If you are considering posting a video on Youtube™ as a part of your online marketing plan, fear not, for you are not alone.  eMarketer estimates that by 2014, spending on online video advertising will reach $4.6 billion, more than seven times the money spent in 2008.  That does not mean you need to spend a lot of money for your efforts to be effective.  With a little creativity and planning, a Youtube™ video can achieve significant marketing goals.  Here’s how.

First: Set the Scope – If You Want the World, Start With a Country

Plenty of small business marketers will start by jumping straight into the content of the video first.  Some will even produce a final product before they think about where, when, and how they will post it.  Often, these  seemingly minor considerations can either make or break a video’s success, so they need to be planned first.   Take some time to think about:

Intent – Do you want to inform, persuade, entertain, or establish credibility?

Audience – Who would you like the video to appeal to?  Pick a target, and do some research on what your audience will want to share. 

Options – No one just films a video out of thin air.  Shop for ideas by looking at some successful examples in your target area

These are in no particular order; in fact, most people find it easiest to progress by conducting ‘research’ first, narrowing their search criteria until they have a few great options to study.  Keep in mind that some of the best use of Youtube™ videos in small business marketing plans have documented real-life company events.

Food For Thought – How Youtube Videos Publicize Girls Fight Back

Here is one great idea everyone should know about, called Girls Fight Back.  Having organized the group in 2001, Erin Weed uses Youtube™ videos to promote her self-defense seminars, which she provides to teenage women.  At the beginning of each seminar, Ms. Weed will ask everyone in the room to turn off their cell phones, you can imagine how eager the audience is to follow this command.

But by the end of the session, after the audience has been  empowered against a variety of assaults with karate chops, take downs, and jabs to the eyes, Ms. Weed asks everyone to turn their cell phones back on and video the last, most spectacular demonstration.  Somehow, a number of these home-made videos show up on Youtube™ Facebook™, etc., spreading across social networks, publicizing the event to girls all across the region.

Second: Keep it Short, Sweet, and Simple

But no matter how you decide your Youtube video will achieve your marketing goals, there are some basic rules of thumb that all successful videos share.  They are:

Short – Unless you are trying to remake the BMW viral campaign, you want to keep your visual media around one to three  minutes in length

Sweet – Make the video provocative in some way, dramatic, suspenseful, hilarious, tragic, secret, touching, etc.

Simple – Here is where knowing your intent comes in handy – cut it down to a very simple idea that will have a sweet impact.

And finally, you are ready to produce a video that will cost very little and have an enormous impact on website traffic, brand exposure, or direct sales.