Everyone knows that they should be using video to charge up their marketing. You know you should be shooting virtual tours, interviews, advice and tips and other helpful content for your audience.
Are you chicken? You know you should be doing it, but you are nervous about getting on camera and you have NO CLUE where to start. There are loads of options out there for you and they are getting easier and more affordable all the time. I will outline a few that I have tried with pros and cons and ease of use.
1. The Flip This is the camera that I have used most often. It is affordable, super easy to use, small and lightweight. I have a mini-tripod that I put it on for most of my indoor shoots and a larger tripod for outdoors and inside homes.
Cons: the mic isn’t very powerful and doesn’t do a good job if you are more than a few feet from the camera.
2. Digital cam Most digital cameras have a video option and they do a reasonably good job. Since you already know how to use this for your still photos it will be easy to adapt to video use.
Cons: same issue as with the Flip, and most small video cameras- the mic. Depending on the camera storage can be an issue, too.
3. Phone Especially if you have an iPhone. I have actually begun using my iPhone for as much video as I do my Flip camera. I love the fact that I can shoot, edit and upload my videos with one device that I always have with me anyways.
Cons: no jack for tripods to attach to, BUT there is a device that you can attach to the phone that will fix that issue. The glif is an affordable and smart attachment for your iPhone 4 that solves the issue.
Once the video is shot, you will usually want to edit it. If you have a Mac then iMovie is fantastic. Windows users have Movie Maker, which is a bit harder to learn, but does a good enough job once you know how it works. I am partial to doing the edits on my iPhone with either iMovie or ReelDirector applications.
4. Screen capture How about using a program like Jing, Screenr or Camtasia to record a walk through of a market report or anything else you would like to share from your computer screen? For those of you that are truly too chicken to start by being on camera, this is the ideal solution.
Cons: I think video is best done with you as the focal point or at least a featured presence.
If you don’t know how to use iMovie or MovieMaker, you can use Animoto to create really great looking edits from your video and still photo footage.
These are just a few simple ideas to get you started on your video blogging adventure. Now don’t be a chicken- cross the road and fire up your video camera!
