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There was a time when to have a video playing on your website meant you had to have deep pockets. Even audio involved baffling technology available only to the few.
Well, not any more! In fact I predict that 2010 will see a huge explosion in the number of small business websites and blogs who use multi-media – it already started to gather momentum in 2009.
Let’s dispel a few myths that may be stopping you from using multi-media on your site.
Myth #1 – I need to hire a professional to do it for me
Of course you can, if you want to and can afford it, but you don’t have to. All you need are – for audio a digital voice recorder (I use an Olympus) and for video a simple camcorder, like a Flip – both are available for around £100, really easy to use and get the results uploaded to the internet. And don’t forget the simple downloadable PDF report (which you can create totally free).
Myth #2 – I’m afraid I’ll make a mess of it
When I first used to watch (or listen to) the polished performances on some websites, I would envy their easy style and flowing narrative. But then I realised – just as the best actors need a prepared script, rehearsal time and sometimes several ‘takes’ to get it right – so do we all!
A lot of people (including both of us!) don’t feel comfortable being in front of the camera. But that needn’t stop you from having video on your website – you can record your voice and show a slide presentation.
Myth #3 – My business isn’t interesting enough
If you really believe this, you might want to revamp your whole marketing message! Seriously though, there are many ways to use multi-media in every business. For example a financial adviser could create a special report with tips about what pitfalls to look out for when buying mortgages, pensions, insurances, investments etc. They could record a short welcome audio and/or video on their website too. A chef could use video to demonstrate an easy recipe (and provide a downloadable recipe sheet).
I hope this has given you some ideas and encouragement to try multi-media for your business.
Here are a few resources (of the many available) to get you started:
Audio Acrobat – there’s a free trial version and the paid version is very reasonable too. They also do video.
YouTube – probably the most well known for short videos.
Viddler – easy to use, with the added advantage of privacy options.
