It’s been a long time since Internet users had to live with unreliable, low-bandwidth dial-up connections. Why are you still planning your online marketing efforts like they did? Today’s Internet users have high-speed connections that makes it easy for them to play games, stream videos, and take advantage of other high-bandwidth opportunities. Why not use a marketing tool that takes full advantage of those opportunities, like your own video?

When you sit down to produce your first marketing video, you don’t need to bring a lot to the table with you. Although obviously you can invest as much time and effort as you like in producing a video with truly professional quality, you can also get great results with a down-and-dirty product. Most modern computers come with some basic video-editing software; all you need to add is a camera. Take a little time familiarizing yourself with the editing program, and get to work!

Whether you are demonstrating a product, giving a review, or simply sharing information with your viewers, the one golden rule of an online video is to be interesting. Internet users who read text content have total control over the pace of their reading; when they elect to watch your video they are surrendering control over the pace to you. You should always keep this in mind. Respect your viewer’s time and reward them for giving you their attention by making your video as captivating as possible.

Once you have a video that you feel is usable, your next big question is where, exactly, you want to upload it. Using your own website is the option that gives you greatest control over your content, but even a rather modest video will really increase the amount of bandwidth your site uses. If you start producing many videos, the expense of your hosting could outpace the increased profits your marketing efforts produce. For really high-volume video marketing, you’ll want to use a free video-sharing site such as YouTube. This does place added restrictions on what you can and can’t include, but the savings make them worth dealing with.

“Viral” marketing is a concept that works well with online videos. When a video goes viral, it spreads like wildfire across the Internet as individual users share it with their friends. This is a dream result for Internet marketers, especially those operating on modest budgets. Of course, you have no control over whether or not your video gets swept up in a viral love-fest. Increasing your chances of going viral involves, again, being interesting, but you’ll need something more, too. Your video needs to be memorable even when it’s divorced from its context. Adding some humor and giving your viewers a laugh is a good way to be memorable.

The points presented above are excellent ones to consider when you take your first steps into the world of online video marketing. You may find the process makes a great fit with your sensibilities and your business. In that case, you can do a lot more to refine your video marketing skills and the quality of your videos. Don’t hesitate to seek out more information and make your marketing even more successful!