Marketing With Online Video

When you hear the words “online advertising,” you may instantly think of annoying pop-up ads or flash banner ads, but if you dig deeper into online advertising, you will find it is becoming much more than a nuisance.

Many online retailers have started to use online videos to promote their products or services. Their intent is to get the users of their sites to stay on even longer, all while keeping their customers up to date on the latest products or services, resulting in more sales. Video can tell a story or demonstrate how to use the product, instead of showing static images on a site.

2ndwindexercise.com, who features videos on its site, believes their efforts of placing online video ads and demonstrations on their site are paying off. They claim to have as many as 8,000 viewers per month. TV giant ABC has taken online video advertising to a whole other level by placing sponsored video ads within its free shows that users can download.

Does this all pay off in the end? According to a recent article published by E-Commerce Times, 65 percent of U.S. broadband users watch video online at least occasionally, which grew about 20 percent from 2006. According to Reuters, within two weeks of the launch of ABC’s online videos in 2006, ABC hit three million in show downloads, which means about three million views of their sponsors.

Here are a few tips to help you get started with online video advertising:

• Make sure your video provides relevant information. Is it appropriate with the time? The season?
• Is your video consistent?
• Consider your file size and format. Will they be compatible, or just a headache for users?
• Make your video interactive. Make it do more than still images.

Are you ready to dive into online video advertising?