venues because I see the potential and love to learn. This week I will be updating my LinkedIn profile and the following setting up my Google+. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.  What are your plans in this area for next week?

Karen Sebastian is a serial entrepreneur who wants to help you succeed in your business. Please email her at hopepreneurs@gmail.com if you would like to receive one-on-one coaching. Subscribe to this blog for more inspiration on how to become a HOPEpreneur.

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

%d bloggers like this: