Video is the hot marketing strategy right now.  Whenever a lot of people start using one strategy the key for YOU is to get creative so your video stands out and more importantly, your potential clients watch it.  You don’t want your video to get lost in the internet clutter.

Here’s 3 quick tips for Creating Engaging Video:

1.       Don’t just stand in front of a blank wall.  It works when you are just getting started but you’ll want to find a spot in your home office or home where there’s a lovely picture or bookcase.  I often will use my Vision Board as a backdrop.
2.       Use a flipchart.  Low-tech meets hi-tech!  Want to make 3 points in your video? You can use your flipchart (with clear big handwriting) to add interaction and movement.
3.       Show up a prop.  Do you offer a product or program?  Are you talking about a favorite book?  Talking about how simple something is?  Show it to us instead of just talking about it.

Social networking forced me to step out of my comfort zone and explore how much is okay to share. Then I began to think about my clients. What if they read this about me and it affected their opinion? Will they still want to work with me? Truly, this was unchartered territory for me.

Revealing parts about my life was uncomfortable. I felt very vulnerable. I had always been a private person. Connecting to others through social networking was more important to me than firmly holding onto my beliefs. Now was the time to step out of my comfort zone.

Okay, I was ready to do what was necessary. Of course, I made mistakes along the way. Sometimes I can be very opinionated. Other times I was resistant. Using video was one of the biggest hurdles to get past.

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When I sent out the announcement email this past week about having posted my new May issue of the pdf/print version of the Marketing Ink Newsletter, I also asked for feedback from my readers.

Since I asked, one of my readers, Barry, wrote and said this:

“I hate PDF newsletters and never open them … just giving you honest feedback.”

Thank you, Barry. I appreciate ALL feedback.

Hearing from each one of you brings me great joy and I especially like it when people really do give me honest feedback like Barry did. I want to know what you like along with what you dislike.

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Finding time to keep up with software developments, no matter what venue you’re talking about, can be a really big challenge. WordPress is a blogging platform (it’s the one we use) that is constantly evolving and improving.  One of my VA’s tasks is to check for updates that would apply to The Time Finder. That requires varying amounts of time on at least a weekly basis.
Because there is so much change, technically speaking, in the blogosphere, sites like Weblog Tools Collection are incredibly helpful.  Here you’ll find descriptions of the latest plugin releases, as well as themes.

Plugins are small software programs that extend the capabilities of WordPress (or any larger program).  Developers are constantly creating new plugins and modifying existing ones.  If you blog on WordPress, you’ve probably noticed that your plugins need to be updated frequently.  This is important if you want your blog to be in tip top shape.

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Here are three cool tools to fire up your business…

I take pride in sharing my latest web discoveries and online resources with my friends and close colleagues.  Disclosure: When I become a fan of these new finds, I usually sign up as an affiliate and receive a small commission on referrals.  I never promote stuff that I don’t test and use myself…

Still, with sooooo much stuff coming at us from every direction, it’s tough to separate the crap from the really useful marketing tools.  With that in mind, here are the web resources I’m most enthusiastic about recommending:

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Finding time to understand and use hashtags on Twitter had not been a big part of my Twitter practice ’til now, but it appears to definitely be worth the time investment.

In a post on Twitip last month, Marcus Emmanuel Barnes wrote titled “Why You Should Consider Using Hashtags” that helped me to think about hashtags differently.  I hope it’ll do the same for you.

One of the key concepts to help understand hashtags is to think of them as keywords or keyword tags.  If you have a website or blog, you are probably aware of keywords.  They are the “key” words that search engines will use to connect people who search for some combinations of those words to your information on the web.

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The Flip Video camera’s brilliance is in its simplicity. Just click the on switch, point and shoot! To record, press the big red button on the back of the Flip (you can’t miss it!) To stop recording, hit the red button again. It really is that simple!

The interface is basically the same whether you’re using the original, early model Flip Video, the popular Flip Ultra, or the new Flip Mino. Of course, each version has gotten a bit smaller, slicker and a bit more expensive.

As of this writing, the original Flip Video retails for $129.99 (USD), though we’ve seen it as low as $89! The original has 1GB memory and holds 60-minutes of video. The colorful Flip Ultra, in your choice of five, bright colors, has 2GB space and room for 60-minutes of video. The Ultra retails for $149,99 (USD). The newest addition to the Flip family is the Mino, also with 2GB and 60-minutes of video recording time. The Mino runs $179.99, but is smaller and has an internal battery. Earlier models require 2 AA batteries. The new Mino also adds some increased functionality, such as pause, fast-forward and rewind functions for playback.

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What do megastars Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey and Jennifer Aniston have in common? They’re all flipping out over Pure Digital’s Flip camera! Other Flip fanatics include Rosie O’Donnell, Pamela Anderson and the Barack Obama campaign…

It’s not just celebrities who are flipping over the Flip… Rave reviews have come in from all corners of the media world, from Time magazine, ABC News and Extra TV to the Wall Street Journal, CNN and USA Today.

With product evangelists like that, perhaps it’s no surprise that Pure Digital just sold their one millionth Flip Video Camcorder! The Flip has been the number one best-selling video camera on Amazon since its launch, and the camera’s popularity shows no signs of abating.

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We just helped a client install a new Wordpress blog, using version 2.9, and found that scheduled posting isn’t working like it should. This means that when you pre-write a post, and set it to publish on a certain day and time, the day and time passes, and no post appears.

In digging into this issue, it seems to be a problem with Wordpress 2.9, specifically the cron function.

There are several fixes you can try:

Option #1: If you’re technically minded, you can update your wp-includes/cron.php file, using the instructions found here: Fix missing posts in Wordpress

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If you do business on the Internet, then you’ve seen the emergence of Online Video as a powerful marketing tool. But did you know that Online Video can also be your “secret weapon” in the battle to buck the recession?

Using video to build your brand and promote your business – whether on the now ubiquitous YouTube or on your own website – actually attracts new customers and accelerates the sales process. There are several strong arguments for adding video to your marketing mix, but none more important than the simple fact that video boosts your business.

When you share a video with your potential customer, you instantly increase your “know, like and trust” factor. Projecting your personality and authenticity cane take months or years with text or email, but video is immediate and personal. Your prospects can see and hear the real you and, the sooner they feel they know you, the sooner they’ll buy from you!

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