17. Video Blog

What it is:

A regularly-scheduled series of brief videos built around a hot topic of interest. Available by subscription and for download, and often via video sharing services such as YouTube  or Vimeo, they can be watched at the viewer's convenience.

A cool tool for:

• Projecting authenticity (humans behind the brand)
• Products, services or stories that are inherently visual
• Adding entertainment to the information mix

Not so hot for:

• Companies that don't want messages to go viral
• Organizations afraid of open criticism
• Direct sales and/or pitches

WINELIBRARY.COM
	Gary Vaynerchuck completely shatters the wine-snob stereotypes with his intensely passionate - and occasionally profane - series of entertaining wine videos that have increased the Wine Library's annual revenues from $5M to $60M

3 key play points:

1. Think in terms of a sustained series, not merely one or two quick shoots
2. The combination of words, sound and visuals gives you an extraordinary opportunity for building a brand personality
3. "Perfect" production quality is NOT necessary; in fact, an imperfect realism can play in your favor (David can compete against Goliath)

Bonus Links:

• Q&A with Vimeo founder Zachary Klein from TippingPoint Labs
•  Will it Blend? from Blendtec
•  Video Blogging definition from Wikipedia
  

Chapter 16 - Podcast

Chapter 18 - e-Learning Series