Last Updated on September 4, 2024
Build your influence through video blogging
The popularity of video–and of vlogging, as the publishing of videotaped blog posts is widely known–is no major revelation to most bloggers. In fact, most would have to admit that they themselves enjoy visiting blogs that offer “vlog posts” and find them a welcome break from all the reading that traditional blog posts require. Yet, another advantage of vlogging is that it brings to the vlogger-visitor encounter an added element that the written word can never fully capture: the blogger’s personality. Put simply, vlogging conveys the warmth, wit, enthusiasm, empathy, charisma, and intellect of the blogger in a way that adds a whole new dimension to a blog.
As well-known wine vlogger, Gary Vaynerchuk, says in Crush It! “To my mind, the most effective content medium is video, and that’s the one I prefer to focus on. It’s just easier to grab people’s attention and draw them in, especially a public who reads less and less. I also think letting people see you is a major plus when you’re trying to sell a personal brand.”
There’s no question that it takes practice to get comfortable in front of a camera and to relax enough to let your real personality shine through, while still providing valuable content for your visitors. So, if you aren’t quite there yet, don’t feel too bad. You certainly aren’t the only one. (Here are a few cool video presentation tips from John Chow [http://www.johnchow.com/5-presentation-rules-for-successful-video-blogging/] for shy to seasoned video bloggers that might just help.)
Yet, working on developing this skill–and ultimately on becoming a more articulate and captivating speaker–will be more than worth the effort because it will help people see and hear the real you and begin relating to you and your message on a much more personal level. Many, if not most, bloggers who have dared to take the plunge–and do the work of polishing their video blogging presentation skills–have found this to be true.
The most exciting reason to develop your vlogging skill
Image Credit: Peopleimages.com
A much more intriguing, reason to seriously consider adding vlogging to your arsenal of blogging tools is that today’s collaborative technological environment makes video blogging a virtual open door to incredible opportunity in other, even more interactive, realms. One of the most exciting new venues for video is e-mail, where your online videos can be embedded right into your messages, allowing the recipient to decide whether to watch your clips from right inside their inboxes or by visiting your website, blog, or YouTube channel. Not only does this increase the likelihood that the recipient will actually watch the video; it also makes your e-mails more intriguing (and more likely to be opened), while creating convenient opportunities for feedback and sharing.
The virtually limitless potential of e-mail video
E-mail video will certainly attract people to your blog, website, or YouTube channel. But, the fact that they won’t need to visit immediately to watch, respond to, forward, or share your video on social media (if you provide that option) will not only increase views but will also make it easier for the recipients to engage with your content. If you should want to attract visitors back to your blog immediately, you’d be able to do that, too. At the end of the video (and maybe also in the e-mail itself), you might simply ask them to click through to your website, blog, or YouTube channel, via the link you provide in the video, to take whatever action you have in mind.
But, these aren’t the only advantages. The possibilities for using video in e-mail are limited only by your imagination. Here are a few more ideas to get your own creative juices flowing:
Collaborative creative partnerships, revolving around individual video exchanges, can thrive, with all parties (say, two or more bloggers) easily contributing to a project. As the parties watch the project progress via video, they each add their own input–either by sending back videotaped demonstrations of their own ideas or via written e-mail responses.
Video e-mail marketing also works well because video can make your message more convincing. You can use video to either introduce your product or to offer your prospects something for free (e.g. a short videotaped tutorial) to help create the feelings of reciprocity that make them more disposed to buy whatever you’re selling. Evidence shows that even mentioning video in an e-mail subject line [http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/172935/video-boosts-email-opens-up-to-13-improves-conve.html] increases the number of e-mail “opens.”
Embedded videos themselves can even become the entire message. This is a great way to get your blog’s subscribers on board whenever you have a campaign or project you want to inspire them to join.
Getting the idea?
Perhaps the best news in all this is that as online mail programs build greater and greater collaboration capabilities into the technology’s DNA, our current video blogging possibilities will grow even more varied–and even more intriguing–than they are today.
You’ll find a wealth of helpful information on becoming a successful video blogger, including an interview with Gideon Shalwick and the opportunity to download his free e-book, Rapid Video Blogging, by checking out Michael Dunlop’s timeless post, So You Want To Be A Video Blogger? [http://www.incomediary.com/gideon-shalwick-interview-super-successful-video-blogger-reveals-his-secrets].
Check out this excellent resource and prepare to increase your influence through e-mail vlogging!
What experience have you had with vlogging, and how have you used it in e-mail?
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