Whether it’s a clip of Johnny Depp on-set of his latest flick or Lindsay Lohan tearing up a parking ticket, Internet users just love to get a behind-the-scenes look at their (least) favorite stars. Marketers take notice, because this same formula can be extrapolated to your brand! As the resident video enthusiast (geek/nerd) on the MMS social media team, here’s the advice I’ve been giving to brands on how they can dial up their digital video strategy.

GET REAL. We’re hardly ones to point out the obvious, but YouTube is undeniably the largest and most powerful network to house your video assets. What isn’t so obvious is just how to properly use the darn thing! Commercials and infomercial videos aren’t enough to keep your users engaged. Step it up and get personable with your users by sharing videos that show the making-of your products, or interviews with the individuals that bring your brand to life. Pioneer craft brewery, Sierra Nevada, uses YouTube to host regular Q&A videos with Founder, Ken Grossman. The formula is simple: users ask questions on Facebook and Grossman answers them in a YouTube video.

HANG IT UP. Users love to know that they are being heard when they interact with their favorite brands via social media. What better way to reward them than with a direct one-on-one conversation with Google+ Hangouts? Hangouts allows you to hold a fun, interactive videoconference with up to 10 people at a time. President Barack Obama famously used the service to host his Fireside Hangout and Sony used it to enable users to chat with movie Director, Peter Lord. Consider inviting some of your Facebook/Twitter community to monthly hangouts with your brand. Be sure to record the experience and add it to that ever-growing YouTube inventory of yours!

LEAVE AN OPEN DOOR. Another great live-video solution comes in the form of Ustream. Ustream is a very popular network (and mobile app) that allows you to create your own live streaming channel, which you can share with an unlimited amount of users. These live streams are very social, allowing users to text-chat with the host and other users, as well as share to multiple social network channels.  NASA frequently uses their Ustream channel to give users a personable look at particular operations or sit-in on Q&A’s. Meanwhile, rapper T-Pain’s Ustream channel “Trax on Trax on Trax” lets fans watch as he produces songs in real-time.

SPURTS NEVER HURT. If video is uncharted territory for your brand, you might want to consider starting small. With hype growing around Twitter’s new video app Vine, we’ve seen more brands get social with video. Taco Bell used Vine to announce its new Cooler Ranch Doritos Tacos, whereas Gap used it to show the evolution of its jeans. Vine allows you to shoot 2-6 mobile videos that can be shared on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Try shooting personable videos of your product/service in action or fun videos of your staff. Vine lets you start small but think big – so get those creative gears turning!

Let’s face it: you won’t turn into a video guru overnight. Metaverse is always ready to jump in the director’s chair to build your video strategy from concept to camera. Contact us to learn how we can expand and engage your online community with video content that’s sure to get two thumbs up!

Vincent Grippi, Social Media Manager
v.grippi [at] metaversemodsquad.com

 

 

 

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